South of Mawlamyine, Burma

Sunday, 9th September 2012

I had a decent breakfast before being picked up by Min and the driver in the ‘HiAce’. We were to head south on the main road. Even though parts of the route were toll roads, both directions of traffic shared a single carriageway and, despite passing a few ‘patching teams’ repairing potholes (on the Sabbath) the ride was quite hard (‘though nowhere near as bad as the previous day’s rail trip).

Our first stop was the ‘World’s Largest Reclining Buddha’ built a few years ago. In a pretty valley with a stream cascading through it, a huge Buddha in the reclining position has been created on one side of the valley. To support this massive monument, the statue is built on a huge reinforced concrete structure. We entered, to see a labyrinth of bare rooms on different levels interconnected by concrete stairs. I haven’t got the statistics but there are over 500 rooms within the supporting structure! No attempt has been made to finish inside which remains bare concrete. Water has penetrated the structure so parts of the inside are wet or moss-covered already. This has been the project of a single, now-elderly monk. Amazingly, on the opposite side of the valley, a second reclining Buddha is being built. Builders were busy forming ‘rebar’ (reinforcing bars) into the necessary shape ready for concrete to be poured into shuttering. At this stage, the work in progress on the second Buddha looked as if it might be a new tourist hotel taking shape.

This view of the robes and feet of the Reclining Buddha being examined by a coachload of tourists gives an idea of the scale of the construction.

We continued south through the large town of Mudon, eventually reaching the small town of Thanbyuzayat, named after the ‘tin shelter’ forming its town centre ‘feature’. Most towns have a ‘feature’ – clocktower, decorative pillar or, in the case of Thanbyuzayat, what looks like a Victorian bandstand with a distinctive roof. The town was at the Burmese end of the Burma – Siam ‘Death Railway’ built by prisoners of the Japanese during the second World War. Near the town centre, the first locomotive to run on that tragic line has been plinthed – a Japanese-built 2-6-0. Not far away is Thanbyuzayat War Cemetery with 3,771 graves of Allied prisoners of war. It’s a thought-provoking place, particularly since the 3,771 graves represent only a fraction of the overall death toll. Up to 100,000 conscripted labourers from various Asian countries may have perished during the project.

A drive of about 9 km took us to Khaikhami Yele Paya, an important Buddhist Shrine built over the sea. The original wooden bridge leading from the shore has now been supplemented by a covered, concrete structure, incomplete but already in use. The elaborate decorative metalwork which adorns the roofs of Burmese shrines was in course of erection. Being the Sabbath, the place was quite busy with Myanmar people, either worshipping or having a day out (or both). At one spot, numerous silver-coloured Carp had gathered as visitors threw coloured treats to them.

Khaikhami Yele Paya, looking back towards the land, showing the new, covered concrete bridge. The original, wooden bridge is just visible to the left of the concrete bridge.

At last I’d seen the Andaman Sea from the shore, rather than from an aircraft! We stopped for lunch at a local café just outside the Buddhist Shrine before back-tracking towards Thanbyuzayat. Before we reached the town, we turned off a drove to Setse which has a long, sandy beach with lots of local-area visitors. There was plenty of room for everyone, so I joined the paddlers. The beach area was served by a clutch of snack bars and shops.

We drove back to Thanbyuzayat and (surprise, surprise) I had a quick look at the small station. There were lots of people waiting so, presumably, a train was due.

We then made the long journey on the indifferent roads back to Mawlamyine. On the way, I saw many memorable images you can't capture with a camera. Some of these I'll remember and many I’ll just forget. One sight I did photograph was working elephants being transported with their handlers, each on the back of an open lorry. We saw seven such lorries all told. They were from an elephant sanctuary, Min said, and were presumably off on a working contract.

We saw a group of seven working elephants being moved south.

Before dropping me at my hotel, we drove to a view point overlooking the city and the water before climbing a little higher to a monastery complex offering both views of the city side and the land side.

Viewed from the hills to the east of the town, the new rail and road bridge across the Thanlwin River drastically improved communication to the north.

Photographs:

The World's Largest Reclining Buddha.
Thanbyuzayat Area.
Khaikhami Yele Paya.
Mawlamyine.

[Revised 27-Sep-2012}

Yangon to Kyaikto by Train

During my trip to Burma in 2012 (described in a series of posts here), I travelled by train from Yangon via Bago to Kyaikto. This post describes the journey from Yangon to Bago with a bit more technical detail. The second part of the journey, from Bago to Kyaikto, is described here. For this description, I've assumed the 'Down' direction is away from Yangon (although I've found one source which contradicts that). I've called the two signal boxes at Bago 'South' and 'North', based on the geography, but I don't know their official designation.

Journey made on Saturday, 8th September 2012

This post describes the first half of an uncomfortable (but interesting) journey from Yangon to Kyaikto.

I’d been to Yangon Central Railway Station before, on my first visit to Burma, when I took a clockwise Circle Line train (see The Circle Line, Yangon). This time, we were at the Main Line side and a footbridge took us to our waiting train on Platform 3 for the Mawlamyine line. We were to take the train to Kyaikto and then continue by car. As far as Yangon Central Railway Station is concerned, ‘Eastbound’ departures are for Mawlamyine, Mandalay or Circle Line anti-clockwise.

There was plenty of time before our 7.15 a.m. departure, so I busied myself taking photographs at the platform end. There was quite a bit of activity. DF.1631 was at the head of our train in a light brown/dark brown livery and the rolling stock featured a variety of liveries, although the ‘light brown and blue’ predominated. I was surprised to find the coach painting specification signwritten on the end of some vehicles. The ‘F’ in the locomotive number indicates six axles. On this design, they’re distributed over three two-axle bogies. I think the transmission is diesel-hydraulic (but I’m not sure). ‘Chopper’ couplings are used. Vacuum brakes were connected through (Circle Line trains still appear to trundle around without benefit of continuous brakes).

On the adjacent platform face, DF.1352 arrived travelling in the opposite direction to us with a passenger train. This locomotive has the ‘high nose switcher’ outline carried on two six-wheel bogies. Livery is dark brown and cream and I assume it’s diesel-electric.

Two trains were standing on the Circle Line platforms. First to go, Eastbound on the Circle Line road (there are four tracks paired by use to the east of the station) was DD.1145, an ‘end cab switcher’ painted blue with a white waist line. The first coach was off a diesel railcar and had a driving cab, the second looked fairly normal but the third and last bogie coach seemed shorter and lightweight – I don’t know where they found it. At least all three coaches were in matching ‘light brown and cream’ livery. The other locomotive in the Circle Line platform was DF.1202 painted light brown with a white waist line – a ‘low nose switcher’ mounted on three 4-wheel bogies.

DF.1631 ready to depart for Mawlamyine with the 7.15 a.m. train.

The next movement was on the line next to my train – DD.517, a ‘low nose, low hood switcher’ carried on two 4-wheel bogies and painted dark blue/light blue with a white waist line. This was pulling a non-vacuum fitted flatcar and a rake of coaches. I assumed that this was the ‘station pilot’ removing the stock from an earlier arrival (I’d seen a flatcar in use as a “shunter’s truck” at Mandalay on a previous visit). DF.1352 then  re-appeared light engine heading east on the Circle Line platform, having left its train at the adjacent platform face to us.

A long blast from our locomotive’s horn indicated that we were about to move away, so that ended my period of observation at Yangon. We started very slowly, accompanied by a loud crashing and banging from the chopper couplers and tremendous buffeting. We were only moving very slowly and eventually things settled down a bit. The driver then ‘opened up’ and accelerated out of the station. We were only travelling at 20 – 25 miles per hour but even that seemed excessive because the train was riding rough. Partly due to the poor track and perhaps partly due to the vehicles themselves, the coach would periodically lift up violently then crash down again with spine-jarring force. After a while, the repeated up and down motion would subside, to recur after a brief respite. In addition, the coach would suddenly start yawing to left and right in an alarming manner. Eventually, this motion would die down, to restart all too soon. It was all I could do to hold on and I failed to make any of the photographs I’d intended of the 4-track approaches to Yangon from the East. We had a brief respite when we stopped at Mahlwagon station.  DD.1145 pulled in on an adjacent line with the three coaches I’d seen him leave Yangon with just 45 minutes earlier so he can’t have gone far before running round for the return.

