Melbourne BG SCS Train Timetable 
The Netherlands – August 2011
First up, Amsterdam surprised me... I was expecting somewhat of a metropolis, Amsterdam being the capital and all. Instead it's a beautiful canal city with fantastic architecture, despite some of the houses leaning towards canals or other buildings.
Nederlandse Spoorwegen [aka 'Dutch Railways'] (Official site) is the national railway operator and provided us with all the transport requirements we needed. Multiple trips were taken out to random locations and the trains were always fast and on time.
Amersfoort
Just south-west of Amsterdam, Amersfoort is an interchange station for anyone wanting to head north/north-west. We used this interchange on the way through to Groningen. A modern EMU was caught from Amsterdam Centraal but then the connecting train was a Koploper to Groningen! Checking out this model of EMU was high on my priority list!
The Koploper looks very similar to the JR West Thunderbird (683 Series) and the standard 183/485 EMUs as well, but I'm not too sure who copied who. I also bought a model of this in HO by Lima; I'll post on that at a later date.
Groningen
My grandparents are from this area and it had to be visited... getting here by Koploper was an added bonus. Groningen is known for its high student population and universities. We had lunch in the town square and checked out the shops; there was a better selection there than the capital of Australia :)
Veendam
The Museum Railway S·T·A·R runs from Staadskanaal to Veendam and this wasn't far away from Groningen. We took the DMU from Groningen to Veendam and intercepted the first run of the SL for the morning from Staadskanaal. Note that this service has only just been re-connected to Veendam. The train used to stop one station short until June this year (2011) when they re-extended the service.
The STAR Museum Train had to cross a canal when coming from the south (Stadskanaal); a manually-operated bridge is turned into place when required.
We then took the next DMU back to Groningen and then connected to a return service to Amsterdam.
Venlo
The final day was spent taking the train from Amsterdam Centraal to Bochum, Germany. This was extremely easy and fast. There were three connections in total, all with no issues or delays. Venlo was the last stop before switching to the German railways and was a hub for freight train drivers to change shifts. There happened to be a constant procession of freighters pausing for 5 minutes in the yard, coming in from both directions.
New York – August 2011
New York is intense. The city is amazing and, as per any metropolis, perpetually under construction. I happened to be staying in 'serviced apartments' in the Financial District near Fulton St. subway station... but this turned out to be a Jewish synagogue. Pretty bad false-advertising on the website, but survivable. Either way, the place was only to be a bed... there was too much to do outside and no reason to care as long as there was a roof.
As per usual, I'd google-mapped NY prior to coming and new that there wasn't much freight action on the island. I had seen a few yards on the the east coast of Long Island near Brooklyn and had decided that would be a first stop once I had time.
Car floats and empty lots on Long Island
I thought we all called them train ferries or rail ferries, but it turns out they're known as car floats in America. The New York New Jersey Rail, LLC run one from Bay Ridge to New Jersey on-demand. Turns out that when I visited there was no demand whatsoever, to the point where I was actually sure that the whole site had been abandoned. It wasn't until I google'd today that I realised it is the end of the Bay Ridge Branch owned by the Long Island Railroad....
Actually, as I'm writing this I'm seeing conflicting information on Wikipedia as to what carfloat service is actually still in operation...
I then walked north to the other visible yard on google maps but it turns out the photos are old and the yard no longer existed. I turned east to see the subway depot near 9th Ave Station. It was pretty cool, nice diesel maintenance equipment, but I'd failed to take any good photos.
CSX: The Bronx
This was a fun trip... on my last day in NY I decided to venture north to see a yard just across Harlem River. At the time of research I'd neglected to check suburb names and so just went for it, on foot. I found the CSX depot with quite a lot of rolling stock, random Amtrak services shooting through and a track gang working.
I walked the length of the yard south after coming from the intersection at Baretto Street. In the distance there were two CSX locomotives doing some minor shunting. Fortunately I waited around long enough for an Amtrak service to bolt through.
