Back in the day...

[D6130]

Nothing from me today I'm afraid....but lots tomorrow!

 

[sftfan1909]

This was an eventful start to what was to be an event-filled bash around Poland. (Maybe the details of that will appear in another thread some day).

I'm sure I'm not the only one who would love to read all about it!

 

[37166]

27/12/1991 S&C Specials

37071/37083/47479 - Leeds to Carlisle Citadel - 1Z33 0947 Leeds-Carlisle Citadel
37049/37095/47479 - Carlisle Citadel to Leeds - 1Z33 1325 Carlisle Citadel-Leeds
86249 Manchester Piccadilly to Stockport - 1718 Manchester Piccadilly-Birmingham New Street

Organised traction on the S&C, Of the 4 37s, I scored 3 of them and never had any of them ever again (049/083/95)!

 

[Harvester]

Tuesday 29th December 1992

By this time it was becoming rare for anything other than HSTs or 47/8s, to appear on the principal Cross Country services.

47817 13:08 Derby-Cheltenham
47836 15:25 Cheltenham-Birmingham NS
47848 17:30 Birmingham NS-Derby

 

[D6130]

SUNDAY 29th DECEMBER 1974:

Returning from a night out in London:

03 40 Waterloo-Petersfield: 73 141

My first trip on this semi-mythical train....and as a bonus, having seen us photographing the loco on arrival, the Waterloo driver kindly gave my friend and I a cab ride while running round the stock.

MONDAY 29th DECEMBER 1980:

A day at work before returning to my parents' house near Garelochhead:

08 52 Helensburgh Central-Airdrie: 303 001 Helensburgh Central-Glasgow QS LL
18 21 Glasgow QS HL-Oban: 27 012 Glasgow QS-Garelochhead (Consist: SC4385/4249/4144/14009 Load 4 VB/SH)

MONDAY 29th DECEMBER 2008:

Returning from our house in Italy with an overnight stop in Oulx in the Italian Alps:

TFT R 1161, 08 47 Pratovecchio Stia-Arezzo: ALe56 137/Le56 137
IC 582, 08 30 Roma Termini-Milano Centrale: E444 103 Arezzo-Firenze Rifredi
R 3053, 11 54 Firenze Rifredi-Firenze SMN: Unidentified EMU
FR 9434, 12 19 Firenze SMN-Milano Centrale via Prato and Bologna-Milano HSL: Unit 10 (E404 650 + E404 651)
R 2018, 15 15 Milano Centrale-Torino Porta Nuova: E464 441
R 10038, 17 55 Torino PN-Bardonecchia: E632 020 Torino PN-Oulx

 

[NorthWestRover]

Monday 29th December 1986

86229 WBQ to Wolves, 1M33 Glasgow to Birmingham NS
86229 Wolves to Crewe, 1S87 Birmingham NS to Glasgow
86426 Crewe to WBQ, 1P** Euston to Preston

Tuesday 29th December 1987

87014 WBQ to Crewe, 1A18 06.00 Carlisle to Euston
47452 Crewe to Birmingham NS
47 *** Birmingham NS to Wolves

 

[CW2]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who would love to read all about it!

Well the original report (without pictures) ran to about a dozen sides of A4, and is "missing in action, presumed lost".
I'll try to slip in a few edited highlights in coming days.

 

[xotGD]

29th December 1982

A post-Christmas day out...

46039 Newcastle - Carlisle 1M04
46039 Carlisle - Newcastle 1S15

29th December 1987

Heading in the same direction, but going a bit further. However, no 1M04/1S15, so a unit across the Tyne Valley. Then...

85006 Carlisle - Penrith 1Z??
87033 Penrith - Carlisle 1S47
86224 Carlisle - Penrith 1M34
86430 Penrith - Carlisle 1S??

Nice to pick up a Roaring Device on an additional.

29th December 1993

I decided to get a North Country Rover straddling the New Year. This was the first day. Again, plastic on the Tyne Valley.

