Giving my wife a good day out down at the Epping and Ongar Railway Diesel Gala Weekend! - Sunday 27th April

Beverley likes to be taken out, wined and dined, and visit interesting and rewarding places, unfortunately I don't think the Epping and Ongar Railway Diesel Gala Weekend was what she had in mind!

I had promised, in response to her question "What shall we do about eating as I've got nothing in for dinner", that's ok we will eat out and I duly provided a Ginster Pasty, a bar of chocolate and a cup of tea and a cup of coffee, a meal fit for a Princess!

I had always wanted to travel on the Central line between Epping and Ongar, it appeared so remote, especially when I was living in South West London at the end of the District Line. Even as a youngster, me and my friends regularly took advantage of the Red Rovers for 50p, which gave you travel on the entire bus network and the combined Bus and Underground Rover, which cost slightly more expensive but we never got as far as Epping or indeed Ongar, we always used to gravitate to St Albans. So unfortunately I never got around to before the Line closed in 1994. Beverley and myself did get as far as Epping on a Bus from North Woolwich in the late seventies but it never dawned on me to get the tube to Ongar then. I do remember being very ill on the way home to SW20!

Beverley and Me at Epping Bus Station late '70s - another one of my 'interesting trips'

Anyway enough of the old days, back to today. I've never been to one of these Gala Weekends and certainly in the past I would have given a Diesel Gala a wide berth had I even thought of going. Diesels not being very high on priority list. However, since I become re-interested in trains again, although I don't think I ever not been interested its just that I take a lot more interest now days, I find I'm nostalgic   for them.

I think what has happened is that back in the early eighties when I was interested in trains Diesels were one a penny and ran everywhere and I was still harking back to the steam days, but now some 35 years later the Diesels are just as old as the steam trains were when I was in my twenties back in the early '80s.

So with renewed interest we set off for Epping, I would have liked to have gone by tube that that would have been pushing it just a little bit to far so we drove to Epping and caught the vintage bus to North Weald where the action was happening.

Vintage Bus at Epping Station

I must say I thought that the E&O put on an absolutely first class show, they had five classes of diesels:

1. Class 37 (D6729)
2. Class 205 (205205) slam door, brought back some old memories!
3. Class 31 (31438)
4. Class 47 (47635)
5. Class 20 (20048)



Class 47

Class 205

Class 37

Class 20

Class 31

They ran an interesting and varied timetable that involved a lot of engine movements in and out of sidings, running around trains, standing in sidings, double headers, top and tailing thus providing plenty of photo opportunities, just ask Beverley about the great photos she took for me!

I think there were about 10 different train formations on the Sunday, with a total of 20 train movements backs and forwards between Coopersale and Ongar, starting at 09:30 from North Weald and finishing at 18:05 at North Weald. All for the princely sum of £14 if purchased on the day and £12 if purchased in advance.

I was quite surprised that the line ran through extensive countryside and it seems rather bizarre that red and silver tube trains could have been seen trundling up and down the route up until 1994, in fact the views were some of the best from a heritage railway I've been on with views across the Essex countryside. Another surprising thing was that the line had quite a steep gradient reaching 120 feet above sea level.

The station buildings are very attractive and decked out in a style of the LNER in the 40's. There's a couple of signal boxes and assorted wagons and coaches in various stages of repair along the route of the railway. Needless to say there are ambitions to link up with Epping in due course.

There's a nice little gift shop at Ongar where I purchased the Middleton Press' Branch Line to Ongar which will be enjoyable reading together with a secondhand book, a mouse mat and Beverley purchased a Dads Army tea towel for her Dad 'He likes washing up, he likes the war and he likes Dad Army - just the thing" she said.

Beverley can now look forward to the Step Back in Time event on 14/15 June when the railway reverts to Steam and the lead up to D-Day 1944 - now that should be fun, we can bring Beverley's Mum and Dad!  Ian will enjoy it I'm sure!