Shortly after leaving Mahlwagon, the two roads of the Circle Line (now on our left) curved away to run a little west of north serving the eastern side of Yangon. Our double track headed approximately north-east towards Bago. We had been running under elderly 3-aspect colour light signals from Yangon. We were now on ‘plain line’ with no complications. Colour lights still marked our progress but they now became ‘dark’ with an ‘out of use’ marker in the conventional form of two crossed sticks forming an ‘X’. I couldn’t resist the thought that problems with track circuits in this more remote area had probably resulted in the solution of simply taking the signals out of service.

The appearance of a lattice post semaphore distant signal indicated that we’d left the Yangon signalling area and were now under different rules. The semaphore arm was steel with two corrugations for strength and appeared slightly wider at the end than at the spectacle, which had three apertures. The design appeared similar to the North American 3-aspect semaphore where the the indications are:- Arm horizontal, Arm raised 45 degrees, Arm raised 90 degrees. You would expect the three apertures to carry three different coloured filter glasses but all the semaphore signals I've seen in Burma have no glass. I couldn't see a sign of a lamp either, but there did appear to be an electric motor for raising the arm and on subsequent, similar signals there appeared to be an electric cable running from the top of the post and disappearing into the ground. I'm afraid the erratic motion of the train makes all this rather conjectural. The arm extended to the left of the post, was yellow with a 'V' cutout at the left end and black chevron a few inches in from the end, all as British practice. But there was also one white disc of colour to the left of the chevron and a second to the right. Each coloured disc appeared to carry a black marking, but I couldn't make it out. The back of the arm appeared to be black with a white chevron. The signal ladder with guard loop at the top was similar to British practice. Of course, you would expect a cast iron finial at the top of a signal post but I saw very few signals with finials. Those that did carry them had an attractive, old-fashioned design terminating in a long spike.

Soon after passing the distant signal, a siding commenced on the left. It was concrete-sleepered, parallel to the running line and very inadequately ballasted.

Then we came to a lattice-post signal with a square ended-arm, generally similar to the distant but the arm was raised 45 degrees so I was not surprised when the driver kept going. The front of the arm was red with a white bar and, again, there were two white discs with unreadable markings. The back of the arm was black with a white bar.

Shortly after the stop signal, the siding joined the main line by a crossover and there were the remains of a point indicator at the siding trap points. A single-lever ground frame operated the crossover and a 'pointsman' was in attendance, displaying a green flag.

In the absence of any visible evidence for loading and unloading wagons on the siding, my provisional conclusion was that the siding had been designed for 'recessing' freight trains by drawing them forward clear of the siding points, reversing the points and setting the train back into the siding. This rather cumbersome arrangement was widespread on British railways in the past.

The railway frequently has to cross watercourses. If they are streams, no attempt appears to be made for the passage of boats. The sleepered track is carried on two deep 'I'-section beams seated on fairly substantial abutments. We crossed a wide stream requiring three sets of 'I' beams and two intermediate piers.

Shortly after this bridge, we came to another distant signal in the horizontal position, similar to the first, except that the post appeared to be an 'I'-section rolled steel joist. Again, there was a 'recess' siding with concrete sleepered track, but it appeared to have been simply laid on the trackbed with no attempt at ballasting. In addition, the sleepers were irregularly spaced and generally further apart than you'd expect. The anticipated stop signal was similar to the one described above except that, like the preceding distant, the signal post was an RSJ. The signal arm was raised 45 degrees and we kept going. The siding joined the main line at a crossover as described above. The 'pointsman' displayed a green flag and, at the station immediately following, what I presumed to be the stationmaster also displayed a green flag.

We were approaching Bago, although I didn't realise this until we came to the subsequent signals. I presume there was a distant signal but I didn't see it. Remember, I was still being buffeted intermittently in a most painful way. The stop signal I did see had a lattice post and the arm was raised 45 degrees for 'off'. Although the colour scheme and marking of the front of the arm was as described above, the arm was parallel sided rather than tapering and the spectacle was 2-aspect. The rear of the arm was white with a black bar and, apart from the peculiarities of the marking on the front of the arm, it looked like a British Railways standard upper quadrant. This signal was mechanically operated over a signal wire and the balance weight and bar was mounted near the top of the signal post. Finally, a triangular notice was attached to the front of the signal post bearing two Burmese characters. Beyond this signal, a number of lengths of rail were lying beside the track and the ballast had been dug out, Soon after, we came to another stop signal and I realised that the first signal was an outer home and the second an inner home. When I first spotted the inner home, I thought it was an offset bracket with a single doll, because the front part of the train obscured my view. As we passed I realised that it was a rather grand gantry signal spanning the two running lines made from channel section with five dolls each carrying the 'modified British Railways' upper quadrant stop signal. The rightmost signal arm was off.

We were arriving at Bago!

Bago Station. Four-wheel coaches in the central siding, freight vehicles in the background.

If anyone can offer any clarification of Myanmar Railways practices, it would be welcome.

I’ll stop there for now, just commenting that this journey was awarded the accolade of the roughest rail journey I’ve had anywhere and I got off at Kyaikto exhausted with being thrown about.

Train Timing and Photograph Locations

As yet, most of the stations are unidentified. There's a table below showing approximate journey time from leaving Yangon (hours:minutes), photo reference (prefixed 'DSCF') and brief description. There are links to the Sets containing these pictures in 'Photographs' below.

Elapsed Time	Photo Ref	Description
0:12	5980	River Bridge
0:17	5985	Mahlwagon Station
1:18	5993	Down Motor Distant
1:19	5998	Down Motor Home
1:27	5999	Down Distant
1:28	6002	Down Home
1:54	6009	Bago South Down Outer Home
1:55	6011	Bago South Down Home Gantry
1:57	6019	Bago Station

Photographs:

Yangon to Bago by Train.
Bago Station.


[Revised 11-Sep-2012, 26-Sep-2012, 3-Oct-2012, 20-Dec-2012]

By Rail and Road to Mawlamyine

Saturday, 8th September 2012

My Blackberry (used as an alarm clock) woke me at 5.40 a.m. after a good, if rather short, sleep. By the time I’d had a shower, my breakfast was at the door (two fried eggs sunnyside, fried tomatoes, two rounds of white toast and English Breakfast tea). Just time to eat it and get downstairs with my luggage for 6.30 a.m. My guide, Min, and the driver were already there so we were soon driving the short distance to Yangon Central Railway Station.

I’d been to the station before, on my first visit to Burma, when I took a clockwise Circle Line train. This time, we were at the Main Line side and a footbridge took us to our waiting train for the Mawlamyine line. We were to take the train as far as Kyaikto, where we would meet up with our SUV and driver again. No, I didn’t ask for the rail journey – it was part of the offered programme and I happily accepted it.

There was plenty of time before the 7.15 a.m. departure, so I busied myself taking photographs at the platform end. There was quite a bit of activity. I’ll put the technical comments in a separate post (Yangon to Kyaikto by Train with links to the railway pictures), just noting that this journey was awarded the accolade of the roughest rail journey I’ve had anywhere and I got off at Kyaikto exhausted with being thrown about.

We drove to a nearby Hill Resort for a simple lunch and then continued by road to Mawlamyine, arriving late afternoon. Until a few years ago, Mawlamyine was isolated from the north by a wide estuary and a vehicle ferry was necessary to reach the town. But now, a long bridge of numerous steel spans takes both road and rail effortlessly across the estuary.

Crossing the new road/rail bridge to reach Mawlamyine.

I’m in a modern, fairly large hotel called the Mawlamyaing (their spelling) Strand Hotel, set on the road along the sea wall which has a wide pedestrian promenade. The splendid views are not of open sea but across the channel between the mainland and Bilu Island.

View near the Market Hall in Mawlamyine

Somewhat restored by a shower, I determined to have a walk before it got dark. I followed the promenade south then cut across to the nearest parallel main shopping street and returned north, passing the staff entrance at the rear of my hotel. I carried on until I was underneath the new road/rail bridge across the river estuary we’d used to reach Mawlamyine earlier. I decided to have a simple meal at a hotel near my own which Min had recommended for food and they provided an excellent potato soup at the outdoor dining area on wooden decking overlooking the estuary. By the time I left for the short walk back to my hotel, it was completely dark.