The next part was meant to be a leisurely stroll across to the large junction of the Metro North and Amtrak railway near 149th Street 'Grand Concourse'. As I crossed the streets I started feeling slightly self-conscious... it wasn't until I saw a portable police turret keeping an eye out on an intersection that I realised a tourist should probably not be walking through the district with a large camera hanging around their neck.
Metro North and Amtrak near 149th Street
This area provided a nice amount of action. Around 1 train every 5-10 minutes in both directions and from both Metro North and Amtrak. Although the sun wasn't in the best position, and there were a lot of fences preventing clear shots, it was a good location to just relax in the high 20-degree temperatures + humidity.
Harlem River
I then walked south and crossed Harlem River. There seems to be a lot of freight infrastructure on the northern side, including a low-lying viaduct allowing the trains to traverse the border of the northern shore. The main Metro North rail bridge is also a great backdrop.
Harlem-125th Street Station
This is one of the first stations on the south-side of the line on the bridge shown previously. Therefore it carried the expresses and locals stopping at this station. Fortunately the sun was in the right position for anything heading south. It was a pretty busy location and the foyer of the building was amazing.
And that was it for New York... the next day was Amsterdam...
California – August 2011
Right, here we go... I've been back in Australia for over a week and am only just getting on top of the stack of photos taken from my most recent holiday. This was the not-Japan trip and it began in the USA.
California
The goal was simple... fly the red-eye A380 from Melbourne to LAX, jump in a hire-car and make it to San Francisco the 'scenic way'. A few days would then be spent in San Francisco before returning to LA via the inland route. This would include Yosemite and a few of the larger railroad junctions as seen from Google Maps.
San Luis Obispo
The Pacific Surfliner (I think?) happened to arrive just as we did. There were a few UP Locos stored as well... maybe for banking? The town was great, unfortunately we didn't check out the coffee; there were quite a few lively places around the station to do so though.
The pedestrian bridge at San Luis Obispo was well designed. It provided a great view of the station and yard too.
I had always thought that the Bachmann models of the Amtrak cars were just cheap and didn't include side-frames on the bogies... turns out they're actually like this in reality... not the prettiest view.
Paso Robles
The next stop via Highway 101 was Paso Robles. Not much happening here at all... I nearly expected to see the same Amtrak train coming through, but it seems that we beat it way too easily. The station has a Sushi shop built in, but the prices weren't what we were willing to dish out despite paying the US$.
Quarry Lake (east of Watsonville)
An accidental detour saw us visit a quarry near Quarry Lake. The initial plan was to divert from 101 to check out the seemingly large junction at Watsonville, but the weather and time wasn't on our side.
Caltrain Station, San Francisco
Caltrain is a loco-hauled/control-cab operating passenger service from San Francisco (right next to the baseball stadium) down to San Jose. Turns out there's a few great restaurants next to the station in San Fran and whilst waiting for dinner I had a few minutes with a friends camera to check out the yard. Fortunately the sun was also in my favour.
As you can see, it's a terminus; they'll end up in the water unless the dig or build over to Oakland. Unfortunately I didn't get to see any of the trains in action, nor ride one, but it's something I'll go back again for.
Trams/Trolley buses in San Fran
I was quite impressed to see the trolley bus routes in San Francisco. I had never actually seen any running and the biggest shock was the lack of noise. I'm used to diesel buses here in Australia and the electric versions are bloody quiet. I imagine it could even be a safety issue if no one can hear them coming?
Another impressive feature was that the trams used one of the trolley bus wires where they shared paths. Of course, the bus would not pick up the other polarity from the ground, so they needed two wires in the air. Trams, on the other hand, only used one and so you'd see, at intersections, trolley buses and trams banked up behind each other.
San Francisco Cable Car Museum
This is a must-see for any rail enthusiast. Sure, the they're not exactly 'trams', but the techonology behind the system is awesome. This Museum actually still acts as the motive power source for the cars. The cables are turned here to pull the cars up the gradients. The cars are controlled by levers where the driver can choose to detach from the cable and apply brakes... i.e. allowing them to stop at 'stops'. Hence the cables are perpetually spinning, or during hours of operation anyway.
