Between Us No Mountains: Canada to Samoa by Rail.....A Fiction Railroad Story

[bnsfkline]

This is a Fiction railroad story that has basically finished up. It takes place in the past and present. The main players in the story is the Canadian National, Via Rail and Montreals Duex Montenges Line. It may not be like "Detective Cinderdick" of old, but its still a good read!

This story was written by Carlos Sebastian Leschorne of Montreal, QC, and Myself. My influnce comes in play with my fictional Timu Western Railway.

It is told in three views, Newspaper, Main Character Ryan Lesterson and Samoan Fetu Simesi


BETWEEN US, NO MOUNTAINS: Canada to Samoa by Rail

Chapter 1
Between Us, No Mountains

April 2nd, 2004

From The Gazette, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

No Tribute to the Sixties, Anomaly of Experiment, says Professor

Montreal, Quebec, Canada – The weird circular rainbow pattern seen near St. Eustache is not a tribute to the 60s. Do not break out the tie-dye shirts. There is no free love in the air. This is the result of a failed experiment at the Université de Laval. A momentary power surge caused the positronic particle-accelerator and the experimental temporal pulse modulator unit caused a most unusual reaction. The machines in question started to glow and then a strange beam was shot out of one of the focusing orbs on the temporal pulse modulator. This has been determined to be the cause of the strange circular pattern of light. According to Valerie Tremblay, chair of the department of experimental particle research, the strange phenomenon is a "temporal disturbance, a rip in the material of time, space and reason. Where it leads to is anybody’s guess." Montrain, the division of Canadian National responsible for commuter operations on the tracks that are only a few metres from the "Occurrence", as they call it, have erected a chainlink fence in front of it to prevent anybody too curious from entering it. "Anyone wishing to find out if it is a gateway may not do so. The Occurrence is on CN property. Any tresspassers will be prosecuted" warned Félix Lagrenoille, president of Montrain. Anyone wishing to look at it legally from a commuter train is also out of luck, as it is one mile north of St. Eustache, on the northern edge of the town of the same name, the current terminus of the line still referred to as the Deux-Montagnes by most people. "It’s a pitty we don’t know what it is" continued Félix, "because it is wide enough to fit four railway tracks through it. Until we know what it is, nobody is going into it, if it is possible to go into it. Maybe it’s just light, but I don’t want anybody getting hurt."

April 3rd, 2004

My name is Ryan Lesterson. I live in Montreal, on Peel Street. I happen to have a good friend I know only through the Internet. Her name is Fetu Nuanua Semisi. Fetu means "Star" in Samoan, Nuanua means "Rainbow" in the same language. She lives in Lauli’i, American Samoa, in the South Pacific. Although we also had each other’s phone numbers, we could only call each other once in a blue moon due to phone rates. However, she called me today. We talked about the usual stuff, such as school (she goes to the Kolisi o Amerika Samoa, formerly the American Samoa Community College, while I go to McGill University in Montreal.) and the weather, and our families, and everything else. She recently broke up with another boyfriend. I wish I could be there for her, but the distance between Montreal and Samoa is too far. As that Samoan song goes, Mauga Ole Atuolo, "Between Us are Mountains". I thought this conversation would be like others. But then she told me about a funny thing that has been spotted on the eastern tip of Tutuila. It looked like something that Austin Powers danced to, she commented. Then I told her about what had happened not that far from Montreal. Then we both gasped. After I was finished talking with her, I became ecstatic. Maybe I would have Fetu as my girlfriend. I was beside myself in joy.

April 4th, 2004

From the Samoa News, in Pago Pago, American Samoa

Psychedelic Eyesore in Tula is Canadian Portal

Tula – It has been positively confirmed that the strange rainbow of colors in a circle is a portal that leads to somewhere north of Montreal in Canada. But scientists on both sides are unsure as to the stability of this thing, christened the "Occurrence" in Canada, so untill studies are done nobody will be allowed to go through the portal. Governor Sunia has mobilized the public works department to set up pre-cast concrete barricades in front of the portal. On the Canadian side the chain-link fence remains, and the CN police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have set up a temporary police post next to the portal, using a couple of converted box-cars and a former CN caboose. In case the portal is stable enough to walk through, a sign facing the portal has been erected, with the Montrain and the CN (Canadian National) logos on it and the words "Access Interdit", "Do not Enter" and "Ua Sa". CN owns the railroad tracks on the other side of the Occurrence. However, some people are optimistic that the portal might lead to a stronger economy. "Yes, I’d love to see Canadians flocking to American Samoa" said Tisa, the proprietress of Tisa’s Barefoot Bar. So what will the portal mean?

