Discovering Canada by Rail, Vol. 1: West Coast Explorations

Although rail travel almost seems out of place in today's Concorde-paced world, it is eminently suitable for a country such as Canada, rich in natural beauty, but low in population centers. Even though it may not be economically feasible to build airports in remote parts of Canada, these regions are still accessible to tourists by means of the well-maintained trains profiled in Discovering Canada by Rail, an 8-part series featuring three individual train rides on each tape. The opening volume, West Coast Explorations, shot primarily in the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, includes a ride on the Whistler Explorer from Vancouver to the rapidly-growing skiing site of Whistler; the Avalanche Alley trip, which features one of the loveliest trains still in operation--the Rocky Mountaineer--as it whisks passengers from Calgary, Alberta to the wonders of Banff National Park by means of some truly treacherous mountain passes; and an examination of conservation issues during a ride on the Malahat Dayliner (a train many in business and government want to shut down!) as it leaves the Victoria Station for a trip up Vancouver Island. The less-than-glowing star rating is due to the repetitive filming of scenes, the lack of competent narration to inform viewers what they are seeing through the train windows, and too much reliance on shots of trains rounding bends, driving over trestles, chuffing into stations, etc. It's a beautifully filmed program that will undoubtedly be very popular in library collections, but there are better train videos out there that don't run out of steam as quickly as this one does. Still, given the comprehensiveness of the series (available as two 4-tape sets, priced at $49.95 each or $99.95 each w/PPR), consider this a strong optional purchase. Aud: P. (J. Carlson)