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24 Hour Time Machine
- Thread starter Chorley Cake
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Chorley Cake
Member
- Joined
- 23 Aug 2014
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- 337
It was never meant to be restrictive. If you need to broaden the horizons of my original spec then please do.
Sometimes planning the nostalgia can almost help take you there. That was the essence of my original post, far more than the rules were.
Strathclyder
Established Member
If going abroad is allowed, there are several things in the contiental United States alone that I'd loved to have witnessed/exprienced across several different eras. Chief among them are:
- The Southern Pacific 'Cab-Forwards', GS-1s & Krauss-Maffei ML4000s
- The Pennsylvania Railroad T1s & GG1s
- The Union Pacific Challengers, Big Boys, GTELs, GE steam turbine locomotives & the DDA40X Centennials
With our not being restricted to Great Britain and / or UK: I'd choose a day -- ordinary weekday, or Saturday if that gave better opportunities -- in "north-central / west" Ireland, both sides of the border, in summer 1957 (I was then actually aged nine; didn't in fact get to Ireland in any way or shape, for another dozen years -- but from an early age I read about, and yearned for, the stuff "on the menu" for my chosen 24 hours.). Said 24-hour "bash" would be in the greatest part, a last look at things which were very shortly to vanish: the Great Northern Railway of Ireland's secondary-line system centring on Clones, and -- connecting therewith -- the cross-border independent Sligo, Leitrim & Northern Counties Railway -- all of which lost passenger services, and a large proportion of the whole being totally abandoned, with effect from the end of Sep. 1957. I'd also include as much as circumstances would permit, of CIE's 3ft. gauge, all-steam, Cavan & Leitrim system: which would be abandoned a year and a half thence.
I don't have the relevant timetables, so must use guesswork as to what would be possible in a long day's travelling. Re lines covered, I see the exercise as very probably having to be "quality rather than quantity": the schedules of non-Great Northern lines in the Republic, tended to be meagre. I'd see covering the following itinerary either in the direction set out; or the opposite direction; depending on which would work better and give, relatively, more coverage. (In extremis, some resorting to buses or taxis might have to be done to get between desired goals; the thought of having for the trip, a confederate with a car -- to allow via "mixing-and-matching", overall maximum rail-travel variety -- is tempting: but that is not really my preferred way of doing things, and would feel a bit too much like cheating.)
In the sequence which I'm about to describe: starting out early morning on the Cavan & Leitrim system, and travelling over as much of the same, as schedules would permit in the overall course of the day's doings. This would build in if at all possible, travel on a C. & L. passenger or mixed train from Ballinamore to Belturbet; changing there, to the Great Northern broad gauge. I understand that passenger on these GNR(I) lines at this time, was a mixture of steam and railmotor -- what with all that was hoped to be done, type of power on my workings would have to be whatever it turned out to be. On the GNR(I): Belturbet -- Ballyhaise (which branch I suspect was all-steam; could be wrong there) -- on to the big junction of Clones; from there, over the border into N.I., on the Great Northern's Clones - Enniskillen -- Omagh line, as far as Fintona Junction. Alight there to travel over the very short branch to Fintona, worked by the unique double-decker horse tram; back to the Junction, and retrace steps to Enniskillen. From there, a Sligo, Leitrim & Northern Counties Railway catering-for-passengers working back into the Republic, and finally to Sligo (running powers over the CIE main line, for the last stretch after Collooney).
Have planned the journey in the direction as above, for preference: because in the S. L. & N. C. R.'s last years, all its passenger workings were railcar or railbus, save for a mixed train, steam of course, which left Enniskillen for Sligo, late afternoon / early evening (no corresponding mixed working in the opposite direction). The ideal situation would be, to finish the day's journey by travelling on this train for the length of its run. However -- if doing the undertaking the other way around, would yield better trackage-covering opportunities overall; I'd do it the other way around -- Sligo to Enniskillen, earliest working of the day: railmotor as it would be; finishing the day on the Cavan & Leitrim, as far as it might be possible to penetrate to on same (Arigna? Dromod? at worst, perhaps just Ballinamore...). With Irish weather being as it renownedly is: I'd appreciate being able to order a guaranteed beautiful sunny day for the bash.
