Iskra's Odysseys

[Iskra]

Looks like you had a great day on the KWVR, and thanks for sharing the photos and video. A pity you didn't get to sample the 'Old Gentleman's Saloon' - I see that it is back in traffic today.

I can confirm that the real identity of the Teddy Bear is D9520. It was carrying an industrial number on one side previously.

What with Deltic 9 pretending to be No. 13, Galetea carrying a variety of numbers and nameplates, it is all getting a bit confusing!

I tucked in to a large breakfast in the Old Parcels Office a couple of Sundays back, although it was a bit early in the day for me to wash it down with Boltmaker! Although to be fair, I had been in for a pint between trains the day before. I agree that it is a good venue and a decent plate of grub. A few bits of railwayana dotted about too, as you might expect.

Thank you! Yes, that was a minor shame about the Director’s Saloon but the Club Car was still good and no doubt I will be back, so will have another chance Glad you enjoyed your trip there too!

 

[Iskra]

A very quick one to start off what could be a great week on the rails.

Happening upon the forums’ XC HST final trip thread while on a rare late shift at work, made me realise that I could just about squeeze in a trip, and well it just seemed rude not to.

I parked at Meadowhall and got a TP 185 into Sheffield, before a short wait for the lengthened HST with its twin celebrity power cars, 43007 and 43008.





It was fairly busy on board for such an oddly routed (via Rotherham Central) and timed train at the end of the day, particularly so in first class which had a party atmosphere including dimmed lights. The platforms at many stations also had a healthy number of onlookers. The run itself was actually quite slow due to the route, but it was enjoyable nonetheless and a nice final journey enjoyed in 1st. Although I would have liked to have done a longer journey, I was happy to be there at all and both Sheffield and Doncaster stations hold many happy HST memories for me, so it was a good little journey to do.

I’m now just waiting for a Northern 150 back to Meadowhall via Rotherham to pick up the car and journey home.

 

[Iskra]

From one streamlined speedy machine to another…

An early start saw me heading for Crewe at 0345. The satnav sent me a different route that promised to be quicker. This was via Woodhead and Stockport taking in various motorways. I preferred my usual scenic crawl via Buxton as it’s quieter since it doesn’t involve going near Manchester Airport, but it was worth giving it a try.

I ended up arriving very early at Crewe, but you can’t take risks when you’ve forked out a significant sum for a railtour. The main attraction of today’s tour was the mooted locomotive, rather than the route itself- the Settle and Carlisle which I’ve traversed many times over the years- although I still enjoy it. I was also intrigued to experience Saphos’ first class offering with the price charged and having read a poor review from another forum member a couple of weeks ago.

I was thus delighted, when I parked up at Crewe and opened the car door to be greeted by the distinctive chiming sound of A4 Sir Nigel Gresley’s whistle as it shunted around the yard at the LSL depot at Crewe. I knew right then, it was going to be a good day on the rails Although it was dry on arrival at Crewe and I managed to stay dry on the way into the station, the heavens soon opened, which combined with a stong wind made Crewe station an unpleasant place to be. I took shelter in a small bus shelter towards the end of P12 while I worked out which direction the stock would arrive from. Soon after the stock rolled in, with a BR Green Class 47 leading. This was good, as I knew I’d not had an LSL green 47 for haulage yet, even though I’ve had a few others, so 47805 would be a winner for the leg to Chester.

47805 leading the ECS into Crewe station:

I was then able to grab a quick photo of winner and bucket-list class member A4 Sir Nigel Gresley




I mean, just wow, what a fabulous looking machine, lighting up a gloomy morning.

The rake was the traditional Saphos Mk1’s, although a couple of Mk2’s were on one end. I happened to be in the one right behind Sir Nigel’s support carriage which would ensure fantastic acoustic entertainment at times during the day. Coach J was also the odd one out in terms of livery as it was in Statesman Pullman colours compared to the rest of the rake in Blood and Custard. Inside the coach was stunning as usual for LSL’s stock. The onboard service started promptly as the 47-led us outwards towards Chester with Sir Nigel and my carriage at the rear, and we were soon plied endlessly with coffee and a packed snackbox, which I assumed was meant to last the full tour. At Chester, the train reversed and Sir Nigel soon picked up speed leading us through the rain. Once on the West Coast Mainline, ample Buck Fizz was delivered, with more held in reserve, which was too much for the group on my table as only one could drink freely on the trip. Still, there aren’t many better ways to start the day. We then diverged towards Blackburn, where pleasant foothill scenery started and we started to climb, before reaching Blackburn and diverging towards Clitheroe and then on to the now freight and railtour only line to Hellifield. Soon after the real fun began as we climbed with fantastic noise from the A4 upfront. The Settle and Carlisle looks different on just about every trip and today it was in full gloom with the higher peaks covered and driving rain, but it still looked interesting and impressive in a moody way. Despite the downpours there were still a number of very wet photographers around to capture the occasion. We stopped for water, perhaps ironically considering the prevailing weather conditions at Appleby.



