An afternoon on Anglesey
Tuesday 25th September 2001
I was sitting in the office, not in the mood for work and looking wistfully
at the blue sky outside when the gen came through that 47 744 Royal
Mail Cheltenham was working 1D87. So I booked the afternoon off and rode
along to Bangor station where I discovered it was running 40 minutes late.
Apparently the HST set which should have formed this train suffered a fire
in a power car on its way to Euston. Virgin, to their credit, provided 47
744 and stock from Crewe rather than cancel it. The train is seen here arriving
at Bangor as I prepare to load my bike into the Driving Van Trailer.
The guard, a keen cyclist and marathon runner, told me it had been very busy
from Crewe, and about 40 passengers alighted at Holyhead for the ferry which
I suppose is pretty good for midweek in September. The scene is identical
to Saturdays, with a Wales and West 158 biding its time before its mid afternoon
start for Cardiff.
Rail staff and a lone photographer are at the east end of platform 1 as 47
744 runs round
The locomotive couples up ready to form 1A70 to Euston which left 15 minutes
late.
I'd hoped to photograph the return from the lineside but the late arrival dashed my plan. I watched 1A70 depart before cycling back to Valley to photograph the nuclear flask train