86247 Carlisle - Lancaster
47703 Lancaster - Oxenholme
87011 Oxenholme - Preston
90007 Preston - Lancaster
87025 Lancaster - Carlisle

I don't know why the Shove-Duff produced rather than an electric. After this move I yellow-penned the Windermere branch. With hindsight, I should have waited until I could do it with a Crompton. Such a notion in 1993 would have been bonkers.

 

[Cowley]

29th December 1982

A post-Christmas day out...

46039 Newcastle - Carlisle 1M04
46039 Carlisle - Newcastle 1S15

29th December 1987

Heading in the same direction, but going a bit further. However, no 1M04/1S15, so a unit across the Tyne Valley. Then...

85006 Carlisle - Penrith 1Z??
87033 Penrith - Carlisle 1S47
86224 Carlisle - Penrith 1M34
86430 Penrith - Carlisle 1S??

Nice to pick up a Roaring Device on an additional.

29th December 1993

I decided to get a North Country Rover straddling the New Year. This was the first day. Again, plastic on the Tyne Valley.

86247 Carlisle - Lancaster
47703 Lancaster - Oxenholme
87011 Oxenholme - Preston
90007 Preston - Lancaster
87025 Lancaster - Carlisle

I don't know why the Shove-Duff produced rather than an electric. After this move I yellow-penned the Windermere branch. With hindsight, I should have waited until I could do it with a Crompton. Such a notion in 1993 would have been bonkers.

Speaking of Cromptons… I’ve got one for today.

29/12/1990

47846 Exeter - Plymouth
47809 Plymouth - Tivvy Parkway
HST Tiv P - Newton Abbot (I never recorded any HST unfortunately)
47579 Newton Abbot - Exeter
47822 Exeter - Plymouth
47822 Plymouth - Bristol Parkway
47848 Bristol Parkway - Exeter
33002 Exeter - Crewkerne (a very exciting run in the dark behind one of my favourite locos)
50027 Crewkerne - Exeter

Quite a lot miles on a southwest rover that day.

 

[CW2]

29th December 1993

47703 Lancaster - Oxenholme

I don't know why the Shove-Duff produced rather than an electric.

The shove Duffs were overhauled at Crewe, so after works attention they could occasionally be found working vice electric on the WCML as a way of getting them home. Of course this assumed there would be a spare electric in Scotland to work the next leg of the diagram. On at least one occasion the incoming 47/7 was turned straight around at Glasgow and headed south on a Euston service.

 

[Falcon1200]

Thursday 29th December 1983 - Another Peak on this diagram:
45118 1307 Paddington-Liverpool Lime St (Reading-Oxford)

Sunday 29th December 1985
47628 2142 Oxford-Paddington
86213 2330 Euston-Glasgow Central

And a day late posting this one:
Wednesday 28th December 1988
47620 0702 Paddington-Manchester Piccadilly (Oxford-Coventry)
86431 same train (Coventry-Birmingham New St)
85023 0820 Euston-Edinburgh (Birmingham New St-Carstairs)
318253 1440 Carstairs-Glasgow Central (to Motherwell)

 

[Graeme.Hutchis]

29th / 30th December 1987

318263 Paisley-Glasgow 18.50 Gourock-Glasgow
37423 Queen St to Mossend 17.40 Fort William-London Euston 1M16
85025 Mossend-Crewe as above 1M16
37427 Crewe-Cardiff 06.20 Crewe-Cardiff
37427 Cardiff-Crewe 10.45 Cardiff-Crewe
86250 Crewe-Preston 13.55 London Euston-Preston 1P51
86420 Preston-Glasgow 15.30 London Euston-Glasgow 1S83
318258 Glasgow-Branchton 21.25 Glasgow-Wemyss Bay.

 

[xotGD]

29th / 30th December 1987

318263 Paisley-Glasgow 18.50 Gourock-Glasgow
37423 Queen St to Mossend 17.40 Fort William-London Euston 1M16
85025 Mossend-Crewe as above 1M16
37427 Crewe-Cardiff 06.20 Crewe-Cardiff
37427 Cardiff-Crewe 10.45 Cardiff-Crewe
86250 Crewe-Preston 13.55 London Euston-Preston 1P51
86420 Preston-Glasgow 15.30 London Euston-Glasgow 1S83
318258 Glasgow-Branchton 21.25 Glasgow-Wemyss Bay.

