Tour No. 33 : The Royal Duchy (Past-Time Rail)

To the purist the Paddington-Penzance return trip is what travelling behind a Thousand is all about. The train departed Paddington close to time at 07.12 and set out on a sluggish trip to Reading, dogged by some esoteric train regulating and ultimately getting held outside because the HST that we had let pass suffered door problems. However once we had picked up a good number of passengers at Reading D1015 got into it’s stride as we headed westward. The generous pathing stop and crew change at Westbury allowed any lost time to be made up and the tour kept good time for the remainder of the day.The sunny weather brought the photographers out and most vantage points were occupied by camera and camcorder toting enthusiasts. Plymouth saw a 30 minute wait for time and Penzance was reached as per schedule as was the stop en route at Bodmin Road to let off visitors to the Bodmin Diesel gala. D1015 ran wearing the number and nameplates on one side as D1068 "Western Reliance", this is in association with a promotion that the DTG runs enabling travellers to purchase a replica nameplate and have them carried on the loco.

Smart work at Penzance saw the Loco fuelled and the stock serviced during a relatively short 90 minute break. Another prompt departure and excellent running was typical of the return which this time was not via the ‘Desert’ but Bristol Temple Meads and Hullavington. Our on train timer reported several records during the day including the fastest ascent of Hemerdon and the fastest time to Cowley Bridge from the stop at Exeter. The leisurely hour given for Reading-Paddington was brushed aside and a 30 minute early arrival capped off a truly excellent day