Bittern Farewell 30th December 2014

My footage of the outward run at New Zealand Bridge, Huntingdon, Holme and Peterborough.

 

Thanks for that. After my report of 18 minutes early it all went a bit wrong. I spent time on RTT looking at how it was being regulated as I first assumed it was being held for other services, but that became unlikely. There appeared to be some dead stands in obscure places not shown up by RTT, so I then assumed all was not well with the train. An unfortunate mainline end (for now) to such a star loco.

David

 

Mr. Proudfoot who was on the footplate told me at The Cross it was poor coal and they also reckoned the A4 had a flat tyre.

 

My footage of yesterday's run. Seen on Digswell Viaduct and at Sleaford North Junction.

 

Nice filming.

The first shot is a cracker. Reminds me of charging down the dirt road from Kraankuil to the summit near Poupan a mile or so in front of a 25NC on a South bound freight waiting for the sun to start rising so I could set up tripod and get the train crossing the first rays of the day. Kimberley to De Aar in South Africa. From memory that would be train 2416, the return of 2401 the 22.00 ex De Aar?

 

Just to amplify the circumstances of the cumulative delays based on what happened and what was communicated (no inside knowledge though, I'm afraid) things started to go adrift after the Conington water stop. Although the initial restart from this location was only slightly delayed, at 18.42 (3L), we then ground to a halt in the loop again and were held during the passage of 1B89 17.54 Newark-KGX (which was itself 8L at that point) and finally got away from the loop at 18.51 (13L)

We proceeded at a modest pace through Huntingdon and Sandy (19.22/ 16L) with speeds in the mid-60's at that point, but by Arlesey, it was clear that things were not well. Whether through checks or locomotive problems (it isn't really clear from RTT) the 5 miles from Arlesey to Hitchin, approached at a crawl, consumed a further 11 minutes, passed at 19.41/ 20L, and the 4.4 miles thence to Stevenage took just over 15 minutes, with a slight pick up in speed towards the end and an arrival at 19.56/ 31L. A minute saved on the dwell time here, and the schedule onward from Stevenage to Potters Bar virtully matched, avoided a further deterioration.

But at Potters Bar - and this is the bit that isn't clear from looking at what's recorded on RTT - we were held for some 17 minutes, during which time an intercom announcement did indeed confirm problems arising from a consignment of coal that it was reported had been loaded at Lincoln. Departure eventually happened at 20.39 / 43L (not 20.22 as reported), from where the running down to the Cross (12.6 miles/ 22 minutes) felt reasonably brisk on the generally favourable gradients hereabouts to contain the eventual lateness to 42 minutes.

Earlier in the day we had enjoyed pleasant spells of running both on the Stevenage-Holme Loop and Peterborough-Lincoln sections which I am sure will be reported in more detail elsewhere and in due course. And despite the somewhat disjointed final stages of the run, this really didn't feel, overall, like an unfortunate end to Bittern's current spell of mainline running.

The real clincher was, I guess, the final departure of Bittern from KGX, with a sustained burst of chime whistle and the red tail lamp slowly vanishing down Platform One wreathed and eventually consumed in its own steam as the ECS consist was hauled away. I would love to see a video of this moment to relive it all over again.

Memorable, it sure was. Marvellous - without a doubt. Magnificent - well, I could swallow the dictionary and I still wouldn't be able to find a better word to describe that final spectacle. Well done to everyone at UKRT, at Icons of Steam, and to everyone who had a hand in creating this wonderful experience.

 

Not my video but at the end of this one is what your looking for at Kings Cross.

 

Brilliant, Dan, absolutely bloody brilliant!!!

Thank you so much for that - it conveys it all.

 

No problem at all. Glad you enjoyed your day. Haven't seen Bittern on the mainline since 2010 but has given me some great memories. Including my first and surprising sighting one morning on my way to college as she was prepping for an ECS as well as storming through Haywards Heath one morning with the chime blasting at close to 75mph

 

I got some footage at Kings Cross in the evening too, check it here:

 

Just out of interest does anyone know who the DBS crews were on this trip?

 

That short clip of the coal in the tender at KX says it all. But why coal-up at Lincoln? Surely an A4 tender would hold enough for that round trip?

 

I know that Paul Major drove KGX - PBO and Colin Kerswell was Traction Inspector, who both got off at Peterborough, didn't recognise the others who got off the footplate nor those who got on after the crew change. Hope that helps.

 

Messrs Proctor (Driver, Didcot), Stedman (Fireman, Barking) and Levell (TI Leicester) took it forward from Peterboro to Lincoln I believe. Not sure who did what on the way back.

 

If anyones still interested my shots from Tuesday are here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/owenchapman/sets/72157649625972737/