Crewe Chronicle
View allAll Photos Tagged Middlewich
A peep under the bridge where the Middlewich branch of the Shropshire Union Canal joins the Chester branch
66753 'EMD Roberts Road' heads past British Salt's plant near Middlewich with 6G99, the 0645 Tunstead to Reservoir working.
Middlewich is the site of a prehistoric brine spring. British Salt force water into salt deposits 180m below the surface then processes the resulting brine into salt.
For decades the single track line from Northwich to Sandbach has been very lightly used. With the HS2 project consuming vast tonnages of limestone, in 2023 the line is seeing plenty of stone traffic from the Peak District quarries heading to sites along HS2's route.
Taken with the assistance of a pole.
With the willow-herb going to seed and some leaves just starting to turn for autumn, DB Cargo Shed 66139 pulls away from Northwich following a reversal stop with what I think is the 10.58am Folly Lane ICI - Arpley Sidings (6F82).
The shot was taken back in 2017 when train intel from the usual sources no longer seems to be available. I opted to snap this early on exiting the loop to catch the sun on the side of the tanks.
Going off to the right is the single track to Sandbach, via Middlewich, and behind me is the other side of the triangle.
12.15pm, 12th September 2017
HDR image of the Chapel Of Rest at Middlewich Cemetery. I have also tried make it look like it's painted using the photoshop oil painting filter.
The Chapel at Middlewich Cemetery. I was sitting at my desk this morning and could see the clouds were quite menacing and the light was trying to break through so I went over to Middlewich and took a few shots of this rather photogenic little chapel.
DRS 88006 'Juno' is about to pass over the Shropshire Union canal Middlewich Branch as it approaches Winsford with 4S44 Daventry International Rft - Mossend Down Yard.
You can buy this photo from Getty Images.
Finally a nice morning - coupled with a little time for photography.
A reprocess of an image from 2016. This was taken on an overcast afternoon, but decided to make it look more like storm Dennis was beholding it by adding the rain. I've also expanded the canvas to try and give the image more depth. Hope everyone is having a great Sunday, HSS!
The second image I got the other morning.
Subtle tonemapped HDR image, Lr split toned. Curves adjusted in Ps to finish off.
A location revisit from about a year ago. I was earlier in the day when I got my shots last year, but I'm not starting out at the same time now - enjoying a lie in - but missing out on the very best light..
A re-work from a 2014 image I did. The image consists of the bird and rain added and the background made to look muted and washed away. The bird I'd taken just outside my house where it grabbed my attention as it had picked up this giant stick to take back to it's nest. The background was taken in Middlewich Cheshire, where on my way home from work, I'd pulled over as I'd spotted the distant crepuscular rays and thought the driveway kinda made a nice lead in. I also got some telephoto version of the same rays and have used them on a few other of my composites too.
For this version I've tried to make the image colder, grungier and darker still..
There's little to suggest the present-day Northwich was once a stronghold of steam traction, nor host to a sizeable locomotive depot serving the significant local industrial interests (limestone, coal, coke, and chemical traffic typically), as well as supporting other through freight traffic from around the North-West.
The depot saw a variety of codes throughout its life but was known as 8E from 1958-1973, and thereafter NW until its closure in 1984. In the early 1960s it wasn't unusual to see up to twenty 8Fs stabled there over a weekend, but with the advent of the diesel era, and then the gradual erosion of wagonload traffic through the 1970s, this transitioned to typically a handful of class 40s, a few class 25s, and a couple of class 08 shunters. Located on the plot of land behind me on my left, the area has now been redeveloped into residential housing - in this instance accessed by Pullman Drive, rather an odd choice of name given, to my knowledge, Northwich never saw anything resembling a Pullman train.
This shot was taken from the Middlewich Road overbridge and features Sandbach Junction. The line to the left is a single track freight-only route through Middlewich which eventually joins the West Coast Main Line at Sandbach. As can be seen from the state of the rails, it still sees several trains per week. It's quite a tight triangle here and the other side of it runs between the hedge and the houses in the left middle distance. The rather duller link just in front of me from the freight loop to the Down line (towards Greenbank and Chester) sees rather less use. In steam days the turnout just here was in fact a single slip, which gave access to the Up line too - a facility locos heading for the depot would no doubt have made use of.
Much of the freight traffic passing through Northwich these days consists of domestic and industrial waste en route for processing, and biomass pellets heading from Liverpool Port to Drax Power Station. There's also some stone traffic movement too from Tunstead heading South. In this shot a clean DB Cargo 'Shed', unit 66019, was snapped approaching the station with the 10.51am Knowsley Freight Terminal - Wilton EFW Terminal (6E26) loaded waste containers.
