Kaslo & Slocan Rwy connections

[Dave Eggleston]

Dave, welcome!

The only other "mainstream" book I know that covers the K&S is Gerry Doekson's Railways of the West Kootenays. It is more of an overview of all the lines that were located in the Slocan around Arrow, Slocan and Kootenay lakes. It is very good but doesn't have a detailed roster for the K&S.

Mike, in fact Turner's book has a picture of the rotary on the RGS because there isn't a good full image of the rotary on the K&S. Looking through my CPR Slocan images I thought there was a good one of it in operation on the standard gauge replacement for the K&S but I so far can't find one.

[Mike Trent]

Hi Dave. Thanks, I remember now about that picture. But that picture does show that the two rotarys were much the same, bookends even. I have tried to talk Dave into finding a model of the RGS rotary for his layout, but as yet, no luck....

You guys might compare notes. The K&S community may be even more loosely populated than the C&S!

[Rob Hupfield]

Hi, Mike. When the CPR took over the K&S in 1911, the rotary rebuild included re-gauging the trucks and substantially strengthening the body. Even the 'huge' K&S #3, an outside frame consolidation, only weighed 38.5 tons - and by then the CPR's standard gauge locos and tractive ratings were starting to get pretty significant. The old Leslie plow was assigned to the CPR's southern Kettle Valley Railway line in the Boundary District of BC, and worked the Farrow Hill and the insane Coquihalla Pass where there could be 50ft of snow in a winter. Not a bad career history for a little rotary from the RGS!

[Mike Trent]

Hi, Rob, I believe from conversations with Dave that the K&S also had a small number of Cooke 2-6-0's similar but larger and newer than the Cooke Moguls built in 1881 for the DSP&P (later C&S). The K&S Moguls had different driver spacing to better support the larger boiler and firebox but otherwise look quite similar. I believe they were built in the 1890's.

[Rob Hupfield]

Hi Mike, the K&S had two Baldwin Moguls, Class 8-22D, built 1890, bought second-hand from the Alberta Railway & Coal Co. Lovely locies. Plus a big Baldwin 10-26E outside-frame 2-8-0, acquired second-hand from the DM&KC Rwy. I've got copies of the Baldwin order sheets. Plus the ex-RGS #1 rotary, a home-built steam-powered speeder affectionally named the "Flying Squirrel", and later something called an "Automopat", probably a newfangled converted automobile. That was the fleet.

[Mike Trent]

Thanks for the clarification!