Getting from Glasgow to Cardiff with two Syphons and a Roarer is a decent trip!

 

[CW2]

Saturday 30/12/78
Again, returning from my parents in Reading to my home in York:
50015 1316 Reading – Paddington
55003 1445 Kings Cross – Leeds via Viaduct.
55003 was running on One Engine Only, and hence utterly thrashed all the way.
DMU Leeds – Selby
47498 1852 Selby – York

Thursday 30/12/82
On my wife’s birthday, a trip to visit her parents in Abergavenny:
45112 1254 York – Stalybridge
DMU Stalybridge – Stockport
EMU Stockport – Crewe
33049 1602 Crewe – Abergavenny

 

[Harvester]

Saturday 30th December 1989

An afternoon trip to Leamington.

150137 11:59 Beeston-Derby
47803 12:54 Derby-Birmingham NS
50031 13:45 Birmingham NS-Leamington
47440 15:43 Leamington-Coventry
150138 16:19 Coventry-Leicester-Beeston

 

[D6130]

MONDAY 30th DECEMBER 1974:

A spotting day out with the morning spent at Reading, then a "Whizzo" up to Paddington, over to Fenchurch Street for a trip to Dagenham Dock and back to see what was at Ripple Lane....then back into town for a look at Kings Cross and Euston, before returning home from Waterloo. At this time there were still Crompton-hauled peak hour trains from Redhill to Reading and back, formed of three elderly Mark 1 carriages (TSO-BSK-TSO). Thrash!

7350/7056/7353 Petersfield-Guildford
33 054 Guildford-Reading
1047 "Western Lord" Reading-Paddington
258 Fenchurch Street-Dagenham Dock
295 Dagenham Dock-Fenchurch Street
7349/7050/7377 Waterloo-Petersfield

TUESDAY 30th DECEMBER 2008:

Returning from Christmas in Italy after an overnight in the Italian Alps:

EC 9240, 06 45 Milano PG-Paris Lyon: TGV 4506 Oulx-Paris Lyon via St Andre-le-Gaz
RER line D: Gare de Lyon-Gare du Nord
ES 9043, 16 13 Paris Nord-London St Pancras International: 373 013/014
Unidentified class 91: Kings Cross-Leeds
Unidentified class 333 unit: Leeds-Skipton

 

[NorthWestRover]

Thursday 30th December 1982

I've often said I can barely remember many of the days I had out 40 years ago. Today is the best example of all. Back in May (post #649), I posted a partial set of moves for 30th December 1982 as I had a question in relation to one of the locations...

I am slowly adding my moves to Trainlogger. Just been doing a trip to Oban on 30th December 1982 and I needed to put Cowlairs in. That didn't come up as a location. Any ideas?

The day's moves were
86 or 87 WBQ to Preston (I assume)
85020 Preston to Mossend
37026 Mossend to Cowlairs
37191 Cowlairs to Glasgow QS
37179 Glasgow QS platform 7 to 6
37192 Glasgow QS to Crianlarich
37022 Crianlarich to Ardlui
37191 Ardlui to Oban
37191 Oban to Glasgow QS
81015 Glasgow Cen to Carlisle
86 or 87 Carlisle to WBQ (I assume)

Now, those moves were recreated from class listings I had as I didn't have my moves book from winter 82/83; I still don't have. I have some separate books with moves by class, but at that point didn't have my 87 (or 40) listing, so assumed that the final stage of this great day to Oban must have been either a Can or an 87. Now I have my 40 and 87 moves.... How on earth did I forget that it was in fact...

40035 Carlisle to Manchester Victoria (via Shap and Bolton), 16.17 Edinburgh to Manchester additional.

Wow (and it did it the following day in reverse too, according to the Motherlist). 40106 had done a morning relief on 30th up to Edinburgh. I wonder if we had gen or fell onto it; if the latter, that must have been my luckiest move ever.

