The BeerTrain

A single manned trip to the Fatherland with new track for diesel being very much the main aim. Some of this new track not being in the current diagrams, just idea's I had through time-consuming scanning of the DB Kursbuch. Once again # = New loco. Friday 15/07/94 Unusually some channel crossing gen! Princess Stephanie (Jetfoil)    Ramsgate - Ostend 2707        Ostend - Aachen    2134 Ostend - Aachen 280km Saturday 16/07/94 New track for diesel to Borken & the Neuss Avoider the aims for today. 103 201   Aachen - Bielefeld    2103 Paris - Berlin 258km 110 252   Bielefeld - Essen Hbf    0450 Bielefeld - Aachen 128km 216 092# Essen Hbf - Bottrop    0703 Essen - Haltern12km 216 029   Bottrop - Essen Hbf    0653 Haltern - Langenberg 12km 216 031)  Essen Hbf - Bottrop    0739 Langenberg - Haltern 12km 216 150)(Top & Tail)  216 148   Bottrop - Essen...

Another trip to Austria primarily to cover the weekend Gmund 2095 turn again looking for my last one 2095 012 (my 8th trip to Gmund trying to nab it - not good when they only had 3 locos to choose from (not forgetting the Kettle which also once bowled Me & Medhurst out vice 2095!)) Some required track for diesel in Germany was also planned. This was a single-manned trip, # = Winner Thursday 23/09/04 1044 064  Linz - St.Polten    Addl Koln - Wien (EC93701) 130km I was staying 2 nights in St.Polten, both brewpubs were going at this time. I know I had a great evening meal in the posh one of the two tonight. Both have now gone, I cannot recall their names. Friday 24/09/04 An early start so breakfast was either flagged or to go. Out to cover the inward rush hour diesels. 2143 059    St.Polten Alpenbahnhof - Traisen 0546 St.Polten - Hainfeld 17km 2043 035#  Traisen - St.Polten   0624 Hainfeld - St.Polten 19km 2043 035 on the blocks at St.Polten 1099...

A non-Easter trip to the Peloponnese narrow gauge, joining up with Shovel, Flossie & Howie plus at least 1 other perhaps Dan Cross? Apologies to whoever but I know we could all fit into a taxi. The downside of the current Alco diagrams were they started & finished at Pirghos (a bit of a dump) so a hotel in nearby Olympia was used for the duration. No winning locos or new track on this trip - just a meeting of the "Pelly Alco's Appreciation Society". Thursday 06/03/03 A day travelling down to Luton Airport, via a couple of beer stops, for the overnight flight to Athens 144008   Doncaster - Sheffield  1310 Bridlington - Sheffield 18m 43082)    Sheffield - Derby  1527 Sheffield - St Pancras 36m 43064) Beers in Derby, almost certainly in the Alex. 170111   Derby - Leicester  1820 Derby - St.Pancras 30m A couple more in the Barley Mow, an Everards pub 5 minutes from the station. 170007   Leicester - Luton 1920 Derby - St.Pancras ...

A three pronged attack on Europes locos and beers this time. Myself (Poodle), Betty (David Icke - no not THAT David Icke - the other one!) & Howey (the Beer Monster - Howard Jolley). # = New Loco Saturday 01/06/02 By now I was living in Bawtry, the EWS office had moved to Doncaster a few years before but I abstained and took a job with Railtrack in Rail House Manchester (to the right of Piccadilly station as you arrive on a train) as I just couldn't face training all those new starters in Donny when all our decent staff had refused to move there. Another couple of years in Nantwich (the promised land) was too good to flag - & I wasn't wrong - those first two years in Donny were reportedly Hell!  I had, however, re-joined the fold when a too-good-to-refuse offer was made for my services when Mr Gibbons got the top job there. 91018       Doncaster - Peterborough  0600 Newcastle - Kings X 80miles EI-CSC    Stansted - Freidrichshafen  ...