Morecambe Bay Stay
In May 1966, a small group of mates stayed in Morecambe for a few days including a visit to Hest Bank for an afternoon on the West Coast Main Line .
Then in early September 1967 we spent a week in a BR Camping Coach located in former goods yard sidings at Hest Bank station, with views of the adjacent Morecambe Bay.
On both occasions we also travelled around by train to other places in the north west.
Our May 1966 lineside sojourn only spanned about two and a half hours, but produced a variety of loco types. A 'Jubilee' heading north light engine was unfortunately not identified. Ivatt class 2 2-6-0s and Ivatt class 4 2-6-0s were seen on freights, as well as 'Black Fives' and Stanier 8F 2-8-0s. A couple of 'Britannias' came through including 70045 on a Barrow - Euston. Perhaps the most interesting was Fairburn 2-6-4T 42297 heading south with a Dynamometer coach - though my photo of it taken off the footbridge at Hest Bank station was rather blurred!
Below is a picture from the May 1966 visit, Britannia 70045 'Lord Rowallan' on the afternoon Barrow - Euston express.
9F 2-10-0 92016 powering through Lancaster on 10 May 1966 is the centre of attention for photographers. Note the overhead gantries in the background for the electric service from Morecambe and Heysham , a Midland Railway enterprise which ran from 1908 until the beginning of 1966.
Camping coaches at Hest Bank, one of which was our home for a week in September 1967. A great location for railway enthusiasts plus a chip shop across the tracks!
Morecambe Bay is over on the right. Hest Bank is the only location on the West Coast Main Line between London and Glasgow where you can actually see the west coast from the train.
BR's charges for use of these coaches were designed to require groups of people to travel by train to the stations where they were situated and they were also encouraged to make use of the railway to travel around the area during their holiday. Which being railway enthusiasts, we were quite happy to do. On our journey from Cheltenham on Saturday 2 September, we had one steam-hauled section, using the 10.55 Euston – Barrow between Preston and Lancaster, headed by 'Black Five' 44917.
There was plenty of steam activity at Hest Bank, mainly on freight and parcels workings, but with one or two express passengers still rostered for steam. We had settled into our Camping Coach in time to see the 13.20 Euston – Glasgow express roar past with 'Britannia' 70025 'Western Star' – it was the final working of this Summer Saturday only train and said to be the last scheduled non-stop steam run between Crewe and Carlisle, so well worth seeing.
70025 'Western Star' passes our siding at Hest Bank with the 13.20 Euston - Glasgow as a diesel hauled 'Freightliner' heads south. Carlisle Kingmoor shed had pretty well all the remaining 'Britannias' in September 1967 and they were on a number of workings during our week here.
The previous Saturday, I had been on a separate trip and photographed this train ascending Shap bank with 'Black Five' 44711 on 10 coaches, banked by BR Standard 75039.
'Black Five' 45219 handles a Leeds - Morecambe parcels train through Hest Bank on 2 September, shortly to branch off the West Coast main line for its destination. 45219 was a 55A Leeds Holbeck engine; the shed officially closed to steam at the end of September and 45219 was withdrawn from service.
A highlight during the week, on Monday 4 September, was the sight and sound of doubleheaded 'Black Fives' - 45345 and 45052 - on the 17.45 Manchester and Liverpool - Glasgow express. It was normally a class 40 diesel which headed the combined parts – the one it brought from Liverpool, and one steam-worked from Manchester – northwards from Preston. Presumably on this occasion both parts had been steam. Being caught unawares, sadly I didn't get a picture.
An indication of the steam activity is shown by Monday 4 September, between 08.00 and 15.00 - there were 19 steam freights; 3 parcels; 1 express passenger; 12 light engines, probably mainly to and from Carnforth shed. These included a good number of workings on the Morecambe branch. Loco types were: Black Fives; Stanier 8Fs; BR 9F; BR 75XXX; BR Britannias. (On another day, there was a lone BR 73XXX.)
We used our Rover tickets to get around the north-west, visiting places between Manchester and Carlisle, including a trip on the Settle & Carlisle and along the coast line to Workington. We also visited a couple of industrial locations, see 'Cumberland Ore and Shore'.
