Caption: Three CP C424's muscle a westbound freight out of Galt, putting their 251's to work as they climb the grade known as Orr's Lake Hill between Galt and Orr's Lake. Both trailing units have been repainted into the then-current 8" stripe scheme, but lead unit 4243 is looking rather shabby in the old 5" striped Action Red livery, with its paint a mix of primer and sandblasted red in preparation for a repaint. This was likely one of the unpainted units that CP pressed into service during its Angus paint shop shutdown in 1978 (Steve Bradley mentions it in his photo here), and it would eventually find its way into a proper coat of action red and 8" stripes. New ditch light mounts have also been installed in preparation for the addition of ditch lights, as CP was retrofitting them to its mainline power during that time in the late 70's.

CP favoured its 251-powered MLW fleet more than most, and after an early 80's rebuild program converting them to road switchers the C424 fleet (along with the RS18u units) went on to serve into the late 90's until retirement.

Bill McArthur photo, Dan Dell'Unto collection slide.