April 11th, 2004

Last week has been slightly crazy for me. I can’t get to sleep, thinking about Fetu, who is so close yet so far away. I wi***hey’d hurry up with their *** studies. I understand they want to find out if it is safe and if it will suddenly collapse or if it is there for keeps. It’s so cool man, I just want to run right through. But there are so many bulls and nary a toreador to be seen by the portal. It sucks.

April 14th, 2004

From the Gazette

Samoan boy Tresspasses, Dies of Electrocution

St.-Eustache – Flags on both sides of the Occurrence are at half-mast today for the death of Timu Moaga, age 11. At 3 AM Eastern time he climbed over the concrete barriers on the Samoan side and ran through the Occurrence, becoming the first person to do so. His mother tried in vain to stop him. As there was only a skeleton staff of two officers on duty on the Canadian side, he was able to quickly run around the fence and climb the temporary gate. He then ran along the tracks, all the way to Rue de la Catenaire. He was approached by CN police, who were notified by the Samoan government at the request of Timu’s mother, Sei’e. Timu then proceeded to climb the nearest catenary pole, while the police tried in vain to call him down. 25,000 volts of electricity electrocuted him when it arced from the overhead train wire. He was pronounced dead by the coroner, who arrived half an hour later. His body was terribly burned and his head and arms were almost beyond recognition. His body was handed back through the Occurrence for his funeral. Piles of flowers have already accumulated at the base of the pole that he climbed, and CN has arranged to paint that pole black. In addition, special white signs, normally reserved for marking sub-divisions, junctions and stations, will be placed on either side of the tracks. They will have the CN logo and the name "Timu-Moaga", and the one closest to the pole will be wrapped in the clothing Timu wore at the time of his death, a brightly colored red and purple lavalava or Samoan sarong, and a plaque will be attached to the signpost. In Samoa, Timu’s family, and the whole village of Tula is in mourning.

"Why did he do it, why?" asked Sei’e. "He was very curious, but he never did something so dangerous before. We will all miss him."

Delays on the MTA St-Eustache route due to the incident are minimal, however, every train will honk it’s horn at the pole.

April 19th, 2004

If email could cry, it was doing so now. Fetu’s email was full of tears. Timu was a cousin of hers. She felt guilty for not having gotten to know her better. And, on that very day, she was going to take him for ice cream. Instead she went to see a movie with her friends, and Timu took a walk with his mother. Today was the funeral. That night she phoned me up. I’m not sure how effective I was in comforting her, but I did try. The biggest upset to her is that she could not even kiss him goodbye, because the lips had been severely distorted.

April 24th, 2004

I heard that because of Timu, the portal was determined safe to go through. But they had to set up customs arrangements. And they had to do a feasability transport study. Both Transport Quebec and the American Samoan government considered construction of a road. But it was unsafe, given the closeness of the Occurrence to a well-used railway track. And, more importantly, it would have led to everyone in Montreal with a car driving over to American Samoa, creating nothing but gridlock and smog. Then because of CN, they hit upon an idea – why not simply extend the railway through the portal? And use existing Bombardier-built MR-90 and SE-2002 commuter rolling stock. They immediately sent for surveyor crews and engineers. They had a railway to extend. In case you are curious, the most noticeable difference between the two varieties of rolling stock is door placement. MR-90s have two low doors at the ends and one high middle door (for Central Station only) on each side. The SE-2002 variety has its doors at the end only, but they can be used for both high and low platforms. Both of them are Electric Multiple Units. Multiple Units meaning that there is no locomotive, instead the engines are part of the passenger cars, and the engineer sits at a "cab" at one end of the train to control it. The electric part is that it uses a pantograph or roof mounted current collector to pick up electricity from the overhead catenary or wires – the same ones that zapped little Timu a few days ago. SE-2002s can also be distinguished in another way. They use Gate Turn-Off Thyristors to regulate the flow of electricity to the AC traction motors, and as a result, they make a distinctive whine that sounds something like a funny spaceship. To think that a few decades ago they thought we’d ALL be driving spaceships in the year 2004. The line they run on, the Deux-Montagnes – oops, the St. Eustache, has a train frequency that rivals London commuter routes. You can still get 22 trains in each direction…on the weekends, that is. On the weekdays it is almost Metro-like, with eight minute headway during the busiest times.

