American Mail Railtour (2000) - Whitehead Railway Museum

A trip down the Cork main line. Notable for the failure of No.461 at Limerick Junction when taking up position in advance of the tour. No.171 was urgently made ready and sent to Dublin 2 days later, and then light to Cork on the morning of the tour. Saturday 13th May: (171 LE) Inchicore - Cork; (85) Dublin Heuston - Cork; (171) Cork - Cobh & return [x2]. Sunday 14th May: (171 LE) Cork - Limerick Junction; (85) Cork - Limerick Junction; (171) Limerick Junction - Waterford - Dublin Connolly; (85 LE) Limerick Junction - Dublin Connolly. Monday 15th May: (85) Dublin Connolly - Portadown; (85 LE) Portadown - Belfast GVS; (85) Belfast GVS - Larne Harbour - Whitehead. Tour passengers travelled Portadown to Great Victoria Street by railcar.

Main railtour ticket.

13/5/2000: No.85 about to back onto the tour train at Dublin Heuston. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: Coupled up and under the scrutiny of photographers. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: The photographers have boarded and the locomotive is made ready for departure. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: Footplate discussion at Dublin Heuston. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: Portarlington, where water was taken from a hydrant in the road above and the hose dropped over the parapet. The Cork line is straight ahead and the Athlone branch to the right. (M. Birchenough)

13/5/2000: Mallow, with containers and gantry still in operation in the yard in the background. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: Driver Tony Renehan, with the RPSI's Mark Fetcher and David Carse behind. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: Operations Officer Evan Pamely (right) and Mark Fletcher discuss firing techniques. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: At Cork, No.85 has come off the its train. (M. Birchenough)

13/5/2000: No.171 was waiting in the bay at Cork. (M. Birchenough)

13/5/2000: No.171 on the Cobh line at Little Island.

13/5/2000: No.171 operated two trips from Cork to Cobh, and is seen entering the latter station. (S. Rafferty)

13/5/2000: No.171 departing from Cobh. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: It's Sunday morning and No.85 backs out of the tunnel onto its train at Cork. No.171 has already gone ahead light to Limerick Junction. (S. Rafferty)

14/5/2000: Steam up and ready to depart from Cork. (S. Rafferty)

14/5/2000: No visit to Cork would be complete without a view of the tunnel. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: No.85 makes a fine sight. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: No.85 and train have cleared Cork tunnel. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: No.85 from the lineside north of Cork.

14/5/2000: No.85 between Cork and Mallow. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: Another lineside view between Cork and Mallow. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: No.85 crossing the River Blackwater just before Mallow. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: No.85 in the Fermoy bay in Mallow to take water. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: Safe arrival in Limerick Junction, where No.171 will take over for the run to Waterford, then Dublin. (S. Rafferty)

14/5/2000: Operating personnel and passengers wait expectantly at Limerick Junction for things to happen. (S. Rafferty)

14/5/2000: The disgraced No.461 sits in the yard at Limerick Junction, to be returned to Dublin at a later date. (S. Rafferty)

14/5/2000: While No.85 ran light from Limerick Junction to Dublin, No.171 is on the route Dublin via Waterford, seen here at Clonmel. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: No.171 takes the Kilkenny line out of Waterford with the Dublin leg of the tour. (D. Taggart)

14/5/2000: Going north from Waterford and passing Thomastown.

14/5/2000: No.171 entering Bagenalstown.

14/5/2000: No.171 at Bagenalstown in the company of the one of the short-lived railcars. (M. Birchenough)

14/5/2000: The exterior of Bagenalstown's fine station building. It was during this Sunday afternoon stop that a few tour regulars were able to get through the back door of a (nominally closed) local pub!

14/5/2000: Waiting for the road at Bagenalstown.

14/5/2000: Sullivan Boomer and Jonathan Beaumont on the footplate of No.171 in Carlow. (S. Rafferty)

14/5/2000: No.171 has arrived at Connolly with its train. (M. Birchenough)

15/5/2000: On the Monday morning No.85 backs onto its train at Dublin Connolly. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: Brian Hill (on the platform) talks to No.85's crew - Mark Fletcher (RPSI), Noel Playfair (NIR driver), Willie Gillespie (NIR inspector).

15/5/2000: No.85 pulls out of Connolly's Platform 3 to haul the tour north from Dublin. (M. Birchenough)

15/5/2000: No.85 easing over the turnout to the Platform 2 road. (M. Birchenough)

15/5/2000: No.85 stopped for water at Drogheda's curved platform.

15/5/2000: Taking water at Drogheda. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: 112 has hauled the empty Whitehead set from Whitehead to Great Victoria Street to meet the tour passengers who have travelled to there from Portadown by railcar. No.85 will take over from there to Whitehead via Larne Harbour.

15/5/2000: No.85 at Larne Harbour. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: Back at Whitehead No.85 is running round to haul the train into the RPSI base. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: The train has arrived safely back at base. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: Sullivan Boomer is cleaning out No.85's smokebox at Whitehead. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: No.3 'R.H. Smyth' is on hand to carry out a bit of shunting. (B. Robertson)

15/5/2000: No.3 will move the train to the carriage shed. (B. Robertson)