Brewery loco day...
Second Childhood
© Geoff’s Rail Diaries 2017
Geoff’s Rail Diaries
9 July 2017
It seems to have become an annual event - a day when the
Chasewater railway gets some of its stranger toys out to play
- and watching some of them, “play” is really the right word.
The green Baguley diesel (with blue underframe and buffer
beam) may look rather odd, but it chugs along nicely in a
rather convincing manner. The smaller Baguley, No 5, looks
like a child’s toy (I’ve tried - I really can’t see where the key
to wind it up goes), but it is pretty conventional, I suppose,
by 1939 standards. It’s the other two, the sit-up-and-beg
Planet (Worthington 21) and “Morris” the Motor-Rail, that are
the real eye-openers.
I couldn’t help thinking, watching these two - one each end
of a train consisting of a solitory brake van - that they must
be in their second childhood. They seemed to be having a
whale of a time, operating what is to all intents and purposes
a useless train back and forth up and down the sidings, in
clouds of exhaust smoke. Great fun to watch - great to see
them in operation - great that there’s a place where thay can
get out and strut their stuff without being a nuisance...
The brewery locos are a side show - there’s also a normal
passenger service - a 3-coach train hauled by Colin
McAndrew. Yes, really! I’m sure the 08 at the other end was
only there to avoid running round at each end of the line.
The day coincided with the annual open day /
operating day of the Aston Manor folks at
Aldridge. Their operations include a service to
connect with the railway at Chasewater
Heaths. We’d better have a ride! Amongst their
collection are some of the old buses which
were in their last years of service in my
student days (early 70s) in Birmingham. Didn’t
take much notice of them then, but it was
great to have a ride in beautifully restored and maintained
JOJ 548, a 1950 Guy Arab. I suppose buses like
this are in their “second childhood” too (and
us?), but they’re still doing what they were
built for. All good fun - a great day out!
Links:
•
Chasewater Railway
•
Aston Manor Road Transport Museum
