Our one-day run along the southern border of Saskatchewan continues.
Having left Rockglen in the west, we'll travel beyond the former end of the CPR Fife Lake Subdivision at Big Beaver.
We'll cross some 'badlands' (i.e. an area with no railways) and connect with the west end of the CPR Bromhead Sub.
* * *
Here are sections of the April 1950 CPR employee timetable.
* * *
Recap:
At around 07hr on September 12, 1989 we scraped the frost off the car
and began our run from Regina to Moose Jaw before turning south.
Shortly after reaching Assiniboia, we turned east.
The account resumes just before noon ...
(As always, you may need to scroll to the right for larger images.)
It's 1130hr and we make a quick stop to take this distant photo of Fife Lake.
At Coronach (above and below) there was no way to quickly get the sun behind the camera.
In 1989, a nearby surface mine provided coal to the Saskatchewan Power plant just south of Coronach.
Back then, the industrial short line rail-haul was done by two SW1001 locomotives (data: Canadian Trackside Guide).
* * *
Update: September 07, 2018
I appreciate Charles Bohi sending me this photo of the Coronach station.
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| Coronach, SK#1, CP Type 16 Depot, Look SE, June 1970, Bohi Photo |
End of September 07, 2018 update
* * *
Using internet resources in 2018 ...
(which may or may not be current to 2018)
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| 2018 screenprint from Westmoreland Coal website |
One or both of the water-filled shapes to the east of Coronach (foreground) may be the previous mine(s) in my 1989 photo.
You can see the mine-to-power-station private railway following the contours of the East Poplar River.
In 2018, an SD40-2 and an SD32-ECO are operated by Westmoreland Coal (data: Canadian Trackside Guide).
The image below overlaps the town area of the image above.
To the left of the blue '18' road marker beside the power station reservoir ...
is the junction switch between the former CPR Fife Lake Sub and the Westmoreland Coal railway.
... Obviously, it is handy to maintain a rail connection for their equipment.
When the Fife Lake Sub still ran east of here, I think it crossed the reservoir via the current road causeway
... you can see the abandoned right of way running south on the eastern side of the reservoir.
As you'll see, this area does not receive a lot of rain.
The power plant probably needs the reservoir to ensure there is adequate water
for steam turbines, cooling and for processing and settling coal ash.
While coal unit trains often run considerable distances to supply power stations,
an elegant engineering solution is to build the power plant at the mine
and transport the electricity ... rather than the coal.
Germany has some enormous lignite mines with power plants situated beside them.
* * *
Coal in the Prairies?
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| Atlas of Canada; 1915, Government of Canada. |
If you find the Poplar River on the map ... the future town of Coronach (and the railway line)
were probably located on the eastern fork of that river.
Fun geographical fact: Water from the Poplar River eventually flows into the Gulf of Mexico.
* * *
Calling on this reference from 1919 again ...
The article mentions lignite, which could be processed to produce gas ...
Back when coal was still in wide use for domestic heating and industrial steam generation ... lower grades of coal were processed to yield coal gas. The gas generation would be done locally by a city utility and piped into homes for use as a cooking fuel (before natural gas and long distance gas pipelines). The gas-generating residue might be oxidized to form almost pure carbon (coke) which could be made into briquets. Cleaner-burning coke was often used in caboose stoves, for example.
Canadian railways generally used higher grade bituminous coal in their locomotives.
* * *
At 1220hr we were rattling along Highway 18 between Coronach and Big Beaver.
... starting to get hungry.
Dude, is there somewhere around here where I can get a good latte and maybe a biscotti?
* * *
Big Beaver
Big Beaver turned out to be an example of a typical town of the Canadian Prairies in miniature.
As you saw above, it had once been the eastern terminal of the Fife Lake Subdivision.
With the minimal research done before this trip, it was a surprise to find that the track was gone.
Above, my camera looks from Railway Avenue to false-fronted buildings on extra-wide Centre Street.
As you saw above, it had once been the eastern terminal of the Fife Lake Subdivision.
With the minimal research done before this trip, it was a surprise to find that the track was gone.
Above, my camera looks from Railway Avenue to false-fronted buildings on extra-wide Centre Street.
