Stormy!

Wednesday with the Usketeers.

One down with Covid! So it's still around. Jules fell victim to it, so he is staying at home for a while. Four of us continued the good work, under strong winds and rain. How happy we were that the hut is now up, and the roof completely watertight. We sat inside and felt smug.

Irrespective of the foul weather outside, we decided to complete the floor with the last few remaining bits of slab around the edges. 

They all needed cutting to their own particular shape.

Here is one for the angle by the fireplace.

 

 

Paul concentrated on the strip along the Malvern side.

Several strips of stone were cut to size and fitted, and that area is now also done.

Next, Paul and Dave worked together to fit a larger piece behind the door, where the electrical conduit comes out.

That needed a square piece cutting out of the slab - no problem though.

Various locomotives chugged past as we worked inside. Between rain showers and strong gusts there were even periods of blue sky. April weather, eh?

Here's 75014 taking the ECS down to CRC.

Inside we relaxed, dry from any rain.

Paul is lying on a little foam rubber cushion. At our age it's getting increasingly difficult to get up and down all the time, so we stay down (or up) and make sure we are comfortable there.

Got any more muck then?

It's just coming!

An hour later it was the turn of P&O to chug past the window. It would meet 75014 coming back from CRC. 

That train didn't look so busy, but luckily later trains in the day were, and the car park at Toddington was busy, a good sight to see.

After P&O left to head for Greet tunnel, 75014 carried on towards Toddington, and you see the loco here framed by the new view with the Usk hut and its stone walls.

A few moments later BRAVEHEART was framed by the branches of the oak tree and the gable end of the hut.

We got through another bag of sand today. With it gone, there is less clutter. We will be running a cable to a nearby supply and that means a trench. When that is back filled, we can think about the site reinstatement.

With the last of the pieces of the floor puzzle fitted round the outside, Paul made a start on grouting. Above, you can see him making up a grouting mix (Cement, lime and sand) and this was then spooned into a special pump that he had brought.

It was a bit like siliconing a bathroom, but here it was a stone floor. You pump the grout into the cracks, and once it has gone off a bit, you scrape it flat, and rub it down with a damp sponge.

We did about half of the floor like that. Next time the other half, then we can think about furniture. We'd like a counter in here, with a flap for example.

 

Lunch time was a special occasion, as Mrs. Dave had baked a whole cake for us. How kind! It was a walnut cake, and particularly moist and very enjoyable. We ate half between the four of us, and then Dave retrieved it, for polishing it off at home. 

That seems like a fair arrangement.

How about a slice of home made walnut cake for you?

 

 

 

As we had a bit of spare mortar left, Paul used it to bed down the two smaller window boards. You can imagine how uneven the window bottom is, being made out of roughly dressed stone, so a layer of mortar is called for to give it level support. Once the mortar is dry, the window board will be screwed down on to it.

During lunch there was a surprisingly loud drone outside. This happened last week as well, at about the same time.

So we ran outside, and just caught the tail end of the Osprey flying overhead.

What a strange aircraft!

 

Spending most of the day on your hands and knees (or digging a hole, in the case of yours truly) is quite tiring after a while, so when the mortar ran out and half the floor was grouted we decided to call it a  day.

We left the hut in the capable hands of our guardian chicken.

We had two offers to buy it for a donation, so it will be going to a good home.

 

 

 

Stop press end of the day we got some photographs from Paul, who was out along the track with the gang at Greet. They changed 7 sleepers along here.

Paul not only has a drone camera, but also one which can do a panorama.

Isn't it amazing! There's a 90 degree kink in the picture, the railway line in it is actually perfectly straight, and the gang is sitting between Greet tunnel and Working Lane.

The view from here is one of our firm favourites.

On a good day you can see the Malverns (today was not a good day...) but these hills in the Vale of Evesham are almost as good.

Sadly the weather soon reverted to high wind with rain, as this picture shows, from the same viewpoint. You will recognise the horse box in the foreground.

You can also tell from the clothing that a wet day was expected. There were at least 15 volunteers in the gang today, a pleasingly excellent turnout.

Or, as one muttered, perhaps they forgot to check the weather forecast....

Or perhaps it's just the cameraderie and stunning views that did it for them.

Monday on the track.

Our hired in tamper from B&R has moved further south (after tamping at Didbrook and at Hayles where we replaced concrete sleepers during the closed season) and in pictures provided by Paul it can be seen at work south of Gotherington. Monday is a non-running day, so a posession was possible for the work.

Here is the tamper on the straight south of Manor Lane. The pines of the former station at Bishop's Cleeve can be seen in the distance, marking the old station site. On the right the creeping urbanisation, as new housing estates slowly march towards Gotherington from Bishop's Cleeve.

This is the tamper approaching a foot crossing, now looking north.

