Shot for the day

DXB 5080 leads 923 Middleton - Dunedin freight through Ravensbourne. 24/09/15.

With the bosses away this week I managed to sneak away from the office early today and grab this shot of 923 as it neared its destination of Dunedin.

And thats about it.

Otautau's Grain Transfer Facility

Otautau grain transfer facility.

On a recent work trip to Southland I made a little detour through the small Southland town of Otautau. Otautau is a station on the Ohai branch line. The reason I wanted to go through this town was to get some shots of a structure I've been hoping to have a look at for a long time, the Otautau grain transfer facility.

I don't know why but I really like grain facilities. It could be from my youth in Marton that had a number of grain silos and the malting plant or my time in the midwest in the states where every town had an elevator and grain silos.

Either way I just think they look good and this one especially sticks out. While I don't have the space at the moment this is one grain facility that I will build a model of in the future.

So without further ado here are some shots of the Otautau grain facility.

The grain facility hasn't been used for awhile and is starting to look rundown. Looking at the siding leading to the silos it hasn't been used to transfer grain from truck to train for a very, very long time. Would love to see a photo of a wagon being loaded here. 

From a modeling point of view this would look really good with a few V/line VHGF wheat hoppers being loaded.

And thats about it.

A visit to Dunedin railway station

Dunedin Station. 1/6/15

After tidying up a few jobs in town I decided to head down to the Historic Dunedin railway station to see if anything was happening. It was pretty quiet, not even a shunt heading out to the port or back.

This gave me a good chance to have a look at Dunedin Railways loco's and carriages. Dunedin Railways is the new name for the Taieri Gorge Railway, a tourist passenger train operator based in Dunedin that operates services to Pukerangi and Middlemarch on the former Central Otago railway and over the KiwiRail network to Palmerston and Oamaru.

If you're visiting the lower South Island a trip on a Dunedin Railways train up the Taieri Gorge is a must. Well after that unpaid advertisement for Dunedin Railways back to their locos and rolling stock.

Dunedin Railways DJ 1227 ready for another trip up the Taieri Gorge. 1/9/15

Dunedin Railways operate its trains using a fleet of five ex New Zealand Railways DJ class diesel - electric locomotives. The 64 members of the DJ class were built by Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and came into service in 1968 and 1969. The light weight triple bogie locomotives were used exclusively in the South Island and completed the dieselisation of the New Zealand railway network. The last steam loco's being withdrawn in 1971.

 DJ 1227's brass number plate and Mitsubishi builders plate (sticker).

Alongside the DJ's, Dunedin Railways has a fleet of ex New Zealand Railways and KiwiRail carriages.

The fleet is made up of wooden and steel carriages. Me, I prefer the wooden carriages because you can still lift the window and lean out (but not to far) to enjoy the passing scenery. Heres a few images of the older wooden type carriages still in service.

And some of the steel carriages....

In the last year Dunedin Railways has started to repaint and rebrand their steel carriages in the new Dunedin Railways livery. There has been a lot of different liveries on passenger carriages in New Zealand over the last few decades but the new livery is, in my opinion, one of the best I've seen.

Operating alongside the carriages is an open observation carriage that has been rebuilt from an ex FM guards van. This type of observation carriage is also used on the Tranz Alpine and Coastal Pacific passenger trains operated by KiwiRail Scenic. 

AG class open observation carriage.

With the weather closing in I quickly grabbed a few shots from the stations pedestrian over bridge. Dunedin Railways passenger services depart and arrive from the main line and the famed south dock.

 Dunedin Railways carriages resting in the South Dock at Dunedin Railway Station. 1/9/2015.

Another train ready to depart for a trip up the Taieri Gorge. 1/9/2015.

Having a good look at the locomotives and rolling stock, I was really impressed by the condition and up keep of the equipment. Good work Dunedin Railways! 

If you're visiting the lower south, make the time to travel on one of Dunedin Railways services or at least pay the station a visit.

And thats about it.

Recent travels

Double DC's leading 922 Palmerston - Middleton freight along the East Otago coastline at Katiki. 10/7/15.

Hi everyone

After my last past I took a break from railfanning and put the camera away. Heading out the door the other week I saw the camera sitting there on the shelf and on a whim thought I'd take it along with me. 

