Nathan wrote:I got permission from Dick Manton to put these on our website. Some nice nostalgic stuff and a good appeal to get 2850 up and going
Dick Manton wrote:I recently did a couple of scans of the Cullinan Passenger which Charlie Lewis requested for a digital show he is doing here in the UK at the end of the month. I then decided to scan a few more of my shots all taken in the 78-82 period before the service ceased completely in September 1982 which may be of interest.
Quite a photogenic branch line considering how short it is, especially when the Jacarandas are out in October. During the Jacaranda season the local enthusiasts often requested special locos including the blue train shunt 19D be rostered on Saturday afternoons when the loco returned chimney first to Pretoria.
Several shots show the weekday morning passenger train which left Cullinan at 06.17 and could only be photographed at the well known abattoir position in mid summer. So it was an early start for me living in Joburg to do this before going in to work!
The night shot in Cullinan station is actually the last scheduled passenger train back to Pretoria on 5th September 1982 which was officially ECS but in practice had around a dozen enthusiasts on board for one of the noisiest runs I have ever had behind a 15CA!
Such a pity that Friends of the Rail have had to abandon for the time being their Cullinan runs due to repeated sleeper theft on the branch.
Regards
