The last DC-10

The Douglas DC-10 is leaving passenger service (although some freight planes and examples the later MD-11 reboot remain in service). The last example has flown from Bangladesh to Birmingham where it has been used for a number of sight seeing trips before being finally retired. I wish i'd known about the trips beforehand as i would have seriously considered a (probably) last flight on a classic jetliner.

I've flown on a few classic jetliners, my first 3 flights were on a Tupolev Tu-154, an Ilyushin IL-62 and a BAC 111. After that Airbuses and modern Boeing are just a bit... boring. I've never flown on a DC-10 unfortunately but at least i was there to take some photos when it flew over my house earlier returning to Birmingham Airport after a flight! What a lovely noise it made too.

It first flew the year i was born and now its for the scrapheap. I hope thats not a bad omen...

Return to Stratford... and a surprise

I went to Stratford-upon-Avon quite a few times last year but as my dissertation was based on the town's nineteenth century economy thats not really a surprise. I haven't been to Stratford this year though so i rectified that today. It was a lovely day and the boys and girls from the rowing club were on the river being put through their paces by bellowing coaches on the towpath. All a bit True Blue maybe.

Coming back was special. I didn't realise that some of the extra trains London Midland put on for Stratford on a Saturday go via Dorridge and hence via the branch line that breaks off the Chiltern Line near Hatton going through Claverdon and Bearley and rejoining the usual route near Wilmcote. I've wanted to travel this line for ages, so i can cross that off my bucket list i guess!

I took a few photos today, some of them are a bit overexposed though. I'm not sure about the iPhone 5C camera yet, seems to not be as good as the 4S one but maybe its just how i'm holding it...

The train now standing at platform 1

Projects 052 and 053 were kits of a goods shed and station which i have built for my model railway. Now both projects have been completed i have augmented them with some HO scale people and added a bit of paint here and there. I think the two kits look better combined together into one bigger station what do you think?

Worcester's other waterway

The flooding of the river Severn made the national news last week and Worcester has suffered a fair amount. However Worcester's other waterway, the Worcester & Birmingham Canal, has been well behaved and i walked it a few times over the last couple of weeks in varying weathers!

You can see my photos here. The canal progress can be continued up to Diglis Basin and the Severn on my earlier walk from 2011.

New railway photo blog

I take a lot of photos of the railways in the UK (mainly in the Midlands and London) so i thought i would have a photo blog like my waterways one. So here it is: Kris' Railway Photos photo blog! I think i will maintain a MWF update schedule (the waterways blog is Tuesday-Thursday usually) so keep tuned. It will include mainline and preserved railway (including metro and underground) trains as well as line side features like signals, bridges et cetera.

Eskalon station done

My model railway layout now has that kit component, a station! A nice Piko kit, just needs some painting which i'll do later on.

Worcester Shrub Hill

I take the train every day to Worcester Foregate Street but Worcester has another station. I walked up to Shrub Hill this lunchtime, its probably not that useful to me (though there are some trains to Birmingham) as its a bit of a trek to/from work compared to the other station. What it does have though are these beautiful old semaphore signals.

Worcester canal

Having worked in Worcester for just over a month now i thought it was high time i visited the canal. Over the last couple of lunchtimes i have braved the weather (which was dreadful today quite frankly) to photograph a stretch of canal in the city. The railway viaduct near Foregate Street is most interesting with its circular "tunnel". You can see my photos here.

Eskalon station

The latest model project, Project #053, was started today and it will be the station for my Eskalon model railway layout. Like with Project #052 it is a Piko building kit and indeed shares many of the same parts and design.

As for the goods shed that is now on the layout though has not been permanently laid down yet. When it gets a bit warmer in my model making area (a.k.a. the kitchen extension) i want to paint the building a bit to enhance it.