THE PENDLE DALESMAN RAILTOUR - Thursday 29th October

Thursday 29th October
The Pendle Dalesman Railtour

This tour will run from Chesterfield to Carlisle and back again, initially hauled by heritage diesels it will be handed over to it's designated Steam Locomotive from Carnforth which will continue the journey over the famous Settle to Carlisle route which would include the outstanding Ribblehead Viaduct. . 

Departing Stations: Chesterfield, Sheffield, Swinton, Wakefield Kirkgate, Brighouse, Blackburn

Enjoy a nostalgic day to remember, travelling behind our splendid vintage steam engine along England's most famous railway. From our earlier pick up points we head north behind a vintage diesel engine to Hellifield/Carnforth where one of the oldest steam engines in service today will take over, this alone is a sight to behold as the engine builds up sufficient steam for the highlight of your journey on the famous Settle to Carlisle line.

The Settle-Carlisle Railway on which we will travel needs no introduction; this breath-taking journey will take you over 20 viaducts, through 14 tunnels and countless beautiful vistas. The climb over Blea Moor and the crossing of the world renowned Ribblehead Viaduct are arguably the highlights of England´s most scenic Railway.

We anticipate an afternoon arrival time offering a couple of hours or so break. This great border city dominates the borderlands between England and Scotland, sitting within the vale between the Cumbrian Mountains and Scottish Southern Uplands. In Carlisle you’ll find yourself at the centre of a stirring past and a vibrant present. Many of the city’s eateries and licensed premises are just a few minutes’ walk from the station entrance and if you visit www.discovercarlisle.co.uk you will find information to help you plan ahead. And for those who would prefer to use their short break to wander around in the beautiful and historic heart of the city you may choose to visit the Castle, cathedral or indeed the Tullie House Museum.

After a break of around two hours in Carlisle, we head south across some of the finest countryside Great Britain has to offer, where we head to your home stations via the famous Settle to Carlisle line in the comfort of our beautifully restored heritage rolling stock. Return journey from Carlisle leaves around 15:30 and gets into Chesterfield around 21:30 so that's a long old day on the trains, wonderful scenery and company, I hope all about thoroughly enjoy yourselves.

Approximate Departure Times
Chesterfield                 06:31
Sheffield                      06:51
Swinton                       07:07
Wakefield Kirkgate      07:52 
Brighouse                    08:40
Blackburn                    10:07

Arrival at Carlisle is expected around 13:18

Info provided by realtime trains 

CLASSIC LAYOUTS -- CHILTERN GREEN N GAUGE (MRC)

This blog post is an opportunity for me reminiscing about a fine layout called 'Chiltern Green and Luton Hoo' which for me was one of the classic N Gauge layouts that I remember from my youth of the late 70s and early 80s. My late father was involved in a number of model railway clubs including the BBC, and the MRC itself as well as a few local ones so it had many a happy summer visiting many locations during the weeks as well as a lot of the bigger exhibitions. Central Hall, Westminster at the time (1970/80s) was the big show of the year, I think that is now the Warley Show held at the NEC. And it was here one summer that I was fortunate enough to join Dad and the likes of (MRC President) Tim Watson and other members of the Model Railway Club to show off this outstanding layout. 

I think it was also a big feature in the Railway Modeller magazine or more than one occasion, I have a copy of the April 1980 edition and I know was proud to have been associated with this club, while at the time was also a long standing member of the BBC Railway club too, which like many things has sadly ceased to function. As a young child, taking to my late father to one show I think was at Royston during the summer I had the great pleasure of operating the small branch seen here on the cover of the magazine, the single railcar running under the mail lines back and forth was enough for me, never mind the extensive four track main line, this branch shuttle would eventually become the extension to the layout called Luton Hoo, and would feature again in the Railway Modeller some years later ! 

The layout was rescued by the Devon Railway Centre, further information can be found on their own site, but also managed to find this information about how they came to save this famous layout (thankfully).
Quote from the then manager of the Devon Railway Centre "I am glad to see so much interest in Chiltern Green.  It really was ground breaking when built as it was the first layout to show the railway running through the landscape and to show the merits of N gauge.  When it finished on the Exhibition circuit it went to Walter Harper's Oakhill manor and when that closed to the public in 1986/7 it was just covered up and left in a barn!!  Fast forward 15 years and Walter contacted me and said come and get it if we wanted it but that the barn was due to be demolished next week. Two days later we rescued the layout and carried it out across all the rubble which was around as the roof and most of the top floor of the barn had been removed that day - the builders were ahead of schedule. The layout was repaired over the next winter and placed on display. Since then further work has been done on scenic, wiring and track." 

There is an excellent reminder of the work and sheer quality for this layout found here on You Tube (link below);

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiMa1cUexGE

The whole thing is a decent watch however if you want to skip through to approx 8m 20s there is a decent piece with the MRC President, Tim Watson about the layout. 

With great thanks to everyone at the Model Railway Club, Kings Cross, London. 

OXFORD AND DISTRICT MODEL RAILWAY CLUB - OXRAIL 2020 [Live on-line]

With all planned Exhibitions and open days remaining cancelled throughout October 2020 we have found at least one Society seeking to keep things rolling with an online event. The Oxford and District MRC are hosting their annual Exhibition Live On line this year. Not the same as the real thing of course but good to see people making an effort to get the word out and share their expertise. 

