Trouter’s Special


Remember the days of the old “Newfie Bullet”
That narrow gauge railway with history galore
A great means of transport, so user friendly
That each thought it was our own for sure

And part of that line was the old “Trouter’s Special”
A train laid on for May twenty four
Especially for trouters who used the rail
To get to their favourite spots by the score

You’d crowd aboard the old train that day
Let the engineer know where you want to alight
And then at the end flag down the old “Special”
And he’d pick you up, as sure as the light

What better service could one ever want
Tailored to the needs of a hearty bunch
Who religiously braved the weather and black flies
To spend time at their favourite hole with their lunch

The time usually covered a weekend or more
And cabins for overnight dwelling did abound
But many pitched their favourite tents
Wherever they found a piece of good ground

Fun and congeniality were the order of day
There was no end to the originality on display
And many tricks were played on each other
By those so inclined to have a fun day

The places I knew where secret holes existed
Were favourite haunts like Fox Marsh, Maher’s and more
And we knew the spots like the back of our hands
From tramping the pond shores and marshes galore

Near the track at Fox Marsh in the early forties
We camped, My Dad, his friend Roger and I
We located there because it was easy
To flag down the train as it went by

With all hands asleep there came a loud whistle
We awoke to a bright glare filling our tent with it’s hue
And Roger with his usual dry sense of humour
Said “haul in your legs boys she’s coming straight through”

We had the place pretty much to ourselves
But one day surprised we saw an old codger
Walking the track, leaking water pot in hand
Look boys “he’s leaking” pointed out our friend Roger

He was a hermit living there about
In a small cabin by himself all alone
We learned he had worked for years at long shore
In Yew York City before coming home

No doubt about it the trout they were plentiful
Speckled “mud” trout of the best eating kind
And many a feed we had of those beauties
Fried up over campfire by late moonlight’s shine.

The trips to these haunts indeed they were many
Also with school chum and good friend Bill J
And camping overnight was no doubt the highlight
Never to be forgotten to this very day.


Favourite childhood memories of May 24 trips on the “Trouters Special.”


John Cornick
Halifax, Nova Scotia







  Submitted By: John Cornick