Soon after departure the weather lifted completely and transformed the ambience of the route with glorious sunshine now lighting up the flooded fields and fast-flowing recently-filled rivers, as we coasted down to Carlisle.

At Carlisle, I had a short walk for some quality and good value fish and chips, just down London Road at Fontanas- £7 for a decent portion.

Back at the station I caught a brief photo of the 47 as it led the stock back in.

Onboard I walked down the train and took a picture of the remarkably restored original-looking buffet coach:


The run now would be stunning with the sun lighting-up the Dales scenery, the rivers still flowing vigorously and Sir Nigel audibly working very hard indeed and this time sounding a lot clearer for some reason, with its distinctive beat. I really enjoyed this part of the journey, although I’m not sure the engine crew felt the same as the speed dropped to around 25mph on the approach to Ais Gill summit. After cresting the summit we soon picked up speed and we flew through Garsdale at line speed. On reboarding another generously-filled snack box had been delivered so I tucked into my cheese and biscuits as the scenery and steam drifted by. Also notable on this journey was that this was a non-stop run over the Settle and Carlisle as we would not be stopping for water or any other reason until Settle, which is quite rare on steam railtours on this line.




There was another good turnout at Hellifield of spotters. We then diverged and made an unscheduled stop just after the junction. It was nice to cover the line down to Clitheroe in clear weather and daylight as this is something that has evaded me somewhat over the years. After this it was an enjoyable run, with sensible stewarding and great onboard service as the sun slowly set. At Warrington, while we were at the platform a Varamis Rail unit overtook us, this is the first I’ve seen of their operation. After dark I had a quick nap, before reversal again at Chester to put the 47 into the lead for the final run back to Crewe.

Overall, a great day behind an exquisite locomotive. I’ve been critical of LSL in the past, but this was everything that a railtour should be, so well done and thank you to all involved.

 

[Iskra]

UKRailtours- The Bluebell Railway 23/9/23
It was a 3am alarm for this one. This was my first time on a railtour from East Midlands Parkway station, so I was overly cautious with my timings and actually the journey by car was extremely simple and I arrived far quicker than what google suggested. I thus had a bit of a car nap in the spare time. The power station cooling towers looked extremely impressive up close and in the early morning gloom. I was surprised how early trains start at this station, and that there were actually customers boarding the early ones as the station by nature is quite remote.

The railtour stock arrived broadly on time with colourful 66718 leading. The stock was mainly Mk2’s, predominantly in BR Blue & Grey. I’d gone for First Class due to the length of the day requiring extra space and comfort. I was very happy with my seat allocation, at a table of two even though I don’t recall paying the supplement for that. I was also in the buffet vehicle, which was a very inconvenient location and also sat opposite a very friendly chap that I’d sat with on a previous tour.

The run down the Midland Mainline was unremarkable, until Bedford where I’d be on winning track as far as Bletchley. This line felt a bit out of place, it felt like a rural Northern line like the Ormskirk branch or somewhere, with all its greenery with a bit of industry and industrial decay thrown in. Next, it was down the WCML as the sun started to shine. Doing this stretch at 75mph gave a new perspective, with more detail being evident than previous journeys on higher speed services.
We then headed down to Willesden Junction before diverging onto new track to Acton Lane sidings. Here 73109 and 73212 were added to the train, ahead of the 66. The route was thence via Kensington Olympia which was new track for me until Clapham Junction. At Croydon South, we diverged towards East Grinstead which was new track for me again and again I was surprised with how much greenery there was so close to London. We entered the Bluebell Railway at East Grinstead although we necessarily bypassed the preserved station there due to the nature of the connection, with our first calling point being the beautiful Kingscote station on what had now become a glorious day.

Our 3 loco’s as they headed down the the lines terminus at East Grinstead:



After a short wait in the sun, I caught GWR Hall class 6989 Wightwick Hall down to Sheffield Park on a very busy service. The Hall was my first of the class, and produced some great sound along the journey. Once again I was surprised how rural the line was, with very few houses around- it was stunning though.


At a very busy Sheffield Park I watched the resident 09 shunt the stock, before wondering around the display shed, taking in the beer festival atmosphere and grabbing some hot food.

The railtour at Sheffield Park





This then allowed me to catch the second set back up to Horsted Keynes, which is another excellently restored station. This set was hauled by BR Standard 4 Tank locomotive 80152 which gave excellent entertainment on the journey and really looked the part in the station on its green Mk1’s which is presumably historically accurate rolling stock for line.

