Hi Folks, something a bit different.. 4 locos in steam and a
pub in the clouds! As was the end of the line! train
racing!!, a branch line off of a branch line! And the long
awaited home coming visit of1899 Built Taff Vale Railway class 02 0-6-2T loco No
85 to its native Victorian roots. This loco was withdrawn by
the GWR in 1928 and was snapped up by a Durham mining co and
then NCB...and
finally withdrawn in 1968 and then sold into preservation to
the Worth Valley railway in 1970. The Day After a bit of gricing on the steep
gradients of Blaenavon, we visited (not in our plan) the Big
Pit museum and mining experience.. that's guided by real
miners .. one said he worked in another S.Wales pit that was
a lot deeper than this one descending approx (700m) 2000ft
downand a good
few miles travel to the coal face!! the Big Pit experience
will take you 300ft deep that sounds good to me, but still
deep! The last tour into the earth was full (17 folks first
come first served basis), we didn't plan to do this yet
but will go down into the bowels of the earth in 2019! A day
with a difference where men are men once digging out
coal...and certainly burning it! Enjoy the pictures. Plus I would like to say...
the people that run this railway put a great effort
into it, making it non-stop action at the gala, good on
them.PS also included
from my youth a flashback shot at Blaenavon in BR days
2-12-1978, before the pit and line closed in the early
1980s, I travelled the line on a valley basher rail tour but
Ian did it before me in the snow his picture is much
better than my one (taken on a much better camera then as he
was an adult then, I was not) so Ive included it in the
photo set to complete a great story of before and after,
Dursley boys in the Valley!
Ian Thomas added this recollection from 1978.
If I REMEMBER CORRECTLY..THIS TOUR WAS A RELIEF TO THE PREVIOUS WEEKS TOUR...WE HAD 20-022/122 FROM SEVERN TUNNEL JUNCTION AND ONWARD FROM BLAENAVON TO USKMOUTH AND BARGOED..AND ON TO CARDIFF FOR 37-294 TO CARDIFF..THE TOUR STARTED IN LONDON WITH 25-052/255. 37-188/224 TOOK THE TRAIN BACK FROM CARDIFF.. THE MAIN TOUR ON NOVEMBER 25th HAD 46-001 PILOTING FAILED 25-157/225 TO STJ...20-044/188 TO BLAENAVON.. USKMOUTH AND BARGOED AND TO CARDIFF..FINALLY 37-180/182 BACK FROM CARDIFF..THE TOURS WERE RUN BY RPPR RAILTOURS SPEARHEADED BY JOHN VAUGHAN FROM DORKING, SURREY.. SO IT WOULD APPEAR SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT ON THE ITENERARY EACH WEEK CHEER's ENJOY.
Copyright of all pictures in this gallery belong to R Kelsey and I Thomas.