CREWE - CHESTER -- BANGOR - HOLYHEAD  MONTHLY REPORTS APRIL 2009 - PAGE ONE

Duchess time again and 6233 is en route from Butterley to Crewe to prepare for the trip to Carlisle the next day, Saturday 18th. The location is Alsager and the locomotive has just passed the site of Alsager shed, now long gone. 17/04/2009

That nice Mr Driver opened up just as 6233 appeared under the bridge. 17/04/2009

Perfection! Enjoy it while you can because this is its final year before being taken out of service for a 10 year overhaul. Who knows when we shall next see a Coronation Pacific in steam on the main line after that? 17/04/2009

A dogbox trundled through in the form of 153385. 17/04/2009

The new breed of class 350, the /2 version seen here returning to Crewe from London Euston via Stoke-on-Trent. It's a long journey in a unit! 17/04/2009

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Good Friday at Crewe and two class 57/3's await business, comprising 57304 "GORDON TRACY" and....

.... 57309 "BRAINS". 10/04/2009

The final Pendolino (for the time being) 390053 "Mission Accomplished" arrived in platform 12 which is an unusual manoeuvre for Crewe. 10/04/2009

67028 entered platform 6 off the Shrewsbury line with the "Pathfinder" charter "The West Highlander" which is a four day tour of Scotland. This section runs from Salisbury to Preston where 028 is to be replaced by two DBS class 37/4's. 10/04/2009

Not the better looking of UK locomotives! 10/04/2009

A snatched shot of the coach headboards stirred old memories of the WCML. 10/04/2009

Heading North through the steelworks of Crewe. 10/04/2009

Two "Fastline" class 66/3's crept into bay platform 8 and comprised....

....66301 and......

......66305. 10/04/2009

The Fastline logo. 10/04/2009

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34067 "Tangmere" approaching Willaston road crossing en route for Preston with the second leg of "The Great Britain II" tour of the UK and running approximately 30 down. This section, Bristol-Preston, should have been hauled by 6201 "Princess Elizabeth" but the Stanier pacific was failed with faulty slide bars. 08/04/2009

Memories of Devonshire holidays!!!. 08/04/2009

This "Battle of Britain" class locomotive had, yesterday, taken the train from its starting point at Penzance, double heading with 70013 "Oliver Cromwell", through to Bristol and then continued on this morning, hence the somewhat (and unusual) unkempt appearance. The unusual shape of the air-smoothed casing earned them the nickname of Spamcan after that famous meat product. The valve gear is driven by a huge chain immersed in an oil bath, these locomotives were prone to catching fire and most were subsequently rebuilt by British Railways and resembled the BR standard pacific design. 08/04/2009

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It was BR BLACK WEEKEND on The East Lancashire Railway and we made a visit on Saturday 4th April to see what was happening. 45231, which should have been appearing, had been landlocked on the West Somerset Railway and therefore couldn't make it. A Picture Report covering the visit can be found HERE.