Heading through town I saw 922 Palmerston - Middleton freight getting ready to depart the Palmerston yard with a rack of empty 'goldies'. I had some spare time so I decided to follow 922 for a little while. 

I grabbed my first shot at my tried and true spot near Katiki. With only a light load, the DC's at the front had 922 flying. I managed to make the south end of the Hillgrove loop and grab a second shot just as 922 arrived to cross 923. 

922 Palmerston - Middleton freight slows as it approaches the Hillgrove loop to cross 923 Middleton - Dunedin freight. 10/7/15.

Once again I was heading through Palmerston and spotted 922 sitting in the yard. The weather was nice and I had the camera in the car so I grabbed a shot. 

DC4755 and DXB 5137 sitt in the yard at Palmerston with empty 'goldies'. 12/8/2015.

Not much effort for this one but I might not get many more chances. Oceania Gold has announced the closure of their Reefton operations in October which will result in the 'goldies' being no more. So if you can get trackside between Reefton, Christchurch and Palmerston get out there and get your 'goldie' photos while you can.

Heading through Oamaru the other day I decided to pass by Oamaru station to see what was up in this neck of the woods. In the yard I found a blast from the past. A bitumen tanker on the back of a container flat. Now these tankers used to roam throughout the country during the 1990's. For whatever reason this didn't continue into the 2000's. Seeing this in the yard is a good sign. It means Kiwirail is winning back some the traffic it lost in the past.

The tankers are actually ex UC tar tankers that have had their bogies removed. Like I said earlier good to see these on the network again.

Its good to be back.

And thats about it.

Disillusioned

I’ve been a rail fan as long as I can remember. 

When I was a young boy I used to stay at my nana’s house that backed onto the railway yard in Marton. Back in the 1980’s Marton station was a very busy place. As it was a junction, there was always something going on.

Holidays spent in the Hawkes Bay would have me swimming in the Esk River, reading my grandfathers New Zealand Railway Observers cover to cover, over and over and watching trains working their way through the Esk Valley.

As I got older I would cover hundreds of kilometres on my trusty Morrison Sidewinder push bike following the North Island Main Trunk and the Marton – New Plymouth Line. When I got my first car, hundreds of kilometres became thousands as I chased trains across the North Island.

Study, work, family. All these things put rail fanning on the back burner but when I got the chance I would still head out the door to chase New Zealand’s aging GE and EMD locomotives across the countryside. I loved it.

I had some great times and being a rail fan was good fun. But something’s changed...

I don’t know if it’s an age thing but chasing trains just doesn’t do it for me anymore. I would spend hours following local lines looking for a train but now, I don’t even bother looking. Even if I see a train on my daily travels, its ‘oh look’, but the fun has gone.

I’ve thought about how I’ve reached this point. I can tell you now, it’s not because I’m bored of the locomotives, the wagons or carriages. I’m not sick of looking at stations, yards, loops, sidings, bridges, tunnels or crossings. Nor is it the railway staff. I can’t remember ever having a bad experience with the men and women that run our railway.

The answer is politics. Politics have ruined it for me.

Two recent news stories were what did it for me. The first was Kiwirail announcing that they are seriously looking at retiring the EF class electric locomotives and removing the overhead between Palmerston North and Hamilton. Being a North Island lad I’ve grown up with the EF’s and seeing them retire would be like losing a little bit of my childhood.

The Minister of Transport gave the same cop out answer that all government ministers seem to use today - “It’s an operational matter for the organisation” and “No final decision has been made”. What a load of crap!

It’s obvious that the Government is telling the Kiwirail board which is made up of National Party appointees what they want and the board in turn gives the orders to Kiwirail.

As a state owned enterprise, it is in the Governments best interests to support Kiwirail but instead they work against New Zealand’s rail transport provider. As an example look at the introduction of High Productivity Motor Vehicles (HPMV’s) to our roading network. This is a direct attack on the main selling point for rail – the ability to haul a large amount of freight long distances cheaply. Also, I’m no accountant but I’m pretty sure that the road user charges the owners of these vehicles pay wouldn’t cover the additional damage they do to our roads.

