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50008 "Thunderer" is seen passing through Glasshoughton working the Branch Line Society "The Technical Cobra" 1Z89 15:45 Pontefract Monkhill to Falkirk Grahamston on the 12th February 2023.
Stock :- 4856, 5028, 1859, 35185, 3150, 13230.
© Andy Parkinson 2023 - No Unauthorised Use Please.
DC Rail's smartly trimmed loco 60028 heads 'The Cappagh Capital Campaigner' BLS excursion 1Z50 Derby-Chessington South (-Hove) through Wimbledon providing a fine spectacle in and around the capital today. Sister 60055 is at the rear.
3rd August 2024
The Branch Line Society "Forth and Clyde Wanderer" is seen at Gunnie on 27 August 1977. The car nearest the camera is 51464, new 1959. This Metro-Cammell car was always allocated to Scotland. This branch served a cement works.
LSL's 37667 and 37521 pass a cloudy Grovefield Way, Cheltenham with Railway Children/Branch Line Society's 'Malvern Mountaineer' 1Z11 1028 from Crewe to Hereford. 10th June 2021.
As I can't see Riviera repainting their Generator coach any time soon I've resorted to Photoshop to create the uniform rake.
37558 (424) + 37407 passing Ashley, with 37401 at the rear, working Branch Line Society "The Nosey Peaker" 1Z50 - 12.40 - Buxton to Crewe on 14/6/18.
60047 Faithful leads the Lynemouth to Newcastle leg of the Branch Line Society's "Tabs on the Tyne" through Newsham (one-time junction for the line to Blyth, in later years serving Bates Colliery). 66190 Martin House Children's Hospice is on the rear. [Pole, 4/6 sections (~5.4m)]
The tour ran as:
1Z27 07.26 Doncaster - ECML - Tyne Yard - Tyne Dock;
1Z28 12.15 Tyne Dock - Newcastle - Newsham - Bedlington - North Blyth Battleship Wharf (reverse) - Lynemouth (reverse) - Bedlington - Newsham - Newcastle;
1Z29 18.20 Newcastle - King Edward Bridge - East Boldon Up Loop - Hartlepool (Cliff House Up Loop) - Darlington (reverse at platform 3) - Doncaster.
For my final shot of this tour, I decided to try to include some of the mechanical signalling rather than get a shot of the train crossing one of the girder viaducts, as the line closes during August for the completion of track alterations and resignalling in preparation for the reinstatement of a passenger service and when it reopens the semaphores will have been removed. I initially thought about the triangle at Marchey's House, going into the field to get a shot of the signals south of Marchey's House Jn. (which I've done from the other side), but then it was suggested that this spot would be easier to get to if you were chasing the train; I'd attempted to photograph this signal a number of years ago, stood on ladders beside the level crossing and using a telephoto lens, but had not managed the shot in sun. So I came here (arriving with loads of time to spare as I'd not photographed the train leaving Lynemouth - which would have been possible), but hadn't checked the sun angle: by the time the train arrived, it was off the front - and it would have still been on the front at Marchey's House... But at least I have a picture of this signal, as freight trains on this route are not very common at the moment because the biomass trains stopped running again towards the end of May, having only restarted about five or six weeks earlier.
There were several people here to see this, some of whom were local residents.
Newsham is, of course, pronounced News-um (silent "h") not New-shum.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
66755 leads the Branch Line Society's "A Tale of Two Ports" - 1Z25 06:22 Crewe to Hendon No.1 Siding past Shipton by Beningborough. 29th August 2016.
37706 has charge of the Branch Line Societies tour from Carnforth to Doncaster. It was booked to have two Colas 56s which turned out to be unavailable. 47832 brought up the rear.
The prospect of two West Coast Rail liveried locos filled me full of dread, such a difficult colour to photograph. However the lighting helped on this occasion.
The location is Oakenshaw Junction on the outskirts of Wakefield and the line runs towards Pontefract and Knottingly, the line on the left sees little use and I think it runs to Monk Bretton.
Transport For Wales Class 175 DMU 175101 Chester General Station after arriving at Platform 6 with the 11:56 from Manchester Piccadilly.
Taken during a photo stop on the Branch Line Society "Batteries Not Included Railtour".
