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This was to be a hastily arranged trip. I'd managed to cobble together a few "owed" days, a couple of Annual Leave days and a long weekend to make for a 9 day bash. Denzil and Sutty had already planned on a week in Germany then returning to Belgium for the Mercia Charters tours. The cancellation of the tours meant we had to find another plan...more on this later in the story!

Validity was F.I.P. free passes for Belgium, Germany and Poland; Priv tickets in Slovakia, Hungary and Czech Republic.

FRIDAY 31ST AUGUST 2001
The day started badly with a rancid can into Euston, number 59 bus over to Waterloo (I hate using the tube at 08.30 with bags etc.) and it was onto the dud Eurostars. Sutty wasn't coming over until tomorrow so on arrival Denzil and I made our way to Central in order to sample some of the beers on offer in the new brewpub in the Grand Place. Back out and into the peak with a remarkable 4 Type 26's out (2602/11/17/26) of which I needed 2. A quick spin out to Schuman was needed to score 2611 however as it was on the Jemelle. Whilst at Schuman I got an SMS from Denzil saying he was on 2366 (dud for me) which had dropped out on P8068 to Gent and could I retrieve his bag from the locker at Midi! The wonders of digital technology meant that some 30 minutes later I was on a train to Gent with both our bags! 

Checked into the pre-arranged Hotel Adoma then back to the station for the Neerpelt T train. 5110 had worked this train for the previous 8 days and we both required it. Would today be the 9th? Yes! Having returned from Dendermonde we made our way to the Hopduvel for some beers and food. This place is usually excellent but the past couple of times I've visited the service has been poor. Tonight it was worse than that and we waited 10 minutes to pay the bill! The waiter got told severely that we were not happy! I was fuming when because of this we just missed both trams (you can catch either the 21 or 40) and had to wait 10 minutes for the next one.

SATURDAY 1ST SEPTMEBER 2001
The obligatory early start to cover the T trains and we bumped into no other than Andy "Desperate" Read on the platform at Gent. There was a staff day out EXT running from Dow Chemicals on the Terneuzen line to Six Flags theme park at Bierges-Walibi near Ottignies. He'd viewed the ECS at Gent about half an hour previously and it was 5115 and 5116 top & tail. He'd sent Denzil an SMS but it hadn't been received as the ECS was available!

A bad start to the day and a taster of things to come! The kayak shuttle produced 5403, my last boilered Nohab for haulage! Needless to say everyone else on the train found it highly amusing that I still needed it! Not a bad turn out for the T trains today with about 15 British cranks (me, Denzil, Karl Sherman, Richard Howe, Desmond Langham amongst others...). L6080/6060 was 5201 (yawn) and we had the gen that the Blankenberge T trains were 5110 (Neerpelt) and 5122 (Maubeuge), both dud for me but Denzil wanted '22.

We'd already got rooms booked in a hotel at Maubeuge as it was the last weekend of the T trains and probably the last chance to get the rare track in to Maubeuge, so Denzil would be scooping 5122 later.

In the meantime we made our way back to Gent to view the 13's. Des Langham was thinking of going to Bierges-Walibi to see if he could "eff" the 51-hauled special. Only managed to scoop 1341 and we met Sutty and John Chapman on the platform at Gent. We then viewed Charleroi boiler 5149 going light engine towards Brugge - what was that up to?

We decided to go and cover the special as well as we had nothing to lose (Sutty only needed 5122 as well). We soon realised something was wrong on the unit to Ottignies, there was single line working and we were making additional stops vice the L train which had been cancelled due to lack of paths!! Cheers for the minus 10 at Ottignies then! Unit back to Brussels then another one over to Ath for the T train. Bumped into Des at Nord and he had succeeded in "effing" the train but they had made a special stop at Leuven to kick him off!!!!