The National government responds that they support rail and have invested $4.6 billion in the rail network. I’m sorry; who flogged it off to their mates in the early 1990’s who then stripped it to the bare bones and left a broken system. Yes the New Zealand taxpayer has had to pay $4.6 billion to fix a rail network your mates deliberately wrecked to get rich off.

At the end of the day, the current government has given Kiwirail unrealistic goals to achieve, actively works to help the competition and then expresses its ‘disappointment’ when Kiwirail doesn’t get there. At least give them a chance.

The second news story was of the Chinese workers brought to New Zealand to remove asbestos from the DL locomotives that shouldn’t have been there in the first place.

Turns out these poor guys are working for $3 an hour. Kiwirail staff are even bringing them food. Now the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment has investigated and found no issues. Even the Minister of Employment Relations has come out and said he was “very happy with the circumstances” and that the “allegations had been disproved”. He was happy to say this even though MBIE has admitted that the Chinese locomotive company CNR and the Chinese workers would not provide wage information to them. Remember also that it was this government that introduced legislation that allowed zero hour contracts and the removal of tea breaks.

And that’s why I’m disillusioned. Politics have wrecked rail fanning for me. 

961 at Merton

DXB 5293 and DC 4755 with 961 Middleton - Dunedin freight at Merton. 15/3/2014.

Posts have been a little light at the moment so I've dived into the archives to bring out this little gem of 961 at Merton. Hopefully I'll be able to bring you some more posts shortly.

Steam Special

Ja 1240 with its excursion train cresting Tumai Bank. One of my best shots of the day! 24/1/15.

A few days ago I found out about a special steam excursion being run by the Taieri Gorge Railway. The excursion was to be a return trip from Dunedin to Oamaru behind steam locomotive Ja 1240. 

Ja 1240 was one of a group of 51 4-8-2 'mountain' type steam locomotives built by the New Zealand Railways Hillside workshops in Dunedin and the North British Locomotive Company of Glasgow, Scotland. Entering service in March 1947, Hillside built 1240 worked throughout Otago, Southland, Canterbury and the West Coast before being withdrawn from service in November 1971. Luckily 1240 was preserved and is now owned by Ian Welch and cared for by his team at Mainline Steam.

Scheduled for an 8:00am departure from Dunedin, we headed down to Waitati to pick up the action. After a bit of a wait the excursion arrived with two of the Taieri Gorge Railway's very tidy DJ diesel locomotives on point. The DJ's lead the train from Dunedin to Waitati due to government imposed health and safety regulations around steam locomotives operating in tunnels.

DJ 1209 with another unidentified DJ wait in the loop as the excusion proceeds down the hill and into Waitati. 24/1/15. 

Uncoupling from the train the DJ's and 1240's service wagon entered the Waitati loop to allow the excursion through on the main.

Side by side DJ 1209 with Ja 1240 at Waitati. 24/1/15.

After getting my shots at Waitati it was time to head north. Stopping near Warrington, I joined a number of other foamers.... sorry I mean railway enthusiasts waiting for the excursion.

 Waiting for the train spoting the train spotters.

After a bit of a wait, Ja 1240 and the excursion arrived and began its climb up towards Seacliff. Both DJ's had now coupled to the rear of the train and were acting as bankers for the climbs ahead.

 Ja 1240 and the excursion approaching Warrington. 24/1/15.

And crossing the Coast Road overbridge. 

Heading north along Coast Rd, it didn't take long to get caught in the inevitable convoy of "railway enthusiasts" that follow a steam locomotive. Now it seems like everytime there's a steam locomotive, any driver nearby totally forgets the road rules. Theres nothing like an SUV screaming away from you only to slam on the brakes and dive to the left or right without indicating because they've spyed a good spot. There was also plenty of near misses seen as drivers spent more time looking for the train rather than on the road and other road users who were most likely looking for the train as well!

Anyway, just before Seacliff the convoy ground to a halt at a railway crossing with bells, flashing lights and barriers where we waited and waited some more.

The convoy stuck at a railway crossing just south of Seacliff. The excursion can be seen at the upper right of the photo. 

