Author: Old Arkwright

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Well that’s the first few weeks out of the way.

Here we are with services running again on the railway. Granted it may not be as many as we would like to run and we are running with reduced capacity. But we are running!

It’s nice to see visitors back at the railway enjoying themselves.

We have lots of events planned, the most notable being Thomas’ 50th birthday bash at the end of the month. Plus of course the The Steam EnGIN Express on the 24th July. I will be interested to see how the event goes. I feel that it will be popular and hopefully become a regular perhaps yearly event.

This coming Saturday the 12th of June sees the Wansford Miniature Railway Grand Opening. A lot of work has gone into the miniature railway’s construction and it will without doubt be popular.

Locomotives in Steam and on Display

Steam Locomotive Sweet Pea “Holly”
Steam Locomotive War Department No 90776 Royal Anglian Regiment 
Steam Locomotive GWR King “King Edward II”
Steam Locomotive GWR Parire No 4588
Steam Locomotive Sweet Pea “Joe”
Battery Electric Class 14 No 9520
Battery Electric 08 No 08679
Under Overhaul LNER B1 Roedeer on Display
Sweet Pea 

  • For the Opening of the Miniature Railway Train Services are £1 per return trip, tickets purchased on the day from the Miniature Railway 
  • Miniature Freight Train
  • Miniature Railway Shop with a selection of fund rasing items for sale
  • Miniature Traction Engines in Steam 
  • Special Celebration First Day Postal Covers
  • Blue Circle in Steam
  • Social Distancing is to maintained at all times in line with Government guidelines 
  • The NVR will be running main line Steam services on the day
  • Refreshments available at Wansford Station. 
  • All attractions subject to availability and Covid restrictions 
  • Please note to travel on the miniature railway you must be in possession of a Platform ticket or Main Travel ticket.  

If you’re visiting the railway please give it your support.

So lets look forward to a summer of trains and visitors.

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The magic of The Nene Valley Railway.

When I joined the railway some sixteen years ago people often commented about the magic of the Nene Valley Railway, and I never quite understood what they were on about.

Today I am sitting here watching families arrive at Wansford Station, and see them showing their young children the view through the gates. I see the children hopping from one foot to another excitedly, looking forward to seeing Thomas and having a trip behind him.

Then I see the adults smiling as well already enjoying their visit and looking forward to what’s ahead.

Looking at that I now understand what people mean when they talk about the magic of the Nene Valley Railway.

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Ready Steady GO!!!!!!!!

Tomorrow sees the recommencement of services on the NVR, hopefully with no more lockdowns ahead.

Services will still be far from what we are used to, we still have social distancing.

Looking at the official railway web site we have lots of special events coming up, please support them. This is still a critical time for the railway.

For those who do visit and travel, you are most welcome, thanks for your support it is appreciated.

The railway has played a very important part in Peterborough’s history and development and it’s fair to say the city would be very different if that first train had not steamed into the city in 1845.

Whilst we can’t fully recreate those days, travelling on the railway does give you the opportunity to travel on part of the first railway route into the city.

If you take some nice photographs during your visit and would like to share them please feel free to send them to me and I would love to include them on the blog. The email address can be found to the right of this posting.

Welcome back to The Nene Valley Railway.

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Track Trespass.

It’s fair to say that all lines be they heritage or network suffer from track trespass occasionally. And this is not always done by youngsters. In my experience of catching trespassers they can be of any age and of either sex.

At the moment we are having problems with this around the Orton Mere station. With pupils going to and from school.

So this blog post is aimed at locals to the NVR.

Please remember it is an offence to trespass on a railway. It’s a dangerous place. Trains can run at any time and on any of the lines.

Now I am aware that the above video is of a train on the national network but the principal is the same.

A few hundred tons of train can’t dodge a trespasser and just because a train is on a heritage railway does not mean it weighs less. Walking on the track or beside the track is dangerous, there are numerous trip hazards some more visible than others.

So if you are one of those who trespass on railways just remember that railways can kill they are dangerous places. Graveyards and crematoriums are full of people who thought trespassing on a railway was not dangerous.

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Coming to a screen near you.

For several years Railcam have had three cameras on the NVR.

Well I am pleased to announce that one of the cams showing the Main Wansford station and crossing is now available on YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mO_xi4GHig for the direct connection

Our thanks to Railcam for providing this for the railway it is appreciated.

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Oh those tickets are big!

I was reminded today of a comment often heard when people looked at the display on the walls of Orton Mere station.

We had pictures of various things on the wall, amongst them were pictures of old tickets enlarged to A4.

One off the most common comments we heard was:-

“Oh look how big tickets were in the old days!”

Most were amazed when we told them that they had been enlarged so they were easier to see, I could never imagine anybody walking round with an A4 sized ticket in their pocket.

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Ghost train: Northampton to Peterborough.

I received this from Mark Hernandez Deputy Editor of Nene Steam. My thanks to him for this contribution.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ARtlQ16skU

I’ve seen the video above shared on a few local railway groups I belong to on social media and by a lot of NVR volunteers so I got in contact with James, the young lad who created it . He kindly agreed to a short Q&A over email which I’ve included below.

Hi Marc. No problem. I am glad you like the vid it is probably the longest I have made in this format! (Ghost Train)I’ll try and answer as best I can.

Q – What made you decide to produce a then and now animated journey on the Northampton-Peterborough railway? I take it’s part of a series you’ve been doing of lost/closed railways

A –  I chose the Northampton – Peterborough line in part via a suggestion from one of my followers. Every now and then I will throw a poll or question as to where I should explore next with my various projects – after I had produced several “Ghost Train” films in this style it was recommended that I take a look at the Northampton to Peterborough line. On quick inspection I discovered some interesting changes to the local landscape. (A lot of the track seems to be cutting through water/ lakeland in many places.) I myself am not a local being based in North Norfolk.  However I am always interested in dramatic change from anywhere in the country and railways provide a striking albeit poignant one. 
Q – Have you got any local connections to the original railway or ‘Nene Valley’ area?

A – I have not been to the Nene Valley but no doubt its on the to do list after all these lockdowns!
Q – Can you briefily talk us through the process of how you created the video? Time it took etc
A – I split into phases with these films. First I research the stations along the route – what images are available to use etc then I plot the route out on both the old map and the modern day. I then synchronize the two so they work in tandem with one another. I can then animate the train and add in any extra “cutscenes” showing the on the ground locations as they are now. True trainiacs will note that the locomotive I have been using isn’t authentic to the line but that is more a limitation of my resources and should be taken as illustrative of the route rather than a reflection of the original railway. I can usually get one of these done in a matter of a few days – with the pandemic I have had more time than usual to devote to such projects!
If you could link to my youtube channel that would be a great help. https://www.youtube.com/c/JamesFoxTimeTravelArtist/  Let me know if there are any other questions and I will try  and answer as best I can!

Please visit the James Fox YouTube channel. The history of the railway and its social implications are my areas of interest, so I personally found this video very interesting.

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The Wansford to Stamford Branch Line.

Occasionally you will, when trawling through the junk on YouTube come across little gems. Here is one such gem.

© Peterborough Images

The video is from Peterborough Images, please look at their YouTube channel and also their excellent web site at www.peterboroughimages.co.uk where there are many pictures of not only the railways of Peterborough but also pictures from around the city.

My thanks for their permission to link to the video.

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Is it a dirty job on the footplate?

Now that’s a question I have been asked on a regular basis.

The answer is it depends on what you think is dirty.

Here is a picture of Harry Baldwin back in 2009, he was a cleaner on steam locos. I often commented the loco was cleaner than he was!!

© Robert Maskill