Had a bit of a fester at Ath so we went to the bar that Denzil had spotted across the road from the station. Except it was a friterie! Back at the station an announcement said that the T train was 20 minutes late. When it eventually arrived the inevitable had happened, 5122 had failed with a brake defect at Blankenberge and they had sent 5149 to bring the train back with '22 dead inside! Oh dear! I was glad I didn't need either!

There were 5 of us booked into the hotel at Maubeuge and we were less than impressed when after departing Mons the guard told us that the train was booked to terminate at Quévy that weekend due to "problems with SNCF". Shit out or what! However the guard was sociable and allowed us to go back to Mons with him on the ECS where we found a reasonable hotel above an Italian restaurant on the main square. We had a consolation pizza and beer in said restaurant after a derance, the baglet serving us was well withered when we ordered 4 beers and Fat Richard ordered thé au lait !

SUNDAY 2ND SEPTEMBER 2001
Guessing that 5149 would have taken the errant 5122 back to Charleroi Sud Quay last night we made sure we were out to cover the Blankenberge in case it had swapped. It had - to 5150 the other boiler! I didn't need it but Denzil and Sutty did, that made up for them missing '22 last night. Said goodbye to all the cranks at Gent and myself, Sutty and Denzil set off for country number 2! Did the rubber rings from Gent into Brussels to give us time for visiting GB Express prior to the IC to Köln. 

Originally we had planned to do the overnight from Hagen to Berlin but this was fully booked, the Amsterdam portion as well! So it was plan B, over during the daytime but covering 103's on the way.

At Hannover we grabbed a pizza from Pizza Hut Express and ate it on the platform. Sutty and I were mildly amused to say the least when Denzil balanced his pizza box on top of his bag. It lost balance and fell onto the platform upturned, pizza ruined!

On arrival at Ostbahnhof quick S-bahn move to Lichtenberg and checked into the excellent Hotel Nova where we had a triple room booked which turned out to be a suite, one twin room, one single, living room, hall and a bathroom!

MONDAY 3RD SEPTEMBER 2001
Berlin scratching day! Had a lie-in and a decent PYB before covering the 0757 Szczcein service. On my last visit to Berlin there were still 232's on these services, despite warnings that they were to go over to 219's. No such luck on this occasion but the 219 was taken to Bernau for a gander on the lines out of Karow.

An excellent engineering work leaflet is produced for the Berlin area every week showing all the engineering work taking place (it is also available on line). The lines North of Basdorf (to Groß Schönebeck and Wensickendorf) were replaced by special buses which meant that there would only be 2 turns out of 4 to cover.

We arrived at Karow in time for the 09.07 departure where we had arranged to meet Karl Sherman by SMS. Neither the train nor Karl turned up!! The 09.37 was required 219.141 and by this time Karl had also produced so we leapt on for a ride up the branch to Basdorf. At the passing loop we eargerly looked out of the window to see what the other turn was - a 771 pig taxi!

Back at Lichtenberg we methodically covered the 2 turns on the Tiefensee line and the 4 turns on the Kostrzyns then headed over to do some Stadtbahn scratch moves on electrics! During the scratching I found time to nip into the Reise Zentrun at Zoo to book the couchettes for D449 later in the week. We had an excellent meal in the Nordsee outlet at Zoo and "effed" the EC's with the 180's that are meant to be pick-up only at Ost!

Karl was not impressed with the repeat of 145.077 which he had already that morning! Went up to Hohenschönhausen to cover the other Szczcein turn in and that was also a dud 219! We retired to the hotel, Karl dossing on our sofa!

TUESDAY 4TH SEPTEMBER 2001
Up mega early this morning so we could all shower before an 0600 breakfast. At Ostbahnhof Sutty and I did the greedy move and scratched a trabbie while Denzil and Karl went to the left luggage to retrieve Karl's bag.

