Cardiff, Severn Tunnel and beyond, Jan 77
Friday Jan 28th 1977
Leaving the rigours of a another week at College it was the long walk in the booked drizzle along St Helens Road to Swansea High St station. Here i bought the freedom of South Wales the “South Wales Weekend Explorer” ticket for £3.90. 37176 was steaming away nicely on the 1810 Carmarthen, my power was a dull 47530 on coffins forming the 1805 Swansea – Padd. A 47 was much better than an “HST” or “flying banana, zing, tram” as then nicknamed.
A 4 hour session at Cardiff General then followed, non stop loco action. Highlights included still green 47195 on the Baglan Bay salts and 21 different 37’s with 3 of them triple headed on a loaded Port Talbot – Llanwern iron ore train.
The freedom of South Wales and beyond for £3.90!
Cardiff G, 280177
25063 Down Pass Cardiff-Crewe 1914
37175 Up Parcels 1915
08188 Up light 1917
47494 Up parcels 1927
08580 N Pilot 1928
08581 S Pilot 1929
31294 Up Light 1931
253013 Down Pass Padd-Swansea 1932
253014 Down pass Padd-Swansea 1937
37280 Up Coal st 1939
47250 Up Parcels 1942
37210 Down Steel 1945
46055 Up Pass/Parcels 1947
37142 Up Light 1952
37220 Up Mixed freight 1955
37243 Up Cement (Prestflo) 1958
47056 U Light 2000
47186 Up Light 2001
253010 Up Pass Swansea-Padd 2002
47125 Down Coal St 2006
37277 Up parcels 2012
47454 Down Pass Padd-Swansea 2015
37131 Up Light 2019
08850 D Light 2020
45033 D Pass Newcastle-Cardiff 2025
37277 D Light 2027
45071 U Light 2032
46013 U Stone Covhops 2040
37288 D Coal St 2042
37289 D Coal st 2046
37244 D MGR 2048
37256 D Parcels 2050
47108 D Pass Padd-Swansea 2054
253008 U Pass Swansea-Padd 2057
25211 U Light 2110
253017 D Pass Padd-Swansea 2114
37254 D Light 2116
37256 U Light 2119
45054 D Pass Leeds-Swansea (to Cardiff) 2120
47076 (1669) D Pass Leeds-Swansea (ex Cardiff) 2129
47024 D Pass Plymouth-Cardiff 2135
37255 D Light 2140
37251 D Mixed freight 2145
45054 U Light 2146
47197 D Oil 2146
37308}
37302} U Iron Ore 2148
37303}
37272 U Coal St 2155
47512 U Parcels 2200
46010 U Palvans 2208
31190 Down Parcels (to Cardiff) 2209
47494 Down parcels (ex Cardiff) 2216
37220 Down Mixed Freight 2225
37227 U Coal H/S 2231
47532 Down Pass Padd-Cardiff 2232
46030 D Light E 2236
47100 D Freightliner 2239
45042 Up Light 2241
45054 D Bolsters 2241
37185 Up Pass Swansea-Bristol 2242
47195(gr) D Salt 2244
47244 U Royal Mail 2254
47147 U Light 2259
47072 U Railfreight 2306
37213 D Coal H 2307
45032 D Pass 2308
47147 2125 Swansea-Bristol H 2310
My hopes of 37185 for loud haulage to Bristol TM on the 2125 ex Swansea (2310 ex Cardiff) were thwarted when 47147 arrived from Canton to replace the “South Wales steamer”.
The police escort on the train left the train at Newport where most of the drunks got off and it was just a few of us enthusiasts on board to arrive at Temple Meads not long after midnight.
Saturday Jan 29th 1977
Visible in the darkness on Bath Road shed were:
08149, 08800, 37208, 50001, 50039 and 1048 having earlier arrived on 4B19 Plymouth –
Bristol vans. I then camped out in the warm waiting room which i think was on platform 4. It remained quite here, the attractive policewoman remarking my ticket was a “posh one” on checking for non bona fide travellers. The 5 and a half hours overnight at Temple Meads recorded this little lot, but i did doze a little and the many van trains being loaded/unloaded would have blocked other passing traffic.
50024 U Royal mail, 50042l, 47042p,31236l, 50021pa, 45074fr, 37208pa,
47492v, 47050, 08149, 47145p, 31208, 50012, 33005, 37073/45027fr,47341,
50005pa,45131l,46007rm,50019l,31208p-0510 Bristol – Weymouth,25294pa,
1048l-to work1B81 0800Bristol-Penzance, 31242l, 46025o,
The Eastern 37073 having presumably rescued a failed 45027 on its freight. 1048 on passing raised a smile too. A 0610 Bristol – Cardiff was joined and i slept all the way! 47159 was wagged on the 0720 Cardiff – Taunton, for 46055 forward from Newport to Severn Tunnel on the 0800 Cardiff – Plymouth.
