Archive for the ‘Portugal’ Category
Swap time at Regua, 1415 ready with the 2010 to Pocinho which was replacing 1413 which had worked from Marco and is sitting behind. This was an excellent occurance for us as it put 1415 which we had previously missed on the daytime Pocinho Saturday
1455 Rede, 0805 Marco to Regua
1415 at Pocinho in the afternoon sun. I really do think these look better on orange!
1415 at Aregos on the 1522 Pocinho to Marco waiting to cross 1455 on the other set
With all three locos working the 2010 at Regua was swapping again, 1455 and two coaches are waiting to relieve 1415 and go forward as load four (booked on Saturday nights for Sundays train)
Sunday was the turn of 1413 to arrive at Rede on the 0805 Marco Regua.
This was one off the bucket list, a CP 1400 to Pocinho. Due to an engineering block for electrification between Caide and Marco on the Douro line, CP have very nicely sorted the currently isolated section between Marco de Canaveses and Pocinho to be worked by three 1400s and six Schindler coaches outbased at Regua, largely due to reliability issues with the usual ex-RENFE carts. A reduced timetable sees two of these sets required each day for service with just two trains operating between Regua and Pocinho at the end of the line. Unfortuntely traditional orange liveried 1415 went sick as we arrived and was stopped with wheelset issues leaving the blue pair of 1413 and 1455 to thrash us around
1415 at Rede on the 0717 Pocinho – Marco de Canveses
1455 working the 0805 Marco de Canaveses – Regua arrives at Rede with 1413 getting ready to be waved out by the pointsman (no signals in this part of the world)
1413, Pocinho during the layover before working the 1522 back to Marco. With the blossom just coming through, blue skies and fresh air stock with a Super Bock in hand through the varied parts of the river valley i have certainly had worse afternoons!
1413, Regua, 1906 Marco de Canaveses to Pochino. The way the moves worked most of the photos were of this which stuck to the Pocinho trains, this required the two minute dwell here on this service to be somewhat extended as both locos and coaches required fuelling!
At least the picture of 1455 is half decent as it storms into Caldes de Moledo on the 0805 Marco – Regua
And so it couldn’t possibly feel left out, 1413 again doing the same on the 1006 Marco – Pocinho. For February the sun was already beating down and it was 20 degrees in the day, shorts weather for some!
Pocinho, 1413, 1522 to Marco
1413 at Aregos on the 1522 Pocinho – Marco where we leapt for an evening behind 1455 instead
… 1455 arrives at Aregos on the 1705 Marco – Regua in the soft evening light. It would then work the 1853 off Regua for the last train back from Marco at 2113.
A couple of days in the other land of former Orange locos, Portugal. After much divering we had finally sorted out a trip to cover the Porto vice turns which have seen regular appearances of 1400s for the last year or so due to a shortage of the Spanish 592 carts which work the Douro and Minho routes… Only a short trip so gone for a more detailed write up style for a change.
5607 1052 IC
We arrived on Saturday lunchtime and after finding the first of many working DMUs, headed down to Espinho on 5607 working the 1052 Porto – Lisbon, which is the 1005 from Braga.
5617 Porto
After an hour in a windswept Espinho beach hut, 5617 returned us to Porto on the balancing turn, 0930 Lisbon – Braga. The gripper was straight on this one (compulsory res) but seemed happyish at FIP coupons and just said we should get a res in future… DMUs on both the afternoon Valenca and Pochino turns were a dissapointment so we headed for the first (of many) Super Bocks before taking the first (again, of many) 3400 series EMU out to Gaia to bring the 1130 Lisbon-Porto IC in with 5611 up front.
GM 6004 at Porto
After checking in there were more DMUs to flag so we headed into Porto itself with an EMU to Sao Bento to find somewhere to eat. Dashed back to Campanha to cover the 1815 but clearly there was to be no 1400 today so we did another move to Espinho with 5608 on the 1952 Lisbon for 5606 almost straight back Porto on the 1730 Lisbon – Guimares before calling it a night after a couple of beers on one of the bars over the road.
5606 Porto
Getting up early on Sunday was a waste of time as the morning Douro was of course a DMU. We took it out past Contumil where 1408 was stabled on a scratch set, which wasn’t a good sign with weekend work being potentially thin on the ground. Repeated yesterdays electric move, going to Aviero instead with dud 5611 out for 5618 back. Lots of euros have been spent on the mainline with the main stations rebuilt, including Espinho being put underground, yet stretches remain as bolted track, bizarre! Again the 1310 & 1315 DMUs were DMUs so we jumped on 5606 to Gaia on the 1252 Lisbon before heading into town to do touristy things and headed back more in hope of expectation for the later departures. DMU on the 1615, beer, pair on the 1715, but whats that, the 1815 is shown as departing from a main platform and not the bays – maybe, just maybe… After a somewhat tense fester around 1740 a big orange and white front appeared from the gloom under the Estádio do Dragão – YES!
A VERY welcome sight..
1408, one of the early Vulcan Foundry built examples, duly ran round to form IR 857, the 1815 to Valenca formed of two Soreframe “Corails” and a genny van. Absolutely delighted to finally get one, we settled in for a thrash to Viana del Costelo which was as far as we could get for a unit back to Porto that night. Tight timings and faster than expected linespeed allowed the EE veteran to put in a cracking account of itself. It was a shame to leap at Viana but at least the recent clock change meant it was light enough for a phot.
1408 at Viana do Costelo
A celebratory beer in the station bar before a 592 DMU back to Porto, then back up early next morning for another cart out on the 0610 Porto – Valenca to intercept 1408 on the 0736 Valenca – Porto at Ancora.
1408 on arrival at Campanha, 0736 ex Valenca
On arrival 1408 scuttled of ECS back to Contumil so we checked out and took 5611 again down to Espinho on the 1005 Braga – Lisbon. After a snack by the beach we got absolutely soaked through getting back to the station in some of the heaviest rains I’ve seen for a long time, however the reward was new 5604 on the 0930 Lisbon – Braga.
5604 at Porto
There was more DMUs and a dud 5600 on the next possible moves so we called it a day and headed into Sao Bento for more wandering (albeit every road seemed to take us to the same place) and a dive between some bars before taking the Metro back to the airport and Ryanair home, which was rather unhelpfully kept on the tarmac for over an hour due to congestion at Stansted. Got us back though, and we’d bagged a 1400 so happy days!
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