The rest of the day (in the quote) wasn't too bad!

85020 Preston to Mossend
37026 Mossend to Cowlairs
37191 Cowlairs to Glasgow QS
37179 Glasgow QS platform 7 to 6
37192 Glasgow QS to Crianlarich
37022 Crianlarich to Ardlui
37191 Ardlui to Oban
37191 Oban to Glasgow QS
81015 Glasgow Cen to Carlisle

Wednesday 30th December 1987

Can-tastic...

86245 Wolves to Birmingham NS, 13.26 Wolves to Euston
86226 Birmingham NS to Crewe, **.** Plymouth to Glasgow
86221 Crewe to WBQ, 14.00 Euston to Glasgow

 

[D6130]

Heres's one that I forgot about yesterday:

TUESDAY 29th DECEMBER 2009:

En route to Italy for New Year via the French and Italian Riviera for a change:

ES 9132, 12 57 London St Pancras International-Brussels Midi/Zuid: 373 212/211 STP-Lille Europe
TGV 9834, 16 06 Lille Europe (ex-Brussels)-Marseille St Charles: 4525 + 619
TER 17499, 20 59 Marseille St Charles-Nice Ville: BB 22351

WEDNESDAY 30th DECEMBER 2009:

TER 8181153, 09 17 Nice Ville-Menton: EMU 439
TER 86017, 09 59 Menton-Ventimiglia: EMU 410
IC 139, 10 58 Ventimiglia-Genova Piazza Principe: E656 004
IC 665, 13 47 Genova PP- La Spezia Centrale: E444 087
ES 9769, 16 06 La Spezia Centrale-Pisa Centrale: E402 102
R 3118, 17 32 Pisa Centrale-Firenze SMN: E464 381
R 2317, 19 13 Firenze SMN-Arezzo: E464 429
RRB: Arezzo-Pratovecchio Stia

 

[xotGD]

30th December 1981

For my Christmas present I asked for the ching to go to Glasgow. So that's what I did...

86237 Carlisle - Glasgow Central 1S46
87015 Glasgow Central - Carlisle 1M34

When I went back to school some of my classmates were a bit bemused by my choice of Christmas present!

30th December 1985

A post-Christmas pub visit...

47408 Newcastle - Durham 1M73
45117 Durham - Newcastle 1E94

30th December 1989

47709 Waverley - Glasgow QS

I'll leave it to everyone's imagination to figure out how this random move came about.

30th December 1993

Second day of my North Country Rover didn't involve much loco-hauled action...

87027 Carlisle - Preston

 

[37166]

30/12/1991

47482 Kettering-Derby
43176/152 Derby-Doncaster
91007 Doncaster-Leeds
56134/31418 Leeds-Carlisle Citadel
56117/31418 Carlisle Citadel-Leeds
91007 Leeds-Doncaster
91005 Doncaster-Darlington
91019 Darlington-Doncaster
91024 Doncaster-Darlington
91002 Darlington-York

Another day on the S&C with 2 different grids, then some 91s ending up in York, if i remember i stayed at legendary basher Pogo's that night!

 

[CW2]

30th December 1981

For my Christmas present I asked for the ching to go to Glasgow. So that's what I did...

86237 Carlisle - Glasgow Central 1S46
87015 Glasgow Central - Carlisle 1M34

When I went back to school some of my classmates were a bit bemused by my choice of Christmas present!

I sympathise! You are definitely well at home in this thread!

 

[xotGD]

if i remember i stayed at legendary basher Pogo's that night!

Now there's a name I haven't heard for a while.

