Friday 16 Sunday 18 September for the Longueville event and Paris area / line 4 diesels
Pictures here:
http://gwizz.zenfolio.com/p716723853
http://gwizz.zenfolio.com/p716723853/slideshow
This was an ideal combo for me as an (ageing!) steam and diesel enthusiast with steam aplenty but also 72100s thundering past on a regular basis!
08.02 St P Paris Nord (PN) smack on time
Paris Nord:
15001 at the buffers with 15024 behind it in the same platform
Obtained an all zones (only 5 these days of course) Mobilis and rode out on RER to Le Bourget in readiness to phot the midday Laon corails in both directions and observe freight on the Grand Ceinture and serving Le Bourget yard and passing through.
Le Bourget:
67590 11.19 Laon Paris load 7
67587 13.26 Paris Laon
(both old blue to my delight)
Freight locos observed:
75408 Gas tankers (Camping Gas)
60088+60024 STVA cars
36024
VT2 measuring car
Y8402 trip freight
Moved on, first by failing miserably (due to defective platform display) to work out we weren't boarding a stopper RER so ended up going direct to CDG airport and back to Aulnay for a first run on the tram train to:
Bondy:
17039 and
17060 on Paris Meaux RIB workings
Pantin:
17086 reversing a RIB towards Paris Est (PE) for unknown departure
17089 pulling stock + 72186 Ourcq PE
17060 reversing RIB in to form a Meaux service
72130 16.11 Paris Troyes
67463 (Fret livery) 17.04 PE La Ferte Milon
Rode 463 to Lizy sur Ourcq aiming for a country shot of the following 18.04
Lizy sur Ourcq:
67278+67279
67273+67220 stabled in the fenced off LGV maintenance yard
67539 18.04 PE Le Ferte Milon
To get some food we rode BiBi back to Meaux:
17060 and
17039 both arrived on stoppers from Paris/Chelles
15063 and
15052 on outbound Vallee de la Marne Corails
27017+27xxx outbound freight
Then ate at 'Le Riverside' recommended restaurant - nice outside table to enjoy the summer like evening warmth with good value hearty food. Affligem and other decent beers on draft. all 5 mins walk from station)
Returned to Paris on double decker unit
RER out to Pantin for the 4 min walk to the recommended ETAP hotel. Recently built ETAP with new style room facs for half the price of hotels a not much more than a mile away in 'true' Paris. You can see the station from floor 1 and above for 'reassurance'!
Saturday 17 September
BiBi Paris Nangis via Verneuil l'Etang
Having had early starts on Friday in London we elected not to get up in time to see or to ride the Ajecta special given its Paris Est dep time of 07.18. Instead overtook it at its diesel-steam traction change point at Verneuil where we became aware of the activity of 68506 (Had we known this of course we might have made a different choice about departing from Paris... I had not been too bothered by the projected loco 040DE895, but 68506... ah well.)
Alighted at Nangis in lovely sunshine to cane in a photography 'triple bill' of 141R840 heading to Longueville, the diverted Berlin CNL train and 09.42 Paris Vesoul which all happened nicely to time ahead of our required 10.30 departure onwards to Longueville on the next BiBi.
141R840 (Paris) Verneuil l'Etang Longueville
72189 09.42 PE Vesoul
72166+15008 dit Berlin Paris CNL diverted
(with hindsight we were lucky the 72189 did not come at the same time as the Berlin as the latter was a 'mega' audio-visual spectacle in perfect morning sunshine)
Longueville station and at a lineside field (near Tachy village) about 1200m south of the station:
75409+75XXX southbound tarp wagon freight
X2403 11.40 Romilly Longueville
141R420 top + tail 141R 1126 12.13 Longueville Romilly
Champagne BiBi northbound
X2403 13.15 Longueville Romilly
BiBi southbound
72148 13.13 PE Belfort
72 xxx 14.37 Troyes Paris Est (went to the viaduct viewpoint east of town for this one)
72166 18.11 PE Chalindrey
Nangis:
72175 18.41 PE Mulhouse
Overnight Hostellerie de Chatel (Logis) not that great as the rooms are all in glorified Nissen huts not the original manor house shown in all their literature...) but the restaurant was very nice so worth considering if travelling with a 'better half'. One very nice diversion was listening to a 141R clanking past light engine just before turning my bedroom light out at gone 11pm!
