It’s seems as though lately I haven’t had any time to myself, and when I have it’s been spent doing other social/work/study/things needing to be done type things. The only time I’ve had actually had to myself, as in sitting down and relaxing has been on days after I have been doing something (Work, School). So far I’m meant to be doing a Catholic Studies assessment due tomorrow…! But instead I’m blabbering here. Also, I’ve kind of given up a little on my flickr. Maybe cause most of the things I’ve been uploading has been the same stuff.

The most train chasing I’ve done since I’ve gotten back has all been in the metrop area, so I’ve just seen the normal things I would normally see on a normal day rather than going some awesome stuff like in the Blue Mountains or the South Coast, or even Further!

Another thing I wanted to do in the last two weeks is get some shots of the last few ARG trains in operation in NSW, this weekend being their last forever! Now somehow I’m going to have to fit that in on Thursday arvo, just like everything else.

I’ve got three weeks of school left, and besides work I am going to catch up on some proper relaxation time! Might spent this summer getting a proper tan at the beach rather than a travelling tan while chasing trains, of which is all I did last summer. Other than that, the train chasing I did get up to will be on days I have the spare time, I’m not really going to plan or do anything specific (I have found myself in the last few months of someone who’s not picky at anything anymore). The one thing I have been looking forward to do is to catch up with all my gunzel mates who tend to be really cool people, but yet lately I haven’t been spending much time with…

Two things that might, and might not come up for summer 08/09. I maybe going to Queensland for Australia day and the North Coast. I might fly up to Mackay (with mum, shes got a new job coming up and has ask me to come along) and train it back to Sydney with a stop at Brisbane (Photos…duh) and Kendall (got a few relatives in Laurieton). So yeah, something different, Totally open for that. Some railpage outings are also planned for Summer, so that should bring on some laughs. And Also, a few things are planned on the boards of LVR during the Christmas Break. More than happen to get out of the city for another weekend and play some trains.

Oh, and the last of the photos are now on my flickr. They are just waiting to be processed (i.e on private), Provided that I am bother to find the time. But I promise, they will be shown for the public soon, with more other interesting stuff that I have seen since I’ve gotten back to Sydney (e.g. lots of trackwork happenings).

Patersons Curse. Cootamundra, Oct 08

Be back for more,

Freddy

Well! When I got into this little hobby of mine just over a little year ago, I didn’t realize the ramification of the journey I would go through.

The P Class leads the way. June 08. By Fred Sawyer

Stuff like all the nice, friendly and dead set funny people I’ve met are just one of the awesome things I’ve enjoyed to experience. Also, So far I’ve gone through four Cameras with the intention of getting my hands on an SLR in the near future. Tomorrow I shall be off to Cowra with a good mate, Maikha Ly from Railpage.

We’ll be heading off to the Lachlan Valley Railway and we’ll be helping out with running there train to Parkes (via Harden, Cootamundra and Stockinbingal!). Hopefully it should be an adventure in it’s own right, and being my first time west of Lithgow (Blue Mountains), let alone doing it by rail on the Cootamundra-Parkes cross country line is one of the few things I’m looking forward too!

Besides that, the people I am going to meet is also another thing I’m looking foward to. See, the LVR unlike other rail heritage oganisations actually care for there trains and the people who run them. And to me that means a lot, especially when running on the main line. In a way, LVR is kind of the underdog in Rail Heritage in New South Wales.

So from someone who first got there pentax point and shoot around May Last year (resorting in me going to Central and forming on whatever I could find – An Oscar..) I am now making my way up in this hobby, seeing such trains a trains continental freighters and our own restored ‘P’ Class (32) steam loco. So far I am enjoying it a lot. Especially with most of the people I’ve met along the way who I now consider close friends, to me that means a lot to a student who gets that chance to get away from it all.

When I get back to Sydney, I’ll be returning as a better person with the experiance I gain.

Fred

My latest post was originally going to be about my recent exploits of the Blue Mountains with my partners in crime Bwana (Andrew) & Sydney_Gunzel (Liam) from Railpage of whom were great enough to give me a day of train chasing, foaming and window licking*… And then yet again I got busy during the week so sorry for the delay.

