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The Circular THE CIRCULAR Bradford Railway Circle No.387 – 1st Quarter, 2019 Contents Page 1 Editorial 2 Little Trains of the Pyrenees John Robertshaw 6 Reminiscences (Part 1) Frank Robertshaw 10 Meeting Reports Philip Lockwood 13 Book Review: “Gloucester Locomotive Sheds” Ian Button 14 Special Traffic Notices 14 Notes from the Internet Michael Leahy 15 Diesels in the Snow (photos from 1986) Peter Holden 16 BRC Nameplates 18 Ben’s Bits Ben Burrows 19 Secretary’s Page Peter Holden 20 Circle Diary 2019 Editorial Firstly, a Happy New Year to all our readers! We kick off 2019 with another 20-page issue, and I look forward (perhaps optimistically) to a continuing flow of articles from you the members, to keep up the momentum. This issue is something of a Robertshaw edition – more travel notes from John Robertshaw, and Part 1 of Reminiscences from Frank Robertshaw our ex-Secretary. Thank you, gentlemen both, for your contributions. The future of the Circle’s locomotive name & number-plates has been under discussion in recent months (as has been the case quite often in past years), and they are now to be disposed of. If any member has a wish to own one or more plates, either for its inherent interest as railway memorabilia, or as a souvenir of the Circle, or merely as an investment, then now is your chance – they are being offered for sale by tender, with a reserve price at the low end of an auctioneer’s official estimates. The Circle membership has first option, and the highest bid wins. Please see page 16 for details. 1 The Little Trains of the Pyrenees John Robertshaw In early September of 2018 we travelled from Halifax with Grand Central to overnight in London before departing on a Rail Discoveries trip to Northern Spain as entitled above. We entrained at St. Pancras for the Eurostar service to the Gare Du Nord and by coach to the Gare de Lyon where we took the TGV south through France and into Northern Spain to Figueres. Here we alighted and joined a coach for the short journey to Rosas on the coast our base for the next seven days. The next day was to trip into the Pyrenees to enjoy a journey on the Little Yellow Train from Villefranche de Conflent to Font Romeu although the line continues to La Tour de Carol which we would visit later in the week. It is a splendid journey climbing steadily through narrow wooded valleys, crossing a fabulous bridge to peak in the sunny uplands at Bolquere-Eyne at 1592.76 metres above sea level. We detrained at Font Romeu-Odeillo-Via at 1553.83. One of the highlights is an open carriage. Our next trip was to the Nuria Valley Rack Railway which is twinned with the Jungfrau Express in Switzerland. This marvellous rack railway allows spectacular views of steep slopes and the superb mountainscapes. The Railway is the only access to this remote valley and the lack of car traffic has a calming influence. 2 After a day’s break, we travelled by coach to Ribes, north of Ripoll where we joined the Nuria Railway. It was a fantastic journey up into the Pyrenees albeit that we left the sunshine down in the valley only to find grey skies above. The signboard in the station can be fairly easily translated giving the history of the line since its inception. The trains are now very modern and I was able to stand at the rear and take photographs through the rear cab windows back down the track. It is single track with a few passing places until it arrives at the terminus. There is a small lake, hotel and cable car which I was able to utilise to take some elevated pictures of the valley which was only spoilt by the overcast conditions. The journey back was equally fascinating gaining vistas that were not apparent on the upward journey. The following day we retraced our steps but this time only as far as Ripoll to join a train from Barcelona to the town of La Tour De Carol mentioned earlier. This was a substitute outing in place of the Red Train trip which we knew had had to be cancelled owing to doubts as to whether it would run or not. In all fairness, this was not the most exciting of outings for those with not a great interest in trains. We left Ripoll station on RENFE electric travelling again through some very nice countryside, steep valleys and rushing streams. 3 La Tour de Carol was planned as an “International Station” even though it is situated on a broad plateau high in the Pyrenees. It’s claim to fame is that it houses trains on three different gauges; the metre gauge of the Yellow Train from Villefranche, with connections to Perpignan, the SNCF line into France finishing eventually at the La Gare D’Austerliz and the 5” 3’ line to Barcelona. There is a small village near to the 4 station but we only had time to call in the station café to eat a sandwich with a mountain of frites and a coffee before we entrained to make the return journey. It is interesting to note that this year’s brochure has a totally different day planned! Obviously, last year’s feedback has had some effect. We left Rosas the following day to journey back to the UK taking the coach to Figueras to catch the 10.23 to Paris Gare de Lyon. The train arrived on time and all were safely boarded but it didn’t depart. Eventually, an enterprising member of our party spoke with the Train Manager to ascertain that there were reports of people in the tunnel between the border and Perpignan and until a search had been made, no trains were running. We left after waiting for about 90 minutes which meant that despite a splendid run up through France, we were never going to catch the 18.13 Eurostar from the Gare Du Nord. Thus, it was that with having to have all our tickets changed we left Paris two hours late at around 20.05 and arrived at St. Pancras at around 2150 instead of 19.39. This was obviously a problem for members of the party travelling home that night but we only had to walk around the corner to York Way and the Premier Inn for a good night’s sleep before catching the Grand Central back to Halifax the following day. It was an enjoyable trip despite the hiccups and the weather was very good. Rosas is a very pleasant seaside resort with long sandy beaches, an excellent promenade and good hotels. 5 Reminiscences (Part 1) Frank Robertshaw How did you become interested in Railways? I had an unusual childhood. The first train ride that I recall was to Southport for a holiday with my Mother and Auntie. I am not sure how old I was but I certainly was not old enough to go to school. We went through a huge station called Manchester, where we saw long trains hauled by huge engines. I had not learned to say “locomotive” at this time. What is your first railway memory? My mother re-married in 1945 when I was 9 years old. My new stepdad was a tall good looking Welshman who she had met in a fish and chip Shop in Lidget Green. I did not realise it at the time but he was to have a big influence on my future interest in railways. Eventually my Mum and new stepfather who I liked to call Dad went to live in Monmouthshire in a place called Caldicot and I went to live in Queensbury with my Auntie and Uncle. This was a time I hated but it has nothing to do with my railway story. The ‘Devonian’ with a pair of ‘Jubilee’ class 4-6-0’s in charge blasts out of Wickwar Tunnel. Painting by George.F.Heiron. I was given the chance to go for a long Summer holiday in Caldicot with my mother. Mother took me there on the well-known train that ran between Bradford Forster 6 Square and Paignton, and called ‘The Devonian’. It left Forster Square at 9-50am (no 24 hr times in those days) and arrived at Paignton at 7-15 pm. This was the longest journey I had ever had on a train and a great adventure for me. I remember a lot of the interesting things that we spotted on our journey to Gloucester. It is a long time ago now but I remember things like the fiery steelworks at Sheffield, the crooked spire at Chesterfield, the dark tunnels just outside Birmingham, the smell of chocolate as the train went past Bourneville station and many other things, like the huge tyres on the building of Fort Dunlop. By this time Dad was working for the railway as a plate layer in the Severn Tunnel, so we travelled by having privilege tickets (known as ‘Priv’s’) and this meant that we had to travel by the cheapest way possible. So this meant we had to change at Gloucester and cross the City by the footbridge which went from Gloucester Eastgate station (Midland) to the Central (Great Western) station. I recall Mother showing me the view through an open window on the footbridge, of Gloucester Cathedral. Below is an image of the footbridge between Gloucester Stations. After we crossed the footbridge I was to find a new wonder for me.
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