I believe it came from Knottingley but dont quote me on it.
Theres more to come on that above, I POSTED THAT LITTLE BIT BY MISTAKE
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A few bits n Bobs I can remember
continued....
Howevver I didn't really have much time to get out and about but I still went out and bought a new Platform 5 combined book, sorry if the pictures massive, just getting the hang of this
[/URL][/IMG] with the 60's and 66's were enough to get the odd cop locally here and there.
Wasnt till a fair few years later, I stopped working late shifts, I started getting days off midweek too, which meant I had more time to see more freight. Id say 2006 was when i got fully back into the hobby again.
I remember standing down Tyne Yard one day, I was told the West Coast diverts were on this week, meaning we'd get extra freight trains through, namely the intermodal traffic, seeimg pairs of 86's whizz through was a nice sight indeed. A Serco Test train came by top n tailed by 2 47's, nothing too startling I imagine some folk saying, well it was for me but ok, its nothing too spectacular, until next morning, when I get down to Tyne Yard and theres 2 intermodal trains parked up in there and the in and out lines are full. I ask if the modals have failed and Im told the SERCO Test train we saw yesterday, pulled the wires down, just North of Doncaster and blocked the lines, meaning all trains are stnding waiting to come through, he said he'd been there since 8am and this lot has come in and I got there at 10am. Throughout the next 4 hours or so, those of us standing there, saw freight after freight either come in the Yard or change crews on the slow line, Im ot kidding when I say we must've saw around 30 different locos in that 4 hr period, it was THE best day I'd ever had at Tyne Yard, even including the mid 80's.
I then was told that Class 92's ran through the night, one north and one south about 1 and 1.30am, my 92's were very thin on the ground, so I devised a plan to get em. If you stand on the bridge at Tyne Yard and look North theres another bridge a mere 500 yds away, that carries the A167(i thnkj)over it. I knew a path way to get under it and you could sit on the grass bank and watch stuff go by, plus theres a signal at the points, which showed two dots and the line to take into the yard, it would show F, Y or M, when something was coming. So when I finished work and had the next day off, I made out the house at 11.30pm, packed my bag with a torch, bog roll, just in case, wipes, flask and a few sarnies and off on the 10minute walk down to the said bridge.
Fortunately the floodlights at the North end of the yard offered sufficient light to see stuff, along with the light from above from the lamp posts on the motorway, there was just enough light to make out the numbers, I mean it sounds mad but I managed to get more than half my voyagers without travelling, I got a good 20% of the 92's there, a fair few sheds and both the NR Ice breaking 86's, so it wasn't in vain. Funniest incident came when i was sitting and I could hear rustling in the long grash and dense bushes, I put it down to Rabbits, of which there was loads down there, however nature called, so i got the wipes out my bag, moving my sandwiches on top of the bag, whilst i went for a jimmy riddle, hence wipes for hands after. Im mid flow about 20yds at most from my bag, when I saw what I thought was a dog sniffing my bag, I focussed my eyas to see a bloody fox bugger off with my bloody ham sarnies. I told a few of my fellow cranks, later that afternoon and majority had seen a fox in the yard itself, just as the light would begin to fade. I seen it another time, walking on the lines with a rabbit in its mouth, thinking to myself, oh you've gone off ham now.
Like I said, I promised myself a journey out, to further than Darlington where, just after I'd got back into the hobby in 2001, I made the odd pilgrinage, when i finished early enough to get out to scratch a long standing itch, the Bristol-Newcastle XC Loco Hauled turn, I remember vividly being dead excited, riding a tram to Darlington, not for the tram either but for a booked 47 turn, 47805 turned up and it was just heaven, I got a few more too, 47812, 817 and 830, readily spring to mind, however, unfortunately, they had bit the dust now too.
I booked a weeks holiday and didnt even think about Rovers etc, I just decided I'm going to Crewe. I got up early on the Tuesday or Wednesday and got to Central and paid for a day return to Crewe, sure it was about £59 at the time. I jumped on a blunt to Doncaster got a voyager to Sheffield and an HST to Derby, I can stand corrected but I think it was a London Mainline one, certainly wasn't EMT, well if it was, it wasn't the livery theyre in now. The only number I can remember for haulage on that trip was 150120 to Crewe. I remember the first thing I saw after alighting the HST was 45112. I laughed and said under my breath, god I've never seen one of you in a long time, by your an ugly f!"£^*r, it wasnt all bad, I cleared my 31s again, 31554 in InterCity livery was parked up to, with 47580 and 33103. I had an hour or so here before I set off to Crewe. CD was a pale shadow of itself, it was still a fairly decent day there, there were a number of units, that were all cops, especially the 350's, not to mention the Pendolinos too. I also seen my first bodysnatcher there, all i could think was, what have you done, what have you done? After a couple of hours I jumped aboard a pendolino for a maiden voyage on them, have to say they were and still are ok to me, ok they're not an 81,85, 86 or 87, even a 90 but as rides go theyre ok, would've still liked a proper sparky though.
On the way up to Carlisle I copped a gronk, 67026 and a 92 at Warrington, i would've loved to bail there but time was against me. I got up to Carlisle, had about an hour and a half there before jumping on 156444 to go home. My first real trip out afar im a dogs age and I loved every minute of it too. I was hooked again.
I visited bpth Tyne Yard and Central station in equal measure, again whenever possible. However in 2007, I started a new relationship, it got real serious too, so much so a year later, after a weekend away in Edinburgh, well not straight after, a few months down the line, I was imformed I was gonna be a Dad. We moved in together and money for the railway trips suddenly died on it ass and even more so when the daughter arrived. I was happy as Larry, I've been called some names but none whatsoever beats being called Dad, even if I could choke her at times, any parent will understand what I mean here, when you hear, Dad, can I, dad will you, dad have you etc etc
I got out to look at trains but never travelled far, my girlfriend said I was sad but i just ignored her.
Unfortunately we split too, in short we ended up hating living with each other, I hated leaving my daughter but I'd have been committed by now if I'd stayed. Fortunately my daughters a Daddys girl and loves nothing better than going out anywhere with her Dad. Still the ex threw one of her many tantrums and when I didnt jump to clear my stuff out the house now, I said, how can i come now, Im at bloody work, adding, Id come down after work and clear it out, oh no, the bitch got all my train related gear, old notebooks, platform 5's, the full kit n kaboodle put them in a bin with some clothes and trainers and torched the lot, gave my bino's away to her Dad, who flogged them and my camera went mysteriously couldn't be found. GUTTED WASNT THE WORD. Fortunately I'd took my current platform 5 book when I left the house, so at least I didn't have to start from scratch but all those records and memories went up in smoke. Quite Litterally. We get along now, however she still has the odd hissy fit but i just ignore her and leave her be.
A few years on and i joined this forum, at first rarely straying from the Nostagia thread BUT since straying into the trips and planning thread, i have to say, it's been a driving force into me straying far and wide, into putting huge dints into my requirements nationwide, ok I'm not ready to break out the rail atlas and ride out between shacks to scratch them all off, one things for sure I have huge respect for all you who do. So next time you see this loco, albeit its got different pyjamas these days, remember, this was probably responsible for me boring you all half to death, with this thread and post
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Also none of the above photos are mine.
many thanks
47403
