Italy: San Sebastian Iron Road

The official video of the opening weekend of the SFSS has now been posted. And great fun was had by all. A mixture of loco types from all over the world with a strong British flavour.

 

That's a big Rabbit layout.

 

That Crampton was cool! What happened to the chimney though?

Tom

 

From the air it does look a bit like an 009 layout doesn't it. Driving round it is fun. Easy with a big narrow gauge loco, more challenging with my Tich and a real adventure with the singles.

Saul's Crampton had a run in with the loco shed... Not really, he was right in the firing line of smuts and smoke so made the U bend. It's a lovely piece of work. My locos are all tall chimneys so fire well up in to the air. My best memory of that weekend was the slog up from the bottom loop in the setting sun going into the black curved tunnel and seeing glowing smuts coming out of the chimney like a mini volcano.

The line is very special with a number of unique features. All along the route is a water main with tappings every 40m for fire fighting. 2 years ago we set fire to one of the viaducts, this year as a momento we were given a piece of the burnt deck with a section of rail and a commemorative plaque.
The olive oil is also special and we each had a small bottle with a special Steam (Olive) Oil label.
I have been involved for over 20 years with this line, from when the first concrete was poured at the shed base to sourcing locos and rolling stock from all over the world. I count Guido as one of my closest friends, an amazing chap.

Already he is thinking about the next phase which will see a line branch off the bottom loop, head along the valley floor for a while before clinging to the hillside to a return loop below the main house and military collection. The total run will be 4 km, that will be a challenge for Tich so I'd better finish a bigger loco for when that opens.

The civil engineering is equally impressive, the latest tunnel is under one of the passing loops and entailed digging down 6m. In all of the works only one Olive tree had to be moved and one was damaged by machinery. With the value per tree at tens of thousands of Euros you need nerves of steel.

We had visitors from all over Europe and we had a full immersion in trains for the whole weekend. Current work is a fleet of passenger carrying wagons and finishing a Tinkerbell. I have a jobs list that will keep me going for years.

 

That's a ridiculous cutting!

How often is it open to the public, just the few days in June? I assume it's near San Sebastiano di Po near Turin?

 

It's a very private line and by invitation only. The location is in Umbria in the centre of Italy. The cutting pictured is infact now a tunnel, the lower line in the tunnel curves round and exits on to a curved trestle bridge about 20 m long and 5m high. Above the tunnel is a passing loop.

Edit: In the video at about 8 minutes you can see the passing loop and tunnel from the air with a loco going in to the tunnel.

 

This video is of the general shed area and Tich stretching her legs on the climb back up the hill. Brother Dave is driving and I caught a lift back up after points duty at the middle station.

 

Wow, that really looks a super set up!

 

Your set up reminds me of Train Mountain in Chiloquin Oregon http://trainmountain.org/

 

Indeed we call it Train Mountain, Italy Division.

 

I don't know how I missed this but Dan posted a cab ride video of a run down to the bottom loop and back. This was taken on the Friday with not much traffic. With more trains running the staff system is used with Station managers regulating dispatches.

 

It must be the cold weather that is making us remember the hot summer days and wanting to relive that weekend.

Dan has just published his version of the opening weekend.



Tich even gets a sequence to herself, shame the driver is not so photogenic ;-)

 

It's that time of year again and preparations are in full swing for next weekend. I have to finish a well wagon, today was the first time it's been outside. Buffers and couplings to go.

In my half a mind I am tempted to add the home base as Dundee and see if anyone notices my poor sense of humour.

 

Couple of these next? Loaded, of course!

 

What a good idea!! We have a relative who has their bedrooms furnished with wood taken from grape carts with the fermented juices impregnated in the wood. It's the only time I have ever gone to bed sober and woken up drunk...

 

Resting between turns.

 

Something is stirring down in the undergrowth.
By the size of the machinery you can tell the civil engineering will be serious!

 

Here is a video of last weekend when we had our annual meeting at Guido's railway. The sound track is all music so best mute it if you don't like Italian music.

With 37 degrees we had to keep in the shade and drink a lot!
Most of the weekend was spent going through the details of the extension, instead of coming off the outside of the bottom loop it now looks as though the loop will be moved and enlarged so that the extension will come off the inside and then duck under the loop near the points. This allows the level crossing to be an extra 50cm lower which then makes the passage to the lower loop much easier. There is talk of a roundhouse within the bottom loop to house the growing fleet.
I came away with more work, something to keep me busy for a couple of decades...

 

I really enjoyed the video and it looks to be a very interesting track to drive on. Was that a 3" or 4" scale Hunslet that you were filming from? Mine's the 4" scale version but I actually think that the 3" scale one has better designed valve porting and definitely 'punches above it's weight'. Whatever the scale there is something very special about a Quarry Hunslet. This is mine:

Cheers,
Ray.

 

It's the 4" version. We have one operational and three under construction at various stages.
The track is fun to drive and requires good forward planning to complete a full out and back run. You need to prepare on the downwards run to arrive with a good head of steam and high water level at the bottom for the long slog back up the hill. It's easier with the larger locos, the single is quite a challenge.