THE
VIEW FROM THIS SIDE
Way
Out West
The
Railway in the West Country during and just after the 'changeover years',
1964-1972.
Locations
are along an imaginary railtour starting at Bristol and suburbs, then Exeter,
Ilfracombe line, Barnstaple to Taunton line, Okehampton, Halwill Junction,
Bude, Padstow (with modern comparsion shots), Bodmin Road, Loswithiel,
Par, Newquay, Truro, Falmouth, Penzance, St Ives Branch, Liskeard and Looe
branch, Plymouth,
Bere
Alston - Gunnislake - Callington, Totnes, Torbay, Starcross, Seaton
branch, Lyme Regis branch, Yeovil Town, Maiden Newton and Bridport branch,
Dorchester West, Weymouth inc Quay (again, see Wessex Journey, different
views), Wareham and finishing at Corfe Castle on the Swanage branch.
Traction
is almost totally diesel, but the time is mainly 1964 - 69 plus a bit of
early 70s.
Classes
are 08, 22, 33, 35, 42, 52, 45, Colours are mixed, a good number of 'Warships'
and 'Westerns' are in maroon. Just a couple of steam locos appear, an 8F
keeping a class 14 company in the dark one morning at Temple Meads, and
a USA 0-6-0T shunting at Meldon Quarry.
DMUs
are various, mostly green - some early schemes, and there are 1972 views
of a 206 in (the then new) blue.
Special,
interesting or otherwise rare features include:-
A
lot of 'disappeared' places on the Southern Railway 'Withered Arm'
network west of Yeovil and Exeter.
Single
unit 'bubble car' in original livery with 'speed whiskers'.
D1015
at Torquay in its original Golden Ochre livery. Class 22s - at least one
is actually moving under its own power without any artificial aid whatsoever
and pulling a train too!
A
tiny two axle Railbus in a rather unpleasant shade of green, lost in the
deserted vastness of Yeovil Town.
Samples
from this show. These images are compressed. Actual images on the CD are
high resolution:-
Bude,
7th September 1966. Journey’s end. A mountain of mail is being disgorged
from the railcar, just arrived from Okehampton. The whole place has a neglected
air, though the refreshment room has recently diversified into a grocery
- a visit would reveal it was possible to buy a packet of corn flakes and
a bar of soap as well a mug of tea. Search in vain, a car park and public
loo occupy the general area now.
Axminster 1st July 1965.
The Lyme Regis branch single unit is awaiting customers, however the crew
seem to be otherwise engaged, one wonders what chat-up line
they are using. Whether the young lady went for the ride down
to the seaside or not I don’t know.
Exeter
St. David’s 4th March 1966. A ‘Warship’ B-B, later class 42, with
the 0625 Bristol Temple
Meads - Penzance.
Weymouth 2nd July 1966.
‘Hymek’ D7054, later class 35, leaves the locoshed behind (centre mid background)
with the 1630 to Wolverhampton High Level, no matter what the headcode
says.
Gunnislake
(on the Callington Branch) 6th September 1966. This is as far as it is
possible to go now, although the whole branch was proposed for closure,
someone in higher places demurred…... The 1310 from Plymouth to Callington
pauses, time for a chat. Enjoy the barrows, by the way.
Paignton August 1964.
Behold! An NBL type 2 (D6300 series) not only working but in green
and without the yellow panels. It has a Kingswear to London Paddington
train, though how far it was worked thus is unknown. Trucks full of parcels
on the right.