Day 2 features another early start, as we hop back on the train for a fortifying breakfast and a promise from our attendants of the trip's most jaw-dropping vistas. Rocky Mountaineer's two original Kicking Horse and Yellowhead routes deliver archetypically lush B.C. scenery, but this new service skirts the top of the mammoth, desert-like Fraser Canyon.
With the silty river roiling far below us, and passengers glued to their windows, we curve slowly around the steep cliffs of Deep Creek and Painted Chasm, inching across slender trestle bridges that include North America's second-highest railway crossing.
After the vertiginous excitement, the scenery for the rest of the day is a calming cavalcade starring the Coastal Mountain range, flagpole-straight birch forests and a smattering of cattle ranches. We snake past several towering peaks, many symmetrically reflected in the turquoise waters of Seton Lake.
As the end of the afternoon approaches and our car's two attendants serve their final appetizers and glasses of B.C. wine, we approach the mega-condos and vacation villas of Whistler. For some, this is the end of the road, but many others are spending a night here before continuing to Vancouver on the region's other new train.
Departing at a more civilized 2:30 p.m. the next day, the Whistler Mountaineer combines several high-ceilinged 1950s cars, refurbished with modern interiors, and a restored 92-year-old heritage carriage that's now an open-air observation deck.
After an afternoon tea of finger sandwiches and warm scones, served in the first-class Glacier Dome car, I head straight to the observation carriage and spend almost the entire afternoon there. All passengers have access to this car, but attendants are on-hand to rein in those trying to hang over the sides by their ankles.
The trip's first hour lingers alongside whitewater rivers and steep-sided canyons, offering a glimpse of the spectacular Brandywine Falls. Although the route is only 118 kilometres, the train is slowed by the winding track, the wheels squealing in protest at every turn.
After passing through the fast-growing town of Squamish, the wind picks up as the Pacific suddenly bursts into view. The train hugs a narrow shelf here between Howe Sound and sheer cliffs for the remainder of the route. While bears are rare sightings from the train in this area, it's not unusual to see seals bobbing off the coast, where the distant peaks of some of the larger Gulf Islands can also be spotted.
With an abrupt downpour a sure sign that Vancouver is close — storm watching by rail may be Rocky Mountaineer's next venture — the city's compact tower-block vista looms ahead. There's no one to welcome us in the back gardens of posh West Van, but as we slide through the busy centre of North Vancouver, dozens of grinning locals stop to wave us to our final destination.
Rocky Mountaineer Vacations: rockymountaineer.com; 1-800-665-7245. Fraser Discovery services run three times weekly in each direction until Oct. 14. One-way prices are from $549 in Red Leaf class and $1,129 in Gold Leaf class. Whistler Mountaineer trains run daily in each direction until Oct. 16. Prices are from $99 one-way, $179 return.
With the silty river roiling far below us, and passengers glued to their windows, we curve slowly around the steep cliffs of Deep Creek and Painted Chasm, inching across slender trestle bridges that include North America's second-highest railway crossing.
After the vertiginous excitement, the scenery for the rest of the day is a calming cavalcade starring the Coastal Mountain range, flagpole-straight birch forests and a smattering of cattle ranches. We snake past several towering peaks, many symmetrically reflected in the turquoise waters of Seton Lake.
As the end of the afternoon approaches and our car's two attendants serve their final appetizers and glasses of B.C. wine, we approach the mega-condos and vacation villas of Whistler. For some, this is the end of the road, but many others are spending a night here before continuing to Vancouver on the region's other new train.
Departing at a more civilized 2:30 p.m. the next day, the Whistler Mountaineer combines several high-ceilinged 1950s cars, refurbished with modern interiors, and a restored 92-year-old heritage carriage that's now an open-air observation deck.
After an afternoon tea of finger sandwiches and warm scones, served in the first-class Glacier Dome car, I head straight to the observation carriage and spend almost the entire afternoon there. All passengers have access to this car, but attendants are on-hand to rein in those trying to hang over the sides by their ankles.
The trip's first hour lingers alongside whitewater rivers and steep-sided canyons, offering a glimpse of the spectacular Brandywine Falls. Although the route is only 118 kilometres, the train is slowed by the winding track, the wheels squealing in protest at every turn.
After passing through the fast-growing town of Squamish, the wind picks up as the Pacific suddenly bursts into view. The train hugs a narrow shelf here between Howe Sound and sheer cliffs for the remainder of the route. While bears are rare sightings from the train in this area, it's not unusual to see seals bobbing off the coast, where the distant peaks of some of the larger Gulf Islands can also be spotted.
With an abrupt downpour a sure sign that Vancouver is close — storm watching by rail may be Rocky Mountaineer's next venture — the city's compact tower-block vista looms ahead. There's no one to welcome us in the back gardens of posh West Van, but as we slide through the busy centre of North Vancouver, dozens of grinning locals stop to wave us to our final destination.
Rocky Mountaineer Vacations: rockymountaineer.com; 1-800-665-7245. Fraser Discovery services run three times weekly in each direction until Oct. 14. One-way prices are from $549 in Red Leaf class and $1,129 in Gold Leaf class. Whistler Mountaineer trains run daily in each direction until Oct. 16. Prices are from $99 one-way, $179 return.
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