 

[CW2]

Monday 31/12/79
Once more I was visiting my parents in Plymouth, and I’d been granted a short-term exit visa for good behaviour over the previous festive days, so I decided to take a peek at what was working out of Plymouth. An HST arrived from Paddington, and was the focus of much attention. The driver had reported that it had lost power on the journey down on a couple of occasions. The fitters could find nothing wrong, but decided “better safe than sorry” and requested a pilot loco to Exeter. Laira turned out 50021 for the job:

50021 + 43020 + 43021 1546 Plymouth – Exeter St Davids

We were late starting due to the time taken to attach 50021, so once we got going there was time to make up. We went up Hemerdon so fast that we had to apply brakes at the top of the bank to adhere to the 60 mph speed restriction then in force. Remember those original WR HST sets were 2+7 formations, so there was plenty of horsepower per coach.
At Exeter 50021 was removed, and I waited to see what I could take back to Plymouth. The first train was the 1530 Paddington – Penzance which – to my utter dismay – arrived behind another of York’s finest Duffs, 47423. Dismay turned to elation when the shunter arrived and hooked it off, replacing it with 50021 in quick time. As an added bonus, the leading vehicle was a declassified FK, so I took the empty front compartment to enjoy my trip back to Plymouth in style.
50021 1812 Exeter St Davids – Plymouth

Wednesday 31/12/80
40070 1630 Kings Cross – Peterborough
55019 1811 Peterborough – Kings Cross
55019 was on the 1325 Edinburgh – Kings Cross additional service.
My last four trips from Kings Cross to Peterborough in 1980 had produced some fine locomotives, so this was another fine trip to cap the end of the year:
27/11/80 40057 out, 50038 back
08/12/80 40047 out, 55019 back
19/12/80 40074 out, 37075 back
31/12/80 40070 out, 55019 back.

Saturday 31/12/94
A New Year’s Eve dining special with my wife, and another cranky railway couple (Ken and Jane Howard, sadly now both deceased):
165 114 Reading – Paddington
35028 1935 Paddington – Salisbury via Reading, Basingstoke
35028 2315 Salisbury – Reading
The train paused for us to alight onto the platform at one of the intermediate stations before Basingstoke to welcome the New Year at the correct time. As we were slightly late departing Salisbury, the driver was asked by the train organiser to “hurry up”, as midnight wasn’t going to wait. Suffice to say, he complied (and then some).

Seeing in the New Year in Europe:
Once I had access to FIP Continental Free Passes as a railway employee, I tried to make good use of them every year. In particular the agglomeration of Public Holidays, additional days, and weekends meant that the Christmas / New Year period was an attractive time for a bash requiring minimum additional leave days. Once Poland started opening its borders to tourists, I often visited there in search of steam over the New Year period. Before that, it was a bit more random. This is where I saw in the New Year in Europe:
Thursday 31/12/81
111 004-8 2100 Frankfurt – Nurnberg
I think we were actually stationary in Nurnberg at the stroke of midnight.

Monday 31/12/84
Ol49 103 2330 Tczew – Chojnice

Tuesday 31/12/85
Pt47 149 2210 Tomaszow Mazowiecki – Rzeszow
This long-distance overnight express was scheduled to change (steam) locos at Skarzysko Kamienna, but the forward loco failed, so the crew had to take over the incoming loco with its dirty fire and make the best of the situation. 30’ lost in running as a result.

Wednesday 31/12/86
Ty2 142 2330 Stalowa Wola Rozwadow – Tarnobrzeg

Thursday 31/12/87
Ty2 1336 2330 Nowa Sol – Wolsztyn

Saturday 31/12/88
Ty2 67 2350 Nowa Sol – Wolsztyn

Sunday 31/12/89
TKt48 84 2338 Miedzychod – Miedzyrzecz
This one definitely had a party atmosphere going on, with streamers, squeakers, party hats, booze and food – and all on the moving footplate of a steam loco in Poland!

Monday 31/12/90
Ty42 87 2312 Nowa Sol – Wolsztyn
The number of cranks on the loco outnumbered the passengers on the train. At midnight we stopped, lay down some old detonators, then inched the loco forward and saw in the New Year in a rousing railway fashion.

