Crossing the road

The days to the May Gala are ticking down fast (May 13 & 14) and hence the rate of working has also picked up tempo. A Must Do job was to finish the new loading pad and the trackwork connecting it to the rest of the railway system. Not as straightforward as it sounds, because the tracks have to cross the main site access road. This road is also used by our neighbours with regular HGVs - so it not only had to be done in a day, it also had to be done right. Fortunately, everyone worked really hard, and we were rewarded to the site of the ever-faithful Ruston No.29 exploring yet another new bit of railway. No.29 is a real workhorse, and has probably been the first loco on most of the railway system at Apedale. At the opposite end of the spectrum is LBU class Ruston number 497542 of 1963; this one is very much a "back of shed" loco, but we had a party who had come all the way from Argentina to see it (apparently). So, it was extracted and given a run. At least one regular member had never even seen it outside before - so he was happy! Steam trains on three days next weekend - it's a Bank Holiday. Likely to be the Joffre's first outing of the year - the wood pile will therefore shrink dramatically over the weekend.

Easter 2017

Well, folks, that was Easter 2017. The weather was distinctly mixed (can we have a refund, Met Office), but lots of interesting stuff happening at Apedale. We have received the first visiting loco for the May Gala. This is a rather splendid Kerr, Stuart Wren which lives at Statfold, but arrived at Apedale after an outing to Beamish. If you think that makes it a well-travelled loco - that's nowt. It's also been across the Atlantic ocean twice! ISC on the tank is Imperial Smelting Company, a firm near Bristol which began in the First World War making mustard gas. We have therefore issued rubber gloves and NBC suits to the crews allocated to the Wren. The Wren arrived alightly before the new loading arrangements at Apedale were completed - this is a concrete pad, which will make loading and unloading locos to road transport much quicker and - most importantly - safer. The pad is in place, and just need connecting to the main railway system. This sounds simple, but it involves crossing the main site access road, and the levels are, to put it mildly, all over the place. In between all of this, we ran a lot of passenger trains, and entertained many passengers - the Easter Bunny even made an appearance. Finally, the Wren has now been put into store in the sheds - but it will be in steam for a photo charter on May 7th - look up 30742 charters on Facebook for more details.

Tickets for the Stanhope Gala

An important announcement regarding tickets for the Stanhope Gala - 13 & 14 May. We aren't doing advance tickets by post for this event - BUT you will be able to buy tickets from the shop at Apedale for the event from this weekend. It's a great way to beat the queue on the day. Tickets are just £6 for adults, £3 for children 3-16 and there's a family ticket at £15 (2+2). We've also re-vamped the Access All Areas passes aimed at serious enthusiast photographers - £20 buys you access to the whole site for both days of the event plus the Friday set-up day - including access outside the public hours PLUS unlimited train rides and footplate rides on the locos. Only a limited number of passes are made available, and again these can be bought in the shop beforehand or from the gate on the day.

Easter Approaches

Just a quick reminder that we're running trains Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday. The Easter Egg Hunt is on - can you spot the eggs from the train? We're also hoping to have some donkeys on site giving rides. Trains will run from 1130 to 4pm each day, and it's just £2.50 for adults, £1.50 for kids 3-16.

A Sunny weekend

A glorious sunny weekend has seen our first Steam Trains of the season, with the Hudswell Carke doing the honours. We hosted a 70th Birthday - happy Birthday, Mr Birch - and the birthday boy enjoyed taking the controls of the loco (under supervision, of course) for a couple of hours. Wearing a white shirt was a gutsy move, but he seemed to get away with it.

Meanwhile, various projects have pushed on. The FR coach now has completed drawgear at both ends, and just to prove it, we used the Hudswell to shunt it round the yard - the first time it's moved with steam traction since leaving North Wales (Wot? No Double Fairlie? - the coach was heard to mutter). In the workshop, work has started in earnest on Motor Rail 1320 - this is the 1918 loco which was rebuilt to quarry condition, and will be restored, with the support of a PRISM grant, to the condition in which it worked in industry. It is fair to say that some of the bolts haven't been out since 1918, and seem quite determined to stay that way, thank you.

Next Weekend, it's Easter Egg Hunt with steam trains on Saturday, Sunday and Monday - what could be better?