A JA would fit nicely along that fence...
As always when returning to where I grew up, I am amazed at the changes that have occured since my last visit; Trees grown or gone, new buildings, old faces....luckily the old Nor-Wester is pumping so I'm constantly reminded where I am!
One of the biggest changes I have noticed so far this trip are the trains; There are so many more about! And without looking too deeply, I think its easy to see why...its all about the dairying boom. While wandering south from Christchurch on Saturday, we met DFT7132 sprinting north with J22, A Timaru - Christchurch Freight which pickups milk tankers (LSM containers on IC wagons) from Temuka.
923 Leaving Timaru, Heaton St alarms activated in the background.
Today I followed 923 CHCH-DNDN Freight to Studholme from Timaru....which was the 4th station it had shunted at on the way south after AshVegas, Temuka and Timaru. I was hoping to catch 920 coming north for a crossing, but it had snuck through in between me calling Train Controller Paul Strickland and loading the troops into the LAV (Swine...he said the crossing was St Andrews). Later on today I could catch another 2 freights passing through, as well as the local shunt to Pareora and Winchester if I so chose.
923 enters the loop at Studholme, ready to shunt the traffic on the left
So what has all this to do with Model Trains, I hear you cry....well, I honestly believe that the number of people who choose this as a hobby is in direct correlation to the number of trains around to be seen...the more trains, the more people will be "sold" on the idea of somehow trying to create what they are seeing in miniature. Honestly, this is the most trains I have seen away from home for ages....and if a confirmed train nut like me is noticing more trains, one can only assume that Joe Public are as well. And that has got to be good for everyone.
Postscript: Highlight so far was during a rest stop along the Kaikoura Coast just north of Oaro....having 2 DX's pop out of a tunnel just a stones throw from our vantage spot, disappear into another short tunnel, then reappear over 300 meters away and disappear into a 3rd tunnel....while wagons were still rolling past us (including an SA/SD set on its way north)...just magic.
4 comments:
I know what you mean. There seems to be alot more trains around. I do most of my chasing around North Otago and it seems theres more trains around. The diesels seem to have more tonnage hanging off the couplers as well which is a good sign for kiwi rail.
Very good. So that freight entering Studholme is heading south? must be the goods loop on the right then?
I hear a lot of trains lately, especially at night. For most of the last 17 years I've lived less than a block away from the Main North Line on the outskirts of ChCh.
Just wish that there was a more favourable ratio of trains seen to trains heard :-S
(I missed the Picton- ChCh Tranz Coastal by mere seconds today...)
Nice shot of DX5454 in Timaru!
That is the LE's left...:-)
Yes, it is a southbound. The loop that was to the left of the photo that ran behind the platform (and originally served the Waimate branch) has been gone since the 1990's.
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