If you were to do an image search using the query, you’ll be shown a graceful arch-supported structure used by trains and in a stunning mountain setting. Deep in the British Columbia Rockies it’s been the subject of hard earned photos and some are so impressive as to obtain icon status. Getting close is a serious undertaking – it’s bear central, remote, there’s route finding challenges in the dense woods, and let’s not forget precipitous drop offs. Other than that it’s a cake walk*. What you’ll see in this post is not it and instead the other, lesser known Stoney Creek Bridge.
This structure similarly supports trains and while not as visually appealing, it’s still impressive in its own right. It spans a deep canyon that must have caught railways builders by surprise and just appears out of nowhere. Train crews have quite the view crossing over and if you’re not a fan of heights, the look down must get the mind racing.
The Other Stoney Creek Bridge: just some time wasting fun with Chris Doering and Connie Biggart (BIGDoer/Synd)
“What if the train derails? Do you realize all that’s keeping us from tumbling over the edge, and certain death, is a little metal lip an inch or so deep on each wheel? That’s it!”
Scroll down for photos and to comment.
Trains tiptoe across, slowly, carefully and not because of any present danger, but rather for operational reasons. It’s just outside an area of congestion and limited visibility which necessitates lower operating speeds.
We’re in a little place called Tadanac and in the shadow of the Trail BC Smelter, an industrial complex of such size as to be mind-blowing. That stack! The area’s economy relies on this complex and always has, and it’s hard to miss as it’s just that huge. You think Trail and you think smelter – the two are forever linked.
Tadanac was once it’s own town, but now a community in Trail. Tadanac: Canada backwards plus T for Trail.
Unlike the other Stoney Creek Bridge (both support Canadian Pacific Trains, incidentally), this one’s easy to view thanks to a public road crossing right out front. There’s no grizzlies either.
Had we spun around (which would require work and thought) we could have shown you the Trail yard, inside the smelter property. It’s behind a fence and train crews have to open a gate when coming or going. From the bridge angle, it’s hard to see the goings on inside, and the property so big that there’s little to see anyway, so no loss there.
We’ve not found any data mentioning when the structure was built, but we did see photos of it going as far back at the 1930s. It could be older, however. One image showed a steam powered passenger train crossing and even back then it looked the same. Railways build things to last and change for them slow.
This railway line dead-ends in Trail and sees perhaps a couple trains per day, so it’s not terribly busy. It was put in during the 1890s and most of the traffic on the line has always been in some way connected to the Trail Smelter. They have a satellite plant nearby (at the very end of the CPR branch in Warfield) that process by-products of the smelting process.
That nuclear glow is caused by smoke coming from various North American forest fires. Damn, it was hot on this visit and our notes mention it being 35c when these photos were shot. That’s in the evening when things were cooler and during the day it felt like the whole world was going to burn up.
We shot a lot of stuff in the Trail area this adventure and the smelter is so huge that it became a backdrop for many of our photos. Search “Trail BC” on this site to see what we were up to this time and from previous visits. We like that area and hope to return again, as we’ve just scratched the surface.
*Don’t do it! Reports we’ve read suggest getting there requires some serious trespassing on railway property and that’s not a good idea.
(A long read) After twelve years it's time to put a face to the name and come clean on something. That's rarely-seen Chris in the photo, one half of Team BIGDoer, my best friend for almost thirty years and orchestrator of everything you see here. For his entire adult life, he's battled a deep depression.
Mostly it's manageable, but there are extended bouts where it's crippling and his life comes to a grinding halt. Sometimes there are days or weeks where he's lost. Sleep does not come easy at this time and further aggravates the issue. As he ages, it's worsening and seems intent on destroying him from the inside.
If you see a lack of posts here, or ones poorly worded, confusing or simply off, it's from one of these periods.
Through all this, he remains as kind, thoughtful and loving as ever, but is somewhere else. To the family, it's just Chris and accepted as it should be. The kids and grandkids adore him no less. Until today, however, this has been hidden from the outside world, although closer friends and some readers were probably already suspect of his condition. I hope admitting this does not break the site.
He finds clarity when we're out and doing things, hiking or documenting something historic and it's only THE reason this page and our website exists. It's therapy. Then he's a new and passionate person, but the monster as he calls it always returns. The Beer Parlour Project has brought out a side I've never seen and when out in the field he's never been so on point and confident.
This post is not for sympathy but to inform. Just so you know where he is and here's what you can do to help (a last ditch request)...
If you see a missed comma or oddly worded sentence in a post, please be kind. You'll probably see his uncertainty when he's off and be nice there too. But if you like what you see, even if the write up could be presented better, post your encouragement. Say something and say it loud...it's important and will keep him sharing. Help Chris get better by cheering him on.
Other than some photos that are mine, everything else comes from him. All the tiring research and the writing (he admits he's NOT a writer), are his.
Chris puts every dollar he makes into this "project of a lifetime", and it's supplemented by donations from readers who enjoy the content. If you want to help...
Admittedly he was not thrilled with the idea of posting this but agrees it probably should be said, even if it makes him uneasy. He doesn't like appearing in photos either. He's so shy, thinks he looks goofy and hates his husky eyes. I love them and they're windows into a wonderful, complex and quiet, but tortured soul. It breaks my heart when he's in a bad space.
This image comes thanks to photographer Arturo Pianzola and was captured while exploring the historic Riverview Mental Hospital in Coquitlam BC. Chris thought since he was in the area last year, he'd stop by to visit with a grandfather he never really knew, who spent his last years at the facility and is buried on the grounds.
Thanks for listening and your understanding. Hopefully we'll see you next week. Johanna (Connie).
Journey of Natty Gann (Disney 1985) and the same location in the Crowsnest Pass 2014. We're visiting the Pass over the new year, as we often do, and this time we'll be staying at a house that appears (briefly) in the film. How cool, eh? Chris has decided it's time on this visit to reshoot this and other Natty Gann comparison shots we did from ten years ago. Stay tuned!
This scene was shot in historic downtown Coleman and shows the former Holyk's Grocery. It was built in the early 1900s and the store closed in the '60s. _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Johanna (Connie).
From 2015. Rob Pohl and his strange old-style view camera joined us in documenting the Laing House (with permission). Head down to the comments to see an amazing coincidence with something I found inside.
From the Crossley slides, it's an undated view of Towers School, out near Cluny Alberta. It was originally called Swastika School but that's before the word and symbol were ruined by negative connotations. Built 1922. Gone? _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Chris.
The same alley in downtown Calgary's west end, in the 1970s & today. You have to look hard to see the connection! The area was quite run down back then and is in stark contrast to all the shiny condo towers seen present day. Calgary Place West, an apartment block, appears in both images although it's barely a sliver in ours. Check the comments for more info.
Photo credit: James Tworow collection. _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Chris.
Lost highways (2022): a section of old #93 in Southeastern BC. That BIGDoer-mobile is gone now but quite famous and had a following of its own. Old mine roads, cow paths, 4x4ing across fields - no problem and people would recognize us out in remote areas just by this car. _______
Exploring history with Chris & Connie from Off the Beaten Path. Thanks, Chris.
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