maps.google.co.uk/ which gives zoomable maps, focused on an address or post code. Maps can be searched by business category. It also provides driving directions. You can set a route to your overnight stop and from here you can plan and see maps taking you to various points - brilliant, far better than Multi-Map. Best feature of all is that you can slide the maps in any direction to see what there is in the area. (BTW don’t forget that you can access the LRS web-page via www.pmvideo.co.uk if you find any problem with word- wrapping please e-mail to let me know, saying what version of Windows you are using).
Just 200 miles from home, I arrived at Horsted Keynes station by 12.05 pm, time for a pork pie and a coffee before taking a train to Kingscote, a new one on me as it was twenty years ago when I was last here. The loco was an immaculate class ‘U’ 2-6-0 1638 built at Ashford in 1931, in Southern Railway livery. This must have been the very best time of the year to visit the line as everywhere I looked there were thousands of bluebells. In the woods, beside the track, all was a carpet of brilliant blue. They were everywhere in the green tunnels of trees beside my route from the motorway to The Bluebell Railway.
At Kingscote, where there is no easy access from the outside world, I watched the loco run round and spoke with a very tiny man, Norton Brown, who was the driver on the Romney whom I had seen on my first visits to the line, back in the seventies. I travelled back as far as Sheffield Park with him and we discussed the Romney Gala where he had an important role to play. Now 75 years old, he is not permitted to drive, but is involved in marshalling the very busy schedule of trains.
Henry, an unusual name for a young lady, did an excellent job of navigating the 44 miles of country lanes and motorways next morning, getting me to Hythe Station five minutes late for the 7.30 am ‘breakfast train, to Dungeness. Rather illogically I then drove the nine miles to New Romney to catch the 8.16 diesel hauled train back to Hythe. The weather over the weekend was brilliant sunshine, I met several fellow enthusiasts and the signalman, John Wallis told me he had just bought my latest DVD. A very young chap who had taken over the job of sales manager, informed me he wanted to sell some of my stuff in the shops. Here I also met an elderly, jovial, overweight American, who had retired from a top management job with the Kansas Power Corporation, and as a lad had been the actual ‘Wichita Lineman’, moving to an office job when he had an accident while climbing an iced-up pole with climbing spikes!
The ride back was behind No. 9 Winston Churchill on the 9.55 to Romney, where I spent a laid-back couple of hours talking with friends and videoing the trains. One of the highlights was the unusual ‘parallel running’ with trains running from Dymchurch to Romney alongside each other. I caught these again at Burwood Marsh level crossing, near the black marble memorial to driver Kevin Crouch, who was killed here by a reckless motorist. Here I met John Jones who like me, makes DVDs of his railway video shots. He promised to send me a DVD of some shots had missed along with material from Spain, Germany and elsewhere. He will get one of mine in return.
Next day, Sunday, Henry found a better rote to the Bluebell, missing out Sevenoaks this time, through bluebell country to Sheffield Park. At 5 minutes to 9, I watched the ‘Dukedog’ 9017 Earl of Berkeley leave the sheds in a cloud of glorious steam. Later a couple of miles down the line The Earl and ‘U’ class 1638 were seen on an embankment, light-engine to Horsted Keynes. Henry followed the line and we found several photo-viewpoints of a photogenic nature. This railway deserves further investigation, I‘ll be back!
An easily accessible place, near a stone-built farm occupation-bridge on a curve, afforded a nice shot of pacific 21 C 123 Blackmoor Vale (b. Brighton 1946) hurrying towards Horsted Keynes. Realising it would pause at HK, I drove to West Hoathly tunnel only to find a smoke-filled tunnel mouth and the sound of a disappearing train - timing is everything in this game! I discovered that as it was a Wartime Weekend the timetable was rather more intensive than normal. Apparently a fourth loco had failed to appear i.e. Class ‘O1’ SE&CR 0-6-0 - see picture at the SE&CR Centenary weekend - sad but it happens.
