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The Rocky Mountaineer

A Train Journey of a Lifetime.

Story by Neil Zeller August 15th, 2014

All Aboard!

Define Luxury.

This trip. Truly.

And casual, and fine, and so many other adjectives. But at the core this trip was a dream come true. Ranked as one of the world best train trips in the world, my family and I were lucky enough to find our way aboard the Rocky Mountaineer in May 2014. After a wonderful night in Banff, which included a beautiful dinner with our hosts for this trip, Martin and Heather Flanagan of CanadaRail.Ca, we were whisked by shuttle down to the train station to await the arrival of our train that would be our transport for the next two days.

From the time we entered the station, we were treated like gold. The friendly staff were accommodating and efficient. Before we knew it, the train rolled up and we were loaded up into the spacious and beautiful GoldLeaf bi-level dome car. After a fun and informative introduction to our crew, we toasted our journey and were on our way. A three course breakfast was served in the lower dining room to the first half of our car mates, while the other half enjoyed coffee and pastries above us while the incredible views melted by for all of us!


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The people

As warm a welcome that we received from our crew, it was the other guests who made this a trip to remember for us. We met amazing people from all over the world who became our extended family for the next two days. (And beyond)

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Scenery from day 1, Banff to Kamloops

It is impossible to include all the amazing photos from each day. I have included a few favorites from our journey over the continental divide at Field, BC, where snow covered peaks, tunnels and precipitous cliffs dominated, then to a more subdued but no less incredible landscape of the Golden, Revelstoke and Shuswap Lake areas.

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Scenery from day 2, Kamloops to Vancouver

From Kamloops, we start in the Thompson River Valley, winding our way through rugged interior BC desert scenes. Once we connected with the Fraser River at Lytton, we were treated to a more lush setting, but still in wild valleys. Walls of rock, raging rivers, waterfalls and tunnels were the order of the day. At Hope, we drop right down into the fertile farmlands of the Lower Mainland, where we whisk our way toward our final destination in downtown Vancouver.


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Dining

The multi-course breakfasts and lunches were exquisite. With a varied menu at each seating, including a vegetarian choice at every meal, we looked forward to our turn in the dining car. When we weren’t being served proper meals below in the dining room, the dome car service up above had everything from coffees and teas to craft beers and local wines, from pastries and treats to cheeses and crackers, there was no way to image a better dining experience.

We were late arriving in Kamloops due to track congestion along the way and rather than us having to look for late night fare once we arrived, the chefs whipped us up a delicious butter chicken dish and served us at our dome car seats. They even went so far as accommodating my six year old’s less then established palate with a wonderful grilled cheese and warm kettle chips plate.

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The end

For me, the end of the trip was an emotional experience. I was glad for the trip in a way that is hard to explain. 2 days seems like a fast trip, but it felt like a lifetime of wonderful memories. I didn’t want the trip to be over but it seemed like it was the exact right time to be over at the same time. It’s difficult to explain, but the memories of the moments on the train tend to wash over me even still.


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Footnote: Thank you to CanadaRail.ca for this incredible opportunity. I was invited aboard this train trip with my family, to capture in my own way, this amazing journey from start to finish.