It all began with an IMAX film which I saw in 2012…
After a brief moment of darkness, the scene of a mountain top poking through a sea of clouds gradually emerged on the massive screen in front of the eyes. The vision is stupendously real and stunning that for a split second, reality seemed to have sneaked away in a moment of complete silence.
As the vision faded away, the eyes blinked accordingly and the peaceful solitude seemed to be broken by a wave of breath. But no. It was in fact the hissing sound of a steam locomotive racing across a scenic view of green landscape, and continued travelling along the rugged mountain passes of the Canadian Rockies.
Compressed into a one hour breathtaking journey through a restored steam engine from the 1930s travelling from west to east across the continent, Rocky Mountain Express tells the story of the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway over a century ago.
Interweaving between wilderness and civilisation, a region of exceptional natural beauty was captured through the narrow lens of the camera, and projected onto the massive screen of the theatre.
Alpine meadows, canyons, glaciers, lakes…above all, the mountains, radiating their magnificence upon the bare eyes of the viewer, appeared raw and pristine, and the mighty magnetism of which was able to impede all the senses to the realization in one’s awareness.
Subconsciously merging with the perception of the filmmaker, the viewer was lured to immerse themselves into the magical world of the Rocky Mountains landscape.
That viewer was me. I was captivated by the charm and the spell of the majestic Canadian Rocky Mountains.
The mountains have called on me…
…through the lens and the screen, into my vision and penetrated my soul.
At that moment, I decided I must visit the Canadian Rocky Mountains one day.
“Travel the Canadian. The Scenic Dome Route Across Canada. Canadian Pacific.” (1955) by Roger Couillard.
The Glenbow Museum, Calgary, Canada
To be continued…
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