The Hastings Blue Belle charter
Saturday 6 November 2010
This article was closed on 12 January 2011
Above: Our train returns over the
newly-relaid track from Imberhorne Viaduct to the Bluebell
Railway’s brand-new East Grinstead station. Photo by Phil
Barnes.
The Bluebell
Railway chartered our train to run from Hastings via London to East
Grinstead (Southern), and then via a link siding and onto the Bluebell
Railway’s own track and station at East Grinstead.
This section of railway is being re-opened yard by yard as the
railway’s cutting at Imberhorne is re-excavated, as it had been
used for landfill after closure. The Bluebell Railway’s website
contains an illustrated account of this process.
The outing was scheduled to depart from Hastings at 0706hrs and call
at Battle, Etchingham, Tunbridge Wells, Tonbridge, Orpington, then
reversing in a bay platform at London Bridge to head non-stop via Forest
Hill and Oxted to East Grinstead. Whilst there it was to run onto the
Network Rail siding beyond the station, reverse off that onto the
Bluebell metals along which it would visit the latter’s station,
Imberhorne Viaduct and the then limit of railway in the re-excavated
portion of Imberhorne cutting. The return from East Grinstead (Network
Rail) was booked for 1655hrs and via the same route, arriving in Hastings
at 2040hrs.
The train was formed thus: 60116-60529-70262-69337-60501-60118, with motor
coach 60118 Tunbridge
Wells leading on departure from Hastings. The outward and return
trips ran to time throughout, and whilst on the Bluebell Railway our
train made 13 trips from East Grinstead station across Imberhorne Viaduct
to the current end of the cutting, and back.
Video footage from a forward-facing camera mounted in the cab has been
made available in a separate
news-article
Photos
Above: At London Bridge on the outward
leg of the journey.
Above: Our preserved train runs through
Lingfield, just two stations away from the terminus at East Grinstead.
The train’s slip-stream is visibly carrying along a trail of fallen
leaves from the trees, which when crushed under train wheels can cause
severe rail-adhesion problems for trains at this time of year. Photo by
Ian Hall.
Above & below: Our train arriving at
Southern’s terminus at
East Grinstead. Photos by Phil Barnes.
Above & below: After calling at East
Grinstead (Southern) station, our train proceeded into the Network Rail
siding beyond. Photos by Phil Barnes.
Above: From the siding, a set of points
leads to the newly-laid trackwork and platform of the East Grinstead
(Bluebell) station. Photo by Phil Barnes.
Above: The East Grinstead section of the
Bluebell Railway runs as yet for just a short distance, crossing the
impressive Imberhorne Viaduct. Passenger trains only recommenced running
here on 4 September 2010, having previously been absent since 1958.
The Imberhorne Railtour of
1983 involving sister DEMU 1031 is described as
visiting the siding and entering upon the viaduct—the siding-track went
further in those days. Photo by Phil Barnes, who also photographed that
railtour and confirmed the above.
Above: At the time of our train’s
visit, the track ended shortly after the viaduct and part-way into the
Imberhorne Cutting, which had been filled with domestic waste after the
railway originally closed. This is being re-excavated to allow the
railway to run here again; fresh ballast can be seen, and since these
photos were taken track has been re-laid in this area.
Above & below: Views by Ian Hall and
Phil Barnes of our train on different trips (of 13) that it made to
Imberhorne Cutting during the course of the day.
Above & below: The north end of our
train, alongside the Bluebell’s 4-VEP electric multiple unit, at
East Grinstead (Bluebell) platform. Photos by John Simmonds.