And then... the Cable Cars...
The world-famous cars that run on the cables are a tourist trap. The ticket price is 4x a standard fare and the queues to ride them are usually large. The cars to move quickly, but I imagine there's a limit to the amount of cars on the cable at once as you'll often see the drivers at the end stops waiting for the other cars to climb the hill. Pretty frustrating as someone in the line waiting.
As for the ride, the gradients are awesome and the passing is pretty dangerous... hang of the side if you dare, but keep your head in!
Oakdale
A random stop through Oakdale on the way to the Yosemite National Park found a random caboose and the Sierra Railroad's Dinner Train. Not much was happening around the yards, so I didn't hang around long.
Fresno
The initial perception of Fresno indicated little railway infrastructure and life... fortunately I was wrong. After a little false navigation following disused lines I came across 'South Railroad Avenue' which followed the main line. It turns out that there's a junction and then the BNSF depot. Finally some real american horsepower. Santa Fe had always been my favourite railroad (first model train, etc...) and it was nice to see them, although in the amalgamated BNSF livery.
The last miles on Interstate 5
After Fresno the countdown was on to get back to LA before midnight. The plane to NY was leaving early the next morning and we needed some time to check out Hollywood. Along the way back there were a few freighters hanging around loading sites, one was from Golden State Feed and Grain and another from Rail America.
And that was it... New York was next.
Chichibu Railway – September 2010
An apology: I'd traveled here last year whilst in Japan and had completely forgotten to write up the experience. Hopefully I haven't mis-recollected too much of the following information :)
I'd seen the freight operations in Chichibu online in multiple places, but wanted to go and check out the 'rolling museum' for myself; it was one of the many private railways that I had intended to visit and one that I had the freight timetables for.
The Chichibu Railway
The Chichibu Railway (Official site, Japanese only) is a private railway in Japan which runs west from Hanyu Station to Mitsumineguchi Station via Kumagaya. The railway operates both passenger and freight (limestone) services. It's rolling stock consists of many handed-down locomotives and multiple units.
Getting to Chichibu from Osaka
Since I'd been visiting friends in Osaka, I wasn't in the best location to be getting to Chichibu early enough for some of the freight operations. Fortunately, Japan still has quite a few overnight services and one of these, the Kitaguni, would get me to Nagaoka in time to transfer to the Shinkansen to Kumagaya.
The Kitaguni departs Osaka Station just before 11:30pm each day and arrives at Niigata just before 7:00am the next morning. The service is operated by dedicated 583 Series EMUs and has multiple types of sleeping accommodation. I chose the cheapest bed, but I don't recommend this. See the photo below; I was in the top bunk and you get only a single peep-hole for a view.
Nagaoka to Chichibu
We stopped at Naoetsu Station briefly on the way through to Niigata. I grabbed a few photos before we continued on to Nagaoka.
At Nagaoka Station I transferred to the next southbound service to Kumagaya. I had breakfast at the station and then found the Chichibu platforms downstairs. Tickets were purchased from a vending machine and I chose to travel to Takekawa. This station is west of the branch that runs to the Taiheiyo Cement Factory and is the first place to see traffic heading east-bound.
Upon arriving at Takekawa I found several of the electric freight locos stored in the yard. This was to be an ominous sign, as it seemed most of the services I wanted to see that morning weren't running.
I walked a lap around the yard and the station and checked out the surroundings. Takekawa is a very quiet little suburb, but the locals seem to be used to railfans hanging around. I greeted one or two people who didn't seem too upset with me loitering and taking photos of the infrastructure. I was also greeted by around 30-odd small children on a school excursion crossing the pedestrian bridge.
After walking about 3/4 of my lap the 'express' EMU passed and I got a shot of it from the level crossing east of the station.
I looked again at my timetable and realised that there was to be another freight coming in and so positioned myself on the station island platform. I watched as one of the staff inspected (and tightened) the handbrakes on a rake of limestone hoppers (WAKIs).
The level crossing west of the station then sounded. The previous east-bound passenger train had already passed and so I realised I was finally going to see a freight movement.
In came locomotive 504 with a small rake of limestone hoppers. It stopped on the road closest to the platform and another engineer jumped on the front. They then left the hoppers and trundled down the rails towards the factory.
That then ended my brief tour of the Chichibu. I returned to Kumagaya on the next passenger service and took the Shinkansen into Tokyo. The rest of the afternoon was then spent with friends in Akihabara.
As per usual, with any freight railway in any country, any timetables available must be taken with a level of doubt. The paths set for trains are only really useful when there is a train to be moved. I had a feeling that there were too many stored locos in the yard and this turned out to be true; as out of the 5 movements to be seen in the timeframe I was there, only one ran.
Either way, I was more than content with seeing preserved locomotives still operating and was also impressed with the other hand-me-down rolling stock on the Chichibu.
Oh! That's right, I was also there to see the Paleo Express, which was meant to run on that day.
...It didn't...
Canberra to Queensland
I'd been invlted to the Gold Coast for NYE 2010 and so I thought I'd make an adventure of it and go by rail. Google Maps indicated that, via the Pacific Highway, the distance is 1,130km and, by car, it would have taken around 14 hours. I wasn't going for a land-speed record (and this isn't Japan) so I decided to take a relaxed path via Country Link (which does happen to be the only regional rail transport that travels north nationally.) This trip was to go via Sydney, Maitland (the start of the Hunter Valley) and then the north coast (overnight) to Brisbane. I could have chosen to switch to a bus at Grafton/Casino, but I didn't feel like changing transport at some gawd-awful time in the morning and a bus didn't appeal to me. After arriving at Brisbane early in the morning, I was to change to QR and travel south to the Gold Coast, arriving around 8:00am.
Canberra
This trip started early at Kingston Railway Station in Canberra, ACT on Wednesday the 29th of December. This station (note that we are in Australia's capital) sees no more than 3 passenger train departures per day and 3 arrivals. These are even staggered so that every second day you can leave in the morning and afternoon, alternately with morning and evening on other days. Randomly inconvenient and it gets worse; the trip to Sydney (Central Station) takes around 4.5 hours. Meanwhile, if you are wanting to buy tickets for Country Link trains, I can only recommend to purchase them at Queanbeyan Station as it's run by the staff of the ARHS ACT and they get a commission.
Either way, we got off on time and stopped at Queanbeyan 10 minutes after leaving Canberra.
We then arrived at Bungendore around 30minutes later. As I had worked on the ARHS ACT trains, I knew I had enough time to grab a few photos as the whole line from Canberra to Goulburn still uses the 'staff' system. This meant that the driver had to exchange staffs in each of the signal boxes along the way.
At Tarago, the same thing had to happen and so I checked out the station. This was the final station on the Goulburn-Canberra branch before the train was to enter the "Main South". After this there were not going to be many other photo opportunities.
Sydney (aka. CityRail)
We arrived at Strathfield Station at some time after 10:00am after leaving Canberra at 6:43am. I then had about 6 minutes to change platforms and get onto a northbound express service. This service was to be run by CityRail which is the Sydney electric train network operator. They also run DMU services on non-electrified track.
This northbound train was to terminate at Wyong, but that was good enough, as I knew that there were freight services running over the "Main North" to keep me entertained there. I'd stopped by Wyong around 3 years ago and had seen a nice couple of RLs carrying freight southbound... unfortunately, we were well short of Wyong when the freighter stormed past, doing a great speed up the Cowan bank.
The CityRail fleet consists of all sorts of electric trains, but the northbound long-distance routes are covered by "V" sets (I believe) and they are ancient... Fortunately they are extremely comfortable and are even decked out with toilets and mildly-functioning air-conditioning. Really quite retro!
