My baby takes the mornin' train ...

It’s decrepit in a funky (almost charming) way, and it shudders and rolls from side to side, added to which it makes odd (and one hopes not ominous) noises as it wends its way along to its hoped-for destination some 135 miles distant.

I’m referring to the E&N (Esquimalt and Nanaimo) ‘Dayliner’. This is the single diesel unit railway coach that runs from Victoria on Vancouver Island to Courtenay (the end of the line) and then back again to Victoria on a daily basis, come rain, shine, snow, sleet, flood or earthquake. This aged relic is the last vestige of the first transcontinental railroad in Canada and it came into being in return for British Columbia’s agreement to join the Canadian Confederation – which to this day isn’t deemed an agreeable situation in many minds in these parts.

Politics notwithstanding – or, in truth, maybe ‘withstanding’ – the feds, or their railroad handmaiden, Via Rail (Canada’s Amtrak, so you know what I mean), have been trying to kill the E&N for decades now. They don’t like it. It doesn’t turn a profit (as if any passenger service does), and what the hell do they care about the transportation concerns of a handful of people in the never-never land. It pisses them off that they were able to kill the ‘Newfie Bullet’ in Newfoundland (leaving that province without rail service), but they haven’t been able to do it on the west coast. Pisses them off indeed that the courts have always found that they would be wise to honor a century and a quarter old undertaking, or that all sorts of shit would be flying around the corridors of power in consequence.

So, as a relief to Vancouver Islanders and others who have used the service, the old, old, old ‘Budd’ cars still ply the wavy and bumpy rails each day. Of course, Via’s way of continuing to give the finger has been their steadfast refusal to replace the rolling stock with something that even resembles late 20th century, let a lone 21st. Oblivious to any considerations of the environmental virtues of mass transit so that travelers can eschew their cars (don’t these morons read the papers?) they would rather we fire up private vehicles to make our trips up and down the Island. It is testament to the E&N’s mechanics in Victoria that they are able to, with spit, baling wire, curses, and pirating from one diesel unit to another, keep these relics running.

And I, for one, am happy they can, and I hope they shall always be able to.

Lately I’ve had occasion to ride the old E&N numerous times. Business in Victoria has made it necessary to do a sort of commute on an irregular basis. It’s winter, so the driving is challenging, what with sleet, fog, heavy rains and all the other elements of inclemency. So, I’ve been taking the train. Not a challenge for me. I love trains and all the romance associated with the old ribbons of steel. I have traveled across the continent by rail, along the southern California coast, throughout Europe and the UK, and their enchantment never leaves me. Added to which I find, with no suggestion of snobbery (OK, some) that you get a higher caliber of passenger on the train rather than on a bus, say.

So, I embark at Courtenay and sit back for the ensuing four hours. The Dayliner doesn’t travel at breakneck speed (not even at the mildest whiplash speed), but that’s OK. I read the paper, do the NYT crossword, and look out the window. For the first hour or so it’s mainly scrubby forest. If you’re lucky, you might see deer, elk or black bears. This is ‘their’ turf, after all. Farther south the train runs along the water for a few miles. It stops at little stations, and lets on or picks up passengers. There are also designated whistle stops out in the wilds, where the conductor will honor any request stop. There’s no arrogance or bloody-mindedness about the E&N conductors. To a one they seem to be great guys. They josh with passengers, tease kids, admonish students to keep up with their studies.

The highlight on the Vancouver Island trip, in terms of scenery, would be the so-called ‘Malahat’ just north of Victoria. This is a spectacular hike by the old train into the high hills. The Malahat is a horrible road trip, but it’s a delight by rail, especially when going across the two major canyon trestles along the route. The drop to the stream below is not soothing to the acrophobic, especially in light of the fact you cannot see the actual trestle, just the sheer expanse of air before the rocks and tiny creek below.

If you’re seeking a different vacation, and you find yourself in Victoria sometime, give the Dayliner a try. You won’t regret this jostling step back in time. Check it out at: http://www.viarail.ca/trains/en_trai_roch_vico.html.