Two weekends at Morecambe Bay

Glourious weather tempted us to the seaside twice, over at Morecambe Bay, on consecutive weekends...  The first stop was Hest Bank, in Lancashire.  Mainly for a walk, but also to try it as a photography location.  A Barrow-Preston service is seen above, from the top of the footbridge alongside the crossing.

The light was good, there was next to no breeze, and it was pleasantly warm too.

For railway photography it wasn't brilliant- even in bright sunlight the camera was struggling a bit to capture just how fast these trains were going.  Pendolino on a Glasgow-London Euston service, seen above...

Lots of aircraft about, so a few pictures were snapped whilst The Childs played.

As luck would have it an excursion, a Northern Belle land-cruise was passing by, so a quick shot from alongside the crossing barriers.

The second weekend prompted a drive out to the coast again for much the same reasons- nice weather, little stroll, picnic and an ice cream- this time to Grange-over-Sands.  This small town is very nice, a well-kept little holiday town at the south end of Cumbria.  Once a proper seaside resort, the estuary silted up and now it looks out over a salt marsh towards the bay.

Pride of the town are the well-kept park and promenade.

The ornamental park containing a pond full of rare-breed ducks and geese.

Less variety for train pictures, particularly on a sunday, but a nice setting.  Sprinter from Barrow to Preston above and below...

...and a class 185 going the other way.

Then, picnic eaten, it was under the railway and onto the promenade

On the walk back to the car, after ice cream, another sprinter passing...

The view inland.

And nearly back to the car.  All in all, a nice couple of days in the sunshine.

We're just back from a busy fortnight shooting various project work in Wales, so hopefully the next few posts will be from those photo sessions...

KWVR Spring Steam Gala...Part Three

Final part of the Worth Valley Gala photos, and Sunday morning provided a chance to get the early morning goods train with the visiting Black 5 running.

The photo was taken up in the woods between Damems and Ingrow...

...with a better angle than usual, gained by standing in the river in my wellies.

On the way back, the Coal Tank and the 'Crab' heading towards Keighley on the vintage stock.

This was the last chance to get a night shot for the foreseeable, and I wanted to get out and photograph a night service with the WD out near Haworth.  Leaving about fifteen minutes before it was due, I was a little annoyed to see it roaring past up the valley before I could get to the location, so I raced up to between Haworth and Oxenhope then just got this not very good shot.

I realised though that this was an earlier double-header running late, and not the train I was after at all.  So I was able to get back to the intended location, and with the bonus that the light would have faded even more when I got there.

The shot was taken from the nature reserve at Ebor Lane, in the rain, waiting for the train.

Having sat in the dark in the rain for a bit, wondering again what the normal people were doing at that time of night, the WD turned up, going hell for leather.

Slightly weird effect with zooming out

But a nicely dramatic shot to finish with, and to cap off the weekend.  I had considered going up to Oxenhope to get some more 'traditional' night shots, but in the end changed my mind because of how drenched I was getting.  Probably for the best, as looking at FB afterwards showed that the veteran photographers on the Worth Valley had the stations pretty heavily staked out anyway, so I doubt I'd have been welcome. 

So apart from the awful weather on the Friday, a pretty good weekend with a day riding the trains and a couple of decent spells lineside. 

KWVR Spring Steam Gala...Part Two

Day two of the KWVR Gala featured less photos, as this time we were on the trains, along with a mate and his son.  Ingrow Station above, with the (technically) 3rd visiting engine, 45212.  Technically a Worth Valley loco it is being operated by Ian Riley and it is based over the hill in Lancashire.  A fellow photographer from the old days who I used to meet up with on shoots was up on the footplate too, but I didn't get chance to talk to him as I was busy wrangling The Childs.

The same loco at Oxenhope...

Later in the day, just to prove the blue sky existed, over the slightly ragged industrial rooftops of Keighley.

The 'Crab' under the overbridge at Keighley.

The Black 5 and the Crab climbing out of Keighley, from the train.

A few attempts at shots inside the tunnel now, just going for an unusual and arty atmosphere- particularly like the shaft of light in the above picture.

Slightly different lighting...

...and smoke effects on leaving.

Finally, a more moody and slightly harsher exposure in Ingrow Tunnel.

Final part next, a couple of shots from Sunday

KWVR Spring Gala Part One...

Back in time to the start of March for the next few blog posts, and the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway Spring Steam Gala.  A good event this year, with two (technically three) visiting locomotives, lots of people on the trains, the only downside was the poor weather.

Friday was spent wandering around the valley, mainly at the northern end.  The shot above (done in greyscale due to the awful weather and lighting) was the visiting B1 on a demonstration freight train.

Annoyingly this horse decided to move out of the shot about three minutes before the train arrived...

To my surprise there was nobody staking out the tower at the end of the path from Damems halt (a much coveted spot usually) so I was able to get the visiting Hughes 'Crab' on the vintage stock...

...and the northbound freight with the Coal Tank.

By this point other photographers were showing up, so I decided to go grab a brew, but diverted to have a look at the photographic possibilities of the old mill ponds and sluices near Damems...

...and suitably refreshed, got a shot of the B1, this time on a passenger working, there.  Again, dull weather and lighting so greyscale once more.

Up through the mud to Haworth with the Coal Tank and 85 over the occupation bridge, then there was a gap in the timetable.  Given I'd slithered and slipped ungracefully to get here, and the rain was starting to bucket down, I decided to walk back up the valley. 

I made a stop for another shot of the B1 at Damems on the way though.

Later, dropping into the station at Ingrow to renew Amy's railcard, I got the WD and 85 in the rain, out on a late-afternoon service.

With the light fading I nipped out to try for the train in the dark, with not great results as the mini tripod was difficult to balance on the wall, and the streetlights were casting some very odd lights.  I decided to go out and try again later in the weekend...

Coming next, a rather sunnier Saturday.