I therefore got off at Wyong and waited for the next service to Newcastle. I would only travel as far as Hamilton which is three stops before Newcastle and is the first station which intersects with the Hunter Line. Here I would transfer and then travel on the diesel service to Victoria Street where I was to stay overnight.
The DMUs used on the Hunter Line are two-car and I think nearly everyone of them had a flat-spot on one wheel somewhere.
Maitland and surrounds
Now, once in the heart of coal-country, it wasn't going to be too long until a coal train was to come hurtling past; it ended up being three, straight after each other. From what I gathered, the trains gave around 10 minutes minimum between each other when travelling in the same direction; but the paths were already clear well before.
After realising I could see coal trains all day, I packed up the camera and checked in to my hotel. Once settled, I then headed back to Warabrook Station and checked out the action. This station is located between Islington Junction and the other triangle (Koogarang Junction?)... although the double-triangle is probably known as Islington Junction. Either way, coal trains would be entering from all directions and I wasn't disappointed.
So, random light engine movements, but no coal trains... it turns out I could see them, but none were coming from the Newcastle direction. I therefore jumped on the next westbound train and got off at the next station past the triangle: Sandgate.
Day two
I was to catch the 6:65pm XPT from Maitland Station to Brisbane and therefore had the whole day to check out what was happening around the Hunter. I dumped my bags at Maitland Station and then proceeded to loiter at random points between Maitland and Newcastle. Fortunately, as soon as I'd sorted out my luggage, an 81 class + 2 48s rolled in with a grain consist. It turns out they were not going anywhere until the next DMU was through (thanks for that information from the drivers!) and therefore I took a few photos at Maitland Station and then waited for it at Sandgate.
At Sandgate, the main line is elevated over the coal lines to Koogarang Island. I was told by the grain train drivers that they were to change onto the main line and proceed through to Broadmeadow yard. This meant that they would come over the hump... of course, I didn't make it to the platform end to get the 'perfect shot'... but it worked out OK anyway...
I loitered at Sandgate and was lucky to see QRs new liveried 50 class.
The rest of the afternoon...
It was too hot by 11:00am to be hanging around in the sun and so I travelled on to Newcastle and swam at the main beach. Afterwards I ventured back to Broadmeadow Station to see if there was anything interesting going on. Broadmeadow is at the mouth of a maintenance/storage yard for locomotives and wagons. Unfortunately I only got to see a coal train passing through.
Back to Warabrook Station
I had been on to a good thing the day before, and so I though I would return to see what else was moving around.
Overnight on the XPT
I'd done this once before, back in 2000 or so, and I can only imagine that I'd forgotten how difficult it was to sleep upright. We ran on-time all the way, but the track wasn't as smooth as it could've been.
Meanwhile, the view as the sun was setting north of Maitland was beautiful. Rolling green pastures and lots of stock roaming around or running from our train. Unfortunately, the sun set pretty quickly and the reflective tint on the outside of the windows meant that there was next to zero visibility.
Lights were out at 10:00pm and most people tried to sleep (some with very loud music in their earphones.) Sleeping wasn't too easy though, as there were stations all throughout the night and people were getting on and off the train, dragging their luggage and making enough noise to wake all the light sleepers up. Even better was the fact that the guy next to me wasn't meant to be there, so at 11pm we all had to shuffle around when the actual passenger arrived.
After a random amount of sleep, then sun started rising at 5:30am and the view from the train was undeniably suburban Brisbane. A lot of the houses we passed backed on to the railway line and didn't care much for fences. We finally arrived at Roma Street Station and then I transferred to the Gold Coast Line to Nerang.
Final words...
Until Australia cares for passenger trains... CountryLink will be the only option for east coast travel. The line has been primarily built for freight trains and therefore there is no regard for speed or smooth travel. They have done a lot of improvement work over the years, but again, population and demand is lacking to make any more of it.