Sunday 19 September
Nangis am:
72121 08.12 PE again in nice sunshine after overnight rain. No diverted CNL or 10.30 trains on a Sunday so straight on the 09.30 BiBi to:
Longueville:
ABC No2 (Mallet) + 141TD740 Provins shuttle
141R 840 ex Verneuil (68506 dit)
72084 13 loaded ballast hoppers Verneuil Flamboin
72175 08.45 Chalindrey Paris
walked out again to the field at Tachy
141R840 t/tR1126 12.13 Longueville Romilly
72084 +141R840 tender first + hoppers Flamboin Verneuil
BiBi southbound
X2403 13.15 Longueville - Romilly
141R840 + ballast hoppers southbound this time sensibly (given that this was intended as a steam spectacle) with 72084 dit at the back.
72186 15.11 PE - Mulhouse
186 made a great phot with the southbound facing chimney of 141R420 returning at the back of the special from Romilly which was checked at the Longueville home signal.
Time to head home via Paris Est:
72189 18.11 PE Chalindrey (17098 on blocks)
72138 18.41 PE Belfort (72151 on blocks)
72176 14.36 Belfort - PE
15039 arr 18.52 ex Chalons en Champagne
15020 spare parked
And lastly Paris Nord:
22244 Phantom grey on blocks
15041 19.46 PN - Tergnier
16041 16.25 Boulogne Paris 2038
67600 16.48 Le Treport Paris Nord
16032 unidentified corail departure
20.13 E Star to St P and Northern line Morden...
.
Pictures here:
http://gwizz.zenfolio.com/p716723853
http://gwizz.zenfolio.com/p716723853/slideshow
This was an ideal combo for me as an (ageing!) steam and diesel enthusiast with steam aplenty but also 72100s thundering past on a regular basis!
08.02 St P Paris Nord (PN) smack on time
Paris Nord:
15001 at the buffers with 15024 behind it in the same platform
Obtained an all zones (only 5 these days of course) Mobilis and rode out on RER to Le Bourget in readiness to phot the midday Laon corails in both directions and observe freight on the Grand Ceinture and serving Le Bourget yard and passing through.
Le Bourget:
67590 11.19 Laon Paris load 7
67587 13.26 Paris Laon
(both old blue to my delight)
Freight locos observed:
75408 Gas tankers (Camping Gas)
60088+60024 STVA cars
36024
VT2 measuring car
Y8402 trip freight
Moved on, first by failing miserably (due to defective platform display) to work out we weren't boarding a stopper RER so ended up going direct to CDG airport and back to Aulnay for a first run on the tram train to:
Bondy:
17039 and
17060 on Paris Meaux RIB workings
Pantin:
17086 reversing a RIB towards Paris Est (PE) for unknown departure
17089 pulling stock + 72186 Ourcq PE
17060 reversing RIB in to form a Meaux service
72130 16.11 Paris Troyes
67463 (Fret livery) 17.04 PE La Ferte Milon
Rode 463 to Lizy sur Ourcq aiming for a country shot of the following 18.04
Lizy sur Ourcq:
67278+67279
67273+67220 stabled in the fenced off LGV maintenance yard
67539 18.04 PE Le Ferte Milon
To get some food we rode BiBi back to Meaux:
17060 and
17039 both arrived on stoppers from Paris/Chelles
15063 and
15052 on outbound Vallee de la Marne Corails
27017+27xxx outbound freight
Then ate at 'Le Riverside' recommended restaurant - nice outside table to enjoy the summer like evening warmth with good value hearty food. Affligem and other decent beers on draft. all 5 mins walk from station)
Returned to Paris on double decker unit
RER out to Pantin for the 4 min walk to the recommended ETAP hotel. Recently built ETAP with new style room facs for half the price of hotels a not much more than a mile away in 'true' Paris. You can see the station from floor 1 and above for 'reassurance'!