Standing on the old railway roadbed at the east end of town, you can see an enduring railway artifact - the stock pens.
The chute up to stock car floor level for railway loading is visible.
The stock pens endure on circa 2018 Google images of Big Beaver below.
Beyond are the white buildings of Centre Street.
As I write this, I don't know if Big Beaver ever had a grain elevator.
* * *
Big Beaver in 2018 Google Images
(which may not be current to 2018)
In the oblique view of the east end of town, above,
you can see the unnamed north-south road from which I photographed the roadbed.
To the east, the track ended near that cut and pond.
In the left foreground are the remains of the stock pens.
Now looking at the west end of town, you can see the wye.
Considering the subdivision footnotes about equipment on the wye,
there must have been a risk of shoving derailments because of curvature and grade.
Below, just west of Big Beaver, is an interesting and typical bit of civil engineering on a prairie branch line ...
With Big Beaver in the extreme top right corner of the image,
you can see the track west of town follows the local drainage pattern.
Taking a circuitous but elegant route to reach a small town,
the line meanders back and forth.
Rotated slightly clockwise, and viewed from directly overhead, you can see the engineered curves
of the former railway line following the rough, meandering creek bed.
Damage to the unmaintained roadbed suggests that the creek and its tributaries are not always dry.
* * *
Update After Posting
August 28, 2018
Through my brother, Eric Gagnon, I received these two photos from Mr. Charles Bohi today ...
Below, is the Big Beaver townsite seen in Google Earth circa 2018.
The road at the right runs north.
The stock pens (painted white/whitewashed) are seen in Mr Bohi's top photo - immediately east of the Paterson elevator.
These two elevator photos gave me a reason to examine the local geography a little more ...
* * *
September 7, 2018 update.
I appreciate these additional photos from Charles Bohi.
On the timetables, Big Beaver was at the end of the Fife Lake Subdivision - this view is east of the town (i.e. the end of the line).
This view suggesting that the CPR had been planning to continue this line through to the Bromhead Sub is particularly interesting!
Fife Lake Sub construction data furnished by Mr Bohi:
1927: 59.5 miles completed.
1929: 20.2 miles completed.
End of September 7, 2018 update.
* * *
The Big Muddy Badlands, the Short Grass Prairie
and other neat stuff.
The chute up to stock car floor level for railway loading is visible.
The stock pens endure on circa 2018 Google images of Big Beaver below.
Beyond are the white buildings of Centre Street.
As I write this, I don't know if Big Beaver ever had a grain elevator.
* * *
Big Beaver in 2018 Google Images
(which may not be current to 2018)
you can see the unnamed north-south road from which I photographed the roadbed.
To the east, the track ended near that cut and pond.
In the left foreground are the remains of the stock pens.
Considering the subdivision footnotes about equipment on the wye,
there must have been a risk of shoving derailments because of curvature and grade.
Below, just west of Big Beaver, is an interesting and typical bit of civil engineering on a prairie branch line ...
you can see the track west of town follows the local drainage pattern.
Taking a circuitous but elegant route to reach a small town,
the line meanders back and forth.
of the former railway line following the rough, meandering creek bed.
Damage to the unmaintained roadbed suggests that the creek and its tributaries are not always dry.
* * *
Update After Posting
August 28, 2018
Through my brother, Eric Gagnon, I received these two photos from Mr. Charles Bohi today ...
"In coverage of the Fife Lake Sub someone (I think it was you) wondered if there were elevators at Big Beaver. Shots are attached. Hope they are of use to you. It is amazing how much difference being in the area in 1980 could make. Distant shot of Big Beaver looks NW. Closer in shot looks east."
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| Big Beaver, SK#3, Elevator Row from Distance, Look NW, April 1981, Bohi Photo. |
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| Big Beaver, SK#6, SWP Elevator #879 and Federal Elevator, Look NE, July 1984, Bohi Photo. |
Below, is the Big Beaver townsite seen in Google Earth circa 2018.
The road at the right runs north.
The stock pens (painted white/whitewashed) are seen in Mr Bohi's top photo - immediately east of the Paterson elevator.