I waited at the tunnel and in twenty minutes I saw a train approaching. You can see right through, what is the longest tunnel in preservation, the line climbs quite steeply at 1 in 48 and the oncoming train is seen to enter the far end and a few minutes later to appear in a cloud of smoke and steam. This time it was the one I’d been waiting for, the Dukedog! I hear that contemporary loco, City of Truro will arrive later in the year to run with it.
[The 'Dukedog' or 'Earls' class were in fact rebuilds using 'Bulldog' frames married with 'Duke' boilers. The prototype was 'Duke' number 3265 Tre Pol and Pen, withdrawn in December 1929, which was fitted with the frames of 'Bulldog' number 3365 Charles Grey Mott. The only difference between 3265 and the production 'Earl' locomotives was the use of 3 feet 2 inches bogie wheels instead of 3 feet 8 inches. Only one member of the class has been preserved, number 3217 ( ex 9017 ) Earl of Berkeley.]
When we heard that another loco had failed - the next through the tunnel did not appear - I decided to head for home about 3.00 pm. Once through the Dartford tunnel I felt at home again, taking on fuel at East Grinstead, current target of an extension to the Bluebell Railway, calling in later at Wansford to see the newly restored BR class ‘5’ 73050 City of Peterborough (Derby 1954) arrive at and leave the station with a train of foreign coaches. With the recently built flyover, the Nene Valley Railway is now easy to get at from the ‘A1’ and always worth taking a break for on your way south or back home.
I seem to have overcome my austercantiophobia and am already planning to return to the next Romney Gala to see my friend Austin Moss’ rebuilt Katie whose new boiler arrives soon. Fond memories of driving it at Cleethorpes ten years ago!
A week later - the NYMR Spring Gala - Friday - a good idea considering the weather. First - to Levisham station, not an easy place to get to, possibly quite hazardous for the unaccustomed driver. A nice shot of City of Truro and the ‘Super -D’, moving on to Moorgates for more. I spent the afternoon around Goathland, seeing more spectacular steam climbing the 1 in 49. Later an evening in Whitby, beer fish & chips and a good night’s sleep in the Youth Hostel.
Saturday - a very wet day! After the usual shed visit, Eddystone and 5224 back in steam after failing Friday, 3440 City of Truro, to the consternation of the day-trippers had failed with a damaged steam pipe, breakfast on Grosmont station and a ride on the trains. A member’s half-price all-line ticket at £9.00 took me on a tour of the line, dropping off at Pickering, for a walk-about and lunch. Next came a trip on the ‘shuttle’ headed by apple-green Lambton No. 29, with a chat with driver Chris Cubitt who had driven the loco on May 1st 1973 at the inauguration of the line from Grosmont to Pickering. This was my first ride in the unexpectedly luxurious Gresley teak coach. At Levisham the train was deftly shunted to allow a train from each direction to pass here. I rode back to Pickering behind the ‘Super - D’, meeting an ex-BT-colleague and member of the LRS, John Richardson No. 1 (No. 2 still attends our meetings but No. 1 has moved permanently to live in Pickering - lucky chap. Later, a ride to Goathland, rain still persisting down! After a quick trip on the last returning train to Grosmont I joined a couple of other enthusiasts in the hostel to share a bottle of wine and a discussion of the day’s events.
Sunday dawned sunny and warm. At Grosmont, after a huge bacon bap I videoed 76079 and 78027 double-heading an early train. At the Birch Hall Inn, Beckhole, a quick pint of the proverbial ‘Black Sheep’, followed by Darnholm and finally Eller Beck Summit. At 1.00 pm the rain returned as I waited an hour for the two opposing trains, both double-headers, to pass by. As I waited I spoke with the railway’s catering and commercial manager, with his Labrador dogs, as seen on TV, before leaving in the rain for the comforts of home. A worthwhile weekend, not to be missed, weather or not! (By the way - Sir Nigel Gresley was hidden away, but I saw the tender being repainted blue inside the NELPG deviation shed.)
