CP 2816 "Empress" steams to Montreal

[downbeat]

http://www.railpictures.net/showphotos.php?userid=822

Follow the link for a few of the pictures I took of the special CP train headed by 2816 Empress (steam locomotive).

I was aboard the 9 a.m. excursion from Lucien L'Allier to Lachine and back. There was quite the crowd, and there were more lining the station platforms at Montreal West to see the train passing by.

2816's last job in regular service was to pull commuter trains between Windsor Station and Rigaud. Some of the cars on those trains are still being used today (AMT 800 series). Three of those cars were in Sunday's consist.

[Montreal Ltd]

Here is the consist of the train from Vancouver to Smiths Falls. The diesels were taken off at Smiths Fall and ran to Montreal separately.

2816 H1b 4-6-4
35508 “Canteen” car, ex D&H Challenger tender
3084 GP38-2
1401 FP9a
1900 F9b
401753 Stage car
29114 Ex-express boxcar for equipment
96 Auxiliary car
101 Coach “Dominion”, ex BCR, ex CN
102 Coach “Smoke Smith”, ex BCR, ex CN
BCR 1711 4-8-4 steam staff sleeper "H.B Bowen", ex CN
70 Business car Assiniboine (platform rear)
95 Ex-baggage, power car for RCP
73 Business car Mount Royal (platform front) RCP staff
71 Business car Killarney (platform front) RCP staff
79 Sleeper N.R. Crump
82 Business car Strathcona ex Kingsmere (platform front)
77 Business car Van Horne (platform rear)
84 Sleeper Banffshire
78 Business car Royal Wentworth ex Wentworth (platform front)
85 Diner Craigellachie
74 Day business car Mount Stephen (platform rear)

The last 10 cars are the "Royal Canadian Pacific" which normally travels through the Rocky Mountains with the heritage diesels. The others are part of the Empress 2816 train, except Assiniboine which normally serves executives. Business car Lacombe is normally assigned to this train. The excursions used the Empress cars, plus the 800 series coaches. Did anybody get the numbers of these cars? AMT equipment doesn't have AEI tags so I haven't been able to identify them.

[downbeat]

The first two AMT cars were 805 and 826.