Here, the railtour stock then rumbled in to pick us up and take us home, with some interesting loops around London to score me some more new track and us dropping the 73’s back off at Acton where we picked them up.
From here, things seemed like the tour was basically done and all that was left was to make our way home in the dark. Unfortunately however, there was an issue with our booked route home. The Bletchley-Bedford line which we were advertised to run over had been taken under engineering possession by Network Rail. Our driver spotted this on the approach to Bletchley, and stopped to discuss with the signaller. At this point we were blocking the only Northbound line as the the fast lines on the WCML were under possession too by this point and a number of services soon backed up behind us. It was evident to all at this point that we were going to be late home. We then proceeded via the Northampton loop which I was happy with as it was winning track and it saves me a trip back in the future Then we headed up the WCML, diverging at Nuneaton for Coventry, Aston, Walsall and back round to Water Orton, then Nuneaton and back onto our original route at Leicester 112 minutes late. Extreme tiredness seemed to have set in throughout the train by this point and I was very happy to be back at East Midlands Parkway at 0023 with a fairly simple run home with an arrival at around 0130. This still wasn’t too bad, but I had been very much in need of an earlier night having had an intense week, so I’m feeling it today.

Overall a productive trip to a new, far away railway that I’d never have the energy to drive to, with some winning locomotives on the mainline and some interesting ones enjoyed on the preserved line. Quite a bit of new track was covered too and I even got some bonus track due to the issues on the way home I’ll pop a video here when it’s uploaded that will show you more of the steam stuff on the Bluebell Railway.

 

[Kite159]

Other than the mild farce at Bletchley sounded like a good trip. Agreed about going first class on such a long day, legroom in standard class ain't the best.

 

[Iskra]

Other than the mild farce at Bletchley sounded like a good trip. Agreed about going first class on such a long day, legroom in standard class ain't the best.

Yeah, I think the continual reduction in Standard class accommodation on railtours tell its own story. I definitely needed 1st for this one, it's been a busy week of travelling with some very long days! Thanks for commenting

 

[Kite159]

Ignore the double post, I was on an Azuma heading into London at the time.

At least you got home. All be late

 

[Iskra]

A return to the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway 1/10/23

One of the glaring omissions in my locomotive haulage logs, is the Class 31 locomotive. Recently, while on a railtour, someone suggested to me that the EVR's resident Class 31 may not be around too much longer, so to get it sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment. It was a fairly pleasant Sunday morning drive on the scenic route via Grindleford, Baslow, past Peak Rail and through Matlock to Wirksworth. I happened upon on a car parking spot in the busy car park, before checking-in at the booking office with my advance online E-ticket (£1.50 discount compared to pay on the day), I was then issued a paper barcode ticket. My last visit to the EVR was during Covid, so on this visit many more things were open and it was busier. I tried the buffet coach at Wirksworth, where I invested in a Sausage Cob. The sausages were fantastic, but due to the nature of the way the product had been stored in a hot cupboard thing, the bread was pretty tough. It did however fill me up, which was the important thing. I then bought a beer at the Apollo bar, which I took on the train with me and that was very nice. The train consisted of 5 carriages, and I believe 3 of them were compartment stock, which seemed a popular choice. As well as 4 Mk1's, there was an older LMS coach included in the consist, and although I was able to pass through it, it was set for afternoon tea so out of use.

The class 31 in question, 31601 had in all honesty seen better days, with a bit of a worn paint job that was looking somewhat tatty around the edges, although the heavy rain probably made it look even worse than it was. It must be said that while the loco does look battered externally, it performed excellently and was great fun to ride behind.






The journey from Wirksworth was something of a damp squib. Progress was frustratingly slow due to the number of level crossings which are worked by staff carried on the train, rather than staff based locally at the crossings. This means the train has to stop on either side of the crossings, meaning progress is very slow and when combined with a number of temporary speed restrictions, it is even slower going. There wasn't much in the way of noise from the loco either at this point due to us heading downhill. After some droplight action, I settled into a cosy compartment and enjoyed the comfortable run down to Duffield, watching the world go by and with the rain pounding on the window.

For the return leg, I re-positioned to be behind the loco again and this journey was much more fun with the loco being challenged more and progress seeming faster on the return journey. I was by the droplight for this journey and although I did get very wet, it was at least warm rain, so it wasn't too bad and was entirely worthwhile and reminded me of my youth with the noise and smell of diesel fumes.

Just a quick day out to sample a much needed locomotive class, but certainly a fun and worthwhile one in the end

 

[Iskra]

6th-7th of October

I’d booked a much needed pre-chaotic work-season holiday. I’m always looking for new and interesting ways of getting myself to Southern Italy and this trip took me on a new one…

It started with a busy £2 bus into Sheffield, with the bus dropping me off at a unfamiliar wing of the bus station due to construction work on the main road. This did happen to be nearer the train station, so was in fact beneficial in reducing the walk. I’d arrived in very good time at the station so had a Costa while I waited for my delayed service. All services through Manchester today had been delayed by an earlier signal failure in the area and the service was struggling to recover.

