Hi guys. When we did our first Bala Lake trip of the year last month, we were in disbelief at the weather forecast: wall to wall sun! This gave us the chance to take the open-top sports car of a Quarry Hunslet that is the wonderful "Alice". That weekend we enjoyed two marvellous days with the red 0-4-0 and it couldn't have been better. This time we were planning torrential storms fit only for a cabbed engine like "Maid Marian". However, despite our depressing predictions, we could not have been more wrong. There must have been some kind of special planet alignment in a parallel universe somewhere lightyears away as, unbelievably, the sun was shining on Bala again! Eddie commented that in his 15 years of crewing for the BLR, he has never had "Alice" twice on the bounce! We were so pleased to wake up this morning to sunshine and take "Alice" again. On a day like today, there is no better engine. We arrived at the engine shed ready to go at the usual start time of 8:30am, before setting to work. Tubes cleaned, smokebox swept, ashpan emptied and fire lit, "Alice" simmers on shed...
Here, the diesel locomotive "Bob Davis" (known as "Trigger") performs her daily duty of dragging out the stock ready for cleaning, whilst "Alice" looks on under blue skies...
Having enjoyed a leisurely preparation, we took a sparkling "Alice" up to the headshunt for coal & water at around 10:45am. By 11am, the loco was stood simmering nicely at the head of the train, patiently awaiting the first departure...
Today was one of those wonderfully easy days. We each fired two trips, and drove two trips, with pleasant company in Bobby as the Guard. "Alice", as usual, was in very good form and performed well during this, one of her countless 40-mile day's out...
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| "Leaving a Sunny Llangower" |
After four very enjoyable journeys, we disposed of "Alice" before scraping off the grime and later heading down to the Eagles again. "Come on Eddie, surely not 3-courses again?...If you insist". Cheers guys, Sam...
2 comments:
Regular readers will know that Mr B sometimes inhabits a fantasy world. In this fantasy world he imagines that I have a "three course challenge" laid down at The Eagles, when in reality it is all I can do to manage one! The last piece of gammon I had there was the size of a coffee table and could have fed a family of four for a week. I certainly couldn't finish it. But I had the last laugh this time. Mr B did manage the three course challenge of his own making and emerged from the pub looking like a bloated haddock. My suggestion of jogging back to the railway was rejected! Eddie
Was the loco protesting due to the extra weight?
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