2 - 4 OCTOBER - ROCKY MOUNTAINEER RAIL TOURS

Weather: very cold (2 deg C).

Brrr... hello Canada!!! We only had one day to explore Vancouver, so we set off on a cold and sometimes rainy day. We did a bit of shopping and at the end of the day headed back to our hotel where we had dinner and hit the sack. Tomrrow was to be the start of our Rocky Mountaineer adventure that would take us from Vancouver in the morning with an overnight stay in Kamloops then on to Banff then eventually Calgary where our adventure would end on 6 October.

Where to start? Oh... if you ever, ever, EVER get the chance to do this tour, it's an absolute MUST and you MUST go by gold leaf.

Our morning on 3 October began with many of us huddled by the fireplace in the foyer of our hotel, where we were collected and put onto a nice, warm coach. We arrived at the train station (this was still early .. around 6.30am) where we eventually found our way to our carriage. Ever seen a dome carriage? Gold leaf carriages are "dome carriages" where the bottom "floor" is for dining and the top "floor" is for viewing.

Hey - that's us!!!

Our hosts were Bernadette, Sarah, Colleen and David. If you guys are reading this - G'Day from WA :)

During the two days of our trip we were spoiled and pampered with freshly brewed coffee and tea, pastries, mimosas, tasty choices from the menus for breakfast and lunch, cheese, bikkies and wines, humour (especially from David during meal times) and a warm, friendly atmosphere from our hosts and fellow-travellers.

As the train wound its way alongside the picturesque Fraser and Thompson Rivers we watched the most spectacular scenery go by. Australia is the driest continent on earth and for us to see this magnificence surround us was quite an experience. Anyone out there who has already done this trip will fully understand what I mean.


I took many photographs; these are just some of the views from our dome carriage.

More photos here ... the one to the left is of the swing bridge over the Fraser River near New Westminster. That's the front of our train. The picture to the right is of Hell's Gate - the narrowest part of the Fraser River.

We stayed overnight at Kamloops where we watched a musical review by the Two River Junction Show "The Tale of Billy Miner".

The next day saw us leave Kamloops with a temperature of 2 deg C (cold for us Aussies!!) It was fuh-fuh-fuh-freezing and we looked forward to the warm comfort of our dome carriage for the day. We weren't disappointed and were greeted by our smiling hosts with hot coffee on our arrival followed by breakfast.


This anonymous poem was apparently penned by a former passenger. Towards the end of the trip, all passengers were invited to write their own poem. Joe and Anna, our new friends from Singapore who sat across the aisle from us, wrote about David's antics during meal times, and of the food we were served (which was mouth-watering, at all times!!). It was hilarious and cracked the whole carriage up with laughter. Kevin and I penned the following.

Where maple leaves abundant grow,
and mountain peaks are covered in snow.
There is a train that winds its way
to make it the most magnificant day.
The service that you will receive
is beyond anything to be believed.
So grab your hat and grab your gear,
we're going on the Rocky Mountaineer.

For our efforts (and Joe's and Anna's) we were awarded with the "Order of the Salmon" pin and poem (above) and shown the secret handshake, which we practised in front of everyone. It's a secret so I can't tell you how to do it. You have to be awarded the Order of the Salmon first, anyway :)

Here are some more pics...

We arrived in Banff at around 5.00pm on the second day, which marked the end of our Rocky Mountaineer Railtour. We were tired but sad to be leaving what we considered to be one of the best experiences we'd had. Our thanks go to our hosts and to Rocky Mountaineer Railtours for a memorable experience.

After booking in to our hotel and collecting our hire car, (a Buick!!) the next phase of our holiday began Banff to Calgary .