17th April 1999

Pathfinder Tours
The Settle Excursioner

Route :
1Z43 - Banbury to Carlisle
1Z44 - Carlisle to Banbury

Source : Gary Thornton (joined/left train at Solihull)

Tour review
(by Gary Thornton)

A cheap and pleasant day out - when I read the brochure description for this trip that was about my thoughts on this tour, no required track and unlikely to be a required EWS 47/7 (though with my record it might be....). Then Pathfinder decided to "spice it up a bit" by using a Class 92 from Crewe to Carlisle and a pair of fast-disappearing EWS 37/0's for the run back over the Settle & Carlisle line (S&C). With quite a few friends deciding to book on the trip my decision was made. A quick check of the timings when the tickets arrived and I decided the best pick-up point for joining the tour would be Dorridge.

....and so it was that, like many other Saturdays, I was awoken just about 5am by my alarm clock. After a quick bite to eat for breakfast it was off to Dorridge where I'd arranged to meet up with one friend. I arrived a little after 06.30 when my mobile phone rang - it was Tony to say he hadn't yet left home (set his alarm wrong!) and he'd catch the train at Stafford instead. A few minutes after the booked 06.50 arrival time and in rolled smart EWS liveried 47758 "Regency Rail Cruises" with our train. Just time to find my seat in coach G and we were off. The run to Birmingham was very much a stop-start affair with pick-ups at Solihull and Olton before we passed through Tyseley and branched off towards Birmingham New Street where we arrived about on time.

The onward run to Stafford (by the normal passenger route) was uneventful with the monotony only broken by chatting to another friend who got on at Wolverhampton. Our coach filled up at Stafford where departure was bang on time. Running into Crewe we viewed quite a selection of motive power including green Peaks D120 and D172. On Crewe Diesel depot were quite a few more locos, those I noted were 47547, 37158, 47501, 47574, 47484 (in BR green), 47188, 47756, 47738 and 47338.

Loco change at Crewe took a little longer than booked (nothing unusual there) and 47758 gave way to the rather strange looking combination of 92001 "Victor Hugo" in EWS livery coupled with 37165 in freight grey and Inter-City liveried 37152. Departure was at 09.19 and as we passed the Heritage Centre there was a chance to view Deltic 55019 which was being prepared for return to mainline service.

The run northward was swift and we later found out that the 37's were assisting the 92 so no wonder acceleration was impressive as we had over 10,000hp on tap! Coming into Wigan the whole train leant over to one side as we all were across looking at the locos dumped on the former Springs Branch depot - now in use as the EWS "component recovery" depot. Of particular note was the bodyshell of 56126 which was perched on top of a low platform trailer. Also noted were quite a few 47's and a considerable number of 31's. With the influx of Canadian built class 66's, all these locos are destined for scrap with just re-usable components being salvaged first. The rate of withdrawals is currently quite staggering.

The climb up Shap was no obstacle to our driver with so much available power and arrival into Carlisle was about 10 minutes early (66013 and the Track Assessment Unit 999600/999601 noted on the way into the station). As we watched the 92 and 37's being uncoupled there was the rather bizarre sight of 08912 coming south through the station on a rake of coal hoppers. I assume the wagons were due for maintenance at the nearby EWS Currock depot but still quite strange to see a shunter running through the station on such a train. Our layover at Carlisle was less than an hour so barely time to do anything other than watch the goings on at the station. 47565 and 90020 were stabled. Several electric locos appeared on passenger turns and a handful of DMU's also came and went. With the 37's run round to the other end of the train we were away on time.

Our return route was over the S&C and progress once we hit the climb out of Carlisle was somewhat slow. Word soon came back to us that there was a problem with the multiple-working connection between the tractors and only 152 was actually working. As we passed through Kirkby Stephen we saw DMU 156489, victim of an argument with 60017 a few months back, dumped in a siding next to the station and with one cab covered in tarpaulin. The stiff climb to Ais Gill summit proved our undoing in terms of timekeeping and we finally reached the signal box at Blea Moor over 20 minutes late. A booked photostop at Ribblehead was taken and with a spare driver available he was put into 165 so both could be driven. Progress was a little more swift, though on a falling gradient maybe this might have been expected anyway.

Another photostop was scheduled at Hellifield and with the sun out the tractors made for a nice photograph. Our stay here was longer than anticipated as our late running as now causing pathing problems with other trains. Our route through Clitheroe bringing us into conflict with a service train so departure from Hellifield was delayed until 15.20, over 30 minutes down. Our route took us through Clitheroe (a slight delay here waiting for the service train to clear the section ahead), Blackburn and rejoining the WCML at Farington Junction. We arrived back into Crewe approaching 40 minutes astray from plan.

An announcement was made to say it would be a quick loco change to keep delay to a minimum so we would all have to be ready to rejoin quickly. No matter how many times I hear such an announcement, I always laugh when the changeover drags on for some reason or another. With 47758 back in charge we left Crewe even a touch further behind time (the booked stop of 22 minutes was actually took 23 but with good work it should be achievable in less than 10 minutes!). The run back home was uneventful with just the sight of a line-up of at least 5 Class 66's visible at Saltley depot to cause any flurry of excitement (anyone know which ones they were?). Liberal timings on this stretch meant arrival back at Dorridge was only 10 down.

Verdict : a good day out, very sociable and excellent value at under £30. In my case I needed both the 37's and the 92 for haulage so it was "profitable" too.

Just spare a thought for one of my colleagues on board who discovered late in the afternoon that another two of his required locos were out on other railtours - 47732 on a Hertfordshire Railtours "Shropshire Union" and 37612 on Eagle Railtours "Esk Valley Explorer". After much consultation of his timetable he was hopeful of getting both in by driving to Northampton (from Crewe), doing the 47 to Watford, then using service trains get over to the MML to catch 37612 on its way back into London (he did too, though a fast taxi was required to get him from Watford to the MML!).

Gary Thornton.

Timings (Booked and Actual)

Timings continue in first table.

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