By this time, pressure was brought to bear that I really should be at home with wife + kids over the festive season, so I had to adjust my expectations accordingly. Then a few years later, another Domestic Exit Visa was granted:

Wednesday 01/01/97
I was on a railtour in Poland, but the combination of knackered old locos, years of poor maintenance, and ferociously sub-zero winter weather took their toll on the plan. We stayed in Klodzko the previous night (seeing in the New Year in the Hotel bar), and this morning we were supposed to have a TKt48 up the branch to Kudowa Zdroj. We were 105’ late setting off due to late arrival of the loco, and only made it half way up the branch before turning round and coming back again. (I’d done the branch on several occasions, but for some people this was a major loss).
TKt48 18 0805 Klodzko – Sczcytna, 1051 return.

 

[Cowley]

Monday 31/12/79
Once more I was visiting my parents in Plymouth, and I’d been granted a short-term exit visa for good behaviour over the previous festive days, so I decided to take a peek at what was working out of Plymouth. An HST arrived from Paddington, and was the focus of much attention. The driver had reported that it had lost power on the journey down on a couple of occasions. The fitters could find nothing wrong, but decided “better safe than sorry” and requested a pilot loco to Exeter. Laira turned out 50021 for the job:

50021 + 43020 + 43021 1546 Plymouth – Exeter St Davids

We were late starting due to the time taken to attach 50021, so once we got going there was time to make up. We went up Hemerdon so fast that we had to apply brakes at the top of the bank to adhere to the 60 mph speed restriction then in force. Remember those original WR HST sets were 2+7 formations, so there was plenty of horsepower per coach.
At Exeter 50021 was removed, and I waited to see what I could take back to Plymouth. The first train was the 1530 Paddington – Penzance which – to my utter dismay – arrived behind another of York’s finest Duffs, 47423. Dismay turned to elation when the shunter arrived and hooked it off, replacing it with 50021 in quick time. As an added bonus, the leading vehicle was a declassified FK, so I took the empty front compartment to enjoy my trip back to Plymouth in style.
50021 1812 Exeter St Davids – Plymouth

Wednesday 31/12/80
40070 1630 Kings Cross – Peterborough
55019 1811 Peterborough – Kings Cross
55019 was on the 1325 Edinburgh – Kings Cross additional service.
My last four trips from Kings Cross to Peterborough in 1980 had produced some fine locomotives, so this was another fine trip to cap the end of the year:
27/11/80 40057 out, 50038 back
08/12/80 40047 out, 55019 back
19/12/80 40074 out, 37075 back
31/12/80 40070 out, 55019 back.

Saturday 31/12/94
A New Year’s Eve dining special with my wife, and another cranky railway couple (Ken and Jane Howard, sadly now both deceased):
165 114 Reading – Paddington
35028 1935 Paddington – Salisbury via Reading, Basingstoke
35028 2315 Salisbury – Reading
The train paused for us to alight onto the platform at one of the intermediate stations before Basingstoke to welcome the New Year at the correct time. As we were slightly late departing Salisbury, the driver was asked by the train organiser to “hurry up”, as midnight wasn’t going to wait. Suffice to say, he complied (and then some).

Seeing in the New Year in Europe:
Once I had access to FIP Continental Free Passes as a railway employee, I tried to make good use of them every year. In particular the agglomeration of Public Holidays, additional days, and weekends meant that the Christmas / New Year period was an attractive time for a bash requiring minimum additional leave days. Once Poland started opening its borders to tourists, I often visited there in search of steam over the New Year period. Before that, it was a bit more random. This is where I saw in the New Year in Europe:
Thursday 31/12/81
111 004-8 2100 Frankfurt – Nurnberg
I think we were actually stationary in Nurnberg at the stroke of midnight.

Monday 31/12/84
Ol49 103 2330 Tczew – Chojnice

Tuesday 31/12/85
Pt47 149 2210 Tomaszow Mazowiecki – Rzeszow
This long-distance overnight express was scheduled to change (steam) locos at Skarzysko Kamienna, but the forward loco failed, so the crew had to take over the incoming loco with its dirty fire and make the best of the situation. 30’ lost in running as a result.

