On Wednesday 5th November 2008 Jumboship MV Stellanova docked at Newport with 9 new Class 66's consisting of 66302, 66431, 66432, 66433, 66434, 66954, 66955, 66956 & 66957.
Six loco's were unloaded on Thursday the 6th with the final three being unloaded on the morning of Friday 7th.
Many thanks to the crew for allowing us on board to witness what is probably the last big shipment of 66's and almost certainly the last but one delivery.

UPDATED 11th NOVEMBER 2008

A visit on Tuesday 21st October 2008 to make the most of some nice winter light and before the clocks change.

A visit to the Water Orton area on Thursday 9th October 2008.

UPDATED 25th OCTOBER 2008.

A visit to the Innotrans Exhibition in September allowed some time photographing around the Berlin area.

A visit to InnoTrans 2008 at Berlin Messe (exhibition centre) which occurs every 2 years at the end of September to showcase everything that is new in the European railway world. Sadly on our visit the weather consisted of steady drizzle for the outdoor exhibits, but at least there weren't many people about to get in the way of your shots! Roll on the 2010 show which promises to be even bigger!
23/09/08

With Filton West Curve closed for engineering a trip out to see the Cross Country services in unusual locations as they were diverted via Chepstow and Newport. Sadly weather not brilliant again and non of the HST sets ran.
A furthder visit for a couple of hours on Saturday 13th September produced a few more shots, including an HST.

Some shots from around Torbay on Saturday 30th August 2008.

UPDATED 18th AUGUST 2008.

UPDATED 14th SEPTEMBER 2008

A few photographs from Saturday 5th July 2008

A visit on Wednesday 2nd July 2008 to Ram Hill footbridge which is located at the site of the long closed Coalpit Heath station on the line between Westerleigh Junction and Stoke Gifford/Bristol Parkway. A very busy period, just a shame about the dull weather.

Being present at the event with the 'Modern Locomotives Illustrated' magazine stand, allowed a few shots before the public arrived.

UPDATED 29th MAY 2008

A visit today found some major upgrade work to the South Wales Mainline underway. First surprise was the new signal gantry which had been erected over all 4 running lines just west of the station on Sunday 27th April 2008. This gantry will carry just one signal ('up' main) for sometime to come. Apparently all new signals have to be of the overtrack design to allow for electrification projects in the future! Also alonside the 'up' loop a point and track panels were being pre fabricated, possibly to replace the existing loop to mainline turnout, although one of the workers on site said it was for a new refuge/cripple siding, but I feel the former is probably more likely.
UPDATED 8th MAY 2008
A further visit found a bit more progress in the work and my presumption was correct, it is a new point and trackwork for the loop, with work also being carried on the point for the 'down' loop to bring them both up to passenger standard.
UPDATED 12th MAY 2008
The 'up' loop point was replaced over the weekend 10th/11th.

A brief visit on Thursday 17th April 2008.

A long weekend visit to the Midlands visiting relatives also allowed a few shots to be taken!

A very brief visit on Friday 4th April 2008 in some nice spring light.

A short visit on Wednesday on 2nd April 2008.

The shoot on Saturday 15th March 2008 used both the Growler Group's Class 37's based on the Glous & Warwicks Railway with a train of ballast wagons. The conditions were appalling with heavy rain and strong winds the whole time, so a big thank you to the lighting lads for working in those conditions.

On Wednesday 5th March 2008 following the launch at the NRM on the 1st, 60074 made it's second appearance on the Lindsey to Westerleigh tanks. The return working 6E41 was photographed at 3 locations.

On Wednesday 27th February 2008 National Express launched their East Anglia franchise with the first 3 trains in the new colours being shown off at Liverpool Street station.

An excellent photo shoot on Saturday 23rd February with loco's 24081, 27066, 33053 & 47250 all in corporate blue colours.

A visit to the area on the Saturday morning to see the traffic for the first of the season's rugby internationals.

A visit to the area on a very dull November 17th 2007 to see the Freightliner diversions due to the Basingstoke blockade.

The launch used ex Virgin Voyager 220017 re-branded for Arriva Cross Country.

On Monday 5th November 2007 First Great Western unveiled the latest vehicle in its new look West Country Regional Fleet, which is part of an £11 million investment in the train operator’s local services. The first of 17 new look Class 150 trains were unveiled in the Pullman Group workshops Cardiff Canton.
The investment, which includes a major engineering overhaul, new interiors and new livery, will improve performance and reliability, as well as providing a better environment for both passengers and staff.

UPDATED 12th DECEMBER 2007

UPDATED 4th DECEMBER 2007.

A brief visit to Magor on a very dull and damp Saturday 27th October 2007 to see the Western.

UPDATED 23rd OCTOBER 2007

A visit to the Southampton area with the boys on Wednesday 26th September 2007 was also my first use of the new Canon 40D. Whilst the RAW images were fine the JPEGS were dire! A change of bodies seems to have rectified this problem.

A short holiday in Snowdonia during August allowed a visit to several of the narrow gauge railways in the area, plus a couple of the big ones!
***Including the winning shot from the 'Model Engineer' Magazine 2007 Photo Competition.***

A trip out to see the 40 tour and the last Saturday of the hire-in HST workings.