May 3rd, 2004

From the news section of the Via Rail website (http://www.viarail.ca)

VIA, Federal Government see Opportunity in Occurrence.

That strange "wormhole" that has been dubbed "The Occurrence" may just be Via Rail’s ticket to more opportunity. The Canadian government asked them to study the possibilities of extending service through the Mount-Royal tunnel an up into the Occurrence, which would mean a return of VIA trains to a route that last saw them in 1989. The study concluded that it would not only be feasible, but very lucrative. However, none of VIA Rail’s current locomotives run on electricity. Only electric rolling stock is normally permitted in the Mount-Royal tunnel. Today VIA Rail president Vishnu Mukarjee signed an agreement with Pierre Alouette, president of Bombardier. The agreement calls for the upgrading of all seven VIA Rail LRC (Light Rapid and Comfortable) locomotives in service, the refurbishment of the VIA Rail LRC equipment not in service, the construction of four new diesel locomotives that resemble LRCs, and the construction of new electric locomotives that resemble LRCs with roof-mounted pantographs. One of these would be built for every LRC locomotive that either exists or that will be built. In addition, thirty new LRC coaches will be constructed. The typical train operated will be made up of LRC cars with a locomotive at each end, one diesel and the other electric. However, the train can be driven from either, regardless as to which locomotive is being used, thus there will be no need whatsoever to turn the train around.

May 10th, 2004

Samoa Mania, Railway Mania, and Electro Mania. It’s everywhere. The newspapers have dug up old articles about the Deux-montagnes line and reprinted them. On most radio and TV shows they are doing all kinds of jokes about the Occurrence. They did polls on both sides to see how much Canadians and Samoans know about each other. VIA Rail is doing record ticket sales, and so are the Agence Metropolitaine de Transport (AMT), as trains that used to run less than half empty are all full, because EVERYONE wants to see the Occurrence. And clothing stores are doing record sales of Hawaiian Shirts (often now sold as "Samoan shirts", "Tropical shirts" or "Polynesian shirts"), sarongs and muumuus. And in anticipation, stores everywhere in the Underground City have put up signs in three languages – English, French, and Samoan. And now the governments of Quebec and Canada want to electrify more railways. And did I tell you that now Amtrak is in the game? They said "me too", and now the new P-50 "Genesis" is being built. Unlike other Genesis locomotives, this won’t have a third rail shoe for use in New York. It will have a roof-mounted pantograph for use between Gare Centrale and wherever the terminus in Samoa will be.

I am enjoying this very much. Because soon I’ll be in the arms of la’u suiti Fetu. I just wi***hey’d hurry up and put in the new rails. I have one more exam for school and then I’m free. I’d like to go to Samoa this summer. But at the same time, I must silently thank Timu, for had he not ran through the Occurrence, we wouldn’t have gotten this far.

Some people would call me obsessed. However, EVERYONE is now obsessed with going to Samoa. And yes, there are talk shows on the radio where men and women talk about the Samoan someone they hope to have. A new acronym has popped up for those who are in love with teines (girls) or tamas (boys) in Samoa. "FIQTS", Failed In Quebec, Try Samoa.

May 18th, 2004

I’ll be able to talk to Fetu more religiously. Many phone and Internet cables have been installed through the Occurrence. And in a few days, American Samoa will no longer have 684 as its country code. Instead it will have 684 as its area code, and it will be considered "local" to call from Montreal. Fetu can be reached at 684-542-1990. And Videotron annouced that the Samoan channels will soon be available in Montreal. I can’t wait. And thanks to whirlwind discussions between the governments of American Samoa and Quebec, electricity in American Samoa is now provided by "Hydro-Québec – AS division".

