MR1320 and the Coach

In between running a steam service, and hosting "Diana" having a last running day before she heads off to Amerton, various other projects have been moving forward at Apedale. The engine of MR1320 has now been stripped back to "block" stage, using the loco frame as a very convenient mobile workstation. It's fair to say that the condition of many components is as bad as was feared. In particular, the radiator elements are very poorly and also very non-standard compared to other Motor Rails. It looks like someone will have the job of assembling some 22,000 fins onto new radiator tubes. The cylinder liners are also in bad condition, which would largely account for the poor running of the engine. If anyone has any Dorman 4DWD liners down the back of the sofa, do get in touch. Meanwhile, the FR117 coach project is rapidly approaching completion. The coach was taken for a comprehensive test run on Saturday, followed by the slightly scary brake testing process. This all went extremely well, to the point where the project manager was seen to smile slightly at one point.

Gala Weekend

It's only four sleeps to Gala Weekend - help us celebrate the centenary of our flagship steam locomotive "Stanhope". There's no need to bring a cake, we've already made one. All the visiting steam locos are site - we'll have six operating, with more than 500 years combined history. Not many events can boast four locos which are a hundred years or more. Opening times are 1100 to 1700 both days, with last admission at 1600. Ticket prices are Adults £6, children (3-15) £3 and a family (2+2) £15. The ticket includes one round trip on the railway - further train tickets can be bought if so desired. There are still a few Access All Areas tickets available at £20. In addition to all the trains, we expect model railways, sales stands, the ever-popular Titanic Brewery, living history people in the WW1 Trench - and more. The forecast looks pretty good - all we need now is YOU to make all the effort worthwhile!!

412 years of history

A busy weekend at Apedale preparing for the Stanhope Steam Gala. All three visiting steam locos are now on site, which inevitably means a mega-shunt to get them all safely into the shed. Also part of the mega-shunt is clearing the main shed out to allow the floor to be cleaned so that it is safe to allow visitors in to view trade stands and model railways. In between all of this, normal project works have continued. The large Motor Rail no.1320 is rapidly shrinking as it is stripped down for its restoration - this is not terribly photogenic. On the other hand, the FR coach has been painted and looks rather splendid. Sunday has seen us hosting a photo charter for 30742 Charters - the sun shown and everyone seems to have had a jolly good time. The opportunity was taken to line up all the Kerr, Stuart locos. Simple maths tells us that there is 412 years of history in the photo. Wikipedia tells us that 1605 was the year of Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder plot. Draw your own conclusions!

 

Stanhope Steam Gala

Just to confirm a few key bits of information about the Gala weekend - May 13 & 14. Opening times are 1100 to 1700 both days, with last admission at 1600. Ticket prices are Adults £6, children (3-15) £3 and a family (2+2) £15. The ticket includes one round trip on the railway - further train tickets can be bought if so desired. There are still a few Access All Areas tickets available at £20. Tickets can be bought in advance from the shop at Apedale this Saturday 6th May - or just turn up on the day! We will have six locos in steam - the three residents plus visiting engines from Amerton, Bala and Statfold, model railways, sales stands, the ever-popular Titanic Brewery, living history people in the WW1 Trench - and more.

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.