The 3 hours at Severn Tunnel Jn were to produce:
Severn Tunnel Jn, 290177
08349 Pilot 1 0832
47498 D Pass 0833
37228 D Light 0835
253014 U Pass 0836
08122 Pilot 2 0845
31144 D Light 0847
08657 U Light 0848
31242 D Chems 0908
47031 U Pass 0910
253011/015 U Pass 0914
08654 Pilot 3 0918
52092/59820/52097-D stop pass 0920
50030 U Light 0934
47448 U Pass 0938
253002 D Pass 0940
45030 D Pass 0942
37281 U Freight 0944
46008 D Pass 0958
50030 U Freight 1010
31116 U Light 1012
47178 D Mixed Freight 1031
253007 U Pass 1039
47532 U Pass 1045
47099 U parcels 1048
253012 D Pass 1054
47341} D Pass-ECS – 1110
47512(d)}
1023 Western Memorial Excursion- 1112
Padd-Newport-Salop-
47048 U Mixed freight – 1120
37294} D Pass Severn T-Newport Addit H 1125a 1140d } 0915 Padd-Cardiff (term Newport) ST-NP
47512(d)}
253009 D Pass 1137
The main event was 1023 “Western Fusebox” absolutely storming through with the “Western Memorial” railtour, but even this was overshadowed by what happened next. Earlier 47341 dragging a dead 47512 had arrived in the sidings alongside the station with what was probably the ECS of a failed 0910 Padd – Cardiff. The station supervisor on seeing a good 40 enthusiasts now waiting for the Cardiff bound DMU then did us all a good favour…With the DMU a little late he instructed that the ECS should now become a Control Relief to Cardiff and even better 37294 was now up front.
One of those memories that will forever stick in my mind was the stock being reversed into Severn Tunnels’s down platform and us happy enthusiasts and a few normals piling aboard, 37294 growled away atmospherically, overtaking 37208 near Llanwern, but at Newport Control decided the fun was over and the relief was caped! A DMU took us forward to Cardiff where i did the Rhymney and Treherbert valley branches in a DMU. At Caerphilly works then a preservation site was steamer 41312. PWM 651 at Radyr was much more interesting! More DMU mileage to Bristol where 50034 provided the power to Bath on the 1935 Bristol – Padd to Bath. Bristol RE thrash to my grandparents in Midsomer Norton ended an enjoyable day.
31144 alongside the large water tank at Severn Tunnel Jn on 290177
47341 dragging a failed 47512 on a caped Padd – Cardiff at Severn Tunnel Jn on 290177
50030 on an up freight with a Swindon built DMU alongside at Severn Tunnel jn on 290177
1023 powers through Severn tunnel on the tour, 290177
37294 having replaced 47341 on the failure, 290177
Whilst enjoying 37294 for haulage we overtook 37208 near Llanwern
Sunday Jan 30th 1977
After a good doss and monumental breakfast i was soon back at a chilly, frosty Bristol Temple Meads. In the sidings close to the depot box was 1041 this decidedly scruffy, very popular Western having arrived off 1B86 0050 Padd – Bristol Papers in the wee, small hours. My power was a more mundane but noisy Leyland National on a bus vice train service to Cardiff. A goldie gripped us as we piled on, desperate or what.
Meeting up with a mate we then did a DMU to first do the beach, etc before touring Barry Scrapyards. It too your breath away to see the rusting hulks of lines of steamers but obviously it was the 2 historic diesels we wanted to cop, cab and phot. D601 and D6122 duly obliged!
Barry Scrapyard, 300177
7927,42765,9682,5668,21888?,7200,4270,34028,3817,5193,30830,45491,2807,34070,
2861,34046, D6122-Cabbed, D601, 5967,2873,45699,35009,3862,73156,92085,4156,4277,34058,47279,3845,7802,5526,44123,45293,7821,92212,9629,6695,92245,3612,76079,80072,76080,35018,35022,34101,
34027,31628,92219,3850,92214,80097,35010,5952,34010,7229,4979,5227,4253,46428,4978,44901,
45337,3406,48173,45337,45163,7812,4121,5552,44422,35025,76084,80150,34105,34059,35006,
48518,80078,73096,92207,7903,80136,92134,92240,4247,31625,3814,30825,5622,5927,
5199,2885,
30828,35011,76077,35027,6989,4936,42859,4612,34072,80104,47324,34053,47406,34073,3859,
6023,6634,78059,78018,5539,5532,6984,5553,48624,5538,7820,2874,5224,4953,30499,
30847, 2859,5686,80080,80100
Back at Cardiff with the next loco hauled Swansea train still some hours away we joined “flying banana” 253015 for the run back to Swansea, our Explorer session over.
46008 draws the stock of the overnight from Glasgow/Edinburgh at a frosty Temple Meads, 300177
601 at Barry Scrapyard, 300177
6122 at Barry Scrapyard with your webmaster in the cab!
Kettle 48173 at Barry Scrapyard. Unlike 601 and 6122 she survived into preservation
Apologies for quality of the photos but Kodak Instamatics had their limitations!
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