Photographs

Mawlamyine.
Mawlamyaing Strand Hotel.

[Revised 27-Sep-2012]

East Again!

Thursday, 6th September 2012

There's so much of the world I've not yet seen (and, sadly, probably never will) that I tend to visit a place once and not go back. Russia is one exception. I went by boat from Moscow to St. Petersburg in 2011 (see posts Trip to Russia) and then returned in 2012 on my way back from Mongolia (see posts Trans-Siberian).

But The Union of Myanmar, formerly Burma, is an outstanding exception. In 2008 I made my fifth Round the World Trip and included Burma in the itinerary (see posts RTW5). Burma and the Burmese People made a big impression on me and, in 2011, I made my fifth visit (see posts Trip to Burma). Now, I'm en route to Burma on my sixth visit.

I left home mid-morning on Thurday 6th September by road to Birmingham Airport to catch the Emirates afternoon flight to Dubai. There's a very decent Emirates Lounge at Birmingham now, so I was able to enjoy a three-course hot buffet lunch before I'd even left the ground. The aircraft was a Boeing 777-300ER which has an excellent 'on-demand' entertainment system. As we took off from Runway 15, I was able to monitor the front-facing camera on my seat-back video screen. During the flight, they served a comprehensive dinner and I watched 'Men In Black 3' (quite cleverly plotted but, I thought, lacking the charm of MIB1 and MIB2). Later I watched Ridley Scott's 'Alien' Prequel called 'Prometheus' (interesting but, as you would expect, not for the squeamish).

Friday, 7th September 2012

I write this in the Emirates Business Centre in Dubai Airport at half past one (night time) local time. My connecting flight is the 02:20 hours EK384 to Bangkok, where I should have another wait before taking Friday's 14:20 hours PG703 to Yangon. All being well, I'll be met at the airport and transferred to one of my favourite hotels, the Strand for one night before the adventure continues. I'll tell you more when I'm able.

When I started to leave the Emirates Lounge to find the departure gate, the guy manning the entrance said it would be a shorter walk to leave by the Middle Entrance (the lounge at Dubai is, I think, the largest I've seen and has three entrances). He was right - just outside the Lounge there was a business class check-in for my flight. Since there was no other check-in at this level, it started to dawn on me that I was about to have my second A380 flight. A group of us were directed to a lift which had separate floors marked for 'A380 Business and First' and 'A380 Economy'. The lift seemed reluctant to move at all and, when it did, it would only take us to the ground floor where economy passengers were boarding the lifts to go up one floor to 'Economy'. We alerted Emirates' staff to the problem and, eventually, we were invited to go to the 'Economy' level and walk up the stairs inside the aircraft. I found it quite amusing.

Although the individual staggered cubicles are quite interesting (and give everybody an aisle seat), I still find the cabin too big for my comfort. The bed wouldn't lie flat, either, but the On-Demand audio and video worked. I watched Pixar's 'Brave', another film and managed a little sleep during the six-hour leg to Bangkok. There was a hot breakfast, for those who wanted it.

By the time we were stopped and the Air Bridges attached at Bangkok, there was only an hour and a bit to wait for my Air Bangkok flight to Yangon.

This Bangkok Air A319 took me from Bangkok to Yangon.

We boarded the A319 on time but some problem with the cargo delayed take-off just over half an hour. They served a reasonable hot meal on the short flight to Yangon (a little over an hour in the air).

We made the customary 'straight in' approach to Yangon and I was soon in the terminal. Not only was I one of the first to pass through Immigration where the female staff quickly processed my entry but my one 'Checked Bag' was about number six onto the carousel. Customs were friendly and quick and my guide, Min, was waiting for me in the Arrivals Hall. Although traffic was heavy on the road into the city centre, I was quite comfortable in the 'SUV' provided so I started to relax. There was the usual welcome from the 'Strand' staff. I'm in room 104 (again) for one night and my guide is picking me up at 6.30 a.m. tomorrow.

[Additions on 8-Sep-2012, 26-Sep-2012]

A Busy Few Days

Recently, I've had four days on the footplate out of six.

Thursday, 30th August 2012

It started on Thursday 30th August when I was Afternoon Driver at the 'Day Out With Thomas' event in Manchester, described here.

Saturday, 1st September 2012

I spent the following day at work but on Saturday I was at Peak Rail on a slightly less-famous six-coupled tank engine currently in the guise of 68013. Robin was acting as fireman so he'd had a very early start. I turned up just before seven o'clock which gave me time for oiling-round and the daily exam. Since this was the first steaming since a Washout, Paul was also on hand to pronounce the boiler 'Fit'. Harvey also arrived to issue us with the single line staff for the Rowsley - Church Lane section so that Robin and I were able to leave the shed, on schedule, at 8.15 a.m. for Darley Dale, where we were to pick up our booked Driving Experience candidate. Harvey worked the gates at Church Lane to let us through and we surrendered the staff. Once we had our Trainee on the footplate, Harvey loosed us over the Darley Dale level crossing and issued us with the Darley Dale - Matlock single line staff.

After two hours of Driving Experience, we returned light engine to Rowsley. By this time, the booked signalmen were on duty at Darley Dale and Church Lane to work the gates and signals and collect and issue the single line staffs. We stood clear of the six coach train in the platform at Rowsley whilst the guard supervised the coupling of the 'Class 31' to the north end of the stock then the guard called us onto the south end.

During the day, we made five round trips without incident to Matlock (Town) where we hauled the train to Matlock and the '31' dragged us back. There's a more detailed description of the 'Top and Tail' working at Peak Rail in the post A Day on the Footplate (2).

Sunday, 2nd September 2012

The following day I had an even earlier start at the Battlefield Line. David, the fireman, was being examined by John as we ran five trains to Shenton using '3803', the Great Western 2-8-0. It was the weekend of the annual Shackerstone Family Festival so we were running with five coaches rather than the usual four.

On the previous day, the coaches had been left in platform 1 but they needed to be moved to platform 2 before we started so that the train could be serviced. Although we'd had the water hose in the tender tank during preparation, we needed to move across to the water column at the south end of platform 2 to 'have a drink' before the coaches were moved. Once the train was in platform 2 with the north end clear of the foot crossing (currently the only passenger access to platform 2 whilst the footbridge is closed), we'd not be able to access the column.

There was some discussion about the best way to shunt the coaches but, in the end, we watered, hooked onto the south end of the stock and dragged the train up the cutting (having been instructed by the signalman to pass the Starting Signal at danger), until the last vehicle was clear of the crossover. With the points changed for platform 2 and the Inner Home disc signal 'off', we propelled the stock into platform 2, with Peter riding in what was now the leading vehicle, keeping a lookout and giving us handsignals. We left with the first train 'right time'.

The rest of the day didn't quite go as planned, I'm afraid. I'll tell you more later.

Tuesday, 4th September 2012

A day at work on Monday gave me a slightly more leisurely start but on Tuesday the alarm clocks (I use two) were set to 4.30 a.m., allowing me to sign on at Peak Rail (again) at about 6.50 a.m. This time, Chris was fireman and Rob issued the staff and let us over Church Lane Crossing. Once we had Dave, our Driving Trainee that day, on the footplate Rob let us over Darley Dale Crossing and issued the staff for the Darley Dale - Matlock section. The pattern of the very hot day was similar to the previous Saturday, until the middle of the afternoon when a problem with the steam brake manifested itself. We managed to keep going until the end of service when it became clear that serious attention was required before the next day. I left Ed, Rob and Chris in the Workshop addressing the problem.

[Dates corrected 19-Dec-2012]

Day out with Thomas at MOSI

'Thomas' ready to depart on Thursday 30th August 2012.

'Thomas' is visiting MOSI (the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester) for four days from Thursday 30th August 2012 to Sunday 2nd September 2012. Visitors can meet Sir Topham Hatt (the Fat Controller), visit the Imagination Station (storytelling, colouring pages and tabletop toys), watch 'Thomas' DVDs, have a free 'Thomas' sticker, facepainting and temporary tatoos, attend balloon modelling shows and have a go on the 'Thomas' Bouncy Castle. But, of course, the highlight is a ride behind the real 'Thomas'.

