With all the trains that come through Cranbrook going east, I’m wondering how many of them end up just outside Medicine Hat in Dunsmore. How big is the railyard there? Is there a crew change in Dunsmore and a siding for engines to wait for the next order? It’s a place I’d like to spend a few hours train watching.
First thing, it’s “Dunmore”.
It is situated east of Medicine Hat, AB, on the Maple Creek Sub., to avoid having to go down into the valley where Medicine Hat is located. Trains leaving the main line and going down the Taber Sub. and returning to the mainline change crews there. The crews are driven there from the Hat.
I’m not sure of the size of the yard there, but it is unexpectedly large for such a location, unless you understand the reasoning behind it. One thing I would like to know myself is, is the station building there still being used for anything? I have seen pictures from the 1980’s (early '90’s?) when it was still manned by Operators. It is the same structure type as our station at Hatton, SK, which was thirty some miles east of Dunmore.
Bruce
EDIT: I just did an image search on Yahoo and found no pictures of the CPR station. But not surprisingly, there were a lot of interesting rail photos.
The yard at DUNMORE is @ 1.6 miles long and 3/4 mile wide with about 12 to 15 tracks, a fairly substantial yard which I never knew existed, also there seems to be the largest auto salvage yard in Canada.
I zoomed up and down the tracks on google earth and couldn’t seem to find anything that looked like a station, so I suppose it is either moved or demolished.
tatans, thanks. I was going to try the same thing myself, if I could have found the time.
Bruce