It was due to be a busy weekend with the Royal Train, the start of the 'Butlin's Express' a double 'Torbay Express' and the specials for the T4 Concert on the beach but the wet weather took it's toll.

A brief visit on Saturday evening and Sunday morning 7th/8th July 2007.

A visit to Wyke Champflower on the afternoon of 20th June 2007.

A visit to the Gala on Saturday 16th June 2007 which was slightly spoilt by getting soaked to the skin and loosing my Blackberry!!!

The French holiday also allowed an afternoon at Geneva on Wednesday 30th May 2007, which once again proved how low down we are in the loco hauled stakes!

A family holiday to Lake Annecy in France allowed these few shots of some SNCF motive power.

A few shots of this Railtour around Bristol on Sunday 3rd June 2007.

A brief vist on Monday 23rd April 2007.

A visit to STJ for work allowed these few shots.
Tuesday 17th April 2007.

A couple of real trains and some fun trains viewed on a visit over the Easter Holidays.

A visit to the Gala on Friday 30th March 2007, sadly the weather was not that good.

On Saturday 17th March the final loco hauled extra's ran for Arriva Trains Wales. The shuttles ran between Cardiff & Swansea using a top & tailed Class 50 & 47, whilst the Cardiff/Gloucester service was in charge of top & tailed 47's.

A Sentimental Journey's photo charter with 7822 'Foxcote Manor' and 5051 'Earl Bathurst' providing the traction with the SRPS maroon stock on Monday 12th March 2007.

A visit to the works area at Williton on Monday 12th March 2007.

Hopefully an expanding collection of shots in connection with the West Somerset Railway's Spring Steam Gala over the next couple of weeks.
Updated with a visit to the Gala on Friday 23rd March 2007.

A visit to the Kingsbury & Tamworth area on Tuesday 6th March 2007 in some good light and with some good company thrown in.

Taunton Fairwater Yard has become the West of England High Output Operations Base for Network Rail. The site has been re-developed at a cost of £1.7 million from disused sidings originally laid down during WWII. Work began in January 2006 and the base became fully operational in January 2007. 4,750 metres of track were replaced and 14 sets of points installed, most of which came from the High Output test site at Margam. All buildings on the site are of modular construction and the whole operation can be moved to a new operations base in the future.

The base is the home of the High Output Track Renewal System (HOTRS) which comprises of 4 units:-
The High Output Ballast Cleaner (HOBC) is half a mile long, weighs 3,000 tonnes, generates 1,000 tonnes of spoil per shift and requires 26 engineers to operate the systems. It was built by Plasser & Theurer of Austria.
The High Output Track Renewal Train (HOTRT) is also up to half a mile long depending upon configuration, weighs 3,000 tonnes and needs up to 35 engineers to operate the onboard systems. The main operating plant was built by Matisa of Switzerland and the specialised wagons by W.H.Davis of Mansfield, UK.
Plus a Combined Tamper & Dynamic Track Stabiliser and a Ballast Regulator both built by Plasser & Theurer.

On Tuesday 6th February 2006 Jumbo Shipping Lines vessel MV FAIRLOAD arrived at Newport Docks conveying 2 Class 66's on delivery from EMC in Canada. One was in a dedicated livery for Bardon Aggregates.

A fairly brief visit on Thursday 25th January 2007.

A visit to both locations on Tuesday 23rd January 2007, taking advantage of a free ticket from Virgin's 10th Anniversary draw.
Thank you Virgin for an enjoyable day out.

A first visit for 2007 to the South Wales Main Line. 19th January 2007.

A visit on a nice bright winters day to se the SERCO working, but it ran so late that it only made one pass on the South Wales Main Line instead of the diagrammed 3!
Tuesday 28th November 2006.

3 weeks from the 20th November 2006 there is a total possession between the above locations for line re-placement in several locations. First views are of work in the Highbridge area on Tuesday 21st November 2006.
On Wednesday the 22nd November 2006 the Track Renewal Train(TRT) was at work in Uphill Cutting.
Updated 30th November with tamper work in Uphill Cutting.
Updated 1st December with the RHTT at work.
Updated 5th December with more work in Uphill Cutting.
Updated 6th December with tamping work at Highbridge.

Over the weekend of 18/19th November 2006 there was a total possession of the main line between Bristol Temple Meads and Cogload Junction. There were many works sites on this section and these photographs show the site at Parson Street, Bristol on Sunday morning 19th November 2006.

A visit to the railway on Sunday 5th November produced some very nice light until about 2.00pm.

A visit to the Cardiff area on Saturday 4th November 2006 to see the first of the specials for the new season of internationals.

