Hi All, Bletchley/Bedford, anyone near me ?
 

Hi all, i am hoping i find someone local to me who knows the layout of Bletchley and/or Bedford Railway stations.

There is special Steam Train coming up to my neck of the woods on saturday, i live in flitwick on the kings cross/st pancras main line this steam train was originally coming through my local station, but now they have changed the route, it is now going from euston to bletchley then along a branch line to bedford then up to the distant north.

So i am hoping to contact somone local who knows where i can go to SPOT this steam train, please.

another problem, my eldest daughter has gone on holiday with my camera and i have had to borrow an old camera (no zoom) with a colour film !, in it ,so i would like to get quite close to this steam engine to enable me to get a good picture or two.

can anyone advise please

tim

Hello Tim and welcome to the Railway Forum. I'm in Bristol and have not been to Bletchley since I went to the GPO telephones school at Bletchley Park in the early 1980's.

My mum used to work at bletchley park during the war, when i lived at woburn sands and was old enough to go out to work from 1961, i worked at wolverton carriage and wagon works, went to work behind a little steam engine !, even before 1960 i went out on my own to cambridge and oxford (on the train of course) spotting steam engines, those were the days, never been the same since eh.

tim

Hello Tim and welcome to the forum, I am sure someone will help you out on here, enjoy and all the best.

Hi Tim, welcome to RF, hope you enjoy the site.

Bletchley Park has been a bit run down (criminally in my opinion) but I believe there are ambitious plans afoot.

cheers,
Andy

Hi Tim why not get down to where the old st johns was or bedford midland I am on that trip its due ito depart bedford at 7.43 due back around 21.18 funny enough my mate on the trip also used to work at wolverton c/w hope you get some good pics mate Paul

thanks for that info pal, i shall see what i can do, does train still go on the same track that was there when st johns station was operating ?

tim

Hello Tim and welcome to the forum,

Hi Tim. Welcome. Only been through, so I don't know it well. There are some knowledgeable blokes on this site.

Hi Tim no only part of the line. there is a new st johns now just under the old bridge near the hospital looks like it could rain so get your brolly out mate Paul

Hello and welcome to the forum Tim.

Hello Tim, welcome to the forum.

Tony

Hi chaps, are there NO ladies who are mad on steam engines/trains ??????? I wonder why !

I met a few other steam enthusiasts when i went to watch 70013 come through Bedford St Johns station earlier today, these fellas certainly knew more about there hobby than i did LOL.


tim

We do have a few ladies on the forum, I don't think any of them are amongst the really regular members, but I may be wrong with that. There are certainly a lot of ladies involved in the railway movement, indeed some of our highest ranking volunteers of the East Lancs our ladies.

Ladies, let's see your photos !!!!

So how does one volunteer ?, preferably locally !.

tim

Well, it changes from line to line. I think you'd be best off getting in touch with your nearest preserved line, and having a chat with themn about the matter.

Hi Tim, and welcome. I live nowhere near either (I'm near Portsmouth), but as luck would have it, I went to Bletchley (getting off for the first time) on Monday 13th July, and was quite pleased with the photographic potential. Six platforms: 1 & 2 used by fast non-stops, 3 & 4 used by most other traffic, including freight, platform 5 (didn't see it being used) and platform 6 on the east side of the station, used by the Bedford trains. The Bedford line curves directly east from the station itself, going beneath a bridge & passing the TMD on the other side, so that's NOT very good for photos, but if you're on platforms 2/3, you're in position for anything using the up/down fast and the up/down local. The two groups of tracks are seperated at the south end, meeting up again just after the road bridge just past the end of the station. If you'd like to see what I managed to do (photographically speaking) at Bletchley, there's a good few photos in this collection:
http://daverowland.fotopic.net/c1725838.html
Hope this is of some use to you. Have fun, Dave.

Morning Dave, you should have "popped" round for a "brew" mate, I am only 5 or 6 minutes walk away from the south end of the station.
How is Gosport by the way, still have that good market on a Saturday ?

48111

Hiya mate; well, had I known... actually I prefer to stay within photographic reach of trains to be honest! As for Gosport... hmmmm. Market on Tuesdays & Saturdays, but now Woolworths has turned into a rather splendid 99p shop! If you know Gosport at all, here's a collection of photos I've taken recently of what's left of the railway & station (which is being turned into a housing/office complex):

http://daverowland.fotopic.net/c1668655.html

Bit depressing, to be honest.
Thanks for the virtual cuppa, hang loose, Dave.

Hi Tim and welcome to the Forum.

Look forward to your posts.

Best wishes,

John H-T.