Saturday 17 September
BiBi Paris Nangis via Verneuil l'Etang
Having had early starts on Friday in London we elected not to get up in time to see or to ride the Ajecta special given its Paris Est dep time of 07.18. Instead overtook it at its diesel-steam traction change point at Verneuil where we became aware of the activity of 68506 (Had we known this of course we might have made a different choice about departing from Paris... I had not been too bothered by the projected loco 040DE895, but 68506... ah well.)
Alighted at Nangis in lovely sunshine to cane in a photography 'triple bill' of 141R840 heading to Longueville, the diverted Berlin CNL train and 09.42 Paris Vesoul which all happened nicely to time ahead of our required 10.30 departure onwards to Longueville on the next BiBi.
141R840 (Paris) Verneuil l'Etang Longueville
72189 09.42 PE Vesoul
72166+15008 dit Berlin Paris CNL diverted
(with hindsight we were lucky the 72189 did not come at the same time as the Berlin as the latter was a 'mega' audio-visual spectacle in perfect morning sunshine)
Longueville station and at a lineside field (near Tachy village) about 1200m south of the station:
75409+75XXX southbound tarp wagon freight
X2403 11.40 Romilly Longueville
141R420 top + tail 141R 1126 12.13 Longueville Romilly
Champagne BiBi northbound
X2403 13.15 Longueville Romilly
BiBi southbound
72148 13.13 PE Belfort
72 xxx 14.37 Troyes Paris Est (went to the viaduct viewpoint east of town for this one)
72166 18.11 PE Chalindrey
Nangis:
72175 18.41 PE Mulhouse
Overnight Hostellerie de Chatel (Logis) not that great as the rooms are all in glorified Nissen huts not the original manor house shown in all their literature...) but the restaurant was very nice so worth considering if travelling with a 'better half'. One very nice diversion was listening to a 141R clanking past light engine just before turning my bedroom light out at gone 11pm!
Sunday 19 September
Nangis am:
72121 08.12 PE again in nice sunshine after overnight rain. No diverted CNL or 10.30 trains on a Sunday so straight on the 09.30 BiBi to:
Longueville:
ABC No2 (Mallet) + 141TD740 Provins shuttle
141R 840 ex Verneuil (68506 dit)
72084 13 loaded ballast hoppers Verneuil Flamboin
72175 08.45 Chalindrey Paris
walked out again to the field at Tachy
141R840 t/tR1126 12.13 Longueville Romilly
72084 +141R840 tender first + hoppers Flamboin Verneuil
BiBi southbound
X2403 13.15 Longueville - Romilly
141R840 + ballast hoppers southbound this time sensibly (given that this was intended as a steam spectacle) with 72084 dit at the back.
72186 15.11 PE - Mulhouse
186 made a great phot with the southbound facing chimney of 141R420 returning at the back of the special from Romilly which was checked at the Longueville home signal.
Time to head home via Paris Est:
72189 18.11 PE Chalindrey (17098 on blocks)
72138 18.41 PE Belfort (72151 on blocks)
72176 14.36 Belfort - PE
15039 arr 18.52 ex Chalons en Champagne
15020 spare parked
And lastly Paris Nord:
22244 Phantom grey on blocks
15041 19.46 PN - Tergnier
16041 16.25 Boulogne Paris 2038
67600 16.48 Le Treport Paris Nord
16032 unidentified corail departure
20.13 E Star to St P and Northern line Morden...
.