Saturday 24th - Sunday 25th October 2020
OPENING TIMES:  10am - 10pm
Oxford & District Model Railway Club are proud to present our free International on-line model rail show. With totally new and exclusive videos of O, OO, N, OO9 and Z scale layouts. And including some unusual and surprise guest appearances. This Show will appeal to model railway and model railroad followers from across the world. Browse the exhibits. Participate in and watch the live events. Watch the specially made short documentaries.

We have put this show together during Lockdown. Visiting railway modellers and filming their layouts. Asking them the questions you would ask them at a live exhibition. Our featured layouts cover both exhibition layouts and private layouts that have never been seen before. And we will premiere an extraordinary and unique set of short videos made of a long term project to build a highly detailed continental model railway. We will also show you the oldest running model railway in the world. As well as model railways built with the help of youngsters. We will also showcase the best of Oxfordshires historic railways and three of our modelling projects focused on recreating the lost history of Oxfordshires railways.

Show site at www.oxrail2020.com for more information.

RETIMED RAILTOUR - THE EASTERLING - STEAM HAULED TORNADO 60163

The Easterling
Saturday 3rd October 2020
Join us on a journey by steam train to rural Norfolk and Suffolk, a scenic area of undulating farmland, market towns, picturesque villages and waterways.
The Easterling recalls the days of an express train that ran from London to Yarmouth and Lowestoft, taking Londoners to the Norfolk Broads and the famous East Anglian seaside resorts. The train will be hauled by A1 Class Pacific 60163 Tornado.

Our steam train will depart from London King’s Cross station at around 08:00 and immediately begins climbing through tunnels and cuttings as it makes its way up the East Coast Main Line (ECML). There are stops at Potters Bar and Stevenage for more passengers to join the train. At Hitchin, we leave the ECML and head for Cambridge, our final stop for passengers. We continue north to Ely and then take the Breckland Line through Thetford to Norwich. The Breckland area is of considerable interest for its unusual flora and fauna, and is characterised by gorse-covered sandy heath land and Scots Pine trees.

We arrive at Norwich around mid-day and our steam locomotive ‘runs round’ our train as we change direction of travel here. We continue our steam hauled journey taking one of the ‘Wherry Lines’ from Norwich to Lowestoft. The Norfolk Wherry is a type of boat that was widely used in the area. Lowestoft is the most easterly town in the UK and terminus for the East Suffolk Line (ESL). Our train stops here for well over an hour giving passengers time to explore the town and harbour, once a bustling fishing port.

Our return journey is along the 49 mile-long scenic ESL through Beccles, Saxmundham and Woodbridge, famous for having the only working Tide Mill in the UK, dating from 1793. Westerfield Junction is where the branch line from Felixstowe joins the ESL; the branch is heavily used by freight trains to and from Felixstowe Docks. Approaching Ipswich, we take the newly built ‘Bacon Factory Chord’ to join the Great Eastern Main Line (GEML) going northwards from London Liverpool Street to Norwich.

We continue northwards to Stowmarket and leave the GEML at Haughley Junction. We pass through Bury St. Edmunds station, with its distinctive pair of towers. At Snailwell Junction we take the line for Newmarket and Cambridge, where we stop to set down passengers. We make further stops to set down passengers at Stevenage and Potters Bar before journeys end at London King’s Cross.


Steam Hauled by A1 Class Pacific '60163 Tornado'
The original Peppercorn A1 series were ordered by the LNER, but the 49 locomotives were built at Doncaster and Darlington for British Railways (BR) in 1948–49, after the nationalisation of the railways in the United Kingdom. Following the modernisation and dieselisation plans of the 1950s, the A1 Peppercorn class was eventually scrapped at a comparatively early age of just 15 years.

Other famous East Coast Main Line steam locomotives have been preserved, for example, six Gresley LNER Class A4s, one LNER Class A3, 4472 Flying Scotsman, and one LNER A2 60532 Blue Peter but all 49 LNER Peppercorn Class A1 locomotives were scrapped. The last was 60145 St Mungo, which survived until September 1966. An effort was made to preserve 60145, but it failed due to a lack of proper funds. The original Peppercorn A1s were designed to cope with the heaviest regular post-war East Coast trains. The A1 Trust intended Tornado to be built from scratch, designed and built as the next locomotive in the A1 Peppercorn class, not as a replica or restoration project, but an evolution of the class incorporating design improvements that would have occurred had steam motive power continued on the mainline railway.
  
Tornado moved under its own power for the first time on 29th July 2008 at Darlington, and then spent two months at the Great Central Railway in Loughborough, where it was tested up to 60 mph (97 km/h) and operated its first passenger train. Tornado then moved to the National Railway Museum (NRM) in York for three test runs on the main line up to 75 mph (121 km/h). After repainting from works grey into LNER Apple Green, Tornado was approved for mainline passenger operation. On 31st January 2009 Tornado hauled its first passenger trip on the main line, The Peppercorn Pioneer, from York to Newcastle and back. By hauling various A1 Trust railtours, charters and other activities, Tornado will begin to recoup the estimated £800,000 debt from the project, which cost around £3 million.