It wasn't until Zoo that I realised that the greedy move hadn't paid off as our planned train to Juterbog went the other way - oops! A reworked move involved a new 103 however and we only arrived in Leipzig 40 minutes later. Karl and Denzil gloated until they realised we were on a 103 they both needed so they festered at Bitterfeld and did it to Halle, meeting us in Leipzig. We made a hasty visit to the pre-booked Ibis hotel but the room wasn't ready so we left our bags in a room at reception.

At this point Denzil was moaning about 219's being "Romanian Junk" and despite them being hit-listed and due for imminent withdrawal he decided to go and bash rabbits! Sutty and I stuck to the planned move and scooped 6 Gera-allocated 219 beasts! The model shop at Gera was caned in and is highly recommended to any model railway neds (I've already told Mr. Lea about it!).

Whilst photting 219.086 at Gera we spotted none other than John Sandham leaping on so had a quick bellow at him, then doing 219.087 back to Leipzig he got on at Zeitz having done some kart branch! Some exchanging of gen took place and he was making his way back to Berlin for an overnight (no surprises there then!).

Met up with Denzil and Karl again and he gave us the gen that 219.025 was out vice a rabbit on the Chemnitz line. I worked a move out that would net us that plus some more Leipzig allocated beasts on the Meißen circuit. Denzil was gloating that he'd had 234.299 earlier on that line but he didn't think it would come back.

Wrong! Our last move and 299 appeared, much to our amusement! Karl disapearred to do some rancid overnight at Cottbus and we made our way to the Ibis.

We walked into our triple room to find it was a double. Much ranting at reception produced a camp bed, but that still only made 2 beds. "I'm not sleeping with him!". The duty manager was called and he said the hotel was full. We negotiated the use of another camp bed to make 3 beds and they only just fitted in the room! This was the 3rd time I've stopped in this hotel and the 3rd time they have got the reservation wrong! 

WEDNESDAY 5TH SEPTEMBER 2001
Still furious from the previous night's scenario I asked to see the hotel manager after breakfast and told him what I thought of his hotel! Fair play to him though, and after a bit of persuasion he kept the Ibis promise and didn't ching us for the room. A result, but I'd rather have paid and got a good night's doss!

Over to Dresden and the objective to score as many 234's as possible before doing the lunchtime IR to get the border crossing into Poland in the book, then cover the 3 remaining coathanger turns.

Did well managing to score 7x234's, also fitting in a 219 out and back leap to Singwitz where the station (2 hourly service) is staffed and the station baglet/signalman has to operate the signals, level crossing etc. Just goes to show how these lines just cannot be viable, even when plastic karts are introduced.

The leap across the border netted us an SU45 and an SU46 along with a half hour fester at Zgorzelec Miasto. Just a couple of miles across the border and the contrast couldn't have been greater - there was that much grass and weeds growing out of the ballast!

Karl was heading down from Cottbus on a late running 234 so missed a couple of the 202's. We had food in the station buffet at Cottbus and bought some supplies from the supermarket, knowing that this would probably be our last chance until tomorrow afternoon with the planned move.

The pig taxi move from Niesky to Horka was a riot - there were plants and flowers decorating the interior, we were the only passengers and the driver just thrashed it for the 5km journey.

Pleased to see a new 145 on the front of D449 at Lübben but definitely not pleased to see dud 232.230 at Cottbus! Retired to our couchettes with 3 Germans who were fairly sociable. Karl's overnight was D449 to Legnica for D448 back, so he provided the loco numbers by SMS!

THURSDAY 6TH SEPTEMBER 2001
If you're going to do a rancid overnight you might as well make it very rancid! 04.00 alarm call (oops, sorry Germans!) and off the train at Gliwice. It's 04.30 and we have no Polish currency, we're starving and it's raining.

We had 25 minutes until the train so I left Denzil and Sutty with the bags and went off in search of a cashpoint and food. Denzil said i had no chance, but within 10 minutes I was back having visited the cashpoint and a baker's kiosk!! PKP had also placed a convenient hot drinks vending machine in the subway so Sutty and I had a Hot Chocolate. Denzil wanted coffee and the machine was naturally in Polish (the word chocolate being similar in most languages), we left him to it and he came back with a Hot Chocolate as well!

