Rail Fanning in Montreal

[fp9fan]

Hey guys,

Do any of you know any good places to go in the Montreal area? My Dad, brother and I want to do some railfanning while my Mom Visits her relatives, and we don't really know any good spots.

Thanks for the help.

[nikos1]

I went to Montreal back in 2008 so I can help a little, this thread might be of some use to you.
http://forums.railpictures.net/showthread.php?t=7224&highlight=Montreal

In the morning a surefire bet is Montreal AMT's Lucien-L'Allier (Windsor) station, get up early and watch the non stop action as trains arrive and depart. For a railfan AMT is the best commuter op out there, with trains powered by F59PHI's, F40PH's, GP40-2P's and best of all EMD GP9's!!
[photoid=237166]
[photoid=237179]
Ive heard the AMT cops can be bad, never had a issue myself, but buying a ticket might not be a bad idea, I had seemingly free roam of the platforms that morning, even got a look inside the cab of one of the GP9's. The light here in the morning is awesome.

One of my goals for the trip was to get a train crossing the CP St-Laurent bridge, and I just barely managed it. After watching trains depart at Windsor, I worked my way to the bridge by the cities excellent subway system and good but of course far less expedient bus system and got there at the same time as the train.
[photoid=237151]
This isnt for the casual railfan as your standing on a narrow sidewalk on what would be considered a interstate in the US, though I think you can shoot from the bank if the rivers not too high. Getting the bridge shot ate up alot of my day for one shot though its not as bad if you have a car which im guessing you will.

Dorval is probably the other best spot to sit and get the most amount of trains, though the photo opps arnt really the best, you have to pick whether you want to shoot CP-AMT or VIA-CN because the fences and clutter makes it hard to shoot both. from one spot. Theres another place further on where there is a pedestrian bridge where you can shoot both lines but never explored that myself.
In downtown another nice spot is the Lachine Canal, this spot is right outside Gare Central so you get all the VIA and AMT that originates or terminates from there. These shots arnt that great but this location is good in the morning and from the other side in the evening
http://rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1179161
http://rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1176437

Theres another nice spot along the CN where you will get VIA and some CN action
http://rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1178259

Good luck, Montreal is a great city for railfanning and otherwise, would be great to go back sometime.