But with all that a side, the attitude and behavior that I saw come from some people last Saturday is just, well, pathetic. Reason why I say this is that last Saturday (20/9), when the NSW Rail Transport Muesum combined with the Powerhouse Muesum ran their heritage steam locomotives 3526/3642/3830 on a triple header up the Blue Mountains to Zig Zag and back (granted, this was bound to happen), the crowds of gunzels chasing the trains was quite a lot. Not that I’m saying I’m suprised by that…

My point is as well as the Zig Zag railway (who also put on a great show of running their steam trains), the attitude of some of the people was just the dark side of the day. To me I think that if your really passionate about rail heritage THEN you think that you would actually put your hand up, slap some money on the table and help out once in a while. NOT rock up in on the day, camera and ute in hand and bloody abuse the staff and everyone else around who are trying to do their best providing for everyone else whom may be around….(e.g Families, Kids). Also, just because your there on the day taking photos of the train, doesn’t give you the right to be above the law! I mean being over the yellow line and in the rail corridor is just the stupidest thing ever!

Now, I’ll admit this now, I have not yet helped out with any rail heritage group (another post to come about that) but you think that with all the logistics involved in running a very fail prone train, far away from home base would mean at least something to some of the ‘rail enthusanist’ out there to be grantful about seeing a triple header in full steam, and not treat is as a right! 

I happened to run into a person a Wentworth Falls who came all the way from Newcastle! And out of the whole day, he was the only kind, friendly, respectful (not just for the train but for others too) and grateful that I saw on that day. He was ever telling someone in front of us to get back be hide the yellow line on a count a Sydney Bound Interurban was coming past. I mean, that is just top stuff, looking out for one another. It’s just unfortunate that said person in front of us couldn’t care less. But even thought I couldn’t care less if some of these idiots ended up underneath a train, I didn’t want to see it or happen around me at all! I came out here to have (or at least tried to have) a good time doing something I like. So safety is another thing that should be considered among some of these fence jumping and corridor invading individuals.

But I can say this. The people I saw working their train last Saturday, whether it be driving, carriage attending and anything else that involved running a train deserve my biggest respect, and probably a pat on the back for what their done**. So to the people of the Rail Transport Museums, Powerhouse Museum & the Zig Zag Railway, coming from someone who didn’t even see steam in it’s hay day, awesome stuff! Cause if it weren’t for you guys, then the show you guys put on last Saturday would not off even gotten off the ground.

Triple header through Wentworth Falls. Sept 2008. By Fred Sawyer

*Still my all time favorite, I think I have the Victorians to thanks.

**I would offer alcohol of some sort, but I’m still a little bit too young for that..

 Finally got around to uploading the rest of my shoots from our little (hell, what am I saying, SPECTACULAR) visit to RVRM.

SMR30 into Pelaw Main. Sept 08. By Fred Sawyer

Lots of fun and lots of laughs all around. The whole point of meeting new people as well as catching up with some oldies is something I’m up for any day. A Trip report can be found over at Railpage as well as everyone Else’s photos.

In total we raised (with payment for stuff, donations & the raffle with had) all up of $1136.20!!

Bus loads of Gunzels, Richmond Vale. Sept 2008. By Fred Sawyer

Fred

(BRING ON SPRING BREAK!)

If you were a rail buff during the 50s, 60s or 70s, and you were into train spotting, and was track side every so often, THEN you like be in luck! Very Very good Luck! Cause you see before Christmas of 1972, steam trains were actually on the rails and in full force.

Recently I’ve have had a major epiphany about this little hobby of mine, and how things were different a good 30-40 odd years ago. Well, yes I’ve always known that, things do change, what doesn’t! But a friend of mine let me borrow a DVD of his called Days of steam Vol. 2. When I watched it, I was amazed by how the New South Wales Government Railways were really like. No seriously, this made me think.

59s at Gosford. By Graeme Belbin

38s at Gosford. By Graeme Belbin

I always think of how much I missed out on. All I can do, think! The only this possibly I can do is go out there myself and capture the equivalent, and only hope that some things will still be there tomorrow, if not for future generations.

Source: Check out the Belbin’s Site at http://belbinvideo.com/index.htm

Flickr is probably one of the best photo hosting sites I’ve ever come across in my short little life. Probably the best $50 I’ve ever invested in. With all their awesome services, you cannot go wrong. Since October Last year, I am now pushing 1,600 photos and counting!

So it’s no doubt that when Flickr888 came around on the 8th of August, 2008 (refer to the group page) I was more than happy to contribute a shot from that particular day, spent of course trackside with people who’s company I enjoy!

But the funny thing was, it wasn’t a shot of a loco lash up of a fancy powerful freighter, just a simple Cityrail Suburban S set on the turnback at Marcarthur as it watches the sun go down with an awesome late twilight display on our way home.

Macarthur at Twilight - August 2008, By Frederick Sawyer

So far it has been a fun journey with Flickr, and I look forward to many more photos (and maybe videos) as time goes on!