The train was an overnight and it was wedged! We invaded 3 berts in a compo who looked less than impressed when we started making sandwiches using the rolls I had just obtained and the meat/cheese spread we had got from the supermarket at Cottbus last night!

It seemed like we were on a Pathfinder Spin and Win railtour as on this one train we had 3 loco changes, including an ET22 freight electric! The run up the branch line to Kudowa Zdroj was hellfire, the SU42 emitting plumes of black clag everywhere. We leapt at a shack in the middle of nowhere that had been sold off (or let) by PKP and was in use as a farm, complete with ducklings, turkeys, hens etc. (and the mess that goes with them!). The farm's canine residents treated us with some caution (well I doubt they see 3 British cranks very often!) but seemed friendly enough.

Back at Kamieniec Zabkowicki we were photting the SU45 and the driver started bellowing at us angrily "No Photo's!". We stopped photting then he grinned and beckoned us over. He shook our hands and we got talking to him and one of the grippers. When they found out we were BR staff they were well sociable inviting us to look in the engine room etc. Both grippers were chatting to us for the journey and one asked if we smoked. Sutty said he did and was offered one of his Polish cigarettes, he declined but handed him a Benson & Hedges - they were withered! I think Sutty has a friend for life! 

The train from Nysa to Opole was another rateable SU42 on a rake of 4 double deckers. At Szydlow we went to phot the engine and saw an SM42 which had just worked in on a freight buffer up to our train - it proceeded to pilot us all the way to Opole!

With my recent experience at Krakow involving alcohol-free beer fresh in my mind we had a wander out of the station at Opole and bought some food and decent beer. The train to Krakow arrived behind EU06-08 one of the Newton-le-Willows built EE truncheons! To celebrate we upgraded to FC and consumed our beers. The gripper was either staff-friendly or didn't have a clue, as he didn't ching us up for sitting in FC!

Did a spin move at Krakow to Plaszow and back and the train back produced another EU06 - hellfire! Found a WARS pizza restaurant in the basement at Krakow Glowny, down some dodgy staircase and had a hellfire pizza. Our overnight consisted of a declassified PKP 1st Class couchette coach - mega comfy! The train didn't seem that wedged so I had a word with the couchette attendant to see if anyone else was booked into our compo. "Yes", he replied, "from Tarnow, but I can move him if you want it to yourselves". Top man! 

FRIDAY 7TH SEPTEMBER 2001
The overnight was so comfy and we were so tired after last night that none of us could be bothered to view the ZSR traction! Although the overnight was booked to go through to Budapest we opted to leap at Miskolc in order to rebook the tickets to make it cheaper. 

Ticket bought at Miskolc

We got the tickets sorted and were just changing some Pounds into Forints when we viewed an M43 backing onto some stock on the platform next to us. There were people on so it had to be a portion shunt. I'd already been served so I leapt on, Sutty was next and Denzil was flapping severely! He just leapt on as the train started to move!!

Had a long hike with all our bags to the Hotel Emke for a much needed shower and general derance. Decided to do the Metro back to Keleti rather than walking - it was boiling hot! Sutty and I got the lunch - Pizza Hut, while Denzil bought the tickets.

Fell into the front coach of 27904 about 30 seconds before departure and met Ferenc as previously arranged. Train engine was M62.262, an M62 out of Keleti, my lords!!

Had a beer with Ferenc at the bar on Köbánya Kispest station then he went back into Budapest and we spent the afternoon scoring M41's on line 142. We also spent some time photting the trains and trams on the diamond crossing near to Kispest station.

Back into Budapest scratching some new electrics, Sutty and I having a cheap meal in McDonalds while Denzil went looking for a sausage!! (A Hungarian sausage to take home for his better half!).

