Sandstone Heritage Trust - News
WN12 - A festive weekend for Ferrymead - Flugel
"Extra" by Kerry Young
23rd October 2006
Now what? You may well ask. I expect there will be quite a number of our readers will not know that this is a holiday weekend (Labour Weekend) here in N.Z. This weekend is traditionally a festive weekend for Ferrymead as a whole and this year is no exception. ) Our railway operation was somewhat curtailed due to the 'D' being in Dunedin for the celebrations there. So it was a case of only one engine in steam and some spirited running to move the people. Let me show you but a little from the fifty something pictures I took..................
Alan Burney was driver for today and I managed to get this snap of him from the signal box. I did take a pic of our Rachael who was running the box, but it wasn't a good shot, so abandoned that one sadly. (It'll keep Rachael!)
Back to earth and I hitched a ride with Alan and had a good chat at the same time.
Arriving back, I saw this racehorse checking out the travelling public. Still not many about, (public, not race horses) as it was still early in the day.
This shot is taken at the Ferrymead Station end, where I could get down the bank to get a square on shot of the valve gear on the 'W'. This is your classic 'straight line' Walschaerts gear. The centre line of the cylinder goes right through the centre line of the drive axles and the gear is laid out parallel to this line. It doesn't get any better than this, yet this was the first locomotive wholly designed and built in New Zealand. Note too, that Alan has correctly left the engine in mid gear while waiting.
No Flugel is complete without Sir Colin, who is seen here chatting up the lady behind the counter in the tramway sales shelter.
A swing to the right and we see the ex Dunedin 22 approaching from the township. I invite you to note the neat picket fence and the stone work on the embankment. That's the corner of the Ferrymead Station just inside the fence.
On the platform and the last passengers arrive, Sir Colin checks for more and the guard (sorry, I don't have the name) is looking for Colins directions.
Jigger rides are ever popular and here a group is just beginning to move off on an action packed trip.
A good chuff from the stack alerts me to the departure of the next train east. See the catenary wire up there? It hopefully won't be too long now before it is getting used in earnest.
Alan Burney was driver for today and I managed to get this snap of him from the signal box. I did take a pic of our Rachael who was running the box, but it wasn't a good shot, so abandoned that one sadly. (It'll keep Rachael!)
Back to earth and I hitched a ride with Alan and had a good chat at the same time.
Arriving back, I saw this racehorse checking out the travelling public. Still not many about, (public, not race horses) as it was still early in the day.
This shot is taken at the Ferrymead Station end, where I could get down the bank to get a square on shot of the valve gear on the 'W'. This is your classic 'straight line' Walschaerts gear. The centre line of the cylinder goes right through the centre line of the drive axles and the gear is laid out parallel to this line. It doesn't get any better than this, yet this was the first locomotive wholly designed and built in New Zealand. Note too, that Alan has correctly left the engine in mid gear while waiting.
No Flugel is complete without Sir Colin, who is seen here chatting up the lady behind the counter in the tramway sales shelter.
A swing to the right and we see the ex Dunedin 22 approaching from the township. I invite you to note the neat picket fence and the stone work on the embankment. That's the corner of the Ferrymead Station just inside the fence.
On the platform and the last passengers arrive, Sir Colin checks for more and the guard (sorry, I don't have the name) is looking for Colins directions.
Jigger rides are ever popular and here a group is just beginning to move off on an action packed trip.
A good chuff from the stack alerts me to the departure of the next train east. See the catenary wire up there? It hopefully won't be too long now before it is getting used in earnest.
This is the happy lady who goes by the name of Mrs Bun when in the Bakery. Today, she is offering foodstuffs in the Moorhouse station.
Being a weekend with the theme of horse drawn, we see two such conveyances outside the stables.
Just behind the stables, we see the (Village?) blacksmith working on a new axle set he has nearly finished making.
Not well focussed, but I'm sure it's worth showing just the same. Obviously a portion of the smithy.
The man himself (again I have no name, sorry) showing a visitor the detail of a finger machine on the table.
Time is moving on and the visitors are pouring in. A busy platform scene.
The guards 'Right away!
Alan puts the pedal to the metal.
What better place to take a rest? (For me that is!) There were a great number of shots taken and I might just work myself up to offering a few more that I am sure would be of particular interest at a later date. In the meantime, ponder on the vehicle make of Tilling Stevens. 'K'.