U.K. Field Trip Part 2: Severn Valley Railway Steam Gala

Click on each image for a closer look!

The Severn Valley Railway Steam Gala (Continued)

After a day on Friday spent mostly riding the trains, Saturday and Sunday were days out in the field with the galleries of photographers looking for shots and opportunities to get good pictures, as always, sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t, but it gave an opportunity to talk shop with many railfans, some of whom now know of the TRHC and will hopefully come and visit us should they ever find their way to Toronto. Many were curious about the state of museums and heritage railways in Canada and the US, and were surprised to find that the culture is very different than in the UK, especially with regards to mainline tours and the reluctance of the major railways over here to run steam excursions, which is a regular occurrence throughout the UK all year long.

For anyone who has never been to the UK, the heritage railway industry in the UK can not be appreciated without being there. I have been many times, but it only really dawned on Heather just how different it is from our museum at the Toronto Railway Heritage Centre when we were on the first train of the day on Friday morning, and we came through a field with a gallery of 30ish photographers already there and shooting!!! If the opportunity presents itself to any railfan to go to the UK in the spring or autumn gala seasons, it should not be missed as it is unlike anything you will experience locally in Canada or the United States.

Description of Images:

#8 - 9F at Speed
#9 - GWR 2857 on the Night Goods
#10 - Flying Pig at Rest
#11 - Bridgnorth at Night
#12 - Tea on the Footplate
#13 - Tornado at Speed
#14 - Oldest and Newest

Click here to read the next in this series of Field Trip postings.

Posting and Photos by Stephen Gardiner and Heather Meger