Without doubt the finest journey you can make behind a steam engine in the UK. I haven't made the trip, but I've watched trains going over the viaduct at Glenfinnan.
Indeed..
Provisional my ar$e, no chance of that happening whatsoever. How do achieve social distancing in a railway carriage with 64 seats ? You probably need a 70% occupancy rate to break even. I really can't see much steam action on the mainline, or on preserved railways again this year. It's is the same boat as football unfortunately and there will be financial casualties in that field as well. Life as we know it is marked alas.
Likewise to Olds, you could be in for a long wait. Your best bet if (they survive) will be the the Swanage Railway, as they are well provided for in the Bulleid Light Pacific department , and there is normally at least one in service at all times, All belong to the Southern Loco Group, there are four in their pool, and have started restoring a fifth now 34010 Sidmouth, which has been awaiting restoration since it left Barrjy Scrapyard many, many moons ago !
No such luck Al. My love of locomotives began while watching the "spam cans" set light to the embankment grass before disappearing into the tunnel below Howell's Dairy on their way to St Davids. As a boy I vividly remember seeing City of Truro standing at platform 1 at St. David's only to make her acquantance again many years later when on loan at Swindon's Outlet Centre. The Engine currently on loan there is a Hall Class who's name I forget
There have been a few changes at Swindon during the last twelve months. The National Railway Museum gifted GWR heavy freight loco no.2818 to Steam Museum. It has taken the place of Manor class No.7821 Dinmore Manor. This in turn has relocated and become the Loco now on display in the Shopping Centre. It is owned by the West Somerset Railway Association and is on loan whilst awaiting it's place in the restoration queue back at the former Taunton to Minehead branch.No such luck Al. My love of locomotives began while watching the "spam cans" set light to the embankment grass before disappearing into the tunnel below Howell's Dairy on their way to St Davids. As a boy I vividly remember seeing City of Truro standing at platform 1 at St. David's only to make her acquantance again many years later when on loan at Swindon's Outlet Centre. The Engine currently on loan there is a Hall Class who's name I forget
I recently came across this book in a Swindon charity shop..
Exeter (No. 5) (Rail Centres) - Maggs, Colin G.: 9781901945157 - AbeBooks
Exeter (No. 5) (Rail Centres) by Maggs, Colin G. - ISBN 10: 1901945154 - ISBN 13: 9781901945157 - Book Law Publications - 2005 - Hardcoverwww.abebooks.co.uk
A most wonderful journey. I taught in a 14-18 comp just outside Leicester and we had a tradition of taking a group of 36 young people on what was termed a 'Bothy crawl' though we didn't use that many of them as we took tents. It was a 7 day trek on the west coast of Scotland, the route varying year by year, but always getting there on that train route. Brings back a lot of good memories. We got them off once in the middle of Rannoch Moor. The kids thought we were kidding!!