I don't have the relevant timetables, so must use guesswork as to what would be possible in a long day's travelling. Re lines covered, I see the exercise as very probably having to be "quality rather than quantity": the schedules of non-Great Northern lines in the Republic, tended to be meagre. I'd see covering the following itinerary either in the direction set out; or the opposite direction; depending on which would work better and give, relatively, more coverage. (In extremis, some resorting to buses or taxis might have to be done to get between desired goals; the thought of having for the trip, a confederate with a car -- to allow via "mixing-and-matching", overall maximum rail-travel variety -- is tempting: but that is not really my preferred way of doing things, and would feel a bit too much like cheating.)
In the sequence which I'm about to describe: starting out early morning on the Cavan & Leitrim system, and travelling over as much of the same, as schedules would permit in the overall course of the day's doings. This would build in if at all possible, travel on a C. & L. passenger or mixed train from Ballinamore to Belturbet; changing there, to the Great Northern broad gauge. I understand that passenger on these GNR(I) lines at this time, was a mixture of steam and railmotor -- what with all that was hoped to be done, type of power on my workings would have to be whatever it turned out to be. On the GNR(I): Belturbet -- Ballyhaise (which branch I suspect was all-steam; could be wrong there) -- on to the big junction of Clones; from there, over the border into N.I., on the Great Northern's Clones - Enniskillen -- Omagh line, as far as Fintona Junction. Alight there to travel over the very short branch to Fintona, worked by the unique double-decker horse tram; back to the Junction, and retrace steps to Enniskillen. From there, a Sligo, Leitrim & Northern Counties Railway catering-for-passengers working back into the Republic, and finally to Sligo (running powers over the CIE main line, for the last stretch after Collooney).
Have planned the journey in the direction as above, for preference: because in the S. L. & N. C. R.'s last years, all its passenger workings were railcar or railbus, save for a mixed train, steam of course, which left Enniskillen for Sligo, late afternoon / early evening (no corresponding mixed working in the opposite direction). The ideal situation would be, to finish the day's journey by travelling on this train for the length of its run. However -- if doing the undertaking the other way around, would yield better trackage-covering opportunities overall; I'd do it the other way around -- Sligo to Enniskillen, earliest working of the day: railmotor as it would be; finishing the day on the Cavan & Leitrim, as far as it might be possible to penetrate to on same (Arigna? Dromod? at worst, perhaps just Ballinamore...). With Irish weather being as it renownedly is: I'd appreciate being able to order a guaranteed beautiful sunny day for the bash.
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pitdiver
Member
Go back to the early 60s and travel out of Waterloo on a Boat Train to Weymouth Quay and travel over to the Channel Islands on the Sarnia or the Caesarea
cosmo
Member
I was born in Newcastle in 1997, but I'd like to go back to the South ECML circa 1989 and see the hybrid Class 91+43 sets... 
I have on my bookshelves a heafty BR Southern Region timetable for September’61 to June’62. One day when I get the time I’d really like to scrutinise my fantasy rail trip in detail and see what I could achieve in 24 hours. My trip would aim to include Eastbourne to Tunbridge Wells via Eridge, then from there to Lewes and Brighton, Brighton to Christs Hospital, Christs Hospital to Guildford, Guildford to Waterloo and from there to Padstow on the ACE. If time allowed then the S&D has to be sampled at least from Templecombe to Bath and back.
There are so many possible permutations of this fantasy and if an extension of time was granted then it would have to involve the Great Central, the Waverley route, and as much of the Scottish Highlands as time allows.
Fantasy overload!!
There are so many possible permutations of this fantasy and if an extension of time was granted then it would have to involve the Great Central, the Waverley route, and as much of the Scottish Highlands as time allows.
Fantasy overload!!
D841 Roebuck
Established Member
I'd go back 536 years for a trip on the Battlefield Line. However, since it hadn't been built at that time, I'd have to go for alternative amusement, which would be Stanley and Tudor hunting with a selection of modern weaponry...
