No Steam!

Big disappointment at Appleby Station today. There was a gathering of serious, and not so serious, cameras and tripods. There was discussion of engine numbers and names. There were decisions to be made as to what position to take up. And then the rumour went round – ‘It’s a diesel!”

On Wednesdays through the summer The Fellsman Train is hauled by a steam locomotive for a special excursion from Settle to Carlisle and back. Appleby is a good place to see the train, as it stops there to take on water.

But today the steam locomotive was not working and a diesel replaced it. Still, the carriages were genuine vintage. And at least we had only travelled five minutes from home and can try again another time.

So, here is The Fellsman, but no steam. (If you look large, you can see the posh First Class carriage – with the lamps!)

Oh and it was full although at this point it doesn’t look like it. These trains always get booked up very quickly. It’s just that people can get off here and have a wander round. Some even take an extra excursion by a 1950s bus to Ullswater and a lake cruise, before returning to Appleby for the journey home.