1209 Sheffield-Manchester Piccadilly. Class 185, 1st class. £11.80 for the ticket to the airport.

The service was heaving in standard class due to all the disruption, but luckily it was still fairly tranquil in first. For the first time in a long time I was offered complimentary refreshments on this journey, so I had a coffee but declined the snacks as I wasn’t particularly hungry. The run departed a grey Sheffield behind the Northern stopper, so it was something of a crawl until it diverged from our route towards Stockport, in the Chinley area. Unusually, it actually brightened up compared to Sheffield in the Hope Valley itself. It was a comfortable and pleasant journey but the 185’s are looking a bit tatty in places now with lots of scuff marks and decay visible.


At Manchester Piccadilly, it was meant to be a smooth same-platform interchange onto a 397 in First class. I was looking forward to my first time in First on these units, but it was very much a case of ‘this is what you could have had,’ as this pulled into the platform only to be cancelled, along with the next two airport services.



The next service actually travelling to the airport was a TFW service originating from Llandudno, which was two cars. Three trains of people onto a single two-car unit went as well as you can imagine, although I did manage to squeeze onboard and it did get me to the airport. A small consolation was that the class 197 is a new class for me, and I was fairly impressed by the interior, not that I could see too much of it or even try out a seat.

Excuse the photo angle, I was trying to avoid photographing the masses on the platform:



I arrived around 30mins late in the end, so a little bit of delay repay is incoming. I’d left plenty of time for my flight so the delay was inconsequential.

It was a bit of a trudge over to T3, but once there the security experience was efficient and I had plenty of time for another Costa supply-raid. My flight was with everyone’s favourite Ryanair, to Rome and was evidently going to be late as the incoming working from France was late. I’d got this flight for a mere £25, with just a rucksack which is fine for my needs. The Ryanair random seat allocation-gods had been extremely kind to me, giving me a window-seat on the right-hand side of the aircraft, which was the side with all the good views so that was lucky. The two passengers on my row were also sound and the cabin was peaceful, which combined with sunset views, dusk over Paris and good night-time views of Rome on the approach to Ciampino, made for a cracking flight despite the delay of over an hour.



At Ciampino, entry was smooth as it is quite a small airport. Surprisingly, my passport was not stamped on entry. The bus station of the airport was a little chaotic and various scheduled departure times came and went with no bus to Ciampino Stazione appearing, but one did eventually materialise and take me over to the station area. Unfortunately, due to the delay most quality establishments had closed by this point. The only thing open near the empty station bizarrely, was a well-stocked fruit and veg shop, which did look good, but was not what I needed. Luckily, around a ten-minute walk away was a Burger King Drive Thru that was open until 3am. It was a very new feeling restaurant, with options for digital-ordering as well as plentiful USB charging points and Beer on draught so actually a really well-appointed, friendly and pleasant place to kill some time. The food was also pretty good.

The whole area felt deserted, I’d never really seen an Italian town so empty and quiet on a Saturday night. The station was also basically deserted when I got back to it in time for departure around 00:12. There was just one other person waiting for my train on the long platform, who was in fact a Trenitalia driver making use of his free-travel benefits.

0012 Ciampino-Bari. Trenitalia Intercity Night 789 Deluxe sleeper. Circa 100 Euros, with the next two trains included too.

I quickly found my berth, ready for me and stocked with supplies. The attendant quickly checked my ticket and discussed what time I’d like breakfast. I then went to bed as I knew this wasn’t the longest sleeper journey so sleeping needed to be maximised. Sadly, I didn’t do too well on the sleep-front before 0600 came and breakfast was delivered. The espresso was a godsend. I quickly got ready to be deposited at Bari Centrale at around 0625. The route had been via Casserta and Foggia which was new coverage between Casserta and Foggia. The train reversed at Foggia in the night.



I tried to get a better photo of the rear loco at Bari, but an Italo high speed train was still being serviced at the bay starting next to the loco and a security guard was preventing access. On explaining I just wanted a photo, he tried putting me back on a train to Foggia, so after a misunderstanding I just took the one above as the best I could do and moved away.

Next, up I’d be travelling on my ‘usual’ sleeper train from the North, in the seated section to pick up my also ‘usual’ connection at Taranto.

0710 Bari Centrale-Taranto. Trenitalia Intercity Night Train 765. Seated accommodation.

It was nice to do this journey in the seats, as I’d only done it in sleeper berths before, which does restrict your view somewhat. Additionally, a coffee trolley passed through the train, which I used for the novelty as I’ve not seen one for a long time on Trenitalia. The coffee was cheap, but not as good as that served in the sleeper carriages.

Trenitalia Intercity 558 0830 Taranto-Locri.



I’ve learnt that the seating system fills up from carriage 1 on Trenitalia, so by selecting to be in carriage 3 in this route you are likely to have a very quiet journey. This was certainly the case on this trip, with a peaceful atmosphere as we drifted slowly around the long Ionian coast with the sun rising in the sky and the sea becoming bluer. I noticed more and more electrification piles are appearing between Sibari and Catanzaro at stations and key junctions, a possible sign of things to come. The railway police boarded at Sibari and checked everyone’s passports but left me alone for once! Arrival at Locri was around 5L but I considered that good on such a long journey with single track sections. As I alighted another D445- hauled service crossed my trains path.

