Kirklees Light Railway Gala Sept 2007 (plus return trip)

Miniature Railways - Colin Peake's Photographs

23rd September 2007

The second gala at the Kirklees Light Railway under the present management took place over the weekend of 15th and 16th September 2007. An intensive timetable was planned with half hourly trains running the full Clayton West - Shelley route, interspersed with shuttles running from either end of the line. All this was explained to passengers via a nicely printed timetable handout - full marks to the railway for this!

Visiting locos were:

CCLR No. 24 from the Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway
'Mountaineer' from the CCLR
'Effie' from the CCLR
'Smokey Joe' from the Sherwood Forest Railway

Effie was operating shuttles from Shelley to just outside the line's tunnel, top-and-tailing with the loco from the last incomming train. Shuttles at the Clayton West end ran as far as Cuckoo's Nest, with additional rus by Smokey Joe. I was privelidged to get a seat on a special run down to Cuckoo's Nest behind Smokey Joe, which had apparently completed a full-line trip the previous evening.... in 2 hours.

Somehow I managed to forgot to photograph Effie (oops!) and Hawk and Owl also managed to evade the camera most of the time, despite having a ride on a train double headed by the pair!

Updated 23/09/07: After a tip-off on the Miniature Railway World forum (thanks Kristian!) I discovered that No. 24 and Mountaineer would be running again the following weekend. A trip on Sunday 23rd September found 24 doing the honours, with Hawk in reserve in case 24 played up! Kristian and Stuart from Cleethorpes had come over to drive, having held the fort on the Humber estuary whilst the rest of us enjoyed the Kirklees Gala!

I've included a bonus clickable of a long-shot of 24 arriving at Shelley, it is my present desktop image...

24 prepares for it's first run of the day. 640x480	Smokey Joe couples up to it's makeshift coach. 640x480	Mountaineer and Badger at Shelley. 640x480
Mountaineer and Badger depart from Shelley. 640x480	No. 24 on the Shelley shuttle, seen near the tunnel. 640x480	Owl arrives at Skelmanthorpe with the KLR's latest coach first in the train. 640x480
Mountaineer and Fox ready to depart from Clayton West. 640x480	A view over Smokey Joe heading out of Clayton West. 640x480	Smokey Joe after arrival at Cuckoo's Nest. 640x480
Having run around Smokey Joe poses at Cuckoo's Nest. 640x480	Another portrait of Smokey Joe. 640x480	Heading back to Clayton West along the tree lined route. 640x480
An impression of speed, we weren't going that fast... 640x480	No. 24 runs around at Shelley - who forgot to turn the loco? 640x480	Fox at Skelmanthorpe. 640x480
Mountaineer at Clayton West, with Badger again. 640x480	Hawk departs from Clayton West. 640x480	No. 24 arrives back with a shuttle working. 640x480
Fox approaches Clayton West station... 640x480	the driver hands over his instructions. 640x480	Another coach under construction at Clayton West. 640x480
23/09/07: Hawk simmers outside the shed at Clayton West. 640x480	No. 24 ready to depart from Clayton West. 640x480	24 pulls out of Clyton West heading for Shelley. 640x480
24 comes into view at Shelley. 640x480	Arriving at Shelley station. 640x480	24 pulls forward onto the turntable. 640x480
Ready to depart from Shelley for Clayton West. 640x480	Back at Clayton West 24 takes on water... 640x480	before trying to hide in a smoke screen. 640x480
Ready to depart again from Clayton West. 640x480	the small 7 1/4" gauge loco on the raised line. 640x480	Bonus: larger version of the long-shot! 1024x768