My first turn was during March was on Sunday, the 2nd. However, we were running a special timetable that day because a main line HST Charter train from St. Pancras was scheduled. Originally marketed in the 1970s as 'Inter City 125' trains, these High Speed diesel-electric trains are still in widespread use on mainline services.
Phil and I had 'Lord Phil', facing north. We came off shed nice and early so as to start warming our 7-coach train. The advantage of being at the north end was the relative ease of taking water during the day from the 4-wheel long wheelbase petrol tank wagon just off the north end of the platform, compared with the exhausting business of dragging a long canvas water hose around when watering from the tank wagon at the south end of Rowsley station.
'Penyghent' coming 'off-shed' to work the 10:20 service train to Matlock Town.
A few minutes late, 'Penyghent' came 'off-shed' and 'hooked on' at the south end of the train ready for the first of six round trips we were booked to run to Matlock Town that day. The guard gave the 'Right Away' and 'Penyghent' took the train to our first stop at Darley Dale. With D8 on the front and seven coaches, 'Lord Phil' was well short of the platform when we stopped. I made a careful note of our position by placing three small lumps of coal on the sleeper end of the Down Line opposite our cab. Then, we carried on to Matlock Town. There wasn't much chance to make up list time because the track has recently been slewed approaching Matlock Riverside and a temporary speed limit of 10 m.p.h. has been imposed.
At Matlock Town, 'Penyghent' surrendered the single line staff to us for the journey back to Darley Dale, this time with 'Lord Phil' doing the work.
At Darley Dale, the fireman surrendered the staff to the signalman and I carefully drew the train through the platform and stopped with the engine cab level with the three small lumps of coal. Obviously, I had to ensure that the whole train, including 'Penyghent', had been drawn clear of the level crossing so that the gates could be opened to road traffic. But there's another constraint. In the post Peak Rail in early 2014 I talked about stopping 'behind' a signal and said "In some cases, track circuits are provided to indicate to the signalman the position of vehicles and electric locking may prevent the changing of points unless the movement is correctly standing 'behind' the signal". The Down platform at Darley Dale is such a case. Unless the whole train was 'behind' the ground signal, we would still be occupying the track circuit and the facing points could not be changed. This doesn't matter too much if there's only one train but, later in the day, I'd need to stop our train in this position to allow the HST Charter to return to Matlock. Stopping in the wrong place for this one would have made me very unpopular! Fortunately, all was well.
View of Midland Railway 'dwarf' shunting signal on the Down Main at Darley Dale, looking towards Matlock.
I stopped 'right' at Rowsley, allowing us to take water without difficulty. Although we were only working the train in one direction, we were providing steam heating for seven coaches, so we were boiling a fair amount of water.
The second departure from Rowsley was booked to stand at Darley Dale and wait for the HST Charter to pass on its way to Rowsley. Telephone messages informed station staff that the HST Charter was 'on time' and before long we heard the horn of the approaching train.
A cluster of photographers on the Down Platform at Darley Dale to record the HST.
The HST made its stately passage through the station on the Down line and, after a few minutes, we continued to Matlock Riverside. Phil drove the return journey back to Rowsley, stopping accurately at Darley Dale and Rowsley, where we watered again. The HST had parked itself neatly on the loop at Rowsley, out of our way.
Phil takes the train back to Rowsley.
I think there were around 400 passengers on the HST Charter and many of them took a trip to Matlock Town on the service train. There were sales stands on Rowsley platform and the various preservation groups around the Rowsley site were welcoming the visitors. I was particularly taken with the project to build a full-size re-creation of Ivatt's prototype L.M.S. diesel electric '10000' - their website is here. Unfortunately, the weather deteriorated at this stage and we were all rather wet and windswept.
On our fourth round trip, we were booked to stand in the Down platform at Darley Dale, to allow the HST Charter to pass on its way back to St. Pancras. I walked across to the Up platform to take a few pictures.
The HST passes 'Lord Phil' in Darley Dale.
We completed our journey to Rowsley, plus two more round trips, by which time we were quite ready to go on shed and dispose, concluding a most interesting day.
HST Gallery
The Australian version (the 'XPT') pictured in Sydney in 2001.
East Midlands Trains HST at Leicester in 2009.
'East Coast' liveried HST viewed from King's Cross Power Signal Box in 2009.
First Great Western HST at Bath Spa in 2013.
East Midlands Trains HST at Sheffield in 2013.
Book references
'Inter City 125' by R. M. Tufnell published by Haynes Publishing Group (ISBN 0 85429 428 7).
Related articles on other sites
British Rail Class 43 (HST) (Wikipedia).
Inter City 125 (Wikipedia).
125 Group
Related posts in this blog
D8 'Penyghent'
My pictures
HST Charter to Peak Rail.
'Lord Phil'.
'Penyghent'.
