Boulogne to Basel Boat Train

[BrianP]

Thanks for the responses on my query about the Dieppe to Paris route in 1964. I have another question of a similar nature. The following year, August 1965, I travelled from Folkestone to Boulogne and took the night boat train, leaving around 10pm, through France to Basel. Asleep for most of the night I am again not sure which route the train took, I just remember stopping at Mulhouse and believe there had been one or two other stops before then. My guess is that the train went via Valenciennes, Hirson, Sedan, Longuyon, near Thionville(?), Metz, Nancy, Sarrebourg, Strasbourg but I may be quite wrong about that. Has anyone got a timetable which might give the answer, please?

 

[30907]

From the SBB 1968 timetable: this was a seasonal train, and routed via Amiens-Laon-Tergnier-Reims-Chalons. I think it may then have used the Est main line tô Nancy, but I vaguely recall that it went via Chaumont and Belfort.

The route via Thionville (but NOT Metz-Nancy) was used by the Calais and Dunkerque services

 

[Gordon]

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Cooks 1968 shows route as Amienes - Laon - Reims - Chalons - then onto the Est Line 1 (not line 4) ie Chalons - Nancy - Strasbourg - Basel

 

[30907]

Via Strasbourg would have had the advantage of being electrified by then, I think, whereas Line 4 still isn't!

 

[BrianP]

Thanks for this. I think the route in 1965 was highly likely to be the same as in 1968 so I accept this was the route, much of which is still not electrified (perhaps there was a change of locomotive at some point).

 

[Shimbleshanks]

I remember travelling on this train as a small child in about 1965 and again around a couple of years later for a family holiday in Switzerland. There was also a trip a few years later in about 1973 when we went to Austria, but this might have been a different routing, possibly involving Calais rather than Boulogne.

I was too young to take in much of the detail but I do remember we were in 6-berth couchette cars. I have memories of a pair of the 'hood' type diesels taking is for the first leg from the port and them being changed for larger diesels at some point; I can also remember the excitement of finding we had a steam loco on the return leg; I think all this was the 1973 trip.

All I can remember about the routing was passing through Lille on one of the outbound trips, and we definitely ended up in Basel on the outbound run, where we had breakfast in the caff on the station platform.

Happy days indeed...

 

[30907]

Definitely Calais then if via Lille.

The Calais-Bale connected with the afternoon service from London; I recall seeing a 141R on it from Calais in 70 or 71, but the first time I used it myself a year later it was diesel, and a pair of hoods (with heating van between?) would not have been unusual.

 

[Gordon]

The 'hoods' would be Class 66000, still in existence! At Boulogne they would have taken the train from Boulogne Maritime and either reversed into Boulogne Ville or take the trains as far as Amiens for electric forward.

It was still 141R in 1964

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=451232&nseq=3

1973 sounds a bit too late for 141Rs at the Channel ports





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[Shimbleshanks]

The 'hoods' would be Class 66000, still in existence! At Boulogne they would have taken the train from Boulogne Maritime and either reversed into Boulogne Ville or take the trains as far as Amiens for electric forward.

It was still 141R in 1964

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=451232&nseq=3

1973 sounds a bit too late for 141Rs at the Channel ports





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I suppose one has to be a bit careful with memories from long ago, but I am fairly certain it was the 1973 trip. I realise now that the second of the two trips in Switzerland was in 1968, because my dad bought me a copy of the Illustrated London News (anyone remember that?) with a photo feature about the end of steam on British Railways. And I do remember being slightly surprised that they still had steam on passenger trains in France, whereas that wouldn't have been such a big deal in the late 1960s.

 

[BrianP]

Surely the journey on from Amiens cross-country to Chalons-sur-Marne would not have been with an electric loco as these lines via Laon are still not electrified. I had assumed the traction had been diesel throughout but accept there might have been a changeover some time before Basel.

 

[30907]

I suppose one has to be a bit careful with memories from long ago, but I am fairly certain it was the 1973 trip. I realise now that the second of the two trips in Switzerland was in 1968, because my dad bought me a copy of the Illustrated London News (anyone remember that?) with a photo feature about the end of steam on British Railways. And I do remember being slightly surprised that they still had steam on passenger trains in France, whereas that wouldn't have been such a big deal in the late 1960s.

http://www.railpictures.net/photo/451405/
The commentary to this 1964 photo suggests that Boulogne still had steam in 1973, though I think the reference to Laon is wrong.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Surely the journey on from Amiens cross-country to Chalons-sur-Marne would not have been with an electric loco as these lines via Laon are still not electrified. I had assumed the traction had been diesel throughout but accept there might have been a changeover some time before Basel.

In those days the SNCF (indeed most railways) wouldn't have run diesels under the wires for any distance, and wouldn't have used one steam loco over such a distance.

 

[Gordon]

I suppose one has to be a bit careful with memories from long ago, but I am fairly certain it was the 1973 trip.

The commentary to this 1964 photo suggests that Boulogne still had steam in 1973,

Nord steam ended before 1973. Boulogne shed closed on 31 December 1971. I think the implication that the loco ran in service until 1973 is wrong. It was indeed withdrawn on 24 January 1973, but I think between 1971 and 1973 it was stored/dumped at Boulogne and not used in service.

According to my Nelpg SNCF steam guide for 1969, the night Calais Basel train was still booked 141R in May 1969. I suspect a 1968 trip to Switzerland may well have featured a 141R on the first leg, but perhaps on this train from Calais?

Surely the journey on from Amiens cross-country to Chalons-sur-Marne would not have been with an electric loco

Quite right. Looking properly at my quote I realise in my late night haste I missed a complete sentence from my post. Trains from Amiens towards Paris changed to electric at Amiens from 1959. Trains towards Laon would have been diesel by 1973, and are still diesel to this day as you rightly point out. The diesel traction could have been a 66000, 67000 or 68000.



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[HowardGWR]

I can remember my trip on the boat train to Basel with steam in late July 1967. The reason is because it was our honeymoon.

I'm still getting the smuts out of my eyes (yes, I had to lean out of the window and French engines burned dust and slack).

We sat in the compartment at Calais wondering how we could last all those hours bolt upright in those narrow green plastic seats and were joined by a dishevelled little fellow with a runny nose, who eyed us suspiciously. We heard lots of Italian voices and my (new) wife said 'I'll bet his name is Luigi'. The rather large Mum entered the compartment - 'Luigi!' she exclaimed and told him off for running ahead.

You don't forget that sort of thing.

 

[30907]

Nord steam ended before 1973. Boulogne shed closed on 31 December 1971. I think the implication that the loco ran in service until 1973 is wrong. It was indeed withdrawn on 24 January 1973, but I think between 1971 and 1973 it was stored/dumped at Boulogne and not used in service.

That makes better sense, as I don't recall seeing live steam at Calais in July 1972.