Home»All my photos»2012 Railway Photos»The Scot to sunny Scarborough 19 July 2012

The recent emergence of a number of engines in BR Brunswick green express livery has been most welcome, but old favourites should not be neglected. So the near-certainty that the Scot would be covering the first week of the Scarborough Spa expresses this year made it important to clear the diary for the Thursday, when the weather looked the most promising.

There was torrential rain as I left Lancashire but this had cleared to sunshine by the time I reached York and rebuilt Royal Scot class 4-6-0 No 46115 Scots Guardsman reversed its ten coach rake into Platform 10.

With a light load, we plodded away on the first circuit of West Yorkshire, but we managed to reach 61 at Church Fenton. The main excitement occurred on the climb out of Wakefield Westgate to Outwood, where the loco cracked away, accelerating to 26 at the A650, 32 at Outwood station and a maximum of 34. It sounded marvellous, but was said by regular travellers to have been 5 mph slower that the Tuesday. We meandered back to York, the only excitement occurring when after slowing at Colton Junction, we barked away up to 51 at Copmanthorpe before slowing for York.

The level run across to Scarborough was more lively, reaching 61 by Barton Hill before the Kirkham Abbey curves, and after Malton we made it to 64 at East Knapton before an early arrival in Scarborough.

After the compulsory fish and chips at Mother Hubbards, I was delighted to find the sun was fully out and the train was back in the station, enabling a happy photographic interlude before the return run. We made it to 66mph at Scagglethorpe before slowing for Malton, then again to 65 at Strensall. I left the train at York after a good day out in the sunshine, but as a native Yorkshire fellow-traveller remarked, “Tha’ll nivver gerra nosebleed offa speeds like this.”