Jan was Thomas's driver on the afternoon of the first day and I'm pleased to report that Thomas behaved very well. So well, in fact, that Sir Topham Hatt presented Thomas with a celebratory 'Coal Cake' at a ceremony by the 1830 Station Building. 'Planet' (with a face) was in the yard in light steam and visitors could actually go on the footplate. The other locomotives parked outside also sported faces.

Of course, 'Thomas' is quite a celebrity, so a reporter from the Manchester Evening News arrived to take pictures on Thursday afternoon.

There are more pictures of Thomas's visit here.

For more technical pictures of this locomotive, goto Anatomy of a 'Jinty'.

Numbering of Russian Locomotives and Rolling Stock

Agriz station buildings hide behind the waiting freight trains. 72-tonne bogie hopper car 5934 9738 (1984 numbering system) in the foreground.

Where letters are used in designations, Russia uses the Cyrillic alphabet but, in this text, the Romanised form is used throughout.

Prior to 1912, there were various different methods of numbering in use. In 1912, locomotive classes were identified by a capital letter, often followed by a subscripted or superscripted letter indicating some feature or modification, completed by a running number.

In 1925, a numeric system using a series number followed by a 2-digit running number was imposed. This scheme had only limited application because of the inconvenience of allocating a new series number for every 100 locomotives.

The system introduced in 1931 used class letters taken from the names of various political heroes, followed by digits representing the axle-loading and terminated by a running number. This system was not without risk when the political climate changed. For instance, the 2-8-4 passenger class introduced in 1932 was originally called the 'IS' class (for Iosif Stalin) but, in 1962 when Stalin became persona non grata the class was quietly re-named 'FDp' where the 'p' indicated the passenger version of the similar 2-10-2 freight class called 'FD' (commemorating Feliks Dzerzhinski).

During and after the second World War, additional variety was introduced because the class letters were sometimes alphanumeric. So, some classes were known just by a letter (for instance, the 'L' class) whereas the 'P36' class used the factory project number and some politically-inspired class designations were used. After the War, the letter 'T' represented a captured locomotive and this was combined with a letter indicating a similar Russian-built class (for instance, the captured German 'Kreigslok' locomotives became 'TE' class. Running numbers could be 3-digit or 4-digit.

Further changes were introduced with dieselisation. With multi-section locomotives, an initial digit indicated how many sections, followed by 'TE' for diesel electric transmission and 'TG' for diesel hydraulic types. A third letter 'M' or 'P' indicated shunting or passenger types, respectively. Imported locomotives were identified by a further prefix, for example the ChME3 came from Czechoslovakia. Individual sections of multi-section locomotives were coded A, B, V, G (the first four letters of the Cyrillic alphabet).

This 2TE10M-variant locomotive at Naushki not only carries the number '2T310M K0422' on the end (with the number '0422' also stencilled near the access door) but also the 1984 renumbering '1614 8447', where '161' means Locomotive - Multi Section Diesel - Freight. The Cyrillic 'B' stencilled near the lamp cluster indicates that this is the 'B' section of a 2-section locomotive.

After WWII, large numbers of main-line electric locomotives were produced, coded with a letter representing the builder and figures representing either the number of axles or the axle loading. In 1963, this was replaced by the prefix 'VL' and a class number up to 39 (for d.c. types) or 40 and above for a.c. types. Imported locomotives used letters representing the country of origin, as adopted with diesel traction.

Diesel multiple units were coded 'D', followed by a letter indicating the the builder (often 'R' for Riga) and a class number. Electric multiple units were similarly coded, but starting 'E'.

In 1984, an all-numeric system of identification was introduced for all locomotives and rolling stock, to facilitate computerisation. All numbers were 8-digit, divided into two groups of four for legibility. The system was unpopular and various problems arose. The first digit indicated the type of vehicle (0 for passenger coaches, 1 for traction units, 2 to 9 for freight vehicles).

For traction units (code 1), the second digit indicated the basic type of traction (steam, diesel, etc.), the third digit the intended purpose (passenger, freight, shunting etc.) and the fourth digit the individual class of traction. The 5th, 6th and 7th digit provided a group of 1,000 individual running numbers.

In all cases, the final (8th) digit was a checksum, calculated from the previous seven digits.

Class 'EP1P' number 062, built in 2010 does not display the 8-digit numbering.

This article on numbering systems is adapted from Appendix 1 of Reference 1 which gives more detailed information (up to 1994).

References:

Reference 1: 'Soviet Locomotive Types - The Union Legacy' by A J Heywood & I D C Button (Frank Stenvalls Forlag) ISBN 0-9525202-0-6.

Loco-profile 4: Russian 'FD20' class 2-10-2

'FD20' Class 2-10-2 number 588 at Novosibirsk Rolling Stock Museum.

In the early 1930s, the Soviet Union introduced two modern, large locomotive classes. The 'FDp' was a 2-8-4 intended for passenger working with 1850 m.m. diameter coupled wheels whilst the 'FD' was generally similar but arranged as a 2-10-2 with smaller coupled wheels intended for freight duties.

I saw the only surviving 'FDp', number 578, in Ukraine in 2005 when I went with my friend Mike on a steam driving holiday which is briefly described here and with a set of pictures (including the 'FDp') here.

It was to be 2012 and my Trans-Siberian trip before I saw an 'FD20' class, number 588, in the Rolling Stock Museum at Novosibirsk. Pictures of this locomotive are in the set Loco-profile: Russian 'FD20' class 2-10-2.

All the pictures from the Rolling Stock Museum at Novosibirsk are here.

For technical specifications, refer to Reference 1.

References:

Reference 1: 'Soviet Locomotive Types - The Union Legacy' by A J Heywood & I D C Button (Frank Stenvalls Forlag) ISBN 0-9525202-0-6.

Loco-profile 3: Russian 'FDp20' class 2-8-4

Surviving 'FDp20' class (formerly IS class) plinthed near Kiev main station.

In the early 1930s, the Soviet Union introduced two modern, large locomotive classes. The 'FDp20' was a 2-8-4 intended for passenger working with 1850 m.m. diameter coupled wheels whilst the 'FD' was generally similar but arranged as a 2-10-2 with smaller coupled wheels intended for freight duties.

The passenger class was originally called the 'IS' class (for Iosif Stalin) and the freight class was called 'FD' (for Feliks Dzerzhinski). However, in 1962 (when Stalin became persona non grata the 'IS' class was quietly re-named 'FDp' where the 'p' indicated 'passazhirskii'.

I saw the only surviving 'FDp20', number 578, in Ukraine in 2005 when I went with my friend Mike (now, alas, passed on) on a steam driving holiday which is briefly described here and with a set of pictures (including the two pictures of the 'FDp' in this post) here. The surviving 'FDp20' is displayed on a very elaborate welded steel plinth outside the passenger locomotive repair works near the centre of Kiev in the Ukraine.

Front view of surviving 'FDp20' class. Note that the complete smokebox front is hinged on the left and, once unbolted, can be swung open for re-tubing and access to the tubeplate. There is a smaller door in the smokebox front used for char removal. This door is hinged on the right and secured by 14 'dogs' or clamps which, when tightened, ensure that the smokebox door is airtight.

For technical specifications, refer to Reference 1.

References:

Reference 1: 'Soviet Locomotive Types - The Union Legacy' by A J Heywood & I D C Button (Frank Stenvalls Forlag) ISBN 0-9525202-0-6.

Mongolian Railways

Ulaan Baatar, showing the two-section Mongolian Railways diesel-electric locomotive off the Eastbound 'Golden Eagle' Trans-Mongolian Express. The '2ZAGAL' class ('Two White Horses') are rebuilt Russian '2M62' class. Notice the Mongolian Emblem carried on the front.

Background

Until my trip to Mongolia in 2012, I'm afraid I was completely ignorant about both the country and its railways. My posts on the trip to Mongolia and subsequent railway journey on part of the Trans-Siberian Railway to Moscow can be found here.