Now I'm not sure why the excursion had ground to a halt south of us but seeing 1240 get the train moving again on the grade (with the assistance of the DJ's) was good to watch. I managed to get a few shots as the excursion passed us gathering speed.

Ja 1240 climbs the grades near Seacliff. 24/1/15. 

And another shot. 

With the barriers up it was time to head north once again. North of Seacliff I decided to use a spot I'd used once or twice in the past. I knew the shot I'd get probably wouldn't be that flash but I knew the convoy was heading for Merton and I didn't want to be fighting for room there.

The excursion cruising along the Otago coastline with Otago Peninsular and the Pacific Ocean in the background. 24/1/15.

On the road once again we got through Karitane and headed towards state highway 1. To get there we had to cross the Main South Line at Merton. Merton was packed. One of my favourite railfanning spots was now inundated with railfans most of which were setting up for that classic shot of a train crossing the Merton bridge. 

Successfully dodging some more ducking and diving SUV's we headed to one of my all time favourite spots the Tumai bank. While there were a few railfans waiting, there was plenty of room for everybody and soon the excursion could be heard working hard up the bank.

 The excursion cresting the bank and starting the downgrade to Goodwood. 24/1/15.

Both 1240 and the train looked great as they crested the Tumai bank and I knew I had some good shots on the SD card. It was time to head north again towards my next spot. 

Being a local certainly helped today because while plenty of people go from one well known spot to another theres plenty of places I've discovered that offer great photos too.

One of those spots is the Goodwood railway crossing in Palmerston. I was really surprised to arrive there and find we were all alone. Theres something quite satisfying about having a train all to yourself especially when there's a whole heap of people chasing the same train. It was at Goodwood Road where I got one of my favourite shots of the day.

The excursion at Goodwood Rd. 24/1/15.

By now the kids were getting a little restless so were bribed with an icecream at Palmerston. The excursion had stopped as well and as we passed the crew was finishing up filling the tender with water. Heading north we came across 961 Middleton - Dunedin freight at Bushey behind two DC diesel locomotives. 961 was holding the loop while waiting for the excusion to pass.

 961 Middleton - Dunedin freight at Bushy. DC 4277 doing its best steam locomotive impersonation. 24/1/15.

Grabbing a quick shot of 961 from the wrong side we continued our travels north to another favourite spot of mine just north of the Shag River bridge. Yes that really is the name of the river. 

This spot has been very kind to me in the past due to the large piles of metal chip that is stored here for roading projects. I've been told the key to good train photo's is height, height and more height. I'm sure that weather, the sun and the locomotive on the front not being a DL locomotive also play a part too, but those metal piles were great for getting some elevation. Not this time though. Must of been some road works completed recently because those big piles of metal were now merely small mounds.

It didn't matter though as I was still able to get a good shot with Puketapu in the background to boot. 

The excursion with Puketapu in the background. 24/1/15. 

Back on the road we once again headed north on state highway one to another spot I enjoy just south of Katiki. Ja 1240 was again looking pretty in the viewfinder as it approached the former Katiki station.

Ja 1240 looking good as it approaches Katiki. 24/1/15.

Crossing the overbridge at Katiki I could see the train had come to a halt at Katiki and plenty of people were hopping off. I'm guessing it must of been a photo stop for the passengers.

Shortly after we arrived at our final spot for the day at Hampden. There was a bit of a wait but it was worth it as Ja 1240 put on a show as it climbed up the grade to the site of the former Hampden station.

Ja 1420 climbing the grade to the former Hampden station site. 24/1/15.

Turning around I managed to grab a going away shot as the excursion headed deeper into North Otago.

And the going away shot.

While the excursion and the convoy continued their trips north it was time to call it a day and head back home.

Big thanks to the good people of the Taieri Gorge Railway, Mainline Steam and Kiwi Rail for putting on a great morning of entertainment. I feel guilty getting my photo's without contributing to the running of this train. Might have to pop into the Dunedin Railway Station to drop off a donation to the TGR.

Also a big thanks to the Otago Rural Fire Authority. Otago is in a total fire ban at the moment due to the 'big dry'. Throughout the morning I saw rural fire vehicles following the train checking for any fires. If it wasn't for these guys this trip would not have gone ahead. Cheers lads.

And thats about it.