Train Day #1

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With great excitement, Roger discovered that on 26th November Steamrail Victoria would run the final ever parallel run from North Melbourne to Moorabbin before signalling works at Caulfield in January made the parallel run no longer possible. A steam hauled Vintage Train and an electric Tait Train would run along the line all the way to Frankston and back and train aficionados could, for a price, come along for the ride.

We didn't go along for the ride because we'd already booked a ticket on another train adventure later in the week. Instead we scoped out the best vantage point for trains - where due to works on the level crossings there were no fences and we could stand dangerously close to the lines. Then we went through the agony of deciding which side to stand on: did we want the best view of the steam train or the electric, because we couldn't have both.

All set up and waiting for the train.
 

We chose the steam side of the tracks and whiled away the wait watching as train spotters swarmed the tracks as ants to honey. The air tingled with anticipation as we all stood on our tippy toes and pretended we could see around the corner from whence the train would come. Sensing an audience, both trains paused some distance up the track. The steam train blew it's whistle and let out impressive bursts of steam and smoke. The electric train sat there doing electric train stuff which just couldn't compare with the drama of steam. Slowly, with much puffing on the part of Steam, they rolled forward...

The whole thing was over in minutes, but I recorded it in glorious slow motion so you wouldn't miss a thing, and here it is.


 
There they go!
All the trainspotters packed up their cameras and tripods and went off to chase the trains all the way to Frankstone.  Not being quite as committed as that, we went off to have a very nice lunch with relatives instead, even if there was hot debate at the lunch table as to the degree of glugginess of the quiche.

Powered by quiche, I rode my bicycle all the way home, via a nice wetland:

and some circuitous detours around the flooded Yarra River.

Silly 1&2 were very glad to see us, and bitterly reproached us for having been away all day but were easily mollified by a treat or two.


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