A TRIP TO TOWN (07/09/10)

We were forecast a rainy day it started out that way and we all got soaked on the morning walk. Got back to the van and the precipitation departed, such is life.

After posting the first of today's blogs I caught the bus into the big city intent on visiting the Rail Museum. Had I had an ounce of common sense I would have checked it’s location. As I haven’t, I caught the bus and got off in Darlington centre, walked half the way home before locating the museum, another four pounds and fifty pence wasted. Not totally, Darlington has some fine buildings, buildings fit for a place that was in at the dawn of rail transport as we now know it…………most likely ran late then.

Barclays bank a superb bit of Victoriana. Next I was attracted to the Market Hall, this was not a success, kept fiddling with my histograms but shooting into heavy cloud with the sun behind was never going to produce a satisfactory result. Fiddling with ones thingies in public can also result in unwelcome attention so I called it a day and processed at base………..they are still awful…………………….

 

Gives you an idea of what it looks like, if I get the opportunity then I will return in favourable conditions as it is a wonderful and uplifting building.

Now on to the museum, again photographically not brilliant…………my fault the place is a treasure trove of information and well worth four pounds ninety five pence and half a days camel march.

          The outside………..This bit is free. As is this………………………………

       This one is HDR……..over the top…………Me or the planting?……Thought for a minute I was visiting a garden centre.

I paid my money and entered, now the first thing I came upon was a collection of Victorian urinals, more privacy in those days…………no peeping at ones fellow micturatous in those days. Daft beggars…… even put frocks on piano legs.

No Privacy for ladies though. In those days ladies were ladies…………They didn’t need a pee.

On to the trains or locomotives, only four but it is not what this little gem of a museum is about. I spent two hours reading and was fascinated. You could maybe do it quicker as I am anorexic…..Sorry dyslexic.

This is the cab of a T3 080 from the nineteen twenties..

Derwent a surviving example of one of the first locomotives built in Darlington.

   A picture saves a thousand words, in this case thirty five an ampersand and some numbers.

Just to prove it. Now what I really came to see.

     What they don’t mention is a boiler explosion killed a driver, not on the first run but a few years later. It must have been a hard but magical era to live in. Here is Locomotion Number One.

Gorgeous.

Still beautiful and amazing what it started. From a few revolutions per minute for little power we now have units that will produce hundreds of HP from the size of half her cylinder…….They don’t have the torque though.

A grand few hours out, I’m heading back to Hawes tomorrow, Back here for the weekend and a run around town at night. Assistant willing. ‘ Art listening?