Wednesday 31/12/86
Ty2 142 2330 Stalowa Wola Rozwadow – Tarnobrzeg

Thursday 31/12/87
Ty2 1336 2330 Nowa Sol – Wolsztyn

Saturday 31/12/88
Ty2 67 2350 Nowa Sol – Wolsztyn

Sunday 31/12/89
TKt48 84 2338 Miedzychod – Miedzyrzecz
This one definitely had a party atmosphere going on, with streamers, squeakers, party hats, booze and food – and all on the moving footplate of a steam loco in Poland!

Monday 31/12/90
Ty42 87 2312 Nowa Sol – Wolsztyn
The number of cranks on the loco outnumbered the passengers on the train. At midnight we stopped, lay down some old detonators, then inched the loco forward and saw in the New Year in a rousing railway fashion.

By this time, pressure was brought to bear that I really should be at home with wife + kids over the festive season, so I had to adjust my expectations accordingly. Then a few years later, another Domestic Exit Visa was granted:

Wednesday 01/01/97
I was on a railtour in Poland, but the combination of knackered old locos, years of poor maintenance, and ferociously sub-zero winter weather took their toll on the plan. We stayed in Klodzko the previous night (seeing in the New Year in the Hotel bar), and this morning we were supposed to have a TKt48 up the branch to Kudowa Zdroj. We were 105’ late setting off due to late arrival of the loco, and only made it half way up the branch before turning round and coming back again. (I’d done the branch on several occasions, but for some people this was a major loss).
TKt48 18 0805 Klodzko – Sczcytna, 1051 return.

Fantastic stuff.

 

[Harvester]

Thursday 31st December 1981

The last day of Deltics in normal service. Went on a trip to York from Nottingham, which started with an inconvenient diversion at Sheet Stores Junction to Burton. A reversal was then required to reach Derby, a bit later than planned.

DMU Nottingham-Derby (via Castle Donington)
47502 10:36 Derby-York (via Sheffield-Normanton-Castleford)

We arrived in York ahead of 55021 on the 09:40 Kings Cross-York. That was the only Deltic seen in use, until our afternoon departure.

Visited the stabling point and observed withdrawn 55004, plus a much smarter looking 55015. While there 31221 towed failed 55007 into the depot from the south. Half a dozen 47s were also stabled there.

So the choice for the 15:50 York-Kings Cross was looking like 55015, 55021 or a dreaded Duff. Fortunately it was 55015.

55015 15:50 York-Grantham

Departure was 15 to 20 minutes late. I think the reason was awaiting guard, but my memory is faded on this. At Doncaster 55010 was dumped at the Works Entrance, along with 50041. Passed the 14:03 Kings Cross-York at Retford hauled by 47411, apparently substituting for 55008 which had failed prior to departure. The air would have turned blue at Kings Cross.

Then just north of Grantham we were signal checked at Barkston and stood there for two hours, due to a broken rail, and eventually arrived at Grantham around two and a half hours late. I then stood and watched Tulyar pull away on its last run south to Kings Cross.
BR did have one more job for 55015, the Deltic Farewell Railtour on 2nd January (Tulyar did King Cross-Edinburgh, then LE to York).

DMU 19:45 Grantham-Nottingham.

 

[Cowley]

Thursday 31st December 1981

The last day of Deltics in normal service. Went on a trip to York from Nottingham, which started with an inconvenient diversion at Sheet Stores Junction to Burton. A reversal was then required to reach Derby, a bit later than planned.

DMU Nottingham-Derby (via Castle Donington)
47502 10:36 Derby-York (via Sheffield-Normanton-Castleford)

We arrived in York ahead of 55021 on the 09:40 Kings Cross-York. That was the only Deltic seen in use, until our afternoon departure.

Visited the stabling point and observed withdrawn 55004, plus a much smarter looking 55015. While there 31221 towed failed 55007 into the depot from the south. Half a dozen 47s were also stabled there.

So the choice for the 15:50 York-Kings Cross was looking like 55015, 55021 or a dreaded Duff. Fortunately it was 55015.