Other than some limited, industrial lines, railway development in Mongolia did not commence until 1947. The Russians constructed a single-line branch (to the Russian 5 foot gauge) from Ulan Ude on the Trans-Siberian Railway south to the border with Mongolia, continuing so as to reach Ulaan Baatar in 1950. Construction was continued south reaching the border with China in 1955.

Erenhot in China then became an interchange point because Chinese Railways are Standard Gauge. Passenger and freight trains are worked right through once the bogies are exchanged between the gauges.

Click here for a railway map of Mongolia.

This route has become an important direct freight route between Russia and China, although capacity is limited since it is single line and not electrified.

Mongolia was never part of the Soviet Union but, until Mongolia's Democratic Revolution in 1990, it was a Communist State and heavily under the influence of the Soviet Union who provided all the rolling stock and locomotives. Mongolian Railways are now completely independent but still operate mainly Russian equipment.

Ulaan Baatar

On my initial visit to Ulaan Baatar station, I saw the eastbound 'Trans-Mongolian Express' arrive behind a 2-section '2ZAGAL' class diesel electric. The 'M62' Co-Co diesel-electric was first built in 1964 and chosen as a suitable export design. In 1976, a 2-section version followed, the '2M62' class. The Mongolian '2M62' have now been rebuilt as the '2ZAGAL', but there's an unrebuilt unit in Ulaan Baatar Train Museum (see below). I also watched freight shunting around the station in the hands of TEM2 variants.

Ulaan Baatar station building, viewed from the rail side.

The locomotive works is to the east of Ulaan Baatar station, just before the Ulaan Baatar Railway Museum. With a line of apparently abandoned diesel-electric wrecks outside the building, I initially mistook it for the museum!

Railway Museums

Ulaan Baatar has two railway museums. The 'Museum of Railway History' was closed for the Naadam Holiday during my visit, so I can't say what's there. The open-air 'Ulaan Baatar Train Museum' is rather abandoned but I was able to photograph the exhibits.

There are Russian-built steam locomotives:-

'P36' class 4-8-4, built 1965, marked 'P-36A'.
'Su' class 2-6-2, built 1935, marked '116'.
'YeA' class 2-10-0, marked '256'.
Narrow gauge 0-8-0, marked 159-469, built 1937.

There are also Russian-built diesel-electric locomotives:-

'TE2' class 2-section Bo-Bo, marked 'TE-2-522', introduced 1948, exhibit believed 1959 build.
'TEM1' class Co-Co, marked TEM-1-168.
'2M62' class Co-Co, marked 2M62M-043 (1 unit only).

Finally, there's a preserved Water Column and a 2-aspect plus 2-aspect colour light signal.

Wikipedia Links

Trans-Mongolian Railway
Rail Transport in Mongolia

Photographs:

Railways around Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia
Sukhe Baatar Station, Mongolia
Ulaan Baatar Train Museum

References:

'Soviet Locomotive Types - The Union Legacy' by A J Heywood & I D C Button (Frank Stenvalls Forlag) ISBN 0-9525202-0-6.

The Bear's Story

A Guest Writer takes over for this Post.

Captain Chocolate, after a day on the Footplate.

Hello. My name is Captain Chocolate. My name does not indicate a fondness for confectionery although, like most bears, I have a sweet tooth. Rather, it alludes (is that the right word?) to my frequent call to the Ground Crew of "Chocks away!" when I was a Celebrated Pilot.

I no longer fly and now enjoy an agreeable, if quiet, life with my Mistress. However, understanding my interest in all Bear-related matters, my Mistress occasionally takes me to Teddy Bears' Picnics which some Preserved Railways operate.

The first one I attended was some years ago at Peak Rail (I am quite an elderly bear) and, since then, I have attended a number of these Events.

The latest such Event was at the Battlefield Line on Saturday, 18th August 2012.

I should explain that, rather unusually, my Mistress drives Steam Locomotives so, when I accompany her to these events, I spend most of my time riding around on the engine, waving to the other Bears and the young children that Bears invariably bring with them. I must say that speeding through the countryside with the wind in your Fur is the next best thing to flying and I've become quite an enthusiast for Steam Trains myself.

The one problem is that the Coal Dust which gets everywhere on Steam Locomotives does rather darken the Fur and I periodically have to suffer the indignity of the Washing Machine. The result is, however, very satisfactory. As you can see from my portrait above, I have found it helpful to retain my old Flying Helmet although I no longer wear the Goggles.

My Mistress has explained that in another country which she calls France, Engine Drivers frequently wore Goggles but, for some reason, the fashion was never widely adopted in this Country. My Mistress is always happy to talk about anything to do with Railways, usually at great length. I've heard people say she can Bore for Britain but I'm not quite sure what that means.

Going back to my own name, you probably know that 'Chocks' are the triangular blocks which are used to prevent an aircraft from moving whilst the Pilot runs-up the engine. Something similar is used to prevent railway vehicles from moving by accident. When people, quite reasonably in my opinion, refer to these railway devices as 'Chocks', my Mistress growls (she can do quite a reasonable Bear Growl) and says "Aircraft have 'Chocks' - Railways have 'Scotches'!". She seems to find the distinction very important. Personally, I agree with Humpty Dumpty (I am, you see, a particularly well-read Bear) that "When I use a word, it means precisely what I want it to mean - No more, No less".

So, what about the Teddy Bears' Picnic on the 18th August?

Well, we arrived a Shackerstone about 07:00 hours and I met the Fireman called Sam, the Trainee Fireman called Jason and a Big Green Engine which didn't appear to have a proper name but was known as "The Thirty Eight". A steam Engine seems to be a Big Kettle which needs a large coal fire to boil the Kettle. The steam is then used to make the Engine move. While the Kettle was being boiled, my Mistress went through a strange ritual which I don't altogether understand which she called "Oiling Round". This seemed to involve climbing around the nether regions of the Locomotive and liberally coating herself with Oil, to the frequent accompaniment of Not-Very-Nice Words which I thought Ladies did not use.

My Mistress took this picture of "The Thirty Eight" on an earlier occasion.

Eventually, the Kettle was boiling and we moved the engine to find some Coaches. Once attached to the Coaches and with the Bears, children and grown-ups on board, we started running up and down the line between Shackerstone and Shenton, stopping at a halfway station called Market Bosworth where the Teddy Bears' Picnic was actually being held. Since I had to look after my Mistress, I didn't attend the Picnic myself but I was happy to play my part in the festivities. It was a good day out and my Mistress and I arrived home tired, grubby but very happy.

My Mistress has asked me to tell you that you can find everything she has written about the Battlefield Line here.

Goodbye for now!
Captain Chocolate.

Loco-profile 2: Russian 'YeA' Class

Having been brought up with a multitude of steam locomotive designs in England, it was a surprise when I discovered how few different designs the Soviet Union produced. But those few designs were produced in massive numbers. Because designs were used over a long period, sub-classes did arise as technical improvements were introduced but, in general, having adopted a configuration, they would stick with it.

I was even more surprised to discover that thousands of steam locomotives were, in fact imported into Russia. Having grown up during the Cold War, I found it very odd to learn that America and Canada supplied freight locomotives to Russia. During the First World War, the motive power situation in Russia became critical and Baldwin, Alco and the Canadian Locomotive Company supplied a 2-10-0 for heavy freight. Then, during WWII, Alco and Baldwin supplied over 2,000 locomotives of a very similar design via the USA Transportation Corps as part of Lend-Lease.

This class became known (in Romanised form) as the 'YeA', where the 'A' stands for 'Amerikanski'. The WWII locomotives had a number of changes compared with the original locomotives including an improved chassis design and changes to the cab, chimney and steam dome. In addition, the railings around the foot-framing, so characteristic of many Russian locomotives, were omitted. There were at least two sub-classes: 'YeM' ('M' for 'Modernised' with an improved piston design) and 'YeMV' with a feed water heater. For technical specifications, refer to Reference 1.

I saw my first 'YeA', number 2027, in Ukraine in 2005 when I went with my friend Mike on a steam driving holiday which is briefly described here and with a set of pictures (including the 'YeA') here. The plan was that we should drive the 'YeA' and the shed staff at Kolomiya had carried out an urgent re-tubing to bring the locomotive back into service. Sadly, following this work, the shed staff couldn't cure a leaking tube problem in time and I only saw the engine in light steam. The shed staff were almost in tears at their inability to complete the work in time.

