Loose_Grip/Pete's photos with the keyword: 2003

HWW to everyone. Enjoy the day!

A real winter scene as Polish Railways 2-6-2 Ol49-23 gets up steam for its imminent departure from Poznan station on the 08.10 back to Wolsztyn. I had driven it on the 04.16 commuter train from Wolsztyn.

On another cold January morning, 13 years ago, Riddles WD Austerity 2-10-0 90775 waits on road 1 prior to coming off shed to work trains to Leicester. I was still a cleaner back then I but did have a go on this loco while it was with us.

PKP 2-8-2 Pt47-112 makes a very steamy departure southwards from Wolsztyn station.

In the deep mid-Winter PKP 2-8-2 Pt47-112 blasts away from Wolsztyn station with a freight train.

GCR. My first firing turn on LMS Black 5 4-6-0 45305 with Craig driving. We were on the 13.15 dining train so I had time to drop down for a photo while the soup was being served as we stood on Swithland viaduct. A beautiful sunny day but that steam heat was still needed. It was 45305's 2nd day in full service so felt honoured to be trusted with it! What a great engine. Swithland reservoir is one of the highlights of the Loughborough to Leicester trip on the Great Central Railway with views across to Bradgate Park & the varied birdlife. I'm always impressed by the number of herons around the banks of the lake.

Manchester Victoria station - a shadow of its former self with Stanier Black 5 45407 (as 45157) & BR Standard 4MT 76079 on "The Cotton Spinner", a steam special train around the Oldham Loop. The trains ran from Victoria to Miles Platting & forked right at Thorpes Bridge to Oldham & onward to Rochdale returning to Victoria via Middleton. The platform on the right is the old Platform 11, at one time the longest in the world. The view is looking north & east so Rochdale & Oldham are to the right. 35 years earlier a Black 5 would have been standing on the banker's siding located near to where the roof pillar on the left is located today.

GCR Loughborough shed. LNER O4 2-8-0 63601 footplate from the tender while getting steam up. I am trimming the coal forward before going off shed to pull our service train. The cab layout is simplicity itself & the engine steams on a candle. An excellent engine in many ways but perhaps not first choice for cold, wet winter days. Then again in 1912 when the locomotive was built designers didn't really care too much about the welfare of crews. Note the sheet in the tender - hooked onto the cab roof it's our only protection against the weather when running tender-first. She will be running her last trains for a while this coming weekend, 23rd-24th June 2012, as her boiler certificate runs out then. She did make it to 100 years old in steam though so come to the GCR to ride her for one last time.

PKP Pt47-112 shunting wagons in Konotop station.