55015 15:50 York-Grantham

Departure was 15 to 20 minutes late. I think the reason was awaiting guard, but my memory is faded on this. At Doncaster 55010 was dumped at the Works Entrance, along with 50041. Passed the 14:03 Kings Cross-York at Retford hauled by 47411, apparently substituting for 55008 which had failed prior to departure. The air would have turned blue at Kings Cross.

Then just north of Grantham we were signal checked at Barkston and stood there for two hours, due to a broken rail, and eventually arrived at Grantham around two and a half hours late. I then stood and watched Tulyar pull away on its last run south to Kings Cross.
BR did have one more job for 55015, the Deltic Farewell Railtour on 2nd January (Tulyar did King Cross-Edinburgh, then LE to York).

DMU 19:45 Grantham-Nottingham.

Wow that’s a snapshot in time @Harvester.

 

[D6130]

FRIDAY 31st DECEMBER 1975:

Another intensive spotting trip around Reading, Essex and the London area, with a very unexpected visitor to Stratford:

7342/7053/7344 Petersfield-Waterloo
S52/81/82/83/59 Waterloo-Bank
283 Fenchurch Street-Dagenham Dock (to see Ripple Lane Depot)
293 Dagenham Dock-Fenchurch Street
37 014 Liverpool Street-Colchester (to see Colchester Depot)
614/623 Colchester-Liverpool Street
062 Liverpool Street-Stratford

While spotting at Stratford we were amazed to see 1072 "Western Glory" pass through light engine from the Temple Mills direction (to Ripple Lane?)

001 Stratford-Liverpool Street
61186/70186/75186 Broad Street-Willesden Junction HL
61175/70175/75175 Willesden Junction LL-Wembley Central (to see Willesden depot and yards)
75177/70177/61177 Wembley Central-Euston
47 248 Paddington-Reading
1006 "Western Stalwart" Reading-Paddington
7344/7053/7342 Waterloo-Petersfield

31st DECEMBER 1978:

A summary of loco-haulage during the year:

25 226/241
26 019/024
27 011/016/034/037/043/208/210
31 291/321/414/419/422/423
33 001/002/006/008/012/010/011/013/014/019/020/022/023/025/027/029/031/032/034/037/044/047/052/061/103/105/108/110/111/112/116/118/119
37 037/051/092/102/187
40 173
45 013
47 087/089/099/148/427/484/490
55 002/005/012
73 119
85 003/014
87 029

Amazingly - considering my frequent forays onto the Western Region - not a single class 50 to be had....and not a single can on the WCML!

WEDNESDAY 31st DECEMBER 1980:

A commute into work and back from my parents' place near Garelochhead:

08 08 Helensburgh Central-High Street: 303 017/024 Helensburgh Central-Glasgow QS LL via Yoker
16 35 Glasgow QS HL-Fort William/Mallaig: 27 002 Glasgow QS-Garelochhead (Consist: SC3883/4255/4193/14024/1840/80735 Load 6 VB/SH)

THURSDAY 31st DECEMBER 1981:

07 47 Helensburgh Central-Airdrie: 303 032/052 Hyndland-Glasgow QS LL
16 36 Glasgow QS HL-Fort William/Mallaig: 37 192 Glasgow QS-Garelochhead (Consist: SC4743/4751/4763/14001/9001 Load 5 VB/SH)

WEDNESDAY 31st DECEMBER 1986:

Spending New Year with friends in Ayrshire:

Units: Lewes-Victoria
87 014 09 45 Euston-Glasgow Central
Unit: Glasgow Central-Stevenston

 

[Harvester]

Wow that’s a snapshot in time @Harvester.

Hard to believe it was 40 years ago today that it ended. Maybe other Forum members were on the ECML that day too!!

 

[NorthWestRover]

I was at York on 2nd January 1982 but no more haulage after my transpennine bash earlier in the week.

 

[xotGD]

31st December 1993

I stayed on the ECML on my Rover today. Three runs from the Toon to York and back with 91023/28/25/16/29/20

As tomorrow is a blank, I'll take the opportunity to wish everyone a Happy New Year. May all your moves be successful and the thrash be plentiful!