Well they are – “well tanks”, that is, both of them. The lovely Krauss metre-gauge locomotives were on display on a short stretch of track at the Alan Keef open day today. The green one is 3142 of 1894, the black one 5742 of 1908. Both have been restored to full working order at Keef’s in the recent past – I met them when they were in the works a few years back (see “Justine and Lydia” and “Coffee Pots at Keef’s“). Both were in steam today, and shuffled up and down their temporary track from time to time.

We drove the short distance from Keef’s to the Lea Bailey Light Railway, where a 2′ gauge line is being developed at the former gold mine (yes, really). One to watch, I think.

Little and large

On now to Perrygrove. We thought Keef’s was busy – Perrygrove was packed… Perhaps it was the attraction of visiting locos, demonstration freights etc… It’s difficult to believe that “Lydia” and “Cagney”, seen in the photo (right) both operate on the same 15″ gauge track.

There will be a “Rail Diaries” page on the day’s amusements in due course.

A break in the long drive down the M6, for our first look at the Ribble Steam Railway.  Must go again when steam is operating… Visit “Ribble-side Railbus” for more about our visit.

Since my last visit, a forest had been planted and grown to maturity – and was now being harvested.

That earlier visit was on a railtour from Leeds to Edinburgh, out and back via the Settle and Carlisle and the Waverley Route. In later years, the S&C came under threat – and survived. The Waverley Route wasn’t so fortunate – the railtour was to mark its last day, 5 January 1969.

Today, the northern part of the line, from Edinburgh to Tweedbank, south of Galashiels, is being reconstructed, due to reopen in 2015. Further south, at Whitrope siding, the Waverley Railway Heritage Association are laying the track for a different kind of line – we thought we ought to pay a visit. See “Return to Whitrope” on Geoff’s Rail Diaries.

Before our Canal Central walk (see below), we visited Nantmawr. The Tanat Valley Railway people have moved some DMU stock up there, and are currently offering weekend train rides. Visit Nantmawr DMU on Geoff’s Rail Diaries for more…

I said, in my previous entry, “A Rail Diaries page will follow in due course.”. It did. Visit “Sixteen at Statfold” for pictures and video of (some of) the fun at the Statfold Barn Railway last Saturday 1st June

There were sixteen locomotives in steam at Statfold yesterday (rapidly running out of superlatives here…). When was the last time there were so many locomotives (other than of the miniature/model variety) in steam together? Rainhill? Given that they keep moving around, it’s almost impossible to count them all, until the cavalcade at the end of the day. They’re all in the photo – with, at the head of the line, a little O&K diesel, which spent the day chugging around the garden railway.

A Rail Diaries page will follow in due course.