These two elevator photos gave me a reason to examine the local geography a little more ...
Is the 'rule of thumb' operating in the Big Beaver example? ... That branch lines and elevators were built so that most farmers would not have to haul their grain more than 10 miles?
Above, I marked the three last 1950-era stations on the Fife Lake Sub. - with Big Beaver being the end of the line.
Minton is the terminal of the next branch line to the east - the Bromhead Sub. The red lines are 10 miles in length - forming those 10 mile radius circles for the farmers. However, farmers didn't haul grain 'as the crow flies'.
I did not include Google's highways on this map. The yellow line is the US border. For scale, the smallest uniform square of land you see is 1/2 mile wide ... or as they'd say on the Prairies 'a quarter section'.
For a town we visited for perhaps 10 minutes, Big Beaver has always interested me and I appreciate Mr. Bohi's help in solving its mysteries.
End of the August 28, 2018 update.
* * *
September 7, 2018 update.
I appreciate these additional photos from Charles Bohi.
 |
| Big Beaver, SK#11, Paterson Elevator, Look NE, July 1984, Bohi Photo |
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| Big Beaver, SK, End of Track Fife Lake Sub. Supposed to be connected to Bromhead Sub at Minton, Look SW, July 1984, Bohi Photo |
This view suggesting that the CPR had been planning to continue this line through to the Bromhead Sub is particularly interesting!
Fife Lake Sub construction data furnished by Mr Bohi:
1927: 59.5 miles completed.
1929: 20.2 miles completed.
End of September 7, 2018 update.
* * *
The Big Muddy Badlands, the Short Grass Prairie
and other neat stuff.
This unusual landscape is part of the 'Big Muddy Badlands'.
Looking closely at my original scan, that seems to be a perfectly good new swather for cutting hay in the field.
As you know, much of the arable area of the Prairies was under a glacial sea at some point. As the glaciers receded, the underlying land was altered by sedimentation and changing drainage patterns ... Massive amounts of water were standing over the land and littering it with dead 'sea animals', and living and dead aquatic plants. Then, the receding glacial sheet allowed water to whoosh around and erode the land as it revealed new drainage routes for the water. On the Prairies, not all land was created equal ...
Another significant geographical feature of this area is the amount of precipitation received. Looking at the level of growth this late in the season (September) I'd say this is 'short grass prairie'. In an average year, virtually all rain is received in the spring, the grasses and other plants grow as best they can ... When the hot dry summer comes ... they go to sleep ... They reproduce when it works best for them ... and that's pretty much it for their life cycle ...
The local plants have never aspired to the Greatness of Wheat - with robust growth and a super-abundance of large seeds for export across some ocean to feed The Empire. They're content right here.
The local plants have never aspired to the Greatness of Wheat - with robust growth and a super-abundance of large seeds for export across some ocean to feed The Empire. They're content right here.
... Combine lots of sea life calcium exoskeleton residue together with very little rain ... and you probably get something like this ... a soil that is more alkaline (i.e. with a higher pH). If the groundwater is near the surface, you'll have all sorts of 'bad' alkaline water coming up by capillary action through the soil. There are ways to reclaim the soil so you can farm here ... but maybe you'd prefer some land along the Canadian Northern Railway?
When you see photos of steam locomotives with white 'bad water' stains on them, it is probably from filling their tenders with alkali water from tanks at places like Big Beaver. However, I've never filled a locomotive tender at Big Beaver myself, so that shouldn't stop you.
Now running north on Highway 6 at 13hr, we see an alkali lake near Minton.
This is probably West Coteau Lake.
With the previous description of glacial sea beds and coal, you may not be surprised by this sight.
Because we had just planned to survey the rail lines near the border, we weren't expecting this.
Long before the 'fracking revolution' here are oil wells north of Highway 18 near Gladmar.
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| Atlas of Canada; 1981; Reader's Digest. |
At 1330hr, we've arrived at Lake Alma on the CPR Bromhead Sub.
The rail was Algoma 85lb from 1920.
We are looking timetable east.
In the next segment, we'll be travelling through Estevan on our way back to Portage.
Hopefully we'll stop for lunch, too.