With only the two enthusiasts left, myself and a guy who had travelled by bus and foot from Silkstone, quite an undertaking I thought for what amounted to 30 minutes of traction action here, the set passed back along the line a few minutes late, passing here at 16:17 but essentially, on-time. This time the 'greenery' isn't in the way of the green-one, class 66, 66004, 'I am a Climate Hero' now leading the set back down-grade towards Wadsley Bridge, Neepsend and Woodburn Junction on the 1Z24 working back from Stocksbridge Works, Deepcar really, departing at 16:10. The set will then head east along the Lincoln line to Worksop for a brief pause and from there reverse back along the line as far as Brancliffe East Junction where 60015 will head up the S.Y.J., the South Yorkshire Joint line back to Doncaster. At both sides of the substantial M.S.L.R. bridge here, which is steeply graded across the track, lies of old cable posts can be seen, these used to carry the signalling, control and at the top, the huge 30kVAC conductor which ran between the electrical sub-stations. The old Wharncliffe Wood sub-station building is around a mile north along the track behind, the approaching train, the concrete building and its transformer and ancillary equipment pads, remain, the building has been graffiti'd inside in the style of a library with books on the shelves!, the site would take some demolishing as it, along with much of the Woodhead line infra-structure, was very heavily built...
In the right-hand picture, looking south towards Woodburn Junction, the rear loco, 60015, comes into view and, unnoticed by me at the time, but informed by one of our group, the loco has an original 'tail lamp', seen in this picture on the left bracket which held the U.K.R.'s plate on the way up... very nice touch and, the tail lamp was apparently from the EM1, class 76 loco, 76054, a picture of it can be seen here, at Rotherwood Exchange Sidings, in 1981, see-
www.flickr.com/photos/andy_hoare/5289230011
So, its just over 40 years since a loco would have last carried that on this line; the Woodhead Line closing in July, 1981.
(thanks to Martin Etherton and Marcus Stent for passing this information on, appreciate it..).
This in the return Charter tour, 'The Last Chance', operated by U.K. Railtours, see-
www.ukrailtours.com/product/the-last-chance/
with traction provided by D.B. Schenker, on the return leg, 1Z24, back from Deepcar via Worksop and Doncaster, where the class 90 electric, 90021 will go back on and then head-off along the E.C.M.L, with coaches 5921, 6042, 6067, 5929, 5998, 1651, 3390, 3345, 3386, 1657, 3364, 3325 & 17105, arriving back in Finsbury Park, 7 minutes late at 22:06.
To add the 'icing to the cake' as they say, again, on-line, a video of the Charter tour as it pauses on the way up the Stocksbridge Branch, at the site of Sheffield Victoria Station, a very fine piece of work in good weather, see-
www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1xvgohllQQ
