Steam Dreams 2015

Refer to booking office on a SD trip page usually means cancelled or postponed.

 

Reluctantly agreed

 

OMG. Getting my stopwatch out of it's box again Al!

 

It's a great video of a great day. One of my favourites on YT. Thanks for capturing this wonderful moment on video.

I was one of the many passengers that queued up at Waterloo to shake hands with Don Clarke and the other members of the crew as 35028 simmered at the buffer stops, her job very well done for the day.

 

Lets hope they are reading this!

 

Confirmed as cancelled on both SD's website and UK Steam, due to the 'phasing in' of WCRC's operations. Not allowed back on the Great Western mainline yet maybe?

http://www.steamdreams.co.uk/executables/GT410WebContent.exe?ActionCode=Timings

 

Looking at the WSR org website today the SD trip last Thursday was diesel hauled throughout with the planned steam haulage from Bishops Lydeard to Minehead & return abandoned. Was this due to the WCRC situation or something else? I am aware 60007 was unavailable for the ML section but a steam hauled journey over the WSR was shown on the SD website after 60007 was announced as being unavailable.

 

I suspect that the train may have been air braked (only) ? The WSR doesn't have an air braked steam loco at present. But there was plenty of opportunity for passengers to change onto a steam hauled WSR service.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32956876

Great news, The planned strike by rail workers has been suspended due to 2% pay rise given to them. If the strike would have gone ahead, Steam Dreams trips to Bristol (4/6), Worcester (7/6) and Kingswear (11/6) would have been postponed or cancelled due to lack of signallers and maintenance staff. I'm really looking forward to the three trips coming up. Looks like the Bristol and Worcester trips are for Mayflower and I hope that Kingswear's trip will be Sir Nigel Gresley, but I wouldn't be surprised if Mayflower does it as well.

 

There was an email from SD today offering 20% discount off a Mayflower hauled tour in June. It also mentions the 9th July Anniversary end of SR steam trip to Weymouth in an email largely promoting the use of Mayflower on their tours. I wonder if one is supposed to surmise that Mayflower is going to haul this train as well as those in June? If so, it's probably the first time it hasn't been hauled by a Bulleid, certainly in my memory anyway.

 

Thanks for that. I still find it a bit odd though that the trip was promoted as being steam hauled over the WSR but this was obviously not an option due to the stock.

 

and an LE move from P2 at Victoria back to Southall.so looks like no "assistance" planned

 

I thought this as well but the SD site currently has no loco allocated for this trip. I wouldn't mind a Jubilee or a Brit on 9th July if a Bulleid isn't available....

 

Regarding the use of 60007, the new issue of the Railway Magazine reports that 60007 is now out of gauge on the ML link to the NYMR and that she is currently having repairs undertaken on her driving wheels.

 

Ah yes, good point, so the trip was included in the email for promotion purposes by the sound. Anyway, 70000 would be a good choice it's true, and as 60163 is scheduled to be hauling the Torbays in July, Britannia would be free to travel to London to work this train presumably?

 

Both have been stated in different threads on this forum.

 

Don't know for sure, but I'd expect 70000 to work the Westbury - Kingswear trip on 11th June. I see she went back to Bristol in the early hours of this morning: http://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/train/U50521/2015/06/02/advanced

 

It's been confirmed on Steam Dreams that the Kingswear Trip will be hauled by Mayflower from Bristol Temple Meads to Kingswear and back.

 

Now updated on the SD site, 61306 will be hauling the 9th July trip to Weymouth.
She is going to have a very long positioning move for the Weymouth trip as she is in Scotland on the 6th July.