Along the stretch between Manor Lane and Bishop's Cleeve is this lovely underbridge in blue engineering bricks.

It is a farmer's accommodation bridge, and you wouldn't know it was there from above. There are very few brick built bridges on the Honeybourne line like this, most have metal decks.

 

 

 

A look over the fence: South West by Rail. (2)

Our second day of rail exploration around Exeter with members of the GWSR PWay team.

Our Exeter hotel was right opposite...

... a 1930s GWR station. It's great to see these buildings kept intact. Downstairs you had all the modern facilities you wanted, but upstairs the grand old lady was still there.

We were pleasantly surprised to see how busy the station was. Here are a couple of things that drew our attention:

Art Deco ceramic signage to the platforms, with that lovely pointing hand. How did they make those one-off tiles with two halves of numbers each?

We've got one of those hands for the sign that will direct Broadway P2 Passengers over the footbridge.

 

The footbridge to Platform 6 had a lovely light and dark shading to it. Everything was rivetted or made of thick wood. The handrail down the sides must have been a solid piece of timber 6 inches thick, then carved to the handrail shape.

John stares at a hole...

Here are some jolly Exetarians (in fact they are known as Exonians) who may never see their wives again.

Behind is a GWR war memorial to the fallen.

We were off to Totnes to join the South Devon Railway. As we waited on P4 a shortish class 800 IET drew into a crowded platform 5 bound for London, and when it left, there were many still standing there. Were they left behind?

If we may niggle at UK rail travel, it was difficult for this (infrequent) rail traveller to work out where to find an unreserved seat, and where the snackbar was. In fact there are clear coaches with unreserved seats, but that knowledge is reserved for the initiated. Others were almost fully reserved (on Cross Country that time) but many reservers did not show. Then you sat in your 5 coach unit, part of 10, to hear an announcement that the trolley was in fact in the other half for several hours still.

Those 800s have a superb ride, it's undeniable. Very fast and smooth. The seats however are thin. They were OK to sit on and bear it for a while, but these are long distance trains after all. Someone somewhere with a pencil worked out that if you shave the cushion by a couple of inches, over a carriage length you soon have another row of seats. And you are the victim of that.

And don't get us started on the constant safety announcements. On the Shakespeare line there was an obsession with reversing prams out of the doors, every station had to be told anew. In the south west it was about doors. Don't get on or off when the beep goes. Did you know that? You did already? You must be a mastermind, because the TOC thinks that is new to you. At every station.

And the trolley lady needed to inform us of every item on her trolley - it was a long list for such a small trolley - over the PA, including the brand of the crisps. Who cares?

Whoa, rant over, we have arrived at Totnes.

 

11 people got out, 11 people wondered which way to the SDR. Was it over the footbridge and behind the ruined factory? Or was it along the platform? No signs to be seen.

We got to the top of the footbridge, where someone told us it was back down again, and instead along to the far end of the car park, along a meandering footpath, and under the railway. There's the bridge over the river, Yesss!

The Dart looks high though. The forecast was for high winds and rain.

 

 

 

Our main line train was 10 minutes late, but the SDR one wasn't. Luckily we had half an hour to make the two ends meet.

It was very wet, so we crowded into the booking office to be warm and dry, and have a professional chat about stuff.The building is an original, but was built in 1904 for Toller on the Bridport branch. So a lot of their kit was original (unlike Broadway, where we had to find everything) but somehow we think this crowd barrier should have cast iron legs, should it not?

 

 

 

We were intrigued by their fireplace: 

Check it out - how does it compare to this one at Toddington, also built in 1904:

It's identical! As we need another two of these for Broadway P2 we asked who their supplier was, but we were told that it's the original 1904 one from Toller, so we'll have to keep looking.

The little tank 1369 ran round, also in the pouring rain. It has outside cylinders, which is unusual.

The running in board had good posts and finials, but the letters don't look right. At Buckfastleigh they had the same.

It is possible to get correct letter shapes for GWR signage.

We liked the TOTNES in the brickwork below!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The rain must have been very heavy, as the smokebox door hinges have gone rusty.

The lamp post looked nice. We are always interested in cast iron stuff, so gave this one a closer examination...

 

 

 

 

 

 

What this ! Surely a venerable GWR heritage railway such as the South Devon can find a GWR lamp post?

That was an amusing surprise. 

 

While waiting for the off we explored a museum coach behind the platform.

 

 

This was excellent, really well done. There was even a little model railway at one end, which was actually working.

The upholstered waiting room bench is superb. We would like one too for Broadway P2, but so far have not found one.

 

 

We huddled into a nicely restored Mk1, where John regaled us with awful puns, one liners and shaggy dog stories.

 

 

The next coach along, containing a snack counter, was quite interesting, as we hadn't seen this layout before.

