Recent steam or diesel rail tours over the Cumbrian Coast route.

[TravisM]

My friend in the US has taken my advice about a modern, busy single line with a passing loop in the station, and he’s gone with St Bees because not only the one and two car units, but the nuclear traffic as well as some infrastructure workings from time to time.

 

He asked me if there had been any recent rail tours over the route which had involved steam traction as he’s got a recent “full fat” Hornby Flying Scotsman with TTS sounds which I think he wants to run on the layout.  The only recent tour I can think of was the two GBRf Class 50’s.

 

Just to satisfy my curiosity, if a steam engine had come off a train a Carlisle and was booked to head back to Carnforth, would it be routed via the Cumbrian Coast or West Coast route?

[ColinK]

Steam tours and diesel railtours have been round the Cumbrian Coast. My last run round it was behind a pair of class 50s, I’ve also done it behind a deltic.  I’ve photographed some of the steam runs, but not been on one yet.

 

In case you don’t know, until a year ago some of the service trains were loco hauled by class 37s and class 68s, so there is plenty of scope for variety.

 

Somewhere I’ve got some video.

[Metr0Land]

10 hours ago, jools1959 said:

Just to satisfy my curiosity, if a steam engine had come off a train a Carlisle and was booked to head back to Carnforth, would it be routed via the Cumbrian Coast or West Coast route?

 

In recent times it's been electric-hauled Euston-Carlisle.  Steam loco light engine Carnforth-Carlisle via WCML and steam Carlisle-Carnforth via Cumbrian as the sched seems to work reliably that way.

 

46115 has been a frequent performer though other loco and routing combinations possible.

[Afroal05]

In the last couple of years I am aware of the following locos on steam hauled railtours having passed through Ravenglass on the Cumbrian Coast:

 

Jubilee 5690 Leander

Jubilee 5569 Galatea

Standard Class 7 70000 Britannia

Black 5 44871 and 45407

 

I don't believe Flying Scotsman has been down the coast for many years sadly (I think she was last there in the 1970s) although it's not impossible a tour with her will be scheduled there in the future, I notice 60103 Tornado has a tour planned down the Coast in 2020.

 

I hope this helps/is of some interest!