I would recommend this trip be done during daylight as opposed to overnight. The view is spectactular and having had the sun up during the entire route would have been great. The only other way to do it would be via a sleeper compartment, but the cost will be quite prohibitive for the foreseeable future.
Eizan Dentetsu (Eizan Electric Railway)
The Eizan Dentetsu (Official Site [Japanese Only]), known as Eiden for short (a combination of 'Eizan' and 'Dentetsu'), is a private railway in North-East Kyoto, Japan. This railway was originally owned by Keifuku Railways, but is now a wholly-owned subsidary of Keihan Railways. Prior to the purchase, Keihan had extended their Main Line to Demachiyanagi Station where the Eizan Railway starts to increase rider-ship in the Eizan Railway.
Location
The Eizan Electric Railway originally only had one main line from Demachiyanagi Station in the north east to Yase-Heizan-guchi, further north-east. This line was opened in 1925 and provided a gateway to Mount Hiei, a popular tourist destination in Kyoto. The branch to Kurama was opened in 1929 and has proved popular ever since. Both lines terminate at transfer stations where passengers continue travel on cable cars.
From 1978, Demachiyanagi Station was cut off from other forms of connecting transport when the Kyoto City Streetcars stopped running. Fortunately, in 1989 the opening of the Keihan Oto Line through to Demachiyanagi re-connected the Eiden to the wider network and made it easily accessible once more. The Eiden network had seen lower ridership in between 1978 and 1989, but it soon became popular once more.
Rolling Stock
The Eiden's rolling stock inventory consists entirely of EMUs running at 600VDC. The Deo 700 Series is a single-car EMU which usually runs along the Main Line.
The Deo 800 series is a 2-car EMU which usually runs up to Kurama.
And then my favourite, the Deo 'Kirara' 900 Series. This model was released by Kato and I have it in both the Maple Orange and Maple Red. It also received a prize (can't remember the exact name, 'Lauriel?') for it's design. It's internal seating allows the passengers to sit sideways and view the scenery along the route. It also has high observation windows.
Stations and Facilities
Ichiooji Station
Shugakuin Depot
Iwakura Station
Kurama
After getting off at the final stop, passengers transfer onto the Cable car and end up at Kurama. Here you'll find a temple and an onsen. Be careful though, I visited here in Winter of 2005 and it was very slippery and dangerous! (Then again, I'm probably just from Australia and don't understand snow :))
Japanese Night Trains: Twilight Express
Night trains are becoming a thing of the past in Japan; but there should be a few that survive... hopefully the Twilight Express is one of them. This overnight sleeper train starts in Osaka and terminates in Sapporo, Hokkaido (and vice-versa.) The trip takes roughly 23 hours and traverses the west coast of the main island of Japan. There are two full consists of the Twilight Express to allow daily services from each end of the trip.
Sightings
I'd seen the train in Japan when I was there in 2008 but hadn't even thought of travelling on it.
A ticket in hand
My next trip to Japan was to be in 2009 and I was determined to get on the train. I hadn't had many spare nights in Japan and the train had been booked out between Osaka and Sapporo on the nights I did have spare. This didn't deter me though, as the reverse trip wasn't booked out. Of course, I then had to get to Hokkaido first and I therefore took the Nihonkai (another sleeper train) to Higashi-Muroran (Hokkaido) and intercepted the Twilight Express as it returned to Osaka. I wasn't able to get all the way to Sapporo in time to meet the Twilight Express there. Higashi-Muroran was pretty cold; although it was the start of the Japanese summer, Hokkaido was still in the low teens (degrees) and I wasn't prepared.
The Nihonkai had arrived on time, giving me a 2 hour stop-over in Higashi-Muroran. There wasn't much rail traffic and so I ran to the nearest katsu curry restaurant to have my favourite dish. On returning to the station I didn't have to wait long to see those familiar blue DD51 diesels arrive. Of course, the lighting was dismal and my digital camera had no chance of catching them moving... