Swanage Railway General Discussion

I've not yet managed to get down to Swanage to spend a day there when 31806 is working.

Maybe I can get down for a day sometime over the next few days before the great heat returns, as it seems the SR mogul is back on the roster at present (webcams).

If anyone knows if 31806 is rostered to continue working for the rest of this weekend and into the first part of next week I'd be grateful for the heads up on that please.

Bryan B

 

The inaugural Evening Sunset Shuttle on Friday night.



It was great to see the bubble car out by itself.

This service is running on Friday and Saturday nights throughout the summer. Plus, other selected dates.

 

According to the footplate crew today she's out for the rest of the week, subject to failures etc

 

Can confirm that the U is booked to be out all week,,,,,

 

How are the train loadings like during the summer??
Interesting to see see if anyone's noticed steam v the class 33 in terms levels of passengers

 

Thank you. If that includes the coming Saturday I may be able to get down for the day. The current forecast for Saturday at Swanage of early drizzle then just partly cloudy, 19-20 C and a nice breeze would be ideal for me, as I am not doing at all well in the current heatwave.

Bryan B

 

Very good loadings

 

Will ask the question tomorrow

 

The U is planned to be the rostered loco for this saturday

 

Many thanks for that. I certainly plan to come down, as long as I'm up to it!

If not, I'll have to wait until the U is back on the roster.

Thanks again.

 

With very grateful thanks to the guys who kept me up to date on 31806's rostered workings, I had a very full day down on the Swanage Railway today.

It was lovely to add to what had been my meagre collection of photos of this loco in the heritage era, and I'll post some of the images on Nat Pres when I start editing and naming them tomorrow.

I really like that fairly short (in normal service) line. Some great locos in BR SR livery and numbering, along with coaching stock from the same BR SR era. Along with great deal of interest in the Swanage station/loco shed area. Plus two webcams; that overlooking Swanage station being very useful indeed at times.

Bryan B

 

We visit the line a number of times each year mostly as a short break at Morton’s Manor in Corfe so see plenty of the U. The two Bulleids seem to be more elusive but the T3 is the big attraction and the 33s are very Southern and part of the scene which the DMMU is not.

 

The more elusive of the two gives a true 60's look today (apart from the loco ash skip).
34028 did work 15 of 16 days in July (34070 making a cameo on Saturday 20th)
Unfortunately due to my wife have a fall and breaking her hip I have not been able to venture anywhere but the station area since July 18. She did finally come out of Dorchester Hospital about 45 minutes before the DCE departed Weymouth but I though asking her to wait in the car at Wool for it to come through may have been pushing things a little.

 

A truly great photo of a magnificent steam locomotive. I'm still recovering from last Saturday's day trip to Swanage for 31806 (photos coming here soon), but can now feel another visit building inside me!

I do hope your wife is well on the way to recovery. And, as far as I am concerned there is nothing wrong with the Swanage station/loco shed area - so much relevant infrastructure to weave into a photo.

Bryan B

 

During my long day visit on Saturday I took 200 or more photos of 31806 - thank goodness I'm not obsessed with BR SR livery and numbered steam locos.

I edited those down to 145 in-camera at Swanage, and have just finished editing and naming all of those - with 47 further edited into my consideration list for possible future use.

A variety attached, which shows I do sometimes head out onto the lineside away from where railway infrastructure is nicely concentrated.

Hope I haven't added too many, but they are all very low res and fairly small as usual.

I will add my thanks again to those here who kept me in touch with the working days of 31806 over the past few weeks. And of course to all the staff and volunteers at Swanage who run the railway and were very convivial when I chatted to them.

Hmmm, might be a well weathered Manston next . . . . . .

Bryan B










A bit of a splash with this next one, but Swanage is a seaside town and it is mid-summer.

 

You did well with the "drain cock" image. I have tried numerous times to get the loco enveloped in its own steam but still visible. You almost got it Bryan.

 

Thanks. Yes, it's the nearest I've got at Swanage to an ok photo with them open like that.

Bryan B.

 

On Monday on the webcam I happened to notice D6515 return from is mainline duties around 17:10, I think it delayed the last service by a couple of minutes.
Nothing much unusual in the move other than both RTT and OTT when I checked to see if it had run on time said it had been cancelled.
As both obviously rely on a feed from an NR system, how does a move that actually happens not show up?

Anyway despite my wife's health issues managed 15 minutes at HX yesterday. Not sure if any 33's were repainted blue before the end of steam or not.

 

Good Evening to you all,

Episode 2 of the Save Your Railway Series is now available to view.

 

Love that first photo - you are hard put to see any evidence that this was not taken circa 1960. All the more incredible as the whole scene is a preservation era recreation.

The push-pull converted class 33s appeared in early 1967 in readiness for the Bournemouth electrification and I'm pretty certain the were painted blue at the time of their conversion.

Peter