YeA-2026 in light steam at Kolomiya in 2005.

It was to be 2012 and my Trans-Siberian trip before I found another 'YeA', this time 'plinthed' in Ulaan Baatar Train Museum in Mongolia. My pictures of this Museum and its 'YeA' are here.

This Russian 'YeA' Class 2-10-0 in the Ulaan Baatar Train Museum is marked 'YeL-256', perhaps its Mongolian Railway designation.

Later in that trip, I found another 'YeA' (without a running number) at Polovina on Lake Baikal. There's a small collection of photographs here.

'Alco' built 'YeA' Class 2-10-0 preserved at Polyvina on Lake Baikal. No running number is carried.

Finally, in the Rolling Stock Museum at Novosibirsk, I found 'YeA' number 3078. Pictures of this locomotive are included in the set here.

'YeA' Class 2-10-0 No. 3078, built by Baldwin in 1944, on display in the Rolling Stock Museum at Novosibirsk.

References:

Reference 1: 'Soviet Locomotive Types - The Union Legacy' by A J Heywood & I D C Button (Frank Stenvalls Forlag) ISBN 0-9525202-0-6.

Lionsmeet 2012

The Steaming Bays on the raised circuit at Newport: Philip and David concentrate on the serious business of preparing their models.

'Lionsmeet' is the long-established annual day out where owners of live-steam 'Lion' models can compare notes and engage in a not-too-serious competition to see which model can perform the greatest 'work done' in ten minutes. Each year, 'Lionsmeet' is staged at a different location and, in 2012, the Newport (Gwent) model engineering club were our hosts on Saturday, 11th August 2012. The weather was excellent.

The club are still developing facilities at the site but an amazing amount of work has been done. There is an elevated dual-gauge (3.5"/5") circuit of modest length which was used for the 5" competition. In addition, there is a long ground level circuit which accommodates 5" and 7.25" models.

The Club House at the Newport track.

Alan Bibby, who had organised the event with Newport club, made sure the arrangements ran smoothly but, sadly, this year OLCO Chairman John Brandrick was unable to attend. 'Lionsheart' editor John Hawley was on hand taking photographs and making copious notes. 'Lionsheart', of course, is the excellent magazine on all things 'Lion' related circulated to OLCO members. The morning was spent in preparing locomotives, trial running and earnest discussions. Jon Swindlehurst displayed his 7.25" gauge 'Lion' under construction and Alan Bibby had arranged a display of second-hand superheaters of different patterns. Barrie Larke's meticulous 'Lion' model was much admired.

Barrie Larke with his 'Lion' model.

After Alan's briefing to competitors at 12 noon, the host club provided a splendid buffet lunch in the clubhouse. The competitions started around 1.0 p.m.

This year, there were two 7.25" 'Lion' models in steam and they performed on the ground level track, but without benefit of a dynamometer car. For this part of the event, judges determined the winner.

Harrye preparing his model prior to running on the ground level circuit at Newport.

On the elevated circuit, we had four entrants to the competition, driving three different models. Last year, at Chelmsford, David Neish demonstrated his 'LIONsPOWER' measuring system. Having perfected the design, at Newport David allowed us to use his measuring system as the official dynamometer device. A small measuring unit (somewhat analogous to a spring balance) replaces the drawlink between locomotive and driving truck. The extension of the springs in the measuring unit is measured electronically and a cable extends this information to a small battery-powered processing unit which is carried on the front of the passenger truck and displays work done to the Observer. David has also instrumented the driving truck to display instantaneous speed and total mileage to the Observer.

In recent years, Jan always seems to get press-ganged into being the Observer, which role she is pleased to call the 'Dynamometrix'. It's not as much fun as it sounds and this year Jan sustained a hole burnt in jeans (and a little hole burnt in leg) from a particularly aggressive bout of 'fire-throwing' by Jon's engine. I suppose this is to be expected from a locomotive where the prototype was absorbed into the stock of the London and North Western Railway. The L.N.W.R. (with its small engines and heavy trains) had a reputation for throwing half the fire straight out of the chimney.

Each competitor was allowed an untimed lap to 'warm-through' the engine and determine what load he wished to carry on the single bogie passenger truck coupled behind the driving truck. Members of the Newport club and John Hawley volunteered, as required, to be passengers during the competition (I'm told the technical term is "self-loading ballast").

As last years winner, Jon ran first, followed by David Neish, Andrew Neish (driving David's engine) and, finally, Philip Pritchard from Newport club. Jon took the Dynamometrix plus three passengers but David only took the Dynamometrix plus one because of adhesion problems. Andrew split the difference taking the Dynamometrix plus two. Philip completed his trial lap but experienced difficulties filling the boiler prior to his competition run and was forced to retire because of a defective locomotive.

The performances are summarised below:-

Name	Work done (ft./lb.)	Position
Jon Swindlehurst	55756	1
David Neish	40200	2
Andrew Neish	36675	3
Philip Pritchard	0	4 (retired)

Although there was a slight reservation over Andrew's 'work done' because of a cable connection working loose, it was concluded that (once again) Jon was the undisputed winner. The award was presented to Jon by Philip.

Philip Pritchard presenting the Mike Parrot Memorial Cup to Jon Swindlehurst.

The 7.25" gauge award went to Harrye Frowen for the fanatical fidelity of his model to the prototype.

Alan Bibby announcing the winner of the 7.25" gauge competition and thanking our hosts for a wonderful day.

More pictures at Newport are here.

All my posts about the Old Locomotive Committee (OLCO) are here.

Peak Rail 1940s Weekend 2012

Re-enactors demonstrate the rigours of life under canvas on the battlefield.

In 2012, Peak Rail held its annual 1940s Weekend on Saturday and Sunday the 4th and 5th of August. I was the steam locomotive driver on the Sunday. The actual railway operation was very similar to most weekends although, to cater for demand, we were operating with a 7-coach train. Because trains now operate between Rowsley and Matlock (Town), operation was 'top and tailed' with 'Austerity' 0-6-0T at the south end of the train hauling the train in an Up direction and a 'Class 31' diesel-electric bringing the train back to Rowsley.

I was very aware that our train was a very poor representation of a wartime service. Whilst the steam locomotive was (just) a 'wartime baby', being built in 1944, she is currently turned out in British Railways black, numbered 68013 and carries the later-period British Railways logo. The British Railways 'Mark 2' passenger stock is wrong and, again, the maroon livery is incorrect, although it is very similar to the L.M.S. style. As for the Class 31, these weren't introduced until 1957 and the livery carried is much later. But, compromises must be made in re-creations and I think I'm in the minority in finding these anachronisms a little jarring. I don't think you'd find many lady engine drivers around in World War 2 (except in Russia) so I can't really complain.

My own concessions to the period were a 'tin helmet' (worn from time-to-time - they are actually steel, of course, and quite heavy) and a Respirator (which I carry around, but decline to wear).

When you work on the train, you miss a lot of the action but I took a number of photographs to give an impression of the scene, which you can find here.

Andrew Briddon's Drewry/Vulcan diesel mechanical WD72229 in 'olive drab' certainly looked the part.

WD72229, a jackshaft-drive diesel mechanical.

A 'Bofors' anti-arcraft gun on a 'LOWMAC' on the turntable made an impressive display.

The 'Bofors' gun wagon-mounted on the turntable.

Paul Harper, Marina Mae and Paul Casper provided ENSA entertainment in a large marquee. The marquee also featured Dove Holes Brass Band, Punch and Judy shows and a licensed bar.

During the day, there were lectures on military topics, demonstrations of firepower and a mock battle. In additions to military encampments and foxholes, there were field kitchens and mobile hospitals, together with displays explaining the role of civilians in wartime. Both military and civil vehicles were on display and, of course, lots of re-enactors in the uniforms of various countries.

The weather was kind and the event was very well attended.

MOSI Mini Maker Faire

On the weekend of the 28th and 29th July 2012, the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester held a Mini Maker Faire. This curiously-titled event seemed to be a celebration of things people can do, from hand-making paper to Samba dancing and from building a model railway to building an electronic flashing brooch.