On the journey, we passed this well-presented locomotive on an engineering train. I’ve never seen one of these before, so I’m wondering if @D6130 could kindly identify despite the terrible photo?


Overall, a really pleasant journey down to Italy, with a few setbacks but none of them causing any real harm to my itinerary. I think I will try catch the sleepers from further North again in the future just to get more time in bed really, but it was worth doing it this way due to the cheap flight and new route coverage. This could quite possibly be the last rail trip of the year as the weather here in Italy looks good, so I’ll probably stay off the trains for the rest of my holiday and I’ve nothing currently planned for the rest of the year in the UK now, although that could possibly change, we will see.

 

[87electric]

The engineering loco is possibly a Norwegian State Railways Nohab type.

 

[Techniquest]

I've not been commenting on people's trip reports for a while, but this one I'll make an exception for I think when you do get to try First on a 397, you'll like it. I sure did last year The sleeper train in Italy certainly sounds nice, especially for the price paid.

 

[D6130]

The engineering loco is possibly a Norwegian State Railways Nohab type.

I would concur with that....an ex-NSB class Di3, or possibly a Danish ex-DSB class Mx?).

 

[Iskra]

I've not been commenting on people's trip reports for a while, but this one I'll make an exception for I think when you do get to try First on a 397, you'll like it. I sure did last year The sleeper train in Italy certainly sounds nice, especially for the price paid.

Thank you! Yes, it did look good while it was platformed right in front of me. Yes, the trains over here are usually excellent value for money

The engineering loco is possibly a Norwegian State Railways Nohab type.

I would concur with that....an ex-NSB class Di3, or possibly a Danish ex-DSB class Mx?).

Thank you very much! Certainly an exotic locomotive for these parts. It was nice to see an older locomotive in looked-after condition

 

[Iskra]

Just a quick one from me. It’s a bit mundane so I’ll keep it short.

Occasionally, I get to travel by rail for work but it’s usually Sheffield, Leeds or Manchester so I don’t mention it on here because it’s not overly exciting or interesting. However, on Tuesday I got to go slightly further afield: Leamington Spa.

I did:

- Meadowhall-Sheffield. Class 150. I despise these units but this was an Adwick starter so a nice short route for these units, the best place to put them.
- Sheffield-Leamington Spa with XC on a 4 coach Voyager on a now sparse Newcastle-Reading run. This was well loaded down to Birmingham but emptied out there. It was quite a comfortable journey as I got an airline pair of seats to myself after Derby.

At Leamington Spa, I was impressed with the small station and the town itself. The station was well kept, with period posters and had a nice cafe that served beer on P3 for the journey home.

The journey home was a bit more circuitous.

Leamington Spa- Nuneaton. New route coverage. Class 196 and the reason I’m posting this short trip- new class for haulage! The interior was pleasant enough although it had been trashed and littered already in places, but it was nothing a quick clean and hoover wouldn’t sort out. The ride quality was good, but I couldn’t help but feel that armrests are a bit of an important omission.



Nuneaton was also a new station for me. With apologies to any residents, it always seemed a drab, humdrum place when I’ve flown through it on express services many times previously, but actually it was quite nice. Another well kept station and plenty of rail interest going on.

- Nuneaton-Leicester. XC 3 car 170. Fairly busy service but I got a seat.
- Leicester-Sheffield. 7 car EMR 222. This seemed a really nice and comfortable train, I don’t know if this is due to the quality of the other trains experienced but I enjoyed this ride the most.
- Sheffield-Meadowhall. TP 3-car 185.

A nice little bit of new track, plus I was very happy to get a class 196, and even better when someone else is paying. That also means that I’ve managed to get class 196 and 197 haulage for the first time in the last month, both entirely by accident- it’s nice when things like that happen!

 

[Iskra]

08/11/23 Batteries Are Included

The Branchline Society provided an opportunity to sample the new Positive Traction 08E which is a battery powered shunter built on the chassis of 08308. This was held at the Barrow Hill Roundhouse, which I’ve never actually visited before so it was a good opportunity to see that at the same time. The run involved two trips up and down the Springwell Branch taking in various types of locomotive and rolling stock, some more pristine than others and a bit of the Derbyshire countryside. The assigned rolling stock was interesting (can anyone identify the type?). I was pleasantly surprised to see that it included two sets of 4 seats at tables. Forum members will be glad to know that the seats aligned with the windows and even antimacassars were provided. The trip was short, but it was novel and my only battery haulage thus far, so thanks to all involved. A nice touch was the keeping of the 08 whistle

I took a few photos and videos, even managing a sneak peak under the bonnet:

 

[D6130]

The assigned rolling stock was interesting (can anyone identify the type?).

I may be wrong, but it looks like a converted ferry van....as formerly used to convey luggage and parcels on the London-Paris 'Night Ferry' overnight service. On second thoughts....is it a former 'Transfesa' fruit van?

 

[Intercity110]

The assigned rolling stock was interesting (can anyone identify the type?)