There was a morning Barrow – Euston express which was steam as far as Lancaster, a 'Britannia' on the Monday and Tuesday. We decided to get up early on the Wednesday and catch a DMU to Ulverston in order to return on this working to Carnforth. And it was….well, not a 'Britannia', but 'Black Five 45295 with the usual six coach load. However the loco got shifting - 33 minutes late off Ulverston, we arrived at Carnforth 26 late.
A memorable incident comes to mind– we had been out and about using our Rail Rover tickets, and caught the last train of the evening back from Preston. Now we knew this didn't stop at Hest Bank and we would have to travel through to Carnforth, then return by taxi to our Camping Coach. As one of our party was on crutches, we thought it worth trying to get the crew of the DMU to stop specially at Hest Bank to let us off. So we had a word with the guard, who said we should talk to the driver. We did and he said he couldn't stop, but would slow down sufficiently for us to jump off…. Which he did and we did, crutches and all, onto a platform in the midnight darkness!
'Britannia' Pacific 70014 'Iron Duke' speeds through Hest Bank with a southbound parcels working on 4 September.
On 4 September 'Black Five' 44993 of 12A Carlisle Kingmoor heads towards Hest Bank station on one of the many freights which were still steam-hauled at the time.
Mixed traction on a northbound tanker train with Sulzer Type 2 D5096 and 'Black Five' 44677 on 4 September.
Stanier 8F 48744 passes Hest Bank Signal Box and the road crossing on 4 September.
On 6 September we travelled up to Ulverston and at Arnside waiting to come off the branch was a ballast train hauled by Carnforth's 44758. The branch used to connect with the West Coast main line at Hincaster Junction, but in 1966 was cut back to Sandside and served local quarries.
At Ulverston we caught the 08.35 Barrow - Euston with 'Black Five' 45295, a 12A based engine. We travelled on this to Carnforth, were perhaps unlucky not to get a 'Britannia'. On our May 1966 trip we did have 'Britannia' haulage on the line,behind 70023 'Venus' with the 10.47 Preston - Barrow all stations. That day 70023 left Barrow on the 13.46 express to Euston.
45295 waits to depart from Carnforth and then the going away shot. The loco took the working as far as Lancaster where a diesel was due to take over.
On a day out from Hest Bank on 7 September 1967, we went to Workington and visited the shed, code 12D.
Dead locos on the left: 46452; 92093; 43002. In steam are 43008 and 43017, the latter familiar to us when it was at 21A Saltley.
Ivatt class 4 2-6-0 43006 engages in shunting duties at the shed.
On the Tuesday of our Hest Bank holiday, we went for a trip over the Settle & Carlisle line from Skipton. At the latter, we were pleased to see 'Jubilee' 45593 'Kolhapur' - one of only two 'Jubs' still in traffic - come in on a long train of,mainly, ore empties.
Less than two weeks previously, I saw it on the S & C with a summer Saturday passenger - see below.
45593 was withdrawn at the end of September from 55A Leeds Holbeck.
More information about Hest Bank railway station is at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hest_Bank_railway_station
We had been in the area a week before our stay at Hest Bank and here are three pics from that trip.
A brief look in at Preston Docks found one of its Bagnall 0-6-0ST shunting some coal wagons. Before this trip in March 1967 I didn't even know that Preston had a docks, let alone that it had a fleet of steam locos for shunting!
A picture of Black Five 44711, from 8F Springs Branch, Wigan powering up Shap Wells on the West Coast main line on 26 August 1967 with Standard 4 75039 banking. The train is the 13.20 Euston - Glasgow which we photographed the following Saturday at Hest Bank with 'Britannia' 70025.
Meanwhile on the Settle & Carlisle line the same day, the main attractions were Leeds Holbeck's 'Jubilees' on summer Saturday expresses. Below is 45593 'Kolhapur' at Appleby about to pass over the Penrith to Darlington Eden Valley line. Classmate 45562 'Alberta' was seen earlier at Ribblehead viaduct on the 6.40am Birmingham - Glasgow.