June 10th, 2004

Stupid weather! A rainstorm means they can’t work on the Samoan side today. C’est terrible. The switches have been installed and the tracks have been laid as far as Amouli. Most of the route is double-track, except for sidings, both used for storage and as provisions for possible alternate routes. However, the catenary has not been installed, and the track has not been laid its full length, up to Pago Pago. On our side there were places were sidings and extra platforms would be installed, especially for the benefit of possible VIA or Amtrak trains. I go up that line every day to see how they are working on it. I know a couple of Montrain train engineers by name now, and the construction workers always say hi when I walk around the stations that are being improved.

June 24th, 2004

Today is St. Jean Baptiste day. It is also the day that the new section of catenary was officially activated. Samoan governor Tause Sunia, Quebec premier Lucien Bouchard, American president George Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien, CN President Paul Tellier and AMT director Florence Junca-Adenot all flipped a giant switch that energized the catenary. And this is the quickest railway extension ever done. Quite a record for railway construction, eh? And the "Occurrence" has been officially named "Les Portes de Paradis". As for me, I was probably doing the only camping I’ve ever done before. I had a tent in front of the ticket office at Gare Centrale. So that I could buy a ticket for the inaugural run of a passenger train to Samoa. It’s Fetu I’m talking about here! As soon as I got it I gave her a call. The train gets in at about 9am her time. She said she’d be there, waiting to opo me, hug that is, by any other name. And what date was chosen for this first train? Canada day. Makes you feel real proud, eh?

June 25th, 2004

From the official Agence Metropolitaine de Transport (AMT) webpage, the communiqués section (http://www.amt.qc.ca/comm/communiq.asp)

Electrification of the Commuter network Announced

Today the Director of the Agence, Florence Junca-Adenot, announced an ambitious plan to electrify all of the routes used for commuter trains. This includes the Montreal/St-Rosalie, Montreal/Vaudreil-Hawkesbury, Montreal/Valleyfield, Montreal/St-Jean, Montreal/St-Sauver, and the two routes to Joliette. Trains would then use clean and renewable hydroelectric power, of which there is an over-abundance of in Québec. This will also enable through trains between either St. Rosalie or Hawkesbury (switching from CP to CN tracks just after Lachine) and Samoa.

July 1rst (Canada Day) 2004

O Happy Days! (you expected me to say "Canada" there?) Since I wanted to make an impression and be ready for the heat, I wore my favorite shirt and an orange and yellow ie lavalava. I had lunch down at Gare Centrale, as if being away from there for just one minute would mean missing my train, which wasn’t scheduled to leave for another hour or so. I was full of anticipation that afternoon when I boarded a train. It looked like a normal consist of SE-2002s. On the outside a curved body and blue stripes with the words "Agence Metropolitaine de Transport" and that funny symbol…the letters AMT with a Colargol’s Tie around the M. Ok, it’s a ribbon, but it vaguely reminds me of the neckware worn by Colargol, otherwise known as Jeremy the Bear, from an old children’s show. Hence the name "Colargol’s Tie". And I nicknamed the AMT "Colargol" sometimes. Anyways, I walked down the stairs from the concourse and then walked along the platform to enter the front car of the train, my favorite spot. I noticed that there were new signs with the commuter train symbol on them and Montrain logo, along with "Gare Centrale" in green letters. This was a new kind of station sign, for the new service being offered. All of the stations on the route were getting them, as well as the new stations in Samoa. I got a seat in the front car. They were nice and had very nice cushions, much like what many Briti***rains had. A pair of Montrain employees with walkie-talkies and intimidating sneers boarded the train, and checked everyone for a valid ticket. Nobody would be getting a free ride on this train. While future trains would stop at every stop, this one was a special express, stopping only at Mont-Royal, Val-Royal (known as "Bois Franc" for a period of time), Roxborro-Pierrefonds, and Deux-Montagnes, before entering the portal. Busses had their schedules slightly altered to make sure to connect with this train. Only a couple of years ago did they finally get around to having more buses synchronized with the train schedules. It was taken for granted that it would NEVER happen a year before that. I looked around the car I sat in. All kinds of people, of all ages, dressed in different ways. Some went tropical like me and were wearing lavalavas and puletasis (traditional Samoan dress of the female). Some were wearing Armani suits. I even saw a couple of guys in tuxedos. You’d think they mistook this train for the Orient Express. A rather interesting group of people were sitting near me. They were definatly die-hard railfans. One of them had a scanner and earphones and was telling everyone what was going on on the CN communications channels, in a "play by play" kind of manner. I’m a railfan too, but not enough that I knew all of the words that they were using, and not enough to know the subtle differences between a Z-1-a and a Z-2-a, and which one is stronger in pulling trains. Others in the group were giving commentary about every single detail of the trip. As we were going through the Mount-Royal tunnel at the start of the trip, and whenever we came to a siding, station or junction someone would say something interesting about it. Thanks to them I found out the exact milepost of the point where electric locomotives would be exchanged for steam ones back in the early 1900s, when many long distance trains ran through the Mount-Royal tunnel.

