Sunday 1st February 2009 "Spot the difference? Different photographic angle, different drivers and passengers, not sure if there is anything else. The "Farmer's Market Special" got off to a good start even though there was a chill east wind and the occasional light snow flurries.
Below Antonia sits in the driving seat of the electric locomotive "The Duke" after John Stokes and Keith had carried out some electrical engineering work. Unfortunately the locomotive has had a series of electrical problems since it entered service. John has made many trips to his local Maplins store to obtain replacement components for the circuit board. 

Answer, the coupling. Besides being a member of our railway group, Jordan has joined the guys at Stockholes Farm Railway Belton Road not too far from the Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft. The coupling will be fine for Stockholes Farm Railway but not for coupling up to our carriages as we use a bar and pin. We look forward seeing the progress of the locomotive and the proposed miniature railway Jordan has planned for his back garden, a sizeable one that no building developer have been able to get their hands on. 

Monday 2nd February 2009 "Can anyone see our tracks? The snow showers turned into near blizzard conditions on Sunday evening and at first on the Monday. A visit to the railway and a transformed scene as 6 inches (16 cm) of snow covered the tracks, not dissimilar to Easter Sunday 2008 the only difference we would not be running trains on this occasion. 

Some 18 hours earlier David had been working on the steam locomotive at the entrance to our railway shed.  An army of the parks ducks were on patrol for the visitors who regularly feed them. There may not have been any trains using the our "Thorne Central" station, but the nearby "Thorne North" station was busy as ever with trains even with the snow still falling. The Northern Rail train was the 14.06 for Doncaster that I caught to take me to Stainforth.

On Sunday 8th February as the railway was not operating in Thorne it was a good opportunity to have a visit to another railway not too far away just in case the forecast snow for that evening arrived in the afternoon. We were pleasantly surprised to also find the miniature railway circuit was also in operation. Below are a selection of photographs taken on the visit. For more information visit their website .

Built in 1991 the locomotive Badger about to depart from Shelly. Passing the icicles next to the tunnel entrance and the electric locomotive on the raised mixed gauge track. 

Looking down from the road bridge over the canal. The "Thorne Central" station with its railings casting shadows into the fresh fall of snow from the previous evening. The tracks next to the shed with the first of snow starting melt in the warm sunshine. 

No not the remains of a dormant volcano or part of the former colliery slag heap but Thorne Castle. Someone has certainly in the long distant past borrowed the stones. The mound is often referred to as "Peel Hill". The 87 bus for Doncaster via Stainforth sets off from the bus stop near to the park gates. On the former site of the road swing bridge over the canal a new pedestrian swing footbridge known as the "Princess Royal Footbridge" was officially opened by HRH The Princess Royal on the 12 October 2005.   

Friday 13th February 2009 A decision was made at the societies Half Yearly Meeting on Wednesday 11th February 2009 that the stem locomotive "Remus" which is on loan to the railway is to be withdrawn from service and that "Koppel" is to take over as soon as it is reassembled from its major overhaul. This may mean that the steam service will be available with the visiting locomotives of members.

Our members Ron, Matthew, David and Keith have spent many hours making repairs to "Remus" but the stage has been reached where it will now be better that the final stages of the overhaul of "Koppel" are completed for this locomotive to take over the steam service for 2009.
Have we now seen the last of the snow? The snow has made some wonderful backdrops for scenic views in the Delves (next to Thorne north station) and the Thorne Memorial Park, but the cold weather has set back our track maintenance programme such as weed removal and the edging of the grass. Perhaps with the forecast of an improvement in temperatures we might be able to catch up on some outside work. 

Saturday 14th February 2009 Today turned out to be a special day for our group, when we were invited several weeks ago to attend the presentation of a cheque at the Thorne - Moorends Town Council offices at 10.30 am. So we duly accepted along with five other groups who had been awarded an undisclosed amount.
I selected a better hat than I usually wear and my "Intercity" tie for the occasion. We all gathered together and with the photographer from the Thorne Gazette to take photographs of the event.  I took my camera along and the lady from the council offices took some views for me which I have added below. 

Above left the start of the presentation after a welcomed cup of coffee and tea.
Above right shows the Mayor presenting the cheque to our group.
Below left we have the group photograph. Top row left to right: Lynn Johnson and Pauline Dixon of the New Carefree Jazz Band. Thorne Rural Lions. First row left to right: myself (Bob Ashton) on behalf of the Doncaster & District Model Engineering Society Ltd, Cllr. Carol D. Williams Mayor of Thorne - Moorends, Ray Harper SSAFA. (Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association)

I would like to thank Jackie Grundy of the Thorne Moorends Town Council for taking the photographs for me.

Tuesday 24th February 2009 By total contrast to the above event 10 days earlier, it was time to take the collar and tie off and put on some old clothes and boots when a delivery of ballast arrived at 9.30 am today. The ballast is required to enable us to carry out a major re-ballasting of the inner and outer tracks. Mother nature somehow sees the ballast being covered by autumn leaves which eventually become a new layer of soil despite our best efforts at removing the leaves. The park is very susceptible to subsidence in some places as we have found, so some of the tracks do need lifting from time to time. Another way we lose ballast is that some of the youngsters using the park, even when we are there, like to grab a hand full of our ballast and throw it at each other or the ducks. They do not realise how much we have to pay for this material and the damage they do.   

The arrival of the lorry with the eight tons of small ballast is soon tipped alongside the park and railway tracks. Somewhere underneath me there is some railway track that needs uncovering! No excuses of bad backs and the twinges of arthritis, its time to do some serious shovelling by Keith and myself.     

Our task completed to reveal the tracks that were covered with the newly delivered ballast. Keith was in need of some support, he would insist on doing all the work using two shovels, well perhaps not, but we knew only too well what hard work it had been.
We left it all nice and tidy, the trains could again use the access road. I know from past deliveries when this coming Sundays operating day arrives we will have the tracks to uncover again and sweep up the mess the youngsters will create for us, in the days between now and Sunday. 

February 16th & 19th  2009
I was "Out and About" giving slide shows to voluntary groups in Doncaster and Thurnscoe. To see more details about the slide these and where the single deck tram is Click here to visit the new "Out and About" feature now added to the others in this recently re-introduced feature.