….But can they run a train service?

Banana Benders out of Newstan. Fassifern, Short North. April 2008, By Frederick Sawyer

Well, apparently, they can! And they are very good at it too! By the looks of things in Queensland, QR have done a great job! From what I have come across, well, a good suburban service (so much so their seats are better than on an XPT..), decent regular loco-hauled regional services and a great high speed tilt-train service (speeds pushing 200kp/h), They basically have it in the bag!

Just so much so that in 1997, they set up shop in the land of New South Welshmen (I mean wales..) and taken up some of the interesting locos of Northern Rivers of the Mullwillumbah-Casino area. At this point, they turned it into a company that is still known today as Interail.

Since then, they have invaded other if not most parts of New South Wales and spreading into Victoria. Soon enough, they have been operating intermodel services onwards to Adelaide and into Perth with there east -west diversion. They have also set up a Coal diversion with some ex-NSWGR 49, 422, 421 class locos as-well as some ex-QR 1502 class locos converted and modified to suit crews and renumbered the 423 class (along with the standard gauge bogie’s taken from the 49 Class locos to replace their narrow gauge bogie’s). And even this wasn’t enough! They then resorted in purchasing new locos from United Goninans of Newcastle called the 5000 class. A standard gauge/modified design to PacNats NR class (and heavier to revival any 90 Class) to work the Coal roads of the Hunter Valley and the Ports around Newcastle.

3MB7 Gallops into Sydney. Menangle, Main South. July 2008, By Frederick Sawyer

Around Mid 2005, Interail’s Intermodel and Coal services were then renamed QR National (or QRN for sort). In February of 2006, QRN acquired Australian Railroad Group and around half of Genesee & Wyoming’s(WA/VIC) fleet of locomotives of 22(ex-422), 31(ex-L), and CLP/CLF class locos. For a while, the CLF/P Bulldogs were keep on the ARG runs, but after 2007 they were put into QRN East Coast Intermodel service. QRN also purchased more second hand locos of FreightAustralia (now apart of Pacific National) building there fleet even more with GM G Classes and Hooded X Class locos. QRN have also taken over CRT Group (Container Freight company) and now use their facilities in Yennora Sydney and Altona in Melbourne.

Flour for Nowra. Heathcote, Illawarra. January 2008, By Frederick Sawyer

ARG on the other hand won the contract of Pacific National to haul Flour and Container Trip Trains for the Manildra Group from their Mills around the state, from their base in Nowra (South Coast) to Manildra (West), Narranderra (South) and Gunendah (North) all in New South Wales. ARG also haul other trains around Western Australia.

Today, QR National is expanding even more, with more trains and more motive power right across the country. QRN is a good example of a small company expanding into big territory, competing with bigger companies like Pacific National (which is basically a combination of Freight Corp (NSW), Freight Australia (Vic) and West Coast (SA)).

Triple G Class! Yanderra, Main South. July 2008, By Frederick Sawyer

The reason as why I am interested in QRN is that in the end, they are also human. Their aging fleet can have trouble and yet as interesting and colourful their lash ups can be, they do have the occasion cock-up. But in the end, QRN always redeem themselfs, even though they might be 5 hours late (or worse). Before we known it, I won’t be suprised if they even take over Cityrail!

On a day, 3 out of 8 trains I see will be QR National’s. And I’m quite impressed by that.

More photos of QRN/ARG Motive Power can be found on my Flickr!

Reference – LocoPage.

Hi there,

My Name is Fred, and as some of you already know I’m a 17yo Student Currently attending High school leading up to HSC as well as part time Student at TAFE at Ultimo, Sydney. This isn’t my first time attempt at a Blog, but I’m now hoping to start fresh yet again. I’m a keen rail enthusiast and I love to Travel out and about when I can. Not only am I going to write about stuff like trip reports and what sighting I come across (rail-wise) but I also hope to use this blog about other Travels and Adventures I come across (e.g Hopefully one day I might do something like go backpacking through Europe…hehe).

I love the idea of Photography. Ever since I’ve taken up this hobby, it has given me a new look on the world. I am also an active member of Railpage Australia and also I have my own Flickr where you can view my latest uploads here. So please, have a look around and leave some comments, your much welcome. Don’t fell intimidated by me and this blog, as I too am still learning of how the things of the world works. That’s probably one of the main reasons as to why I started this blog, as almost a life lesson. I know I not going to be young forever.

Our train pulls in, as we make for home. By Fred Sawyer