Rail enthusiasts society ltd

[badger1badger]

Quite a few years back - the above society ran some very good day trips to various depots and sheds

Generally it was coach travel but all in all a very good day

Is it still running or does anyone remember it ?

Cheers

Paul

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Way back in the early 1980's, I had membership of both the Railway Enthusiasts Society Ltd and the Lancashire Locomotive Society, until business commitments meant I had to resign my membership of both these two societies who used coach tours to visit depots and stabling points and sometimes even works visits. Many of these longer distance visits would leave on a Friday evening and return on the Sunday.

I remember a lady organiser called Alison (Woodrow ?) who lived somewhere in the Whitefield area and worked for National Express being a North-West tour leader and I am sure as I can be that it was the Railway Enthusiasts Society Ltd to which she belonged, but thirty years elapsing of time can play tricks with my memory these days.

I imagine that both societies found matters rather difficult as time went by both in terms of finance and the cost of running the coach tours at an affordable price and also of the availability of access to depots.

 

[badger1badger]

Way back in the early 1980's, I had membership of both the Railway Enthusiasts Society Ltd and the Lancashire Locomotive Society, until business commitments meant I had to resign my membership of both these two societies who used coach tours to visit depots and stabling points and sometimes even works visits. Many of these longer distance visits would leave on a Friday evening and return on the Sunday.

I remember a lady organiser called Alison (Woodrow ?) who lived somewhere in the Whitefield area and worked for National Express being a North-West tour leader and I am sure as I can be that it was the Railway Enthusiasts Society Ltd to which she belonged, but thirty years elapsing of time can play tricks with my memory these days.

I imagine that both societies found matters rather difficult as time went by both in terms of finance and the cost of running the coach tours at an affordable price and also of the availability of access to depots.

Thanks - yes sounds the one I remember - seem to think Doncaster was where they were based but 25 years causes faded memory !

 

[Robert Taggart]

One recalls picking up some literature at Derby Locomotive Works open day in the late '70's or early '80's from this group.

The fact that their tours were coach based was enough to reject joining, but, the leaflet also listed membership rules. Methinks one of these concerned members expected behaviour - stipulating 'decorum' at all times ? As oneself was still a skule kid at that time - this was too much !

 

[neilmc]

These tours were basically for number-bashers as it would have been impossible to get round the number of depots and stabling points on offer by train. "Decorum" wasn't always too evident, especially when I was on one tour based with a West-Yorkshire based society which basically took a detour off the M1 and disgorged a coach load of forty lads to bunk Tinsley depot without a permit.

 

[Oswyntail]

My favourite memory of these trips was turning up at Coalville in the wee small hours, and finding a long line of 58's. Having had a long trip up from Euston without a break, most of the participants took the opportunity to line up alongside their favourite loco - wee small hours indeed

 

[SimonC]

Happy memories too of Llantrisant yard for a shunter in the middle of the night but always liked the 37's at Radyr. All the stabling points in Yorkshire were always a hit!

Yep a 23:59 departure from Euston on National Expresses finest and who can forget Dales Fickes...

 

[theblackwatch]

I remember a lady organiser called Alison (Woodrow ?) who lived somewhere in the Whitefield area and worked for National Express being a North-West tour leader and I am sure as I can be that it was the Railway Enthusiasts Society Ltd to which she belonged, but thirty years elapsing of time can play tricks with my memory these days.

As mentioned in the thread a while back at http://www.railforums.co.uk/showthread.php?t=40461

Happy memories too of Llantrisant yard for a shunter in the middle of the night but always liked the 37's at Radyr. All the stabling points in Yorkshire were always a hit!

Yep a 23:59 departure from Euston on National Expresses finest and who can forget Dales Fickes...

Dale Fickes is still around - I saw him at a Plandampf in Germany a couple of years ago and he looked no different to the 1980s apart from his beard being a bit greyer! He still runs spotting trips, but now in Europe under the 'Rail Europe' name, see http://rail-europe.co.uk/ . I have the likes of him, the ICRS and the Pennine Railway Society to thank for seeing many locos on depot bashes all over the country, visiting obscure sites such as Etherly Tip for a Class 03 that was parked there.