model railway layout

Learning the Line

CraigLeave a comment

On the Eight by Four Railway — with extensions — early morning mist curled around the sleepy steam engines and mingled with the first wisps of steam as the firemen coaxed their fires into life for a new day’s work.

One by one, the engines gently woke on their sidings at Caerphilly Yard, their boilers bubbling as they stirred from sleep.

Pickle, a small green tank engine with a bright brass dome, yawned a cloud of steam. Today was his first day pulling the milk tankers to the Cheese and Gate Creamery, and his wheels quivered with excitement.

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Friends or Rivals

Craig2 Comments

Sunlight gleamed on the rails of Ddraig Goch station, polished by the passing of countless wheels. Two engines stood side by side, looking very important.

One was Mallard, an A4 class engine, large, proud and blue. His streamlined casing and nameplates shone and sparkled in the bright morning sky. From buffer to buffer he stood eager and ready at the station, steam drifting from his valves in impatient sighs.

Beside him stood King Edward VIII, a hardworking King class engine painted a deep, dignified green. He was broader and heavier, built for strength, and his brass snifting valve glowed warmly in the morning sun. He too was ready to start the day’s work.

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