
Michael Portillo continues west through the Canadian Prairie on his thousand-mile rail journey from Winnipeg, Manitoba, to Jasper, Alberta. Following his 1899 Appleton’s guide, Michael explores a glossy, glassy, oil-rich Edmonton, second city of Alberta. On the banks of the North Saskatchewan River, he travels three centuries back in time to experience the life of les voyageurs, who travelled huge distances within Canada by foot and canoe to trade fur with indigenous people. \n\nMichael admires Edmonton’s early 20th-century heritage streetcars, preserved by the Radial Railway Society, and seizes the chance to drive one across a spectacular high-level bridge over the North Saskatchewan River. \n\nEdmonton prides itself on its modern light rail system, offering rapid transit to 80 million passengers per year. Michael hears how this growing city plans to keep pace. His journey across Canada’s vast open spaces reaches a dramatic scenic conclusion in the Rocky Mountains. Deep in the Columbia icefield in a massive, all-terrain Ice Explorer, Michael is awed by the scale, not least of the vehicle, but of the vast Athabasca Glacier. \n \nTravelling via Hinton to Jasper, Michael learns of the race to lay transcontinental rails through the Rocky Mountains on two different routes. \n\nIn the woodland around Hinton, Michael marvels at the scale of Canada’s forestry industry and discovers how the enchanting beaver, once slaughtered for its fur, is now pampered.
Source: BBC 2
Series 2 Reversions: 9. Chicago To Champaign, Illinois
16-09-2024
BBC 2
Series 2 Reversions: 5. Santa Fe, New Mexico, To The Grand Canyon
09-09-2024
BBC 2
Series 2 Reversions: 4. La Junta To Colorado Springs
05-09-2024
BBC 2
Series 2 Reversions: 2. Sedalia To St Joseph, Missouri
04-09-2024
BBC 2
Series 2 Reversions: 1. St Louis To Jefferson City, Missouri
02-09-2024
BBC 2
Series 4: 5. Kamloops To Calgary
Clutching his 1899 Appleton’s Guide, Michael Portillo boards one of the world’s most famous trains, the Rocky Mountaineer, to cross the backbone of the North America ...
26-09-2022
BBC 2
Series 4: 6. Halifax To Prince Edward Island
Michael Portillo begins a new journey on the tracks of the Ocean line to explore Canada’s maritime provinces en route to Quebec City.\n\nClutching his 1899 Appleton’ ...
27-09-2022
BBC 2
Series 4: 7. Springhill Junction To Quebec City
Clutching his 1899 copy of Appleton’s Guide to Canada, Michael Portillo travels on the Ocean train from Nova Scotia to New Brunswick. Along the way, he investigates the wo ...
28-09-2022
BBC 2
Series 3: 11. Reno, Nevada, To Colfax, California
Led by his late 19th-century Appleton's guidebook, Michael Portillo sets off on a 1,000-mile American adventure to discover how the railroad conquered the wild landscapes of the ...
23-11-2022
BBC 2
Series 3 Reversions: 5. Los Angeles To San Diego
Michael Portillo strikes oil in the suburbs of Los Angeles, contemplates his navel in the orange groves of Riverside, makes a California roll and paints a pretty picture in Lagu ...
11-06-2018
BBC 2
Series 3: 3. Plymouth To Nantucket
Led by his Appleton's guidebook and tracing the footsteps of the Pilgrim Fathers, Michael Portillo heads for Plymouth, the home town of America. He learns how indigenous tribes ...
09-11-2022
BBC 2
Series 3 Reversions: 2. San Francisco
Armed with his trusty Appleton's Guide, Michael Portillo reaches San Francisco, where he boards one of the city's iconic cable cars. Behind the scenes in the engineering powerho ...
05-06-2018
BBC 2