Better viewed full-screen - comments off, thanks.
12.34pm, 23rd April 2025
One I hadn't bothered to process from a misty morning some weeks back.
Sorry for a post and run, I will catch up with everyone's work later on.
With HS2 construction in full swing, considerable amounts of the Peak District are being moved south by rail. A good proportion of this traffic is going via the mid-Cheshire line to Northwich and then Middlewich before heading down to either Small Heath or Northampton.
There seems to be a concerted effort to keep the "interesting" GB 66s away from the North West flows and therefore this view of standard/boring 66710 is rather commonplace.
The working is 4H89 05:06 Hams Hall to Hindlow and it is seen here approaching Plumley West signalbox.
The Northwich-Middlewich-Sandbach freight only line is enjoying something of a resurgence thanks to the traffic for HS2 and the constant flow of stone trains from the Peak District to the Midlands.
Unfortunately there aren't too many decent spots where the vegetation allows something of an ubonstructed shot.
66783 'The Flying Dustman' seen here having left Northwich heading towards Middlewich with 6G99 Tunstead Sidings to Banbury Reservior Sidings running 7 minutes late.
Another couple of hours out today, judiciously timed to catch a remarkable six freight movements in the Northwich area.
Arguably the pick is DB Cargo Shed 66115 easing the 10.00am Dowlow Briggs Sidings - Southampton Up Yard (6O11) loaded limestone around the tight curve at Northwich, and on to the single track Middlewich line.
There's a nice network of footbridges over the Northwich Triangle giving good access to pedestrians around the local residential area. I liked the patina and texture of the one in frame and the shot was composed to give this quaint low-sided bridge at least equal prominence with the train. The houses on the right lie on Royle Street.
12th September 2017
A visit to my favourite spot and grabbed some more images this morning. I probably wouldn't have bothered as I have so many of this place, but I loved the position of the sun and light today, I thought it would be rude not to :-)
I'm hoping to get some sunrise shots next week, with the clocks going forward and my later start in the morning the light should be nicer.
GB Railfreight’s ‘Maritime’ liveried 66727 “Maritime One” trundles along the single line towards Middlewich with 6G99 06:45 Tunstead Sdgs Gbrf - Banbury Reservoir Tarmac Sdgs, loaded aggregates.
May 2025.
Lock-down search for half decent photos to upload.
Erddig Hall is a National Trust property on the outskirts of Wrexham, Wales. Located 2 miles south of Wrexham town centre, it was built in 1684–1687 for Josiah Edisbury, the High Sheriff of Denbighshire; it was designed in 1683 by Thomas Webb, a master mason of Middlewich, Cheshire. Wikipedia
Seems so long ago now. Taken back in July, the summer, we never really had (well apart from this evening).
Carrying a special gold livery "celebrating" (environmentalists will no doubt disagree) 50 years of Drax Power Station, 66301 has not been restricted to the biomass circuits and has spent a week on the HS2 stone turns from Tunstead to the West Midlands.
Named Drax Power Station 50, the former DRS and Fastline machine seen here approaching Middlewich with 6G99 0646 Tunstead Sidings to Banbury Reservoir Sidings, running approximately 5 minutes behind schedule.
Transport for Wales Class 150 No. 150283 passes Venetian Marina on the Middlewich Branch of the Shropshire Union Canal with 1D55, the 11:21 Crewe – Chester shuttle on 7th February 2023.
An immaculate 86101 heads south near Middlewich with the Compass Tours 6.33 Carlisle to Holyhead "The Ynys Mon Express". Green Liveried 47812 & 47815 would work the charter from Crewe to Holyhead. 86101 is now in Inter-city swallow livery and operating with Locomotive Services Ltd at Crewe.
A sedate 7-day voyage from Acton Bridge to Chester and back, along the Trent and Mersey Canal, the Middlewich Branch, and the Shropshire Union Canal.
September has seen a welcome return for the 60s on the Liverpool Bulk Terminal to Drax biomass trains - presumably as a result of the 66s being used for the seasonal RHTT trains which are starting to gear up.
60047 seen here in the Northwich triangle with the morning 6E09 0711 Liverpool Bulk Terminal to Drax.
Not that it has any booked traffic these days, the line to the left is the most recent part of the triangle and was installed in 1953. It allows trains from Middlewich branch to reach the West Coast Main Line at Hartford Jcn.
On Explore 26 July 2025 The Trent and Mersey Canal is a 93+1⁄2-mile (150 km) canal in Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire in north-central England. It is a "narrow canal" for the vast majority of its length, but at the extremities to the east of Burton upon Trent and north of Middlewich, it is a wide canal. (Wikipedia)