I think it may be an LMS brake. I’m not sure though.

 

[Iskra]

I may be wrong, but it looks like a converted ferry van....as formerly used to convey luggage and parcels on the London-Paris 'Night Ferry' overnight service. On second thoughts....is it a former 'Transfesa' fruit van?

Well I think it’s one of those, so that narrows it down significantly, thank you!

 

[Techniquest]

I can't help with the wagon thing, but I'd not heard of a battery conversion of a Class 08 until now. I really like the concept though, and I suspect it has a lot of potential

 

[Iskra]

I can't help with the wagon thing, but I'd not heard of a battery conversion of a Class 08 until now. I really like the concept though, and I suspect it has a lot of potential

Absolutely, there are still a lot of 08's out there which will need replacing eventually!

 

[Iskra]

A quick update with some mundane recent travels ahead of my End of Year review, and a busy early January programme of trips:

29/11

I managed to get 91105 in the book on a leap from Wakefield Westgate to Leeds for an evening at the football:



The train on the way home was advertised as running 33L, but caught me out a little as it managed to arrive only 18L. This service had come off the Calder Valley and diverted via Dewsbury to make up time. I'd opted for this train as the one before was a 2-car 150 and this was 4-cars of class 195. The few remaining fans at Leeds all boarded the train, but they all boarded the first of the two units leaving me an entire unit to myself (according to the guard). It was a snowy evening and I was absolutely freezing after walking a hilly few miles home in the snow from Chapeltown, arriving home at about 0200 due to the train being around 24L in the end:



4/12

A trip to Leeds christmas markets from Chapeltown to Leeds, returning via Huddersfield. This was my first time in a while using Chapeltown in the daylight for a good while and it is nice to see a few flowerpots have been installed to brighten the station up a little as it did previously look extremely dull. There was more disruption on the outward leg, as the semi-fast which I should have connected onto at Barnsley was running 20L. Thus, I remained on the stopper all the way to Leeds including the Castleford divert.



A minor achievement was accomplished on the way home, as I finally bagged a ride on my first TP class 802, meaning I have now finally sampled all of TP's new rolling stock. I was mightily impressed with this train's spacious Intercity-type interior and generous legroom. One major drawback was the loading time at Leeds though at peak commuter time. The trip to Huddersfield felt and indeed was extremely rapid, so an impressive journey. I then boarded a lightly loaded Northern 150 for the journey along the Penistone Line back to Chapeltown in the darkness.



18/12

Next up was a work journey to Tamworth. I used a Derbyshire Wayfarer in order to justify buying walk-up tickets on the day through expenses, as this undercut my work's travel provider who like to book cheap advances which isn't great in terms of flexibility.

It was a 222 as far as Derby, this was a set with a declassified first class section, which I have noted for future use! I then joined a lightly loaded 3-car 170 onwards to Tamworth. Tamworth was a new station for me and I was actually fairly impressed with it. I also liked the town and I had a nice walk through the castle/gardens, so it was a pleasant trip. The journey home was an over-crowded 2-car XC 170 from Tamworth, so I jumped off at Burton- my splitting point- before joining a much less crowded 8-car Voyager formation for a pleasant journey home.





23/12

Another new station for me; Sandal & Agbrigg was my starting station for a trip into Leeds for the football. It's a standard WYMetro/Northern station although it does benefit from a 30-minute service interval and a generous car park. A 331 sped me to Leeds.





On the return journey, I'd timed it so that I'd have 91110 on the way home, which would have been new haulage for this year, but sadly disruption meant that it would be 91114 for the second time this year that would take me the short trip to Wakefield Westgate where I got a lift back, due to the Northern stopper to Sandal & Agbrigg being cancelled. With the 91's in decline, I have been targeting them for a few more runs- hopefully I can get a long one in in the coming year before they are retired.

Thanks for reading! Coming up at somepoint is my end of year review and then I've got an action-packed and varied start to the New Year with a few trips in early January which should be good

 

[D6130]

Nice photos! When are you next going back to Italy?

 

[Iskra]

Nice photos! When are you next going back to Italy?

Thanks! Should be June, all I’ve booked at this point is a flight to Milan, so it will probably be the usual sleeper and D445 combination down from there. On the way home I’m going to try do the Tropea loop line and travel through the Brenner pass to Munich and fly back from there for something different and before the tunnel is completed.

 

[Kite159]

Sounds like a few nice little short trips there Iskra

 

[Iskra]

The 2023 End of Year Review

First of all, thank you to everyone who has read or contributed to this thread over the last 12 months. 2022 was always going to be a difficult year to beat (New York-San Francisco on Amtrak, Italian travels, Greek travels plus, Caledonian Sleeper etc), so it is no surprise to me at least that I probably haven't quite surpassed 2022's achievements in 2023, especially with the disruption that we've had on the UK network this year. Nonetheless, it has still been a cracking year, with many enjoyable travels, progress on my route coverage both in the UK and in Italy, and some cracking traction, trips and beautiful places explored.