Stuart readying 'Planet' for giving rides.

I was there on the Saturday, as Operating Officer for the railway (operating a steam railway is something you can do!) and we were quite busy. The booked driver, Stuart, generously shared the driving with me but I also managed to grab a few pictures of some of the activities which are here.

Samba dancing lessons in the Coaching Shed.

The Completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway

The first public railway in Russia was the Tsarskoye Selo Railway which ran a modest 27 km from Saint Petersburg to Pavlovsk. It opened in 1837 using a mixture of steam locomotives built in England (Stephenson 'Patentee' class) and Belgium. See the Wikipedia article.

The sheer size of the Russian Empire meant that travel from the centres of power in Moscow and St. Petersburg to remote lands like Siberia was difficult and time-consuming in the 19th century. The construction of railways to link these remote areas seemed essential and, in 1891, work on the 9,000 km long Trans-Siberian Railway linking Moscow and Vladivostok was authorised by Tsar Alexander III. The heir to the throne, Nikolai Alexandrovich, inaugurated the project in Vladivostok and building proceeded simultaneously at both ends of the line. Over 66,000 men were employed on the herculanean task.

In 1898 the first train arrived in Irkutsk, having travelled around 5,000 km from Moscow. However, beyond Irkutsk, the area around Lake Baikal presented a problem. One possible route from Irkutsk to the southern side of Lake Baikal and the line to Vladivostok would require a climbing route averaging a gradient of 1 in 75 for 30 km. This was regarded as beyond the capabilities of the available locomotives. The second possible route followed the west bank of the Angara River upsteam to the Lake, then continued south west, hugging the shoreline of Lake Baikal to reach the southern side of Lake Baikal and the line to Vladivostok.

The second of these routes, called the 'Circum-Baikal Railway' was adopted. The line from Irkutsk to the Lake near the village of Baikal was completed without much difficulty but the 90 km of construction along the shoreline of the Lake caused significant delays because of the large number of tunnels, galleries and bridges required. In order to commence through services, it was decided to bring trains from Irkutsk to the temporary terminus at Baikal and use ferries to tranship passengers and cargo to the southern shore of the Lake at Mysovaya.

Two icebreaking ferries were ordered from Armstrong Whitworth in England. They arrived part-built and were commissioned in Russia. The first, 'Baikal', was a train ferry, that is to say passenger and freight cars could be run onto special tracks on her deck and transported intact across the Lake to the other section of the Trans-Siberian Railway.

An old postcard showing the Train Ferry 'Baikal'.

The second ferry, 'Angara', was a passenger and cargo ferry without the facility for carrying railway wagons. To accommodate these vessels, special docks were built, largely in wood, on either side of the Lake at Baikal (which became Port Baikal) on the northern shore and Mysovaya (now called Tankhoy) on the southern shore. These services commenced in 1900.

Old photograph showing wagons being shunted on and off the 'Baikal' at Port Baikal.

Lake Baikal is almost 400 miles long, up to 50 miles wide, prone to sudden storms and freezing in winter so the ferries were no soft option. Both ships had specially-shaped hulls which could bear down on ice and crack it, allowing the ship through. When the ice became too thick for the ferries, the expedient of laying a temporary railway track across the ice was tried but with only limited success. At least one locomotive is supposed to have disappeared through the ice.

Meanwhile, construction of the first track of the Circum-Baikal Railway forged ahead. Originally scheduled for completion in 1905, the railway was operational by September 1904 because of the Japanese threats which preceded the Russo-Japanese War of 1905. Completion of 'the Golden Buckle of the Russian Steel Belt' (as the Circum-Baikal Railway has been poetically described) gave an important advantage in moving men and materiel. To increase the capacity of the railway, work continued on adding a second track which was brought into service in October 1915.

Once the Circum-Baikal Railway was complete, the ferries were withdrawn. However, 'Angara' made a new career as a general ferry criss-crossing between the various small ports around the Lake, surviving long enough to be taken into preservation.

Between 1947 to 1949 a new railway was built broadly on the climbing route between Irkusk and the southern side of Lake Baikal which was originally rejected. Much more powerful locomotives were available and the new line is electrified at 25 kV a.c. and now carries all the through traffic on the East Siberian Railway section of the Trans-Siberian route.

Another project in 1956 provided hydro-electric power to the Irkutsk region by damming the Angara River between Lake Baikal and Irkutsk. This resulted in the original railway line between Irkutsk and Port Baikal being flooded, breaking the original 'Golden Buckle'. The remaining part of the Circum-Baikal Railway from Port Baikal to the southern side of Lake Baikal has been singled and retained, providing a spectacular tourist route.

The remaining part of the Circum-Baikal Railway gives spectacular views.

Photographs:-

Slyudianka Station, East Siberian Railway.
The Circum-Baikal Railway.
Port Baikal.
Circum-Baikal Railway Museum, Port Baikal.

References:-

'The Circum-Baikal Railway: A Concise Guide Book (3rd edition)' by A.K. Chertilov translated Ye. Luganskaya (Artizdat, Irkutsk) ISBN 978-5-93765-044-3.

Moscow

Saturday, 21st July 2012

Vekovka station building.

Early on Saturday morning, we arrived at Vekovka, where we paused for a couple of hours. I noticed a flock of birds wheeling over the station in the early morning sun. While we waited, various other trains came and went, served by a number of station sellers offering passengers a last chance to buy presents. I found it very curious that a vendor would be hawking chandeliers on a railway station at six o'clock in the morning.

Vekovka Station, early morning. Anyone want to buy a chandelier?

At Vekovka, we left the Gorky Railway with its 25 kV a.c. electrification and made our final dash for Moscow via the Moscow Railway with its earlier electrification system operating at 3.3 kV d.c. As we neared Moscow, we passed a multitude of junctions and other railways criss-crossed. Around 'right time' we pulled into Kandinskiy Street Station at the end of our marathon rail journey from Mongolia.

The end of our rail journey from Ulaan Baatar - Kazanskiy Street Station, Moscow.

Most of the 'Golden Eagle' guests were going on a City Tour of Moscow but Tatiana had arranged a taxi to take me to the Moscow Railway Museum. The museum in its present form only opened at the beginning of 2012. It's in a modern building set in quiet, manicured gardens contrasting with the hubbub of Richskiy Station next door. To add to the chaos, major civil engineering work is under way in Rizhskaya Square in front of the station.

I spent a pleasant hour pottering around the museum taking pictures (I'd bought a photographic permit) then had a quick look at Richskiy Station. I met up with my taxi driver who took me to the restaurant where my fellow-travellers were taking lunch after their morning city tour before departing in various directions. After a final meal together, it was time to say 'goodbye' to my new friends, then my taxi driver delivered me to Sheremetyevo Airport in plenty of time for my flight to Schiphol, then home to Birmingham Airport.

General Photographs:-

The 'Golden Eagle' train.
Moscow (2012 pictures added to 2011 set).

Railway Photographs:-

Vekovka - Moscow Kazanskiy Street.
Kazanskiy Street Station.
Moscow Railway Museum.
Richskiy Station, Moscow.
Sheremetyevo Airport Line, Moscow.

References:-

'Moscow Railway Map' (The Quail Map Company) ISBN: 1 898319 28 6.

Kazan

Friday 20th July 2012

The Trans-Siberian is not one route, but many. When trains first ran from Yekaterinburg to Moscow, they did so via Yaroslavl which had been connected to Moscow by railway in 1870. I visited Yaroslavl in 2011 (during a river and canal cruise) and there's a description with pictures here. Later, a cut-off branched from the Yaroslavl route at Kotelnich directly to Moscow, avoiding Yaroslavl. But when our train left Yekaterinburg, we took yet another route which would take us to Moscow via Tartarstan.

Tartarstan (often spelt Tatarstan) is an Independent Republic forming part of the Russian Federation so there were no immigration formalities as we entered the territory. However, I did wake up briefly in the night when we made our scheduled stop at Krasnoufimsk. Here, we left the 3.3 kV d.c. electrification of the Sverdlovsk Railway and entered the 25 kV a.c. system of the Gorky Railway (I assume named after the Russian author Maxim Gorky).

