December 2022

60011 approaches Woodlesford with an additional 6E97 1044 Newbiggin - Milford Sidings. Normally the gypsum empties on a Saturday run to Carlisle or back to Teesside via the Tyne Valley, but that's not currently possible in the aftermath of the recent cement train derailment at Petteril Bridge Junction (03/12/2022)

47812 approaches the level crossing at the former Cutsyke Junction with 1Z36 1539 Castleford - Newcastle 'Northern Belle' charter. My real reason for standing here in what really was the very last of the daylight was to record a '47' working over the short stretch of track to Pontefract Monkhill via Glasshoughton that has seldom been visited by the type on passenger trains in recent decades (03/12/2022)

After arriving on the rear of 1Z68 0727 West Coast Railways charter from Lancaster, 47826 waits to depart Edinburgh Waverley via the 'Sub' with the 5Z69 1111 empty stock move to Joppa Straight (07/12/2022)

Later that evening 47826 is pictured again under the bright lights of Lancaster station with 5Z71 2025 back to Carnforth Steamtown. As per my two recent Wednesday visits to Edinburgh on LSL charters, this one also returned from the Scottish Capital via the 'Sub' and meant sister 47802 was at the sharp end of the train in both directions (07/12/2022)

37419 'Carl Haviland' waits for the road at the east end of Leeds station with 3S26 0628 RHTT to York Works. 37716 was on the rear of the formation, which had just arrived back from an early-morning round trip to Knaresborough (08/12/2022)

68020 'Reliance' at Manchester Piccadilly after arriving with 1B73 0926 from Cleethorpes. The loco would return to the Lincolnshire coast with the 1B78 1318 departure in what were the first passenger-carrying runs for the type over TPE's 'South' route ahead of the forthcoming timetable change (08/12/2022)

The following morning 37419 + 37716 were again deployed on the overnight RHTT circuit around North and West Yorkshire. 'Carl Haviland' awaits departure on the last leg back to York Works as 3S26 0628 from Leeds. I perhaps regret not taking the DSLR to work with me to try and record this working properly, but my mobile phone has produced some surprisingly good results from what was effectively a chance encounter (09/12/2022)

37419 'Carl Haviland' powers away from an unplanned reversal on the 'Down Harrogate' Line at Whitehall Junction with the late-running 3S29 0827 York Works - Leeds - Hellifield - Leeds - York Works RHTT (11/12/2022)

Retro-liveried 37218 brings up the rear of 3S29 on the approach to Armley Junction as the RHTT embarks on the final leg of its circuit back to York via Harrogate (11/12/2022)

57313 'Scarborough Castle' races through Kirkstall with 5Z73 0949 empty stock move from Carnforth Steamtown to Norwich Goods Yard for a 'Northern Belle' charter the next day (11/12/2022)

Less than five minutes later 46115 'Scots Guardsman' makes a fine sight passing Kirkstall Loops from the opposite direction with 5Z24 1230 Holgate Siding - Carnforth Steamtown. The loco and now empty coaches had been used on a Railway Touring Company charter from York to Edinburgh and back the previous day (11/12/2022)

60096 approaches Horbury Bridge with an additional 6Z24 0808 Tuebrook Sidings - Drax Power Station loaded biomass. In truth I wasn't intending to be here to photograph this working but noticed it was running 45 minutes late as I got off the bus in Horbury town centre. Let's just say it's a good job this location is at the bottom of a steep hill as despite me running the last 1/4 mile the 'Tug' was passing under Storrs Hill Road in the background as I arrived (14/12/2022)

70805 passes the remains of Healey Mills marshalling Yard with the 1007 Preston Docks to Lindsey bitumen empties. Today was a second successive day of industrial action on the railway network, and with only a handful of core routes open on a single 12-hour signalling shift, the loaded tanks had actually gone west yesterday and spent the night in Lancashire. Running as 6Z42, today's train had run via the WCML to Golborne, then across Chat Moss to Manchester Piccadilly before continuing via Standedge and picking up its normal path at Heaton Lodge Junction near Mirfield (14/12/2022)

Viewed from the same spot an hour later, 60047 approaches Storrs Hill Road with 6Z26 1008 Liverpool Biomass Terminal to Drax Power Station. As with the two previous workings I'd photographed today, this one had also been routed via Chat Moss, Manchester Piccadilly and Diggle (14/12/2022)

Nearing the end of its journey, immaculate HN Rail liveried 37405 passes its ultimate destination as 0Z40 0737 Shrewsbury Coleham to Leeds Midland Road. The Type 3 first had to run through Hunslet to reverse at Engine Shed Junction in Holbeck in order to access the Freightliner VMF (15/12/2022)

Under the glare of the platform lighting, LNER's recently re-liveried 91105 is pictured on arrival into Platform 9 at Leeds with 3A13 0524 Neville Hill - Skipton. In a short-notice change to the plan the set was subsequently stepped up to work 1A04 0605 Leeds - Kings Cross (19/12/2022)

47813 approaches Storrs Hill Road at the eastern end of the former Healey Mills marshalling yard with 1Z73 1132 'Northern Belle' Christmas Lunch charter from Manchester Victoria to York (21/12/2022)

During a window of uninterrupted Winter sunshine on the shortest day of the year, 60002 'Graham Farish' slows to a stand in the Up Goods Loop at Healey Mills with 6E09 0828 loaded biomass from Tuebrook Sidings to Drax. In truth I'd been hoping the Freightliner cement empties from Dewsbury to Hope which overtook it less than a minute later would either arrive first or do so as the '60' approached Storrs Hill Road but no such luck and as bowl-outs go I'll take this one (21/12/2022)

56078 crawls past Stourton Freightliner terminal on the AD Line with the slightly-delayed 6D79 1235 Lindsey Oil Refinery to Neville Hill tanks.The sun had just dipped below the horizon behind me and the light was by now far from ideal but I felt the scene was still worth recording on what I assume will be the last time the fuel train runs this year (21/12/2022)

Iarnrod Eirann '201' Class no. 219 'River Tolka' calls at Thurles with the 0900 from Dublin Heuston to Cork (24/12/2022)

An hour or so later no. 229 calls at Portlaoise with the 0925 Cork - Dublin Heuston (24/12/2022)

Recorded In miserable weather conditions whilst I was waiting to change onto a Galway-bounfd service, 226 powers away from an unscheduled stop at Portarlington with the 1100 Heuston - Cork (24/12/2022)