UK Mainline Locomotive Traction for haulage, with winners in bold:

37254
43378, 43366, 43007, 43008
47826, 47805
55009
66718
67006
68020, 68029
73109, 73212
86259
91114 (2), 91105,
97302
LMS Royal Scot Class, 6115, Scots Guardsman
LNER A4 Class, 60007, Sir Nigel Gresley

UK New Route Coverage:

Ambergate-Matlock
Barnetby-Lincoln via Market Rasen
Bolton-Blackburn via Darwen
Shrewsbury-Pwllheli, the Cambrian Coast Line
Cambridge-Hitchin
Bedford-Bletchley
Willesden Junction to Clapham Junction via Kensington Olympia
Croydon South-East Grinstead

UK New Classes for haulage

Class 196
Class 197
Class 802

Preserved traction:

08308
73146 Standard 5MT
75078 Standard 4MT
80151 Standard 4 Tank Engine
92214 9F
37714
GCR's 101
Sir Berkeley (Middleton Railway)
Brookes No 1 (Middleton Railway)
S160 5197
D14 D9537/9520
Lancashire & Yorkshire Class 25 Ironclad/Green Dragon 52044
GWR Hall Class, 6989, Wightwick Hall
31601

Preserved Railways Visited, winners in bold:

Great Central Railway
Middleton Railway, Leeds
Churnet Valley Railway
Keighley & Worth Valley Railway
The Bluebell Railway
Ecclesbourne Valley Railway
Barrow Hill Roundhouse


Italian New Route Coverage:

Ciampino-Foggia via Campobasso
Sibari Cosenza
Catania-Siricusa
Siricusa- Pozzallo

UK Classes Dearly Departed, delivering the last Rides:

EMR 180
TP 68's
XC HST's

The end of year awards:

Railtour Operator of the Year. A tough one, but I think all in all it has to be WCRC, they've delivered what they said they would, with interesting locomotives provided and excellent rolling stock, at relatively reasonable prices.
TOC of the Year: Probably Northern, the 195's are a step up, the service is generally more reliable and they are relatively good value.
Worst TOC of the Year: XC- incorrectly issuing me a TIR and sending me threatening letters, persistently running inadequate trains on busy routes at expensive prices. To their credit, they did do well with the last HST passenger service by pairing both of the retro-liveried power cars, declassifying first class and running via Rotherham to create a bit of a railtour feel.
Preserved Railway of the year: A tough one as they have pretty much all been great, but I would have to say the Keighley & Worth Valley as I feel that their offering is stepping-up a level and that they have fixed the biggest issue- a lack of proper catering, with their nice new restaurant at Keighley station.
Licensed Establishment of the year: The Strawberry Duck, Entwistle- great beer, great location and atmosphere and the best cheeseboard I've ever had.
Meal of the year: Believe it or not, but this was Burger King at Ciampino, Italy. Lovely service, modern, serves beer, better food than in the UK and conveniently open until 0300ish.
Domestic Line of the year: The Cambrian Coast was just stunning when the weather improved on my return journey over it. The case was probably helped by having a pair of 37's up front though.
Under-rated line of the year award: The West Coast Mainline North, Preston-Carlisle.
International Line of the year: Ferrovie Della Calabria's Soveria Mannelli-Catanzaro Citta route. You've probably never heard of it, but it is stunning, cheap and an interesting operation.
The tight Yorkshireman's award for outstanding railway value; Italia In Tour Railpass, ridiculously good value.
Destination of the Year: Valetta, Malta. Beautiful and historic with a lovely atmosphere. A nice fusion of British and Italian cultures.
Accommodation of the year: B&B Palazzo Armini, Rogliano, Calabria, Italy. Slightly ostentatious, but good value and a fantastic breakfast.
Hellhole of the year: I didn't stumble on anywhere too shabby this year, so I probably have to nominate Sibari for this one, but it's more a case of lack of anything around the station than it actually being a bad place.
TOC rolling stock of the year: I'm going to say XC's HST's since I'll probably never be able to nominate them again!
International rolling stock of the year: Bizarrely; the declassified first class section on an ALN663, 2+1 comfortable leather seating in basically a private compartment on a very solidly built old unit.
Worst TOC rolling stock of the year: Northern's 150's. Sorry for banging on about these, but I simply despise them.
TOC first class of the year: TP's Mk5's. Although a lot of this was down to the host on my Huddersfield-Scarborough journey and the appearance of hot catering.
Railtour of the year: A tough choice but LSL's Settle Carlisle Fellsman. An A4 on the front, a stunning run over the Settle-Carlisle, great rolling stock and excellent first class service.
The 'why did I bother' railtour of the year: Pathfinder's Capital Deltic reprise: the Deltic was broken, the stewarding was over the top. It was expensive and didn't really deliver.
Best railtour first class offering: Saphos Trains First Class non-dining due to the included drinks service and snackboxes.
Railtour rolling stock of the year: WCRC's Metro Cammell Pullman M1's were stunning and a bit different, an honourable mention must go to all of Sapho's trains stock as it is stunning but I was sat in a Mk2, which is simply not as exciting as a Met/Cam Pullman Mk1.
Preserved rolling stock of the year: The Keighley & Worth Valley's vintage train, but particularly the Club Car was exquisite.
Station of the year: Normally, I'd give this to Milano Centrale, but I actually didn't pass through it this year. So, I think in that case I have to give it to St Pancras, which I visited but didn't use.
Kettle of the year: Sir Nigel Gresley. That was a real bucket-list ride, and I was very fortunate to even spot that it was running that railtour as it was kept fairly quiet.
Preserved Diesel of the year: I did very much enjoy my first ride behind a class 31 at the Ecclesbourne Valley, but due to superior external presentation and thrashy driving I've probably got to give it to the Great Central Railway's 37714.
Vessel of the year: 3 to choose from this year, but the winner is: The Saint John Paul II catamaran on the Sicily-Malta ferry. It's fast, comfortable, air-conditioned, not-crowded, offers excellent lounges and views and had an inexpensive well-stocked cafe.
Airline of the year: Easyjet, purely because the only other one I used was Ryanair!
RRB of the year: Rogliano-Soveria Mannelli. Firstly, it actually ran. It also ran fast for us, skipping some stops. We were basically the only people on the bus, and the driver stopped at a roadside spring and offered to us to fill our bottles with the local holy spring water- that's service! It was also a beautiful route.
Drive of the year: I passed through Winnats Pass, Derbyshire a couple of times and that's always good fun.
The rusty spanner award for dedication to dilapidation: Some of the Ferrovie Della Calabria units are a bit ropey to say the least, when you go to the toilet and there's no toilet roll, water, soap, toilet seat and you can see the track through the floor, then that's not great at all on a long journey. This network is good fun though.
**** up of the year: Well, I'm pleased to report it wasn't one of mine this year! This award goes to Network Rail for taking engineering possession of a line our railtour was subsequently due to pass over on the return leg of UK railtours trip to the Bluebell Railway, causing us to do a lengthy and time-consuming diversion.
Surprise of the year: TP's 802's being decent or the challenging gradient on the Churnet Valley Railway.
Let Down of the year: the Bologna airport monorail, what an expensive and shambolic operation
Photo of the year: The cloud inversion one taken at Matlock (see below).

