LWR 'Santa Steam Day'

Lincolnshire Wolds Railway 'Santa Steam Day'

Sunday 19th December 2021

What a change from last Sunday. The day dawned dull and grey with thick drizzly fog and a chill in the air. Not much of an improvement was expected during the day. Never the less Tim Newbery was joined by John Rickett and Alan Hockham at the Meridian Centre with the promise of meeting up with Chris Owen and John Ambler at the railway station for today's festivities. Others, sensibly, would be enjoying a day at home in the warm.

Heading eastbound we would initially ride through the Cockerington villages. A quick glance to see if Reg was waiting for us at Pickhill Lane and then a turn northbound routing through Yarburgh and Covenham. For those of us who are bespectacled, a stop to wipe away the heavy drizzle with John Rickett now setting the pace as we passed by Covenham Reservoir, Main Street taking us into Fulstow. We were surprised to see several other cyclists sharing the roads and we exchanged cheery felicitations.

Crossing Northway to join Station Road we were soon greeted by Chris, all of us arriving at Lincolnshire Wolds Railway just as the 'Santa Special' was entering the station. A great sight to see, the loco's smoke billowing and merging seamlessly with the thick mist and fog.

John Ambler would also join us not long after we arrived and many thanks to John Rickett for the purchase of cups of coffee and some rather fine mince pies. For some a rest in the Steaming Kettle Buffet whilst others would enjoy a chat with the hard working staff and volunteers. Today was a busy day for them and the train that had just departed had 110 visitors on board, all looking forward to a greeting (and presents) from Father Christmas.

Buckets of coal were also being prepared for the next departure. Apparently it takes 14 bucket loads for the return trip. Chris and John Rickett also noticed that one of the platforms (the shorter of the two) was at a different height. This apparently was to accommodate a 'railmotor'. These were self-contained passenger coaches which had a small integrated steam locomotive. The directors of the thinly populated tract of the East Lincolnshire Line considered how passenger operations might be made cheaper and the option of using railmotors was put into place between Louth and Grimsby in 1905. Central retractable steps enabled passengers to board and alight from simple platforms at ground level. The railmotors however had mixed success; their limited capacity led to problems at peak times and they were incapable of hauling heavy loads.

With the weather showing no sign of any significant improvement, Tim had suggested a direct route back to Louth with Chris and both Johns peeling off enroute. For the Louth contingent, 26 miles covered arriving back at the Leisure Centre around 1 pm. Many thanks to all for the company.