The Herd of Wildebeeste - Sat 16th July

On Saturday 16th July, UK Railtours are running a railtour from London Waterloo to Paignton with a pair of class 73s top'n tailed with a pair of 73/9s.

The outward journey is via Sailsbury to Exeter with the 73/9s in charge. Then the train reverses to Paignton with the 'original' 73s in charge taking the train along the Dawlish sea wall. There is around a 3 hour break in Paignton.

The return journey will be via Taunton and Reading with the 73/9s in charge all the way back to Waterloo.

Also interesting to note is that the DSR has their 3rd annual beer festival on the same weekend as this tour which should make Paignton an interesting place for a variety of different traction!

Link: http://www.ukrailtours.com/product/the-herd-of-wildebeeste/

 

A shame I'll be working as I'd travel on this for the name alone.

 

Good job it goes along the Exe & Teign, all that water to refill radiators that have chucked theirs all out in protest at doing some real work away from the stabiliser rail

 

I presume it will sd/pu in Torquay, based on the name of the tour. Basil lived there, where you could also see the Hanging Gardens of Babylon and Sydney Opera House, from the hotel bedroom window.

 

And the sea is over there, between the land and the sky.

 

the train no doubt will be sweeping majestically down into Torbay... it's a great name.

 

........ just don't mention the war ......

 

Damn you lot, you all got in first.

Never mind, I shall still make the same post I was going to make:-



I assume the above is the reason for the tour name?

Hey, this tour won't be spoilt by having a steam loco on the back will it?

 

Last minute substitution instead of 4 ED,s, its gong to have a west country ,to Exeter then a Maunsel mogol and t9 to torbay ohhh, if only skrting the clifts, with the T9 leading,

 

Presumably when the ED's inevitably sit down, Basil will give them a damn good thrashing with a branch ?.

 

I've been wondering whether to enquire about the name, which made no sense to me. If it's a reference to a TV series, that explains my ignorance.

 

Given the name,I was hoping that this tour would be hauled by a series of double-headed B1s (Reedbok, Steinbok, Impala, Waterbuck, Onyx, etc) specially dug out from the Strategic Reserve.

 

It refers to a rather splendid rant by Basil Fawlty in an episode of "Fawlty Towers"

 

The clip posted up thread by Kent Yeti will explain it all.

 

Their sense of humour pedigree goes back to LVRC days. I have hazy memories of going to a club meeting or two some forty years ago. No guest speaker, no slide show, just lots of beer drinking.

 

I forget the organiser but, there was a steam tour with an S15 around Somerset and Devon, called the Exe-Parrett. Those being rivers, not deceased parrots.

 

Pathfinder Tours IIRC.

 

The ever-helpful Six Bells Junction website confirms that it was indeed a Pathfinder tour, and it dates right back to 8th October 1994.

The tour originated at Wolverhampton, with 828 operating a clockwise circular leg from Bristol Temple Meads via Westbury/ Yeovil Junction/ Honiton/ Exeter/ Taunton. Apparently it took a break at Yeovil Junction, where the "Yeovil Rail Festival" was in full swing. And there's a rather nice shot of 828 on the turntable there, adorned with "The Exe-Parrett Excursion" headboard, that was taken during this break and it can be viewed via the following link http://www.brsince78.co.uk/3651.htm.

 

Complete with a toy parrot on one of the lamp brackets. ( Responsibility for that rests with a member of the ERPS support crew...)

Cheers, Neil