2024

I've got a few things lined up for 2024, starting very soon indeed, including some winter steam, molten metal and a much needed visit to Wales all in January. Also in the pipeline are trips entitled 'Operation Unthinkable,' and 'Das Boot.' I've managed to come up with a few ideas for the year, but if anyone does have any requests, suggestions or recommendations then please do let me know and if it aligns with my goals I will look to cover it! 2024 will also see the ten year anniversary of this this thread in November, so if anyone has any suggestions for a way to celebrate that anniversary in style, I'm all ears!

Once again- thank you for reading, your comments, support, recommendations and I wish you all a happy new year

Attached below is a bit of a highlight reel, enjoy!

Iskra

 

[50002Superb]

A great read, thanks for sharing

 

[Iskra]

A great read, thanks for sharing

Thank you!

 

[D6130]

Excellent write-up and photos! Thanks and happy New Year!

 

[Cowley]

Lovely concise summary of the year there @Iskra. Great photos too!

Another nod for the Churnet Valley from me. My dad and I did the evening trip behind the S160 earlier in the year and that climb is absolutely outrageous. Proper steam drama!

 

[Iskra]

Excellent write-up and photos! Thanks and happy New Year!

Thank you, you too! Thanks for all the information you provide me as well to assist my travels!

Lovely concise summary of the year there @Iskra. Great photos too!

Another nod for the Churnet Valley from me. My dad and I did the evening trip behind the S160 earlier in the year and that climb is absolutely outrageous. Proper steam drama!

Thank you! Agreed, the scenery is pretty good too. It will be even better when they get the extension to Leek in service.

- - - - -

1/1/24

On the way to the football, I managed to catch the locomotive that eluded me the week before. The stunning 91110 doing the honours for a Wakefield Westgate-Leeds leap.



2/2/24

With my job quietening down in January, it's always a month where I'm looking to get out and about as much as I can. And so, it was to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, who were offering pre-booked steam services from Pickering to Whitby on the mainline, on a ticket which would essentially act as a 12-month season ticket so I will be back no doubt this year. The weather wasn't the best and the carriage windows were dissapointingly steamy and dirty, so views were not on point. All in all though, it was a nice relaxing day out with a great locomotive soundtrack, and a good way of passing an otheriwise dismal January day. It was also interesting to run 'express' through most of the stations, which was a novelty. Some fantastic fish and chips were enjoyed in Whitby, and the weather was less wet than expected although the ground was flooded all along the line. I find winter steam much more atmospheric and this proved the case today. The climb back out of Whitby was fantastic as always behind any steam locomotive