For more photographs of the railways around Chester please click here: www.jhluxton.com/Railways-and-Tramways/British-Network-Ra...
In the pouring rain Grand Central class 43 High Speed Train locomotive 43423 (43123) 'Valenta 1972-2010' stands on the Down Main at Stockport, with Grand Central's "The Grand Farewell" which was run in conjunction with the Branch Line Society.
The tour had started at Newcastle visiting Hartlepool, Doncaster, Barrow Hill, Sheffield, Stockport, Bradford Interchange, York and back to Newcastle.
43423 (43123) was a 1979 BREL Crewe built HST and was a spare power car, allocated to London Bounds Green.
17th December 2017
Class 40 no. D213 'Andania' heads way from York past Dringhouses on 5th June 2024 with 1Z88, a Branch Line Society charity special, the 'Bucket & Spade', returning from Scarborough to Crewe.
The Technical Cobra railtour has reversed into the 'cobra' sidings at Wakefield Kirkgate. Operated by the Branch Line Society, the tour would then move onto Wakefield Europort.
(I've always known the Cobra sidings as those on the left on the lower level, now out of use).
170307, 170306 and 170303 at Guide bridge with Branch Line Societies 'Class 170 Farewell'. The unusual six car formation was working 1Z70 Manchester Airport to Cleethorpes.
313201 and 313213 approach Barnham, working the second leg of the "Sussex Rambler" Class 313 Farewell Tour, 1Z32 10.40 Portsmouth Harbour - Littlehampton via Bognor Regis. [Pole, 5.5/6 sections (~7.4m)]
The whole tour, organised by the Branch Line Society in conjunction with Southern, ran as:
1Z31 09.01 Brighton - Preston Park (reverse) - Hove - Barnham - Portsmouth Harbour
1Z32 10.40 Portsmouth Harbour - Barnham (reverse) - Bognor Regis - Barnham - Littlehampton
1Z33 12.59 Littlehampton - Hove - Preston Park - Three Bridges
1Z34 14.11 Three Bridges - Lewes - Eastbourne (reverse) - Hastings - Ore Up Sidings (rev) - Hastings
1Z35 16.14 Hastings - Eastbourne (reverse) - Lewes (reverse) - Newhaven Marine (site of former station)
1Z36 17.39 Newhaven Marine (site of former station) - Haywards Heath Down Sidings (reverse) - Brighton
The tour fare was £62.60 (reflecting a pair of 313s) for adults and £31.30 for accompanied children.
I had been unsure how to use today. The weather forecast had been variable, with different sources over the previous few days suggesting different things, but on Friday evening it looked like the best sun would be on the south coast - although with periods of cloud at various times (and by 6am on Saturday the amount of cloud looked to have increased). 56091 was working the Middleton Towers sand, but there was no guarantee that would be in sun. I'd wanted another visit to the "Coastway" routes before the 313s finished in two weeks' time, and today also coincided with the Farewell Tour.
At 6am there was a cloudless sky at home, but a bank of cloud was approaching from the north-west. The diverted sleeper (1M16) was running a few minutes late, which meant the sun angle was better at my most-local spot (Abbots Ripton), and it was also GBRf-livered 92043 which would give a different shot to those I've done there previously. But as I drove down the A14, Huntingdon was already under cloud - plus the Ouse Valley was in patchy fog... I ended up doing a poor side-on shot (in sun) at St. Neots, and then setting off for West Sussex.
The plan was to get the tour around Barnham, doing a couple of angles I didn't manage on a previous visit which were close to the foot crossings west of the junction. Pictures of the tour away from routes regularly operated by 313s would have been nice, but I'd not found any good locations where the sun angle was right; by the time the train was heading for Hastings, the sun was getting too in-line, although I did think there might be a going-away shot from the A27 bridge on the Eastbourne side of Southerham Jn. (east of Lewes). So I planned to head east, also trying to do some shots between Southerham Jn. and Southease in the (Sussex) Ouse Valley early in the afternoon.
When the gen came through that the Seaford branch was being worked by pairs of 377s (as a result of football at Falmer), I changed my plans and remained around Barnham much longer, getting what will probably be my last photos of 313s on service trains. But the weather forecast had been wrong (yet again)... there was no sign of any cloud bubbling up, just the odd bit of thin "squiff", and it was bright and sunny until it got dark! (Although after downloading this image I realised how close I came to losing this to a tiny cloud - but the cloud didn't come close enough for me to notice it.)
I actually made it here in time for 1Z31 heading west, and did a going-away shot from the side of the field behind me. But I didn't have very long to set up, and couldn't stand very wide without trampling crops (not acceptable), and when I realised I could have stood here (and possibly gone even wider than this), I didn't really have enough time to move. So the "take 1" shot will probably not be uploaded, and, anyway, the sun was still half an hour away from being ideal.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
13th March 2020. 37706 topping and tailing with 47832 on the empty coaching stock to form the Branch Line Society's “The Little North Western Grid” tour which ran from Carnforth to Doncaster via Rylstone Quarry.
On 24 August 1980, The Branch Line Society "Forfar Railtour" ran from Perth to Forfar. On arrival at Forfar the train ran to the buffers for photographers then returned to the platform. The tour, formed of a Metro-Cammell triple set, is seen here at Forfar.
ONCF (Moroccan National Railways) DH411 and DH367 are pictured at the head of "The Sahara Explorer" organised by the Branch Line Society, during a photo stop beside Tiouli Tunnel on the line from Oujda to Bouárfa. As can be seen, we are 62km into our 304km outward journey (distances on this line are measured from Oujda, not the junction, as this line predates the main line heading west).
The train stopped here, just south of the only tunnel on the line, to allow passengers to alight, and then propelled back through the tunnel in order to carry out a run-past (after which it stopped again in this position). Several of those on the train hurried forwards to get pictures before it set back, realising that everyone would be stood on the shadowed side of the train for the run-past (see here). It was the first photo stop we had on this, the second, day of the tour as we headed south into the Sahara Desert; we're about two hours into the journey.
I wasn't initially going to upload this, as it's not a particularly good view of the train and there is some vegetation blocking a clear view of the locos. But it does show the dry environment very well, as well as one of the hills in the background.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
66735 brings up the rear of the Branch Line Society's "A Tale of Two Ports" at Shipton by Beningborough. 29th August 2016.
Running southwards through Platform 4 of a certain station in Merseyside, West Coast Railways loco 37516 'Loch Laidon', carrying the number 37555, leads the Garston Growler railtour toward the Garston Chord, in order to use the rarely used track to access Garston Freightliner Terminal
37423 climbs slowly up to Hadfield station from Glossop with the Branch Line Societys 'The Summer Syphons', taking participants on a four day tour over northern and East Midlands rare lines and freight terminals. This is day three, a Sunday and named the Primary Colours. Not to be without incident on all three days, this particular loco failed later, electrical contacts burnt in the control cabinets, early evening and was dumped at Manchester Piccadilly. I won't say what a DRS employed driver I know well said about the style of driving and loco knowledge that lead to this. And the other two class 37 failures..
July the 3rd 2021.
The Branch Line Society "Lothian and Fife" Railtour is seen at Dunfermline Upper station (closed to passengers in 1968) on 23 August 1980. Nearest the camera is car 51224, new in 1958. The other cars were 59067 and 50243. As far as I can tell the site of the station is now under a dual carriageway.
37521 / 37669 at Preston on the Branch Line Society’s ‘The Luca Pezzullo Express’ 1Z40 17:05 Kellingley Colliery – Lancaster on 20/07/19.
60047 Faithful brings up the rear of the Branch Line Society's "Tabs on the Tyne", on its return from North Blyth (Battleship Wharf). It has just set off from a stop at Cambois level crossing (where it had to wait for the GBRf ground staff to arrive to close the gates to road traffic; they'd just operated the ground frame and level crossing at the entrance to Battleship Wharf). 66190 Martin House Children's Hospice is leading. [Pole, 5/6 sections (~6.8m)]
The tour ran as:
1Z27 07.26 Doncaster - ECML - Tyne Yard - Tyne Dock;
1Z28 12.15 Tyne Dock - Newcastle - Newsham - Bedlington - North Blyth Battleship Wharf (reverse) - Lynemouth (reverse) - Bedlington - Newsham - Newcastle;
1Z29 18.20 Newcastle - King Edward Bridge - East Boldon Up Loop - Hartlepool (Cliff House Up Loop) - Darlington (reverse at platform 3) - Doncaster.
Unfortunately I messed up with my shots of the train on the North Blyth branch. I had incorrectly assumed it was running to the Alcan terminal (despite the publicity stating Battleship Wharf), and intended to get pictures of it all the way down there - where the North Sea forms a fantastic backdrop. With the manual level crossing here and slow train speeds I was sure I could beat the train from its approach to Freeman's level crossing (the one-time junction for Blyth Power Station), so decided to do a shot from the A189 "Spine Road" overbridge (where the sun had just gone off the front - it was "one panel lit" on the 60). But when I (and a few other photographers) got down to near the Alcan terminal, we spotted the train going into Battleship Wharf... and realised (and then had it confirmed) what it was actually doing. My plan had been to get pictures of it arriving and then get into position on the bridge at Freeman's for the departure, but wanted something good of the 60 (with the front better lit) so sacrificed the Freeman's shot for this. Although I made a quick getaway, 1Z28 beat me to Freeman's (hardly surprising as it's only round the corner and the train had a head start), but I did manage to beat it to Woodhorn on the Lynemouth line and get another good shot of the 60.
Note that Cambois is pronounced "Cammus"; the old shed was in front of me and to the left. Note also that "canny" means something positive in north-eastern dialect, often with an element of surprise, and not the same as in Scotland - so "canny colourful" means "quite colourful" or "very colourful".
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
The Branchline Society's "The Merry Wherry" brought the Class 50 Alliance's 50007 Hercules and Hanson & Hall's 50008 Thunderer to Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft, the routes from Norwich being known as The Wherry Lines. Displaying the identity of long-scrapped sister 50034 Furious, 50007 leads the charter into the Norfolk resort working 1Z74 1526 Norwich to Great Yarmouth, having previously visited Lowestoft. The ever increasing collection of rolling stock at the Eastern Rail Services carriage sidings can be seen behind the charter, with 08870 just visible behind the third coach.
RD24746vs. On Saturday, 11th February, 2023 the Branch Line Society ran a railtour from Derby to South West London called the ‘Wolf Hall Thunderer’. It was top ‘n’ tailed by Class 50 Co-Co diesel-electric 50008 ‘Thunderer’ and Class 37 Co-Co diesel-electric 37403 ‘Isle of Mull’ and the train started of by following the Midland main line to London St. Pancras.
From here it headed round to the south west of London where it visited a number of branch and secondary lines, some of them twice. I saw it at Guildford in Surrey which is one of the places visited twice, so I saw it twice - with time for lunch between the two visits.
This shot is from the first visit when it came from Wimbledon via Epsom, Leatherhead and Effingham Junction with the Class 50 leading. The train reversed at Guildford and set off back up the main line to Woking on its way to Surbiton and Hampton Court.
***This photo is a still shot from a video that I shot that day; this can be seen here:
www.flickr.com/photos/train-pix/52686645481/in/album-7215...
or here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8S9usbGgaw
Copyright © Ron Fisher 2023.
Hanson & Hall Class 50 50008 "Thunderer" stands at Derby before commencing 1Z88, the Branch Line Society's "The Technical Cobra" railtour to Pontefract Monkhill.
37521 is seen passing through Lostock Railway Station working the Branch Line Society "The Luca Pezzulo Express" 1Z37 06:06 Lancaster to Wrenthorpe Recp. on the 20th July 2019.
**The railtour which was chartered in memory of an 11-year-old York boy who died of a neurological condition is set to raise more than £15,000 for the hospice which cared for him.**
Stock :- 4854, 4984, 4973, 99327, 4940, 99680, 99316, 99128, 3058.
© Andy Parkinson 2019 - No Unauthorised Use Please.
The second day of the Branch Line Society's "The Sahara Explorer" railtour, which ran from from Oujda to Bouárfa in Morocco, stands at Berguent Fouchal in the Sahara Desert during the lunch break for the crew. At the head of the train are ONCF (Moroccan National Railways) locos DH411 and DH367.
The front two coaches were for the use of ONCF staff, while the third coach is a generator van which also contains an area which was used for food preparation as well as selling cold drinks (and giving away bottles of water). Fourth is a couchette coach, available to the 32 tour participants on the return journey (which took place overnight - a departure just after 9pm resulted in an arrival back at Oujda just after 05.15 the following morning). At the back are two seating coaches, the first being air conditioned while the rearmost coach has opening windows and was originally built for SNCB (Belgium).
On the left is a police car: for security reasons (safety) the train was followed by two police cars (from the national force), which met it at various level crossings and every time it stopped, but at stops where there was likely to be interest from locals the local police also put in an appearance. There was also a police officer on the train.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
RD24748vs. On Saturday, 11th February, 2023 the Branch Line Society ran a railtour from Derby to South West London called the ‘Wolf Hall Thunderer’. It was top ‘n’ tailed by Class 50 Co-Co diesel-electric 50008 ‘Thunderer’ and Class 37 Co-Co diesel-electric 37403 ‘Isle of Mull’ and the train started of by following the Midland main line to London St. Pancras.
From here it headed round to the south west of London where it visited a number of branch and secondary lines, some of them twice. I saw it at Guildford in Surrey which is one of the places visited twice, so I saw it twice - with time for lunch between the two visits.
This shot is from the first visit when it came from Wimbledon via Epsom, Leatherhead and Effingham Junction with the Class 50 leading. The train reversed at Guildford and set off back up the main line to Woking on its way to Surbiton and Hampton Court with, as can seen in this shot, the Class 37 in charge.
***This photo is a still shot from a video that I took that day and it can be seen here:
www.flickr.com/photos/train-pix/52686645481/in/album-7215...
or here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8S9usbGgaw
Copyright © Ron Fisher 2023.
69011 is seen having just crossed over Heck Ings UWC bringing up the rear of the Branch Line Society "Drax 50 Years 1974-2024: Team Blue" 1Z62 12:59 Wakefield Westgate to Wakefield Westgate on the 18th August 2024.
Stock :- 5952, 6042, 6176, 5929, 1200, 3325, 3390, 3304, 3333, 6310, 17105.
© Andy Parkinson 2024 - No Unauthorised Use Please.
50008 "Thunderer" is seen departing from Pontefract Monkhill on the rear of 5Z88 14:45 Pontefract Monkhill to Knottingley T.M.D. on the 12th February 2023.
Stock :- 13230, 3150, 35185, 1859, 5028, 4856.
© Andy Parkinson 2023 - No Unauthorised Use Please.
37676 "Loch Rannoch" is seen having passed through Lostock Railway Station bringing up the rear of the Branch Line Society "The Garston Growler" 1Z31 07:10 Lancaster to Preston on the 3rd September 2022.
© Andy Parkinson 2022 - No Unauthorised Use Please.
West Coast Railways Veteran English Electric Type 3's 37706 & 37518 Lead 1Z74, The 05.30 Crewe to Portsmouth Harbour 'Type 3 To The Sea Railtour' (Branch Line Society) With 37669 On The Rear As They Approach Lichfield Trent Valley, Running 3 Minutes Late After Being Held At Curborough Junction.
Saturday 10th August 2019
Branch Line Society "Forth and Clyde Wanderer" rail tour 27 August 1977. Class 101 dmu cars 51464+59556+51525 formed the train seen here at the BR limit on the line to Polkemmet Colliery.
43102 Leicester Midland Mainline East Midlands railway Class 43 HST Power Car Inter City Livery Branch Line Society 'The East Midlands 125 Farewell' BREL/Paxman May 2021
20142 in LT livery heads the Birmingham Balti Bash, Branch Line Society Railtour past Shifnal Cricket Ground in the dull, Sunday 22.9.19. 20189 was on the rear.
I met up with Terry and Rob here, and we were inteding to do the cemetary shot, however, tree growth severely restricts that view now. I happened to notice on passing by that there appears to have been some line side scrub clearance here on the embankment, so we relocated to the cricket club. I did a little bit of scrub clearance myself in photoshop, to remove some bushes around the loco. A shame there wasn't a match being played too!
37403 Isle of Mull leads the Branch Line Society's "The Tweedmouth Tractors" out of Pelaw Loop, after being overtaken by 156469 on 2N28 11.56 Hexham - Whitby. West Coast Railways' 37516 is on the rear (WCRC operated the train), and the coaching was provided by the Scottish Railway Preservation Society.
This was the first day of a three-day tour originally advertised as "The Tyne Tees Tractors", starting and finishing in Edinburgh but with overnight stops in Doncaster; it covered various freight lines in the north-east, and this leg is 1Z68 08.11 Edinburgh Waverley - South Dock Port of Sunderland. Pelaw Up Loop was a requested part of the itinerary, today's main highlights being the Forth Goods branch in Newcastle (the stub of the old route to Carlisle) and the Sunderland South Dock branch (all the way to Corporation Quay) - but it was also booked to do various other loops between Edinburgh and Newcastle and between Sunderland and Doncaster, as well as the ECML diversionary route via Church Fenton and Askern.
With a booked stop of nine minutes here (and it being overtaken), it was possible to photograph the train from the footbridge by Pelaw Metro station and then walk down to this footbridge to get it leaving the loop. Unfortunately there was a lot of cloud around, and it was full dull when the train ran into the loop. But the sun made an appearance just as the points went over for the train to depart... and as we photographed the rear of the train, a small, thin cloud meant the rear loco wasn't fully lit until it was passing the junction with the line to Jarrow, so we were very lucky with the timing!
Pelaw was my first point of contact with this train, as I'd decided to concentrate on 56302 during the morning. But I then chased it to Sunderland, getting it going down the South Dock branch (in dull) and then coming back (in sun). I did, however, realise that the sun would be just "off the nose" for this shot, but thought it was probably the best interesting location between Newcastle and Sunderland, with the sun angle between Sunderland and Ryhope Grange Jn. still being a little too inline at the time this ran.
To see my non-transport pictures, visit www.flickr.com/photos/137275498@N03/.
Farewell to the Merseyrail Class 507's and the Branchline Society ran a Northern line tour finale 'The Sefton Sparkler'.
Fittingly 507001 which along with 507002 worked the first train conveying HM Queen Elizabeth II November 1st 1978, was rostered along with 507023.
In sombre light, I recorded this image approaching Walton Junction coming off the Kirkby line this morning. It has been a long and protracted demise due to their replacements, the Stadler 777’s, taking an age to enter service.
Six standy units are positioned around the system to cover for failures.
For the record the tour itinery was:
Southport - Hunts Cross - Fazakerley - Sandhills - Ormskirk - Kirkdale C.S - Liverpool Central - Southport - Bootle New Strand - Liverpool Central - Formby - Hunts Cross - Liverpool Central - Southport.
Whilst the two Cumwhinton shots were ‘a bonus’ the rest of the weekend chasing 37403 was the ultimate arse kicking!
37403 approaching Kinloid on 10/3/24 with 1Z40 - 08.15 - Fort William to Wemyss Bay, via Mallaig, BLS “BWC Two” railtour.
GBRf 50007 'Hercules' is seen at London Cannon Street after working 1Z52 14:30 from Eastbourne as part of the 'Ore no More' railtour, next it'll work the final leg of the said tour as 1Z54 17:52 to Eastleigh. 50008 was at the other end. 23/04/22
57310 heads the Branch Line Society's 'Glasgow GM' one -way Glasgow-Derby tour through Kelvindale, between Anniesland and Maryhill, on Sunday 23rd June 2024. 57306 is out of sight at the rear. Loco hauled trains are not common through here! I'm guessing the first visit of a class 57 to this line. Class 57s are former Brush/Sulzer class 47s re-engined with EMD power unit.
In foul weather, West Coast Railway's Class 33 No. 33029 shreds its way through Rugeley Trent Valley on 9th March 2020 while heading the Branch Line Society's 'Park Royal Parkinson' charter, 1Z40 1227 London Paddington - Lancaster. This was the last of three days of charters involving WCR Class 33s, which commenced with a Lancaster - Paddington working on 7th March, followed by a tour to Devon on 8th March. Copyright Photograph John Whitehouse - all rights reserved
60047 Faithful brings up the rear of the Branch Line Society's "Tabs on the Tyne", as it rounds the curve at Woodhorn (east of Ashington) on its way to Lynemouth. 66190 Martin House Children's Hospice is out of sight on the front of the train. [Pole, 6/6 sections (~8m)]
The tour ran as:
1Z27 07.26 Doncaster - ECML - Tyne Yard - Tyne Dock;
1Z28 12.15 Tyne Dock - Newcastle - Newsham - Bedlington - North Blyth Battleship Wharf (reverse) - Lynemouth (reverse) - Bedlington - Newsham - Newcastle;
1Z29 18.20 Newcastle - King Edward Bridge - East Boldon Up Loop - Hartlepool (Cliff House Up Loop) - Darlington (reverse at platform 3) - Doncaster.
After photographing the train at Cambois rather than off the A189 "Spine Road" bridge near Freeman's, I easily beat the train here - the train travels a greater distance and much more slowly. However, I was only raising the pole for the first time when I heard the train approaching, and one of the other two people here (who'd both arrived at the same time as me, but were using tripod-mounted poles) did not get set up in time. Going higher would have been useful, to allow the horizon to be further above the roof of the train, but I was at full height - although had I had more time to investigate where to stand I might have found a spot further back on a path leading up to the lineside.
But I was pleased to get a shot of the train between Ashington and Lynemouth as this is a line which did not see railtours until relatively recently, as beyond Woodhorn it was owned by the National Coal Board and its successors rather than BR and its successors. In fact, it's one freight line in Britain I've not travelled on a railtour, having not bothered because in the early 1980s I travelled between Ashington and Lynemouth in the cab of an NCB class 14 so don't need the track (and Hertfordshire Railtours' "Blyth Spirit III" in September 1994 reversed far enough on the Lynemouth side of Ashington station that I had overlap with the by then lifted line from Ashington Colliery).
This was the first time I'd used the pole here, as biomass trains at the right time for the light angle have been more erratic in the last few years.
Visit Brian Carter's Non-Transport Pics to see my photos of landscapes, buildings, bridges, sunsets, rainbows and more.
A three-car class 101 Metro-Cammell diesel set was used by the BRanch Line Society on 24 August 1980 for their Forfar Railtour from Perth. First port of call was the Dewar's branch where the train reached a point just short of the first trap point.
50008, with 37418 "An Comunn Gaidhealach" at the rear, skirt Coatham Marsh, Redcar, working 1Z50: "The Saltburn Alternative" rail charter; the 05.30 service from Derby to Saltburn, promoted by The Branch Line Society.
Originally listed as The Whitby Endeavour, with Whitby as the destination, the rail charter destination was changed to Saltburn, due to engineering works on the Esk Valley line to Whitby.
PKP (Polish Railways) EP05-23 stands at Trzebinia after it's fill-in run to Libiąż and back (because the requested non-passenger branch to the local power station had been refused on security grounds), on the second day of the Branch Line Society's four-day "The Katowice and Kraków Wanderer" railtour. The tour this day started and ended in Katowice, visiting the Kraków area during the afternoon.
The whole thing was organised on behalf of the BLS by Polish railtour operator TurKol. However, as a result of fewer than expected bookings via the BLS (which threatened the viability of the tour), TurKol had also advertised the trains on days two and three (Saturday and Sunday) in its own programme and was selling tickets (at a cheaper rate than the BLS) to locals. This meant there were a significant number of Polish enthusiasts on board, who added to the difficulty of getting good photos of the train during pathing stops (such as this) or at locations where the loco ran round, as they often focused on getting multiple close-up pictures of just the loco rather than the whole scene (and often took a long time to move out of the way) - although even BLS members got in the way, as most took photos using smart phones with very wide-angle lenses. However, I managed to include some of the Polish contingent in this shot, after most of them had moved out of the way.
The majority of us were slightly frustrated here in missing a good shot of a Kolprem "Ludmilla" diesel (known in Germany as class 232) on a steel train; it ran through the station, passing our train, just as we were all gathering here.
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Loco 25049 stands in the yard at Keith Junction while "bubble car" SC55002 is in the platform during the Branch Line Society "Fiddichburger No. 2" rail tour on 27 August 1979. This class 122 railbus was built by the Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company. The loco was built at Derby Works as D5199 and entered service in 1963. It would be withdrawn in 1984.