Welsh Branchline Weekend
Taff Vale? Dyffryn Hafren!
15 March 2003
This was "Welsh Branchline Weekend" on the
Severn Valley Railway, with an amazingly
complicated timetable of numerous through
trains and lots of short shuttles running to and
from various intermediate stations. The
weather looked good - and the star attraction
would be the Worth Valley's Taff Vale 0-6-2T No
85.
I decided to ride on the trains, and travelled down to Rhiwderin
(a.k.a. Highley), arriving from the north as No 85 arrived from
the south, to lay up in the loop for a couple of hours. A little
while later another Welsh celebrity arrived, this time former
Port Talbot Railway 0-6-0 saddle tank no 813, an SVR resident.
Like no 85, 813 is with us today because it was sold out of
service by the GWR to a colliery in the north-east of England.
Time for a few snaps before joining the Cambrian Coast Express
Geoff’s Rail Diaries
(unusually diverted via the Brecon and Merthyr, and hauling a
fine rake of Gresley teak stock....), on which I travelled to
Bewdley.
There was a fair amount of action here - in addition to the
various trains arriving and departing, pannier tank 7714 (yet
another ex-colliery loco) was running up and down giving brake
van rides. The star turn was, of course, no 85 which duly arrived
and departed with its train for Kidderminster.
The real excitement now over, there was time for a quick
perusal of the sales stands - where I managed to fill a gap in the
magazine collection (RM, July 1961....) before joining the return
working of the CCE for the pleasant run back to Bridgnorth.
Links:
•
Severn Valley Railway
•
Keighley and Worth Valley Railway
