October Steam Special on "The Trunk"

[Mayner]

Managed to get away on Sunday and chase the Glenbrook Vintage Railways "King Country Express" between Poro-O-Taro Tunnel and Te Kuiti (one of series of Spring day-excursions from Hamilton)

Wasn't sure of the excursion was running until I came a cross a family group with cameras at the ready at Poro-O-Taro about 70 miles from home!

Ab (Class)4-6-2  608 Passchendaele  (named 1918 to commerate NZR staff killed during WW1)

The train is emerging from the new Poro-O-Tarao (larger bore) tunnel built in connection with the electrification graded central section of the "Trunk" during the late 1980s.

The tunnel is at the summit of the steeply graded section between Te Kuiti and Taumaranui and the watershed between two river systems.

 

Train about to enter a crossing loop (signal in distance). The excursion aimed mainly at the general public rather than enthusiast and mainly locals taking photos.

Heritage Railway/Tourist Train operators tend to develop their own distinctive carriage  liveries rather than attempt re-create historic liveries. Interestingly both the Glenbrook Vintage Railway and Dunedin Railways selected a yellow livery for their Tourist/Heritage railway operations https://dunedinrailways.co.nz/scenic-train-tours/

Passing site Mangapehi station.

Now a quiet spot in a sparcely populated area Mangapehi was once a busy spot and major source of timber, livestock and coal traffic on the trunk, site of a large saw-mill and a Bush-Tramway which eventually extended 58km into a forest and also served a local coal mine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangapehi_railway_station. 

The river and railway descends for approx 20 miles from Poro-O-Taro to Te Kuiti in a stepped valley where wide valley sections alternate with sharply curving sections where the railway follows the contours or even cut into a shelf on a hillside. Unfortunately the shelf/gorge section between Mangapehi and this location was in shade on this trip.

608 departing T Kuiti with her train and the entering the relatively flat Northern section of the Trunk to Hamilton and eventually Auckland.

The OHL gantries is one of the 'signature' features of Te Kuiti, main street and avenue of trees on the opposite side of the 'tracks" to her train. These days mainly a crossing place for through trains, restored station building in now a Bar-Resturant, third road sometimes used by p.w.d (former goods yard) or access to turntable for very occasional steam specials.

Te Kuiti (approx 4,800 pop) was served by the  daily Auckland-Wellington "Overlander" passenger train until replaced by the tourist focused trice-weekly Northern Explorer in 2012 and Te Kuiti no longer served by passenger trains.

"Te Kuiti Industrial Line" used to extend approx 2km South of the yard to serve a fertiliser depot and lime works out of use by early 2000s, 

 

[leslie10646]

Thanks for these John. Super.

I note that the loco is a Pacific, but at first glance looks quite like a South African 19D - maybe it's the Vanderbilt tender?

[Mayner]

Hi Leslie

The Ab had quite a pedigree a 1915 2 cylinder development of the A Class 4 cyinder de Glen compounds of 1906 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NZR_AB_class both designed in house by NZR.

Apparently the largest class of steam locos to run in New Zealand more a mixed traffic rather than a purely passenger design,

The Vanderbilt tender was a feature of the Ab and larger Ja Class 4-8-2 locos.

Interestingy I took a number of photos of 608 on a Soutbound special at Te Kuiti in 2014, I was working at the time and often managed to fit chasing trains/gricing into my work schedule