We think the screens are an old COVID thing, but they blend in quite well.

Here's our little group in that well restored Mk1. All the woodwork panels had little labels to explain what sort of wood it was. A nice eye for details there.

 

It was still raining when we arrived at Buckfastleigh, having travelled along a very swollen river Dart. Particularly along the southern stretch of the line the river was often very close to the railway. It seems each railway has its own structural issues - ours is clay, on the SDR the river needs a careful eye kept on it.

 

At Buckfastleigh our heritage eye caught this triple Pagoda, which was in use as a bookshop. It must be quite rare.

There is a shop planned at Broadway, but sadly it will be another B&Q shed, similar to Auntie Wainwright's next door. We are a bit of a shed line really, every station has one. Broadway will have two, it is planned.

 

After copious quantities of tea and coffee, we were interested in a visit to the toilet, and at Buckfastleigh found this:

 

Here someone has clearly had a design bent, and it is really quite successful. We liked it. Another good one can be seen at Birmingham Moor street.

Lovely tilework here.

That made us think, what are the actual facilities like?

 

These are fairly modern, with a slightly Art Deco feel to them.

None of the sanitaryware is representative of the period though. At Broadway we chose Victorian, which came off quite well.

 

 

While it was still raining we dived into the goods shed, which houses a very good museum.

Just how wide is 7'1/4'' Broad Gauge, Clive?

It had something to do for children (a little signal lever to pull with a token coin, which operated the signal in the background) and a curator who was happy to talk to us. Note the 'Cornishman' headboard in the background. That would have been a fine item for our museum, when we get one.

The actual width of broad gauge was quite surprising, so we asked Clive to demonstrate for you, which he did quite happily. The VB locomotive is the only original broad gauge locomotive left, all others are replicas. It was built in Cornwall in 1868.

We left a donation in their box, for this fine museum.

Then we were hungry. We had an hour to kill before the return trip.

Here are the 'Refreshment Rooms', with shop on the left. These buildings serve the purpose, but spoil the atmosphere. They could be from anywhere, with a rocking Thomas the Tank Engine outside the door. There was no railway atmosphere.

When we replace the Flag & Whistle at Toddington (itself a former car showroom) we hope to do better. We need a building which tells people what it used to be, like a goods shed, one which is clearly a part of the old site.

Opposite the single platform are well kept gardens with a miniature railway. GWR 5526 and an 08 shunter also catch the eye.

 

 

 

You can walk over the footbridge, missing its roof, to the shed area, which is a bit ramshackle but hidden from view by rolling stock. Containers were stacked 2 high, and that no doubt reflects the engineering activity that is going on there.

Our return train eventually appeared, still in the pouring rain. This is a nice scene to look at, all very authentic.

 

 

 

 

We had a nice chat with the driver, who was quite happy to talk to fellow heritage railway workers.

The Cornish Pastie inspired us for the following day, when we bought one on the next branch line that we visited.

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the return journey we selected an older carriage, and what a splendid one it was too. We forgot to take an external picture of it, as we were so fascinated by the interior.

 

 

Just look at the art deco designs in the panelling, the GWR shirt button logo and the white glass cubes that house the light fittings in the corner. Absolutely splendid!

The seats were rather better cushioned than the 800 IET class ones, and this was technology of the 1930s.

Even the table leg is decorated, and this is third class (we ascertained later).

Strangely, this seemed to incite our PWay explorers to get a banana out. Luxury makes you hungry, it seems.

 

 

Even the toilet was decorated (we can't resist peering into toilets to see what they are like - yes, we should be locked up, it's a miracle it hasn't happened yet...)

Just look at the panelling, the repeated art deco decoration even in a lavatory, and the brass coat hook on the wall. All authentic, on a square pedestal.

The toilet was immaculate too, and had two rolls of paper, just in case. Well done, those cleaners.

We did a bit of research afterwards, and think we sat in a 1937 TO built for excursion trains. The number would be 1295, diagram C74.

 

On the way back we stood by the window, camera at the ready, to capture some of the flooding scenes we glimpsed on the way up.

It was pretty striking. Just look at this water mill, Town Mill near Nappers crossing. At normal water levels the mill leat centre right is three feet lower, and can be seen to be overflowing here into the foreground.

In this picture the field in the foreground has flooded, while the actual river Dart is way in the background.

The flooded field has led to water lapping at the foot of the railway embankment, although without obvious damage. Our driver mentioned that they had seen it much higher still.

 

Back at Tones Riverside GWR 1369 ran round as we walked back, and enabled us to take this 'rods down' sideways shot.

The main line station wasn't far away, and the SDR is certainly one that is easily reached by train, and well worth it.

 

 

 

 

 Part 3 (the final part) to follow next week!