Cab Ride - Herne Hill to East Croydon 

In the front window, like sitting in a greenhouse! When I realised, I turned the cool air on in the cab and it behaved the rest of the journey. I was going to run this to Redhill, but it would have been about an hour long and that’s longer than ideal, so I’ll get East Croydon to Redhill up fairly soon!

Ha! Can you imagine! Fortunately there’s no physical track connection, so I can sleep a little easier! 😆

Thanks for the kind comments. The video would have been a bit long going to Redhill so I’ll get that uploaded a bit sooner than normal

More to come! Was going to run this to Redhill, but it pushed the video to an hour and thought it would be better split

Glad you enjoy them. The final part, from Redhill to Woking, will likely be uploaded towards the back end of next week

Love stories like this. The rolling stock has changed somewhat in the intermediate 50+ years!

@@emmo999 Yes - green paintwork, slam-door carriages and separate compartments; those were the days! Re the 'spotting, I seem to recall that the local trains had numbers beginning 4 or 7, the fast electrics with a 3, and the diesels ("thumpers", my friend and I called them) with a 1.

Yes, that’s pretty much the way it was. Thumpers are brilliant machines, such a lovely noise. And who doesn’t like an EPB!

Oh gawd Steve, I just watched this again after a year (see my comment above). Another fan who watched trains from the Norbury footbridge! Except I did it in the mid to late 50s. Saw Beachy Head's last ride go through there, although didn't realise what I'd witnessed until many years later. And move another mile towards Thornton Heath (which is where I grew up) and you'll see the bridge across the old north throat, where there used to be a fabulous reverse ladder crossing between the up and down yard. The noise as a PUL-PAN combo roared past towards Croydon at 70 was jet-like! And all those buildings on the left going south - that was the local coal yard. I remember walking around there with my dad looking for his mate who was a coal man, to cadge a few cwt of nutty slack...

@@stevemoss7793 Victoria-Coulsdon North 94, Epsom Downs 84. Vic Brighton fast 4, slow 14, The Belle was also 4. Thornton Heath 6 tph off peak - 2 to Coulsdon N, two to Epsom D and 2 round the corner to Norwood Junction and thence, I think in 1956, back to London Bridge via Forest Hill as an outer circular.

Always nice to know where you’re going! 😂

I will do, when time permits. The East Grinstead is easier, but I’ll get them both when I can

It comes down to the company suggesting a route depending on route knowledge and making sure the machine is facing the required direction (sometimes this means long routes to turn machines) and Network Rail saying where it can go to fit between already scheduled trains

@@emmo999 Thanks.

Yes, I was surprised. I appreciate being behind glass in the sun is artificially warm, but I wouldn’t have expected that. Lesson learned!

@@emmo999 Happens all the time with cell phones. I can’t leave them on the dash. My radios are fine in the sun.

Ok, I was a little over enthusiastic with my measurement - the point I was trying to get over just being it hadn’t skipped lots and lots and lots

@@emmo999 Some of us would be anal enough to count the sleepers!

That’s beyond the call of duty....!

That's what I thought. It's never a mile from there to Whitehorse Road bridge.

Tampers are diesel only - necessary due to the work they do in engineering possessions, when all power is switched off

@@emmo999 thanks. I did wonder. Couldn't hear engine noise on the video