The leaders plan to raise a number of issues, including the recent blockades and protests mounted in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en chiefs opposed to Coastal GasLink pipeline in British Columbia.

The move comes as Via Rail resumes normal service in Eastern Canada and its main cross-country line.

With the Conservative leadership race underway, Jamie Schmale, the party's Crown-Indigenous Relations critic, said he is looking for what candidates have to offer on the file.

The ministers later confirmed they are staying in Smithers overnight and plan to continue talking Saturday morning.

All routes across Canada affected by the Wet'suwet'en solidarity protests could be up and running again by next Friday, the company says.

Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett said the meetings so far have been "off to a good start."

The OPP action came hours after a midnight deadline calling for the protesters to clear the area expired. It's not clear whether anyone faces charges.

During the early planning stages of the pipeline, the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs proposed an alternate route, but Coastal Gaslink deemed it unacceptable.

Protesters set up a blockade Wednesday afternoon on the Mont-Saint-Hilaire line in Saint-Lambert, Que., in solidarity with Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs.

While the situation feels familiar, for many industries, the impacts are only adding to a pile of issues tangling the rail system.