We then came to the Occurrence, or should I say, Les Portes des Paradis. The train went through it very slowly, while the Beatles song "Tommorow Never Knows" was played over the public address system. The Occurrence portal was bigger than I suspected, and it was longer. We passed through about half a mile of swirling colors around us. Then an announcement came on, in three languages. It was a reminder to set your watch back seven hours. And to have your documents ready for Immigration and Customs. I promptly got my passport out of my backpack, ready to show it to the agents who would come aboard. On the other side of the Occurrence were some buildings that looked pretty temporary One of them was actually a converted "800" coach. The train stop and the doors and traps opened, and some men wearing dark blue jackets and navy blue lavalavas boarded. They checked all of us, and we all checked out fine. About half an hour later the train started again, and we continued all the way to Pago Pago, stopping only at Faga’itua on the way. I noticed that all of the train stations over here had high platforms, meaning you step of the train, you don’t step down off it. And one of the railfans in the car noticed this as well. And he was upset. He went into a lengthy soliloquy about how stupid high platforms are and how most North American train stations are low platform except for the North East Corridor, and just generally how high platforms suck. The route seemed straight forward until it got to Lauli’i. There it was on viaduct that crossed over the Pago Pago harbor and then continued to Faganeanea and then turns north to run through Utulei and then turns west to run through Fagatogo and the Happy Valley, and then finally turns north to terminate at Pago Park station. This station is an attempt to resemble a London railway terminus, complete with the see-through roof and the space. It had about ten train tracks, which suggested ambitious planning. I felt so excited being on a Samoan island for the first time. One of the railfans remarked that the station vaguely looked like Windsor did a long time ago. Someone else shouted "Vive la Gare Windsor Libre!" I stepped out the door of the train, and then walked to the back of the station. I had just stepped over the line that marked the "Aire de Controle" (the area you were supposed to have a ticket when going into) when I heard a voice that I wanted to hear. "RYAN" she shouted. It was Fetu. And she was so aulelei…oops, beautiful, that it was not funny. She had long dark brown hair and a sweet face. Her skin had that "natural suntan" look to it. She wore a rainbow colored puletasi. Come to think of it the patterns on it looked like the Occurrence. She also wore an ula or lei around her neck. We hugged each other tightly, and then she took me to another platform. "They only started Pago Park to Tula service yesterday", she told me "and it’s still free". We boarded an MR-90 train and took it to Lauli’i station, where we got off. We then walked to her house, where I met her family. And I think they liked me. I could tell things were going to be great.

[Anonymous]

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[Anonymous]

Thanks for starting this, Jim.

~Ra'akone

[carnej1]

Canada invades sovereign US territory via Hyperspace?......Wouldn't this trigger Operation French & Indian war II?

[Anonymous]

Well, firstly, it wasn't an "invasion", secondly, the first one to pass through was from the other side, confirming that the two "portals" were linked. Third thing....American Samoa is US territory, HOWEVER, they are a different C & I zone from the rest of the US, people flying from Hawai'i to American Samoa have to pass through C & I going both ways. And thing the fourth, the portal, while wide enough for a few train tracks, would be a stupid way to try staging an invasion. Think about it. It's there, it's not moving, and it's very straight.