And so, on Thursday, September 26, your editor and a fellow WCRA member, Dave Killeen, set off as regular passengers aboard BC Rail’s Cariboo Prospector for the daily round trip to Lillooet. Our train, interestingly, was two of the original six cars built for the Pacific Great Eastern, RDC-3 #BC 30 and RDC-1 #BC 11. A good crowd boarded at 0650 at the North Vancouver station, while CRS-20 #604 and slug did switching alongside our consist on the other track. We were quite a typical group of passengers, with lots of day trippers to Whistler, a tour group of Asians bound for Whistler, several just going for the scenery and the ride (including tourists from Britain, the US and Germany), and some going to points along the way for a variety of reasons. Although not sold out, I would estimate the load factor at 90%.

We departed at 0701, and enjoyed the scenery along Howe Sound to Squamish. Breakfast was served by Horseshoe Bay, consisting of a cold pack of muffin, juice and yogurt, with coffee and tea service poured. Chris was our host and did a good job on the PA, outlining history, scenic points and stories along the way. At Squamish, a southbound freight waited our passing lead by Dash 9-44CW #4648 and Dash 8-40CM #4615. Although we passed right by the Heritage Park and our open car Mount Garibaldi was visible on our spur, there was no mention of it made.

We climbed the spectacular grade through the Cheakamus Canyon to the oohs and ahs of passengers, and arrived Whistler early at 0930. Here 56 passengers disembarked, while 18 got on. Whistler south is where the load factor is high. As we were early, we had a 15 minute stop before departing at 0945. During the break, a CBC TV crew boarded and interviewed some of the train staff, then they video’d us departing from the platform.

We continued on schedule, had a spectacular view of the salmon spawning in the Birkenhead River, and arrived Darcy siding where we met a southbound freight with Dash 8-40CMs’ 4606 / 4622 / 4603 on the point and a work train on the other side track with Dash 8-40CM’s #4607 / 4618 and SD40-2 #758. Continued along the lakes with frequent stops for passengers, arrived Lillooet on time at 1243 in a rain shower.

There is now ample time to explore Lillooet as the afternoon departure back is not until 1645, so we strolled the town, had lunch, checked out the museum during three hour plus layover. The museum had photo books of the construction and early years of the PGE, as well as a “Save the Prospector Train” petition. A “Circle Museum Tour” brochure that included both the West Coast Railway Heritage Park and BC Museum of Mining (as well as others museums between Lillooet and Vancouver) was available.

We’re back at the station by 1530 and meet and chat to several interesting people, including an author doing a book on the Milwaukee Road in Washington State. A southbound freight led by Dash 9-44CW’s #4649 / 4642 and Dash 8-40CM #4608, with sister #4613 mid train arrives and pulls to a stop with the tail end clearing the station switch. We await the arrival of the Prince George section of the Prospector, which arrives at 1600 with RDC-3 #BC 31 and an RDC-1 (either BC-10 or BC-15, not positively identified). We board (large crowd) and now have a very full four car train out of Lillooet, depart at 1615 by reversing out of the station and running through the yard around the recently arrived freight. The two new “Rail buses” which will serve the lakes after the end of the Budds are noted, they are small aluminum speeder like vehicles, single operator with bus seats, un-insulated aluminum with single pane large windows and fiberglass roofs (see photo, page 28).

We travel back along Seton and Anderson Lakes, dropping off several passengers, and arrive at Darcy at 1740. The work train is out on the line and we are held while track equipment arrives back and enters the siding, followed by the power set of 4607 / 4618 / 758 that we saw this morning. We depart Darcy at 1803, now 33 minutes off schedule. At Gates Lake we take the siding, this time for a meet with a northbound freight with Dash 8-40CM’s #4626 / 4601 for power, then continue on our way. Dinner is served, a cold pack with Chicken Caesar salad, roll and dessert, coffee and tea service. We are through Pemberton at 1854, and by the time we arrive Whistler at 1934 it is dark.

The remainder of the trip south is in darkness. We are through Squamish at 2040 where we meet freight #4616 north, then we have a rolling meet at Brunswick with #4602 north. Into West Vancouver where the lights of the area start to shine through the darkness, and into North Vancouver station with arrival at 2200 hours. The crowd gets off, the taxis and bus get lots of passengers, and another day of the Cariboo Prospector is over.

It has been a great day and one which will not be repeated much longer. Several of the weekend trips for the final days of this train are already sold out. We’ll miss the splendid scenery, jovial crews, and the special ambiance that only a Budd car train has. While we hope to be able to still operate our own train over these rails, and perhaps even ride on some other operator’s train in the future, this really is the end of an era. Budd RDC’s suited this line perfectly, and have done the route justice and served it well for over 46 years. That’s some record if you consider that the PGE was first opened in 1912. The Budd RDC cars have operated for more than half the railway’s history!