Don't tell us your allegiance is to that evil hunchbacked nepoticidal monster -- how could you !?
...
Western Sunset
Established Member
Here's mine. Starting and finishing in my home town in the summer of 1957. Though I'd only be two years old, so might not have appreciated it...
Derby Midland dep 2300 (Fri)
Bournemouth West arr 0518 (Sat) via Somerset & Dorset. Would've just started becoming light after Bath.
Bournemouth Central dep 0630 (via Wimborne and Ringwood)
Brockenhurst arr 0742
" dep 0803
Waterloo arr 1000
Bakerloo Line to Paddington for a look around
Marylebone dep 1215 (via Great Central and Woodhead)
Manchester London Road arr 1747
Manchester Central dep 1930 (via Peak Forest)
Derby Midland arr 2201
The itinerary has some slack, so hopefully it would've worked. Covered former LMS, Southern and LNER metals, with a GWR "peek" at Paddington.
Derby Midland dep 2300 (Fri)
Bournemouth West arr 0518 (Sat) via Somerset & Dorset. Would've just started becoming light after Bath.
Bournemouth Central dep 0630 (via Wimborne and Ringwood)
Brockenhurst arr 0742
" dep 0803
Waterloo arr 1000
Bakerloo Line to Paddington for a look around
Marylebone dep 1215 (via Great Central and Woodhead)
Manchester London Road arr 1747
Manchester Central dep 1930 (via Peak Forest)
Derby Midland arr 2201
The itinerary has some slack, so hopefully it would've worked. Covered former LMS, Southern and LNER metals, with a GWR "peek" at Paddington.
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rdlover777
Member
go back to 2011 and try to convince the DfT that merging the 460 and 458s is a bad idea
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Someone else would have done the same task. Maybe more extreme. Be careful what wish for.
Sprinter107
Member
- Joined
- 26 Mar 2019
- Messages
- 984
Can we have a week instead. There are so many stations and routes I want to travel on. Plus going back to all the streets I've lived in to see what they were like years ago. Armed with loads of memory cards, and chargers, you wouldnt be so restricted as with film. As well as the trains, carriage and station interiors too. The list would be endless. As I want to go back to well before I was born, the only thing I would be apprehensive about is the money. I dont know about the pre decimal stuff. Think I'd get confused with that.
I have been thinking about what I would need:
Digital camera disguised as a film camera of the period plus spare power packs and memory cards
Haircut in an appropriate style for the period (off collar but not cropped)
Clothes in period style - no "performance" fabrics, visible logos or slogans. (Probably jacket and tie before about 1965)
Cash - I have some George V pennies, enough for 2 short bus rides in the early 60s, maybe 3 a decade earler.
Analog watch in a plain "timeless" style. Use a pocket watch if before around 1920.
For anything before the mid 1960s being white and male is an advantage.
If spotting avoid anachronisms by using a pencil.
And remember to allow time for re-booking on complex journeys.
I started planning a nice journey but have a quandary, can I fit in Finsbury Park to Moorgate via the Widened Lines and Finsbury Park to Broad Street without having to omit something else that I want to do. Back to the 1953 timetable!
Digital camera disguised as a film camera of the period plus spare power packs and memory cards
Haircut in an appropriate style for the period (off collar but not cropped)
Clothes in period style - no "performance" fabrics, visible logos or slogans. (Probably jacket and tie before about 1965)
Cash - I have some George V pennies, enough for 2 short bus rides in the early 60s, maybe 3 a decade earler.
Analog watch in a plain "timeless" style. Use a pocket watch if before around 1920.
For anything before the mid 1960s being white and male is an advantage.
If spotting avoid anachronisms by using a pencil.
And remember to allow time for re-booking on complex journeys.
I started planning a nice journey but have a quandary, can I fit in Finsbury Park to Moorgate via the Widened Lines and Finsbury Park to Broad Street without having to omit something else that I want to do. Back to the 1953 timetable!
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