The queues in the booking hall at Nyugati were enormous (c. 20 people at each window!) so we decided to "eff" it instead! The trains were just as wedged so there was no grip anyway. Did the greedy move for an extra electric but it didn't pay off, it was an EMU! 

We bought tickets at Köbánya Kispest and did the table 150 diversion to Soroksár with the M41 for the one back that gets the other M62. Standing at Soroksár was gleaming M62.265, the Ferencvaros depot pet - it was absoloutely immaculate, a credit to the depot staff.

Boarded 12332 (the 12.15 ex Beograd) even though it is meant to stop for operational purposes only (ie. to put the M62 on). The gripper came looking for us but when he realised we were English asked if we had come from Belgrade then walked off! There were 5 British cranks on the train including Paul Griffin so we had a natter to them on the way back into Budapest.

Sutty and I were knackered so went off back to the hotel for doss. Denzil went out for food and beer with Ferenc and his girlfriend Andi.

SATURDAY 8TH SEPTEMBER 2001
Up bright and early again this morning, thankful that the Budapest Metro starts at 04.00, even on weekend mornings! Today was Bratislava rail day involving an exhibition at Bratislava depot. The main attractions for us were the use of an MÁV Nohab throughout on a tour from Budapest to Bratislava and also CD 751.002 on a tour from Olomouc.

The M61 was rather disappointing really, not much thrash, and it was pouring with rain. The company was good though, Ferenc and Andi and the other British cranks - there was even an on board bar! All this for the princely sum of 4000 Hungarian Forints (~£10.00). The "ticket" was actually a Nohab postcard stamped with the number and price!

On arrival at Bratislava the obligatory phots were taken and the train headed off up to the depot. We decided to do some fill in moves to scoop some ZSR goldfish bowls and other electrics, then had lunch in the pizza restaurant on the station. (Yes, Pizza again!).

Soon it was time for the tour back to Olomouc and it was a pair of Czech kettles with the 751 assisting on the rear! Still got some thrash and had 3 engines for the price of 1 - the tour cost 100 Czech Koruna (~£2.00!!).

Tour ticket

We had to leap at Kúty in order to get to Prague for the overnight. Decided to upgrade to 1st Class on the EC and caned in the restaurant car. A pricey but very nice turkey breast, rice and chips washed down with a Budvar was duly demolished!

Std-1st excess ticket - and I thought BR ones were complicated!

The concourse at Praha Hl.N was teeming with "lice" to quote a Sutty phrase so we sat on the platform watching the train movements until our overnight came in. There were 2 others in the compo with us, a cockney and an Irish lad!! A sociable overnight was had, although not as comfy as the last one we'd done!

SUNDAY 9TH SEPTEMBER 2001
Again none of us could be bothered to find out the loco on the overnight. Arrived at Frankfurt and asked the two chaps who'd shared our compo their next move. They told us they were flying home with Ryanair and their flight was at 09.30. I asked them how they were getting to Hahn Airport and they hadn't realised that Ryanair don't fly from Frankfurt Main airport! Oops! I'll never know if they made the flight or not but I doubt it!

Had a McBreakfast then did the IC up to Köln for the IC to Brussels. Unusually 2250 banked us at Liège. Scurrying through Schaerbeek Denzil commented that 2723 was on the Mouscron. "2723, that's my second from last one!" I exclaimed. Off at Nord for 2723 to Midi, bit tight for the Eurostar but it was a scratch!

The food in FC on the Eurostar home was atrocious - a light snack consisiting of a Croque Monsieur - half a slice of toasted bread with ham & cheese. An absoloute disgrace and Eurostar have been told so on a comments form!

Being a Sunday had to suffer a bus from Nuneaton - still the only one of the week!

All in all a very good week. Including the UK we bashed in 7 different countries! Glad i've managed to cane some more rateable 219's and 234's in the book before they are withdrawn, also managed to have some rateable Polish engines and scored a lot of track.

Matthew Reeves    14th October 2001.