Dorkingian

From a couple of years ago on the Dorking Garden Railway. Note prototypical telegraph pole projecting from locomotive.

Happy Christmas to all at RMweb from the Dorking Garden Railway

After France, yesterday it was time to visit Germany and drive some trains... Many thanks to the UK FREMO group for an entertaining time yesterday operating the latest configuration of their German outline modular approach to model railways, complete with fully detailed timetabling which drivers and signalmen have to follow. Some Anglo-Saxon interlopers appeared on the track during the lunchbreak. Altogether an ambitious undertaking, but very rewarding to be able to share in it.

The models were here: Well worth a visit.

All a bit quiet in the garden recently - but I've been to Paris: And coming back was pretty fast too:

The Izzard bits seemed to lack quite a bit of model railway detail though, not least how they made the snow.

Emerging from the backwoods A bit of transAtlantic eBay shopping produced this wonderful beast, a Doodlebug from just a century ago in America, displayed on the remaining part of the layout: See: https://www.trains.com/ctr/railroads/locomotives/emc-delivers-first-doodlebug-motorcar/ Haven't had time yet to see if this Bachmann product actually runs, but it looks promising. I really want to acquire a decent interurban model, but they are scarce and pricey and mostly in America. Of course to be realistic that would need an overhead power wire anyway. The Doodlebug isn't an interurban but looks like a useful midway option. Not having bought anything on eBay from the US before, I was half expecting to have to pay import duty here. But the bill somehow included 20 per cent VAT and airmail shipping and nothing further, so I'm happy.

Temporary suspension of service It was a sad day when, after over eleven years of happy DGR running, I had to dismantle half the layout to make way for garden landscapers to remove the rotting decking at the front of the railway (and elsewhere in the garden) before installing replacement paving. The future infrastructure should be on more durable foundations, but for the moment, no more fun days in the sun. On the first day of the project, the landscapers made quite an impact. It was hard to visualise where the front of the railway went... The decking will be replaced by more-durable Indian sandstone paving, and the retaining walls are being done in oak timber which I'm told will last longer than I will. The landscapers have given me four upright sleepers on which to rebuild the front of the railway. The bamboos in their pots have been temporarily moved, so Bamboo Curtain Straight should retain its name. And as befits a railway that sometimes represents parts of the north of England, a modest amount of levelling-up has taken place behind the sleeper retaining wall using the pile of spoil in front of the digger. In this photo you can just see the A-frame forming the end of what was the Northern Viaduct, with the bamboo pots still in place... And here is the new work, all ready for me to lay some timber trackbase once the landscapers have departed in a few weeks time.

Rehab and more Not a lot has happened in the last six months, and no trains have run despite my eagerness to dispel the idea that winter isn't always good for garden railways, mainly because of wet weather. So the railway has been suffering from neglect, and this week's sunshine prompted a serious effort to excavate it from the leaves and rubbish that had covered the scenic side. This also revealed a number of problems which need to be dealt with - some easier than others. For the first time, the vegetation on both sides of the track has died back during the winter. This has affected both the ivy above the railway and the mind-your-own-business below it. Presumably they will both recover in due course. Secondly, moss has flourished on some stretches of track, which would be fine if a scale overgrown look was required - but it's not. Unfortunately, scraping the moss out from between the sleepers often meant that the scraper just disappeared into the rotten wood beneath. And holes are appearing elsewhere. Not good, although after 11 years it shouldn't be a surprise. And inevitably there are a few rail-end bonds which need resoldering, usually in the most awkward locations. So there's still work to be done before trains can run. And that's only in the short term, because the garden decking replacement project is due in May and will entail dismantling and rebuilding much of the railway. Hope I can get some running sessions in beforehand...

London Transport steam The DGR is rather suffering from rot in the decking which operators have to stand on, such that SWMBO has forbidden visitors until restoration work is implemented. Separately some track maintenance is needed, so the following photos are just posed and sadly don't show a real operating session. In the late 1960s and early 1970s after the end of BR steam, it was still possible to see steam workings in the London area as LT Pannier tanks used to work spoil trains out along the Metropolitan Line to Croxley Tip near Watford. Robert and I sometimes used to go and see them, so with my new Oxford 'Pilchard' wagons and his Bachmann L97 we decided to do a re-enactment of those scenes from long ago. Here is the morning's Down working, heading out into rural Hertfordshire... Then at Croxley there's a bit of shunting to get things the right way round... Before setting off back Up the line with the empties for Neasden:

Managed to scan this 70 year-old slide of Jubilee 45611 taking an excited crowd of people to London for a special occasion...

1952 Jubilation (well, I haven't got a Coronation) I managed to dig out and scan some 70 year-old slides of Jubilee 45611 taking an excited crowd of people to London for a special occasion in 1952! Note trespasser on roof of first coach in final photo.

Sleeping Cars on the West Highland Line Here's the video:

Sleeping Cars for Fort William It being high summer(!), photos can more easily be taken of sleeping cars in daylight. So here are a few taken on the West Highland Line of a train carrying drowsy passengers towards the Western Isles... The first photo shows the sleepers arriving from London in the suburbs of Glasgow, to be joined to a local portion for the onward journey. The two portions are gently combined into a 9 coach train... Quite a challenge for a Class 4 engine on what will be an arduous route Listen to those exhaust echoes ringing off the rocks... But the footplate crew enjoy the downgrades... And glance out at the dramatic scenery... While keeping careful eyes on the road ahead... So all is looking good for an on-time arrival: