Maintenance Broomhill Section - 25th October 2025

With holidays etc only a few of us met at Boat of Garten, Georgie had already loaded up her  "truck" with the requisite tools and off we headed for Fisherman's crossing. 

A couple of dipped joints near the 90 mile post were just a warm up, the main event was some half a mile away near Lynchurn 2 level crossing, where above Andrew and Jeremy no doubt discussing their former mountaineering conquests of the visible snow capped peaks of the Cairngorms.

After much huffing & puffing and the dark art of Measured Shovel Packing, the concave joints are now convex, albeit briefly, as rail traffic will soon smooth it out to be perfectly level.

 

Luncheon was had in the relatively warm environs of Broomhill Porters Room, Georgie gave us the light task of spreading the ash on the Up cess just South of Broomhill bridge, which had recently been disturbed by trenching for cables.

Thanks to all the aforementioned and Fergus (the fishplate fiend) who joined us after his track inspection and yes he replaced one and left a further two for Georgie to attend to!  

 

Many trains at Boat of Garten - 17/18 October 2025

Following on from the previous P'Way blog - Thursday and Friday saw the Rail 200 Inspiration train stabled in the back platform at Boat of Garten open for the public to visit.

Above photos thanks to G.Sutherland at end of play Friday.

(Hope the many visitors appreciated our infrastructure maintenance!)    

As part of the visit there is a special Strathspey Railway Gala with two train running with mixed traction! (by the looks of things) 

Thanks to Rob Law for above two photos

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Saturday saw partial normality return, as the Rail 200 train had departed but apparently the two train running was still in operation.

Akin to "how many men to change a light bulb?" Answer : four! (as I had already failed with the powerful battery wrench first) - all to remove one chair screw! 

Fortunately they weren't all as hard as this one, dismantling all the chairs from the dead sleepers that Georgie had retrieved.

After luncheon was more of the same but it was easier as at least most of the sleepers were upright - alas we still could not see much of the many train movements taking place yards away!

Thanks to Mike,Fergus,Jeremy Iain, Michael & Ian (who joined in after his track inspection)

Boat Spruce up - 11th October 2025

We welcomed a new volunteer Mike who lives locally

and soon mucked in as above, apparently the brief description of the task from Georgie was "fill in the holes on the platform" She had left piles of gravel, only a matter of spreading, levelling and raking. We did end up digging out the worts of the moss and barrowing away, that kept Andrew, David, Richard & myself busy all day!   

 

Whilst I was admiring the finales on the completely renovated Running in Board above, Richard explained that it was himself and David Childs that had to overcome the different size lettering by grinding them down as part of their many tasks. Richard had also painted the platform edges on all three platforms in record time!

Jeremy, Mike and Michael set to battling the encroaching vegetation on the Down platform.

Thanks to all that attended.

 

Aviemore Miscellaneous - 20th September 2025

The main P'Way task today, was to fix the badly dipped joints just outside the door of road three at Aviemore Engine Shed.  

 Eventually dug out to see what was supporting rails - repaired in a nonconformist way, twice as above!

Other jobs completed - never ending task of switch slide chair oiling (only gets bigger each siding we build!) - Mike & Iain. Jeremy trimmed trees above the new wheelset siding that doesn't have a switch and felled a tree on wing wall at Dell of Spey.

Georgie and Ian busy clearing top of shed floor

 Alex (Master Builder) had previously done cutting and applied some of the new screed, to be continued.

Fergus found yet another broken fishplate on his track inspection and over and above the call of duty took the bus back to Boat of Garten to get it replaced ASAP.

Thanks to all mentioned, especially Mike whom supplied timeous photos/info.

 

More minor sleeper refurbishments Boat Yard - 13th September 2025

As can be seen from previous Blog posting, there were a fair number of concrete sleepers that didn't make the grade for our own mainline future use, 

so a good number were purchased from KJ Bownes of Worksop, already refurbished - even so Georgie wanted the nuts loosened, oiled and re-tightened - to ensure fit for purpose (changing individual sleepers when on mainline is major hassle!).

Thanks to David, Jeremy, Fergus, Richard, Michael & Mike who assisted after his track inspection & supplied info/photo  

 

Aviemore Wheelset storage - 30th August 2025

New Running Shed crossing and switch essentially complete, bar a lot of drilling and screwing down and packing, slewing

as pictured by Keith Holyland Friday afternoon.

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Saturday saw the Squad again meet at Aviemore but it wasn't the expected worksite location.

Old Speyside Platform loop has been removed by Georgie, after many volunteer back breaking hours of dismantling it into it's component parts and re-utilising most at Running Shed worksite. 

To compensate for the loss of track to store wheelsets and bogies, Georgie cleared and levelled a suitable area

and Martin, Mike, Fergus and a new face Jeremy quickly set about utilising the already secondhand concrete sleepers that weren't possible to refurbish. 

HS2 its not

but it won't stay exposed for scrutiny for long!

Aviemore Running Shed Track - ending Saturday 23rd August

By 1600 Friday - Switch & Crossing roughly in position.

Later on, an evening PWay train ready for departure.

By Saturday morning Georgie had train unloaded

And some of the bigger bits have come from a lot further afield than

Boat of Garten! (maybe there will shortly be 10 "roads" at Aviemore?)

Saturday saw Mike, Jeremy and Michael set out the new L1,s as above, retrieve fifty AS1,s via the green wheelbarrow! And drill forty hardwood sleepers slowly as they lived up to their name!

Thanks to all that attended & Ryan, Mike for photos and info.  

 

Aviemore Running Shed - progress on Track

Georgie has done a lot of prep work to get the requisite materials to Aviemore, her aim is to get it completed in 10 days! - to achieve this Fergus and Alex (Stonemason) are being utilised on a fulltime basis - Many thanks to them.   

Waybeams secured in place, If I remember correctly the late Hamish Mackay's funeral collection monies, which were kindly donated by his Wife - went towards the purchase of the many new L1 chairs ready for their final resting place.  

Progress by 1600 Wednesday.

 

On going concrete sleeper refurbishment

 Back at the start of the year we were donated track panels by Network Rail from sidings on the West Highland Line. Georgie's aim is to refurbish enough good concrete sleepers (546!) for us to replace the ageing wooden ones on a 1/4 of a mile of track towards end of Dalfaber straight, over the closed season this coming Winter.

Below brief outline of the process -

Dab of track lube

Unscrew sufficiently to check if any pad still exists (some are horse hair) between chair and sleeper using power tools thankfully!

"Gentle" persuasion for those nuts that are seized, usually three strikes of hammer cracks them free or shears rotten bolts! 

New rubber pad inserted if required, by deftly lifting chair.

Another dab of lube before tightening nuts up again, those that will not loosen or bolt spins below sleeper or other reason as deemed by Georgie are condemned (yellow X) for future use in sidings. 

Thanks to Richard (photos) Mike above (info) Andrew, Georgie and the Station Master who kindly supplied cold tins of soft drink as it was a roasting day.    

 

Change of scenery/task near end of line

Saturday 24th May saw an extra PWay day (away from the fishplate oiling of late)

Having previously been flailed, the short siding near the river Dulnain, was further attacked with loppers, bowsaw and battery chainsaw, to get it back into a useable state for occasional use.

Thanks to Iain, David and Ian for efforts, info & before/after photos. 

 

An extra day squeezed in completes two projects - 14/15 March 2025

An extra PWay day was arranged for Friday and thankfully a big squad responded.

 

Location - Broomhill Loop, task - install Trap Switch.

Beds dug out, fishplates removed and not least the notoriously difficult to remove elastic spikes (thanks to Fergus) 

Sleepers/rail removed (by machine) bed lowered by an inch

to accommodate thicker timbers, some of the squad were detailed to retrieve all scrap materials from the North end of Loop. 

Meanwhile Mike and Ian (above) filled with concrete, their previously constructed shuttering on the four legs of the watertower at Boat of Garten.

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Saturday saw a smaller squad continue in warmer weather

Above John on rail drill and Andrew exercising!

The finished product, fishplate securing it Out Of Use, until such time as through running achieved beyond Broomhill and it would effectively become a siding (S&T would need to connect it all up and obviously move the Stop board!) 

Thanks to Mike, Michael, Roddy, Angus, Martin, John, Andrew, Iain and special mention to Fergus, Ian and myself who survived two consecutive days under Georgie's leadership.

 

Broomhill plainline complete - Saturday 8th March

Saturday saw a Broomhill meet, the February service trains compacted the hand packed ballast sufficiently to allow for Measured Shovel Packing to commence - 

although there were some big lifts and many chippies consumed, above photo shows Gang just prior to slewing 

and after much huffing, puffing and walking up and down, Georgie was satisfied with the result.

 Thanks to Fergus, Angus, Michael & Mike and Ian who provided photos/info.

Packing ballast Broomhill plainline - 11th February 2025

For mid-week, a big squad met at Broomhill,

unfortunately Georgie too quickly re-cycled the previously spent ballast back into the four foot using the JCB, sighting boards in position and track jacked up apparently 10mm high to allow for compaction and a 15mm cant, as apparently it is the tightest curve between Aviemore and Forres. 

We reluctantly left the warmth of the Porters Room, our first job to spread the ballast into the right places!

Then the hard slog came - clockwise me, Martin, Fergus & Angus simultaneously packing the ballast under each lifted sleeper, high rail first then back along the low rail, move jacks, sight  level & repeat, not sure Georgie was too impressed when she observed that we had managed to lift the track off the jacks with our obviously over exuberance! Eventually we where done literally and Mike & Iain had also pulled in all the pandrol clips. We left Fergus with Georgie doing a bit of slewing as it was getting dark....

Thanks to all that attended - track fit for traffic again.    

 

Broomhill plain lined - Week ending 8th February 2025

Mike reports with below photos - Wednesday 5th saw a small squad meet Broomhill

another 16 sleepers pre-drilled and PAN11 baseplates fitted, last of timbers removed using Colmar and Fergus in JCB.

Ballast cleared out, hopefully to the correct level, using GPS (a.k.a. Georgie) controlled JCB & the high-tech laser sighting boards !

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Scene at start of a chilly Saturday 8th Feb

and by mid afternoon!

Fergus further reports with above photo - Rails dropped in, fishplated and outside pandrols hammered in! (Pan puller missing) fun was had with the closure rails......

Thanks to Mike, Fergus, David, Andrew & Michael showed up after lunch