Village Squire, 1980-02, Page 21TRAVEL
The snow
train tour
Where do you go if you want a winter
holiday, but you've decided you'd rather
see snow and scenery than sunshine and
sand? The answer might be a ride on one
of the province's newest winter attractions -
the Snow Train tour that offers an
exhilarating panorama of Algoma Country
in a mantle of snow.
1 Many Ontario residents have already
experienced the fall Agawa Canyon tour,
with the breathtaking views of autumn
colours and the exciting crossings above
the Batchawa and Montreal Rivers, several
hundred feet below the railroad trestles.
Now, each Saturday and Sunday from
the end of December through March,
Algoma Central Railroad's Snow Train
provides the traveller with a chance to see
how snow and frost change the face of the
otherwise inaccessible wilderness.
The Snow Train leaves Sault Ste. Marie
in the morning and arrives back late in the
afternoon, after providing travellers with a
full day of sightseeing in winter's
wonderland.
The first breathtaking view on the
excursion is a look back at snow-covered
Sault Ste. Marie, home of the world's
busiest shipping locks. Fifteen minutes
later, both the city and the Great Lakes are
far behind, and the train is crossing the
beautiful Bellevue Valley on a trestle 100
feet above the ground and 810 feet long.
The braver sightseers on board can see
almost 300 feet below into the gorge where
the power station supplying Sault Ste.
Marie's electricity is located.
Once the Bellevue Valley is behind it,
the train descends 500 feet or over 19
kilometres, to the floor of the Agawa
Canyon where the gorge narrows until
there seems to be barely enough room for
the track and the Agawa River between the
white -covered rocks of the canyon wall.
1 he luckier sightseers on board may
catch a glimpse of ice fishermen on the
frozen lakes, of a trapper on snowshoes
making his rounds or may even spot some
of the area's wildlife.
Since the atmosphere is so invigorating,
appetites are likely to be pi qued, so the
dining car steward has steaming bowls of
chili or hot meat pies ready to meet this
need.
When the train reaches the settlement of
Eton, or Mile 120 on the line, the coaches
and dining car are switched to the
southbound train for the return journey.
You can ride in a warm, picture -window
coach relaxing in a reclining seat, while
temperatures outside may be as low as 40
degrees below zero and the landscape may
be a whirl of white.
Tours leave the Sault Ste. Marie depot
every Saturday and Sunday, December
29 through March 30, at 8:30 a.m.
returning at 4:30 p.m. Reservations are
required for the scenic tour and can be
made by telephoning the Algoma Central
Railway at 705-254-4331 well in advance.
Adult fares for the tour are $17, children
five years through high school age travel
for S9 and children under five travel free
You are invited
to come to the factory
and see the quality
for yourself.
FACTORY OPEN FOR INSPECTION
•
NORTHLANDER
WEEKDAYS 8:30-11:30 a.m., 1-3 p.m.
OR BY APPOINTMENT.
A complete line of 12
and 14 wides now available.
Now also building
Commercial; Industrial Units.
An alternate form of
farm housing, custom
designed and built to
your requirements.
-Canada's ttnest-
Manufactured in Canada by
Custom Trailers Ltd.,
165 Thames Rd. E.
Exeter, Ontario [Box 190]
15191235-1530 Telex 064-5815
VILLAGE SQUIRE/FEBRUARY 1980 PG. 19