Krasnoufimsk station by night.

I was awake again fairly early when we made our brief stop at Agriz but it was another five hours of travelling before we arrived at the capital of Tartarstan, Kazan. The main railway station is currently closed for reconstruction so our train arrived at a new station in the suburbs called Vosstaniye. Tartarstan has established itself as a host for various events and I think the rebuilding we encountered was part of the preparations for the world university games.

'Golden Eagle' passengers assemble near the guide's yellow flag at the not-quite-complete station at Vosstaniye, under the watchful eye of station staff.

No expense has been spared in this new station to present a modern image but, unfortunately, the work is not yet finished and there were builders and building materials everywhere. Nonetheless, with typical Russian pragmatism, the station is in use so we carefully picked our way through the various hazards and the streams of bewildered Russian passengers to board a very modern coach waiting for us outside the station.

The new station at Kazan (Vosstaniye) viewed from the road side. The signage suggests it will become known as 'Kazan 2'.

Of course, a new station needs a new approach road and, whilst there were proper tarmac parking areas immediately outside the station buildings, the new road to get to the existing road network was still in the hands of the roadbuilders and their machines. We lurched through the potholes and threaded our way through various road building machines to finally emerge on a wide dual carriageway flanked by large blocks of flats. As we neared the city centre, large blocks of offices and luxury apartments reared up and my heart sank – not another modern city of soul-less buildings?

Modern architecture in Kazan.

But then we came to the older part of the town and the architecture changed. Some of the buildings were not that old but they were constructed along classical lines or in the French style so they were easier on the eye. Then we arrived at the Kremlin where the walls and watchtowers are genuinely old and, like the Kremlin in Moscow, the buildings within the walls are impressive. We disembarked from the coach just outside the main gate of the Kremlin. A girl in a local costume presented us with the traditional food of greeting – a Tartarstan version of honey-coated ‘Sugar Puffs’ you eat with your fingers.

The Spassky Tower - entrance to the Kremlin in Kazan.

The Kremlin was built in a defensible position on high ground overlooking the river. Entering the main gate, we started to walk along the wide, cobbled main thoroughfare with Government Offices, University Departments and Museums occupying the buildings on either side. We turned down a side road leading to another gatehouse then turned to our right to enter a large plaza tiled in the colours of the Tartarstan flag.

Facing us was a towering, modern mosque. Tartarstan has a sizeable Moslem community which has similar rights to Orthodox Christians and unbelievers alike. The construction of this impressive mosque a few years ago within the Kremlin not far from its Orthodox counterpart was intended to signal this tolerance.

The modern Kul-Sharif Mosque within the Kremlin at Kazan symbolises religious tolerance in Tartarstan.

To my surprise, the mosque featured a visitors gallery, reached by 74 steps from the ground floor. From this lofty position, we could look down on the women’s gallery (bordered by pierced screens allowing women to watch the prayers below without being seen) and the carpeted ground floor used by men. There was a small, raised ‘pulpit’, presumably for the Iman, and markers to show the direction of Mecca.

Next, we walked to look at the outside of the ‘Leaning Tower of Kazan’, a brick-built tower which has subsided to be 1.92m out of true at the top.

The 'Leaning Tower of Kazan' (within the Kremlin) is 1.92 m out of true at the top.

Finally, we visited the impressive Russian Orthodox Annunciation Cathedral. In all Russian Orthodox Churches, the congregation stand and singing is unaccompanied by musical instruments (A cappella). Whilst women cover their heads in church, men go bare-headed. Photography is not allowed.

The Russian Orthodox Annunciation Cathedral within the Kremlin at Kazan.

We then slowly walked back to the main gate and waited in the gardens outside for our bus to return. The bus ferried us to a hotel in the city where we had a relaxing lunch in a large restaurant decorated in Islamic style. The hotel was situated on a long pedestrian street and, after the meal, we were given some free time to wander around on our own. We were to meet up by the old brick bell tower next to the Chaliapin Hotel.

I had a brisk walk around a few blocks of the city, taking pictures of examples of the varied architecture.

A city-centre church in rather exuberant style. A bride is posed against the church for photographs, explaining the car decorations.

Near the end of Pedestrian Bauman Street, I came across a 'Kentucky Fried Chicken' with builders in occupation. I suppose the delights of 'KFC' are shortly to be offered to the impatiently-waiting Tartars. Across the busy street, I was puzzled by a large ring suspended above the building frontage. It was only afterwards I discovered that the 'Ring' is an entertainment complex incorporating a Multiplex Cinema, Restaurants and the like. A pedestrian underpass carried a 'Metro' sign, so I descended into a bewildering array of underground passages, shops and kiosks. However, I couldn't find any sign for a Metro Station. It took a bit of wandering around before I realised that an anonymous set of doors which could have been to a Department Store in fact led, via a long passage, to a Ticket Hall.

Hidden behind the magnificent Bell Tower in Pedestrian Bauman Street is the white-painted Bell Tower Church of the Epiphany.

I purchased a token without incident and (with a bit of assistance from the lady manning the automatic barrier) successfully negotiated the barrier and made my way onto the island platform. Although there were plenty of passengers waiting for trains in both directions, minutes passed without a train and I reluctantly concluded that I wouldn't have time to travel to an adjacent station and back in time to meet up at the Chaliapin Hotel. So, contenting myself with taking a few pictures of the station and the modern trains which finally arrived, I left the station.

Kazan Metro.

I took a picture of the statue of Mullanur Vakhitov and afterwards discovered that he was a Tartar Revolutionary active at the time of the Russian Revolution. In the defence of Kazan against the Czech forces in 1918, he was captured and hung. According to the Wikipedia Article, his name is also Romanised as 'Waxitov'.

Another statue stands outside the Chaliapin Hotel. This, of course, is of Fyodor Ivanovitch Chaliapin, the opera singer and perhaps Kazan's most famous son, born 1873 and died in 1938 (of leukemia, in Paris). For a brief biography, see the Wikipedia Article.

This statue of Chaliapin stands outside the Chaliapin Hotel in Kazan.

A private concert had been arranged for guests from the 'Golden Eagle'. The hotel restaurant is situated in the atrium of the hotel and, at one side, there was an area of seating facing a grand piano. The soloist was a bass singer in the Russian tradition. I was impressed with his rendering - with twinkling eyes and a mouth set in an almost perpetual smile he reminded me very much of pictures I've seen of Chaliapin. I also like his 'no nonsense' shirtsleeves appearance. I'm ashamed to say that, for the first part of the concert, I divided my attention between the singing and the hotel's Wi-Fi which allowed me to dash off a few e-mails but, once that was done, I concentrated fully on the concert.

A private concert for guests from the 'Golden Eagle' in the Chaliapin Hotel, Kazan.

After the concert, we re-joined our coach and were taken back to our waiting train at Vosstaniye, once again running the gauntlet of the builders constructing the station approach road. By common consent, our time in Kazan was regarded as a great success. At about 7.25 p.m. our train departed with (I think) the same locomotive which brought us in - Class ChS4T Co-Co number 659 in brown livery.

Our locomotive (Class ChS4T Co-Co number 659) ready to leave Kazan (Vosstaniye).

This was our last evening on board so we had our Farewell Dinner at 8.00 p.m., followed by various entertainments in the Bar Car. The impromptu choir I was in gave their first (and certainly last) public performance of 'Kalinka' in Russian and then various other guests were persuaded to do their 'party pieces'.

Of course, I was somewhat distracted by the passing railway infrastructure. I was very impressed by large marshalling yards we passed (at Kanash, I think).

Westbound freight trains awaiting their turn in the late evening sun at the large marshalling yards we passed (Kanash?).

I eventually retired to my cabin to complete my re-packing and get some sleep as our train inexorably continued towards Moscow.

General Photographs:-

The 'Golden Eagle' train.
Kazan.
Concert in Kazan.

Railway Photographs:-

Yekaterinburg - Kazan.
Kazan Metro.
Leaving Kazan

References:-

'Russian and English Kazan' published 2011 (full colour bi-lingual guide book available within the Kremlin at Kazan).

[First published on 22nd July 2012, revisions 3rd August 2012 and 15th August 2012]