Hauling the final railtour of Saphos Trains Christmas programme, and indeed the year, was 34046 Braunton, taking charge of a trip to the Bath Christmas Market.
The tour would start at Staines, travelling to Woking and Guildford and then along the Portsmouth direct line as far as Bedhampton, where it would then head via Fareham, Eastleigh, Salisbury and Westbury to eventually reach Bath. Departure from Staines was at the early hour of 0700, so we began at Egham station, prior to any sunlight, as Braunton catches the attention of the morning commuters. With various pickups along the way, our next shot came from Witley to witness the engine tackle Witley bank under the grim weather conditions. Moving further west, the tour is next captured getting away from the water stop at Hedge End, taking it cautiously with a red signal up ahead. The next shot comes from Bapton as Braunton smokes out the surroundings heading towards Westbury. One more shot of the outward run comes from Newton St Loe on the ECS move to Bristol depot, travelling via Lawrence Hill and Bristol to turn the consist for the return journey.
With the return running under the cover of darkness, limited places were available, so it was decided to try the small platform at Dilton Marsh station to capture Braunton tackle the 1 in 70 grade of Upton Scudamore bank, which she did with gusto, providing an excellent soundtrack in the process as she heads through the darkness. The last shot of the day comes from Liss. With a passenger set down at Petersfield, and the station being on the grade, we expected performance, but we certainly didn’t expect the train to come flying past in the fashion it did, marking a great end to a cracking chase!
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