Another undocumented day trip (or day and two nights), for another of the excellent ADL tours. Although I have comprehensive details of the tour route, the photographs are a magical mystery tour, and if anyone can identify any of these lines, which have mostly closed since my 1994 visit, I'd be more than grateful. There's a contact link at the top of the page.
Saturday 14 May 1994
Another of my increasingly frequent and undocumented day trips was to Kortrijk for ADL's West & Central Belgian Branches tour, which didn't do quite what it said on the tin that it was going to, due to moleworks and suchlike, but substitutes had been arranged so all was well. My new (and bad) habit of not taking notes for such occasions prevailed, but I was quite busy with the camera and a note of the route as it was on the day, and some photos, will have to suffice.
We set out from Kortrijk towards Brugge, pausing to reverse after less than 1 km at Y Leiebrug so that we could head south over the avoiding line for the first track of the day, followed by a run through the locomotive depot (where my photos suggest we paused for a visit for the number-grabbers) before continuing to Mouscron and Tournai. Diverging right after Tournai we ran the 1.9km on line 88A to the buffer stops at Allain. This section of the former cross border line to Douai was retained for freight until 26.1.94 so we were fortunate in being allowed to go there. Beyond Allain it had been cut back from the border in stages since 1950, the last being Chercq to Allain from 1.6.88.
After reversal at Allain and again in Tournai yard we ran via passenger lines, 94 to Ath, 90 to Jurbise and 96 to Mons. From Mons we continued via St Ghislain where we diverged on to line 78 towards Tournai, passing through Blaton and diverging after Basècles Carrieres on to the stub of line 86 to Ronse, as far as an industrial site at Basècles. Returning through St Ghislain, we diverged on to line 100 to the Carbo Tertre plant at Tertre. Reversing again and returning to St Ghislain yard, further manoeuvres through the yard were required (or perhaps requested!) to gain line 98B, now [2023] closed, to Warquignies and line 98 as far as Pâturages where we reversed and returned through St Ghislain for another reversal to gain line 97 to Quiévrain yard.
That finished the antics in the St Ghislain area and we returned to Mons for a reversal and a trip south on 96 to Cuesmes where we diverged on to the short line 109 to the bufferstops at Harmignies, the remaining portion of the line through to Chimay. Returning to Mons we continued on lines 118, 118/1 and 112 to Piéton where we reversed to take the short branch 113 to the end of the line at Bascoup. Back to 112, passng through to Y Forchies and lines 252 and 252/1 to Fontaine l'Evêque, back up 252/1 to Y Fontaine and another reverse there for 252 to Forchies. Back then to the main line (112) and west through Piéton to Y Bois-des-Vallées for the branch (line 251) to Viernoy.
Returning to line 112 we reversed again at Piéton to head west on 112 to La Louvière-Sud then 116 and the non-passenger curve 116/1 from Y Bois d'Haine to Y Familieureux. Line 116 got us to Y Ecaussinnes, and the non-passenger curve L117/1 to Y Soignies. From there we took 96 west to Y Jurbise, diverging north there for a final non-passenger curve to Y Lens. After that it was plain sailing on the morning's route (but sticking to the passenger lines!) back to Ath, Tournai and Kortrijk. Another very solid day's trackbashing, courtesy of ADL's Richard Pegler and his Belgian associate, Dirk Faes. Now for the magical mystery tour! As per the note at the start of this text, I'd be very grateful for help in identifying the locations. My guesses, where I've made one, are based solely on the sequence in which the negatives are placed on the original films, and which end the loco's at!
Another of my increasingly frequent and undocumented day trips was to Kortrijk for ADL's West & Central Belgian Branches tour, which didn't do quite what it said on the tin that it was going to, due to moleworks and suchlike, but substitutes had been arranged so all was well. My new (and bad) habit of not taking notes for such occasions prevailed, but I was quite busy with the camera and a note of the route as it was on the day, and some photos, will have to suffice.
We set out from Kortrijk towards Brugge, pausing to reverse after less than 1 km at Y Leiebrug so that we could head south over the avoiding line for the first track of the day, followed by a run through the locomotive depot (where my photos suggest we paused for a visit for the number-grabbers) before continuing to Mouscron and Tournai. Diverging right after Tournai we ran the 1.9km on line 88A to the buffer stops at Allain. This section of the former cross border line to Douai was retained for freight until 26.1.94 so we were fortunate in being allowed to go there. Beyond Allain it had been cut back from the border in stages since 1950, the last being Chercq to Allain from 1.6.88.
After reversal at Allain and again in Tournai yard we ran via passenger lines, 94 to Ath, 90 to Jurbise and 96 to Mons. From Mons we continued via St Ghislain where we diverged on to line 78 towards Tournai, passing through Blaton and diverging after Basècles Carrieres on to the stub of line 86 to Ronse, as far as an industrial site at Basècles. Returning through St Ghislain, we diverged on to line 100 to the Carbo Tertre plant at Tertre. Reversing again and returning to St Ghislain yard, further manoeuvres through the yard were required (or perhaps requested!) to gain line 98B, now [2023] closed, to Warquignies and line 98 as far as Pâturages where we reversed and returned through St Ghislain for another reversal to gain line 97 to Quiévrain yard.
That finished the antics in the St Ghislain area and we returned to Mons for a reversal and a trip south on 96 to Cuesmes where we diverged on to the short line 109 to the bufferstops at Harmignies, the remaining portion of the line through to Chimay. Returning to Mons we continued on lines 118, 118/1 and 112 to Piéton where we reversed to take the short branch 113 to the end of the line at Bascoup. Back to 112, passng through to Y Forchies and lines 252 and 252/1 to Fontaine l'Evêque, back up 252/1 to Y Fontaine and another reverse there for 252 to Forchies. Back then to the main line (112) and west through Piéton to Y Bois-des-Vallées for the branch (line 251) to Viernoy.
Returning to line 112 we reversed again at Piéton to head west on 112 to La Louvière-Sud then 116 and the non-passenger curve 116/1 from Y Bois d'Haine to Y Familieureux. Line 116 got us to Y Ecaussinnes, and the non-passenger curve L117/1 to Y Soignies. From there we took 96 west to Y Jurbise, diverging north there for a final non-passenger curve to Y Lens. After that it was plain sailing on the morning's route (but sticking to the passenger lines!) back to Ath, Tournai and Kortrijk. Another very solid day's trackbashing, courtesy of ADL's Richard Pegler and his Belgian associate, Dirk Faes. Now for the magical mystery tour! As per the note at the start of this text, I'd be very grateful for help in identifying the locations. My guesses, where I've made one, are based solely on the sequence in which the negatives are placed on the original films, and which end the loco's at!
This was the first photo of the tour train (5927 and a 2-car push pull set of M1 stock) after the visit to Kortrijk depot, and on that basis my best guess is that it's Allain, with the driving trailer at the buffer stops. |
Another wild guess has this photo at Basècles. The loco, 5927, is a Cockerill-built machine from 1954-55 |
This one's exceptionally annoying! I've scanned the negative at a very high resolution to try to pick out the station nameboard, and scoured Google images to try to identify the station building. Sadly neither produced a result... |
This is one of the branches from later in the day, I believe,possibly Fontaine l'Evêque - but equally possibly not. |
By similarly flawed logic this could be Forchies ... |
... and this one Viernoy. But my septuagenarian memory really isn't up to the task, I fear. |
My next outing took me to Belgium again, in September of 1994. On this occasion, you might be relieved to know, my notebook accompanied me and there's a slightly more coherent account of what went on.