Updated 18th DECEMBER 2006

On Friday 20th October 2006 an £8m redevelopment for First Great Western at its St Phillips Marsh depot in Bristol was launched for the improved maintenance of it’s DMU fleet which operate on the former Wessex Trains routes.
The work is designed to improve train punctuality by offering a state-of-the-art depot, centrally located for First Great Western’s network.
The development will be adjacent to First Great Western’s existing High Speed Train depot at St Philips Marsh and will involve the creation of a new maintenance shed, the extension of an existing maintenance shed, new sidings, a carriage washing plant and extending an existing 60 metre long maintenance shed by around 15 metres so it can accommodate two, three-carriage units.
Two new tracks will be installed at sidings for overnight storage of the trains, and the latest technology will be used in the carriage washing plant, so that water and chemicals can be recycled to minimise the environmental impact.
When the work is completed, and trains enter the depot, staff will first refuel the trains. They will then travel to the extended maintenance shed and before entering service the next day will be cleaned in the new carriage washing facility.
Existing facilities, which form part of the High Speed Train depot, will also be available to improve the maintenance of the DMU fleet. These include a lathe for repairs to wheels and heavy lifting equipment to allow work on undercarriage equipment to be carried out more easily.
The investment at the St Philips Marsh depot is part of First Great Western’s commitment to invest £200m after winning the Greater Western franchise.
Much of the investment will be focused on the train fleet. As well as the new depot facilities at Bristol, the interiors of the entire DMU fleet will be refurbished, while the company’s High Speed Train fleet will be fitted with new interiors, and cleaner, more reliable engines.

A visit on Wednesday 18th October 2006 mainly to capture some shots on the North Woolwich branch before closure at the end of the of the current timetable.

On Tuesday 17th October 2006 Prince Michael of Kent named First Great Western HST Power Car 43165 which was fresh out of works after it's MTU upgrade after himself.

After our morning at Water Orton we moved onto Rugby to check out the late afternoon action.
Thursday 12th October 2006.

A visit to this busy location on Thursday 12th October 2006.

A visit to the line on Sunday 8th October 2006.

A pleasant day out around Croome Perry only blighted by the weather and a large amount of trains which failed to turn up.Then there was the grumpy Norton signalman who needs to go back to driving school, but it was good to meet the local photters, thanks for the local directions.
Friday 29th September 2006.

A very brief visit on Thursday 14th September 2006.

A visit to the gala on a nice bright Saturday 9th September 2006.

A brief visit on Friday 8th September 2006.

A visit to the Gloucester to Severn Tunnel Junction line at Gatcombe and Purton to see the diverted HST's and freights due to the blockade at Wooten Bassett. Sadly the Wentloog liner didn't appear.
Friday 1st September 2006.

A visit on Friday 25th August 2006 in nice bright conditions with a visit to Lower Basildon on the way home which produced another celebrity skip leading on 6M33.

A few shots during a family holiday but sadly the weather was against me most of the time.

A day out in the Thames Valley on the 8th August 2006 in company with Chris Nevard, Doug Johnson, Ian Chancellor, Malcolm Tait, Tony Callaghan, James Mayl and family plus a couple of others who appeared during the day.

Updated 27th October 2006.

Updated 7th September 2006.

A visit on the 27th & 28th July 2006 will probably be my last for the foreseeable future and produced some brighter weather than I have been blessed with in the past 18 months on previous visits.

Updated 28th August 2006.

Who'd have thought that in 2006 you would see two 47/7's within 20 minutes from two different operators at Pilning. Well it happened on the 24th July!

A visit between 29th June & 7th July 2006.

A visit on the 28th June 2006 in company with Chris Nevard, James Mayl & Doug Johnson. So you have probably seen these pictures somewhere else as well!

A visit to the railway on a very, very hot June 17th 2006.

Some 47's at work around Edinburgh over the holiday weekend.

2nd APRIL to 8th APRIL 2006.
Updated with a very brief visit on the 5th May 2006.

4th MARCH 2006

A very brief visit to 3 locations in a very dull and damp Yorkshire.

A visit to Worting Jnc. for my first sighting of the Blue Pullman with a brief visit to Lower Basildon on the way home.

On Tuesday 31st January 2006 I tried out the Eurostar experiance with a trip from Waterloo to Brussels. Only downside being that I got just 65 minutes in Brussels. But in that time I saw more loco hauled passenger trains than I've seen in months over here! A very enjoyable trip.

On Tuesday 25th January 2006 I went to London to collect my camera from repair after it decided that soft focus was the in thing! I then tried it out at a few locations.

Various shots of the 37's at work in the last week.

On the 8th December 2005 Arriva Trains Wales launched their new service linking Holyhead with Cardiff with a re-liveried 175 for invited guests. The full service would start with the new winter timetable a few days later on the 11th.

On Monday 28th November 2005 37411 & 37425 were named at Caerphilly Station and on the following Sunday the 4th December Arriva Trains Wales held an excellent running day.

A trip to try and capture some shots in the snow. Unfortunately any snow which was about melted rapidly before any loco's appeared!

You can photograph anything you like as long as it's a red shed in the rain!!

A visit to the open day on Sunday 16th October 2005.
Shame that some of the loco's weren't postioned that well for photographs and the over use of black binliners on buffers spoilt a lot of shots.

A visit to the area on Friday 14th October to see the delivery of 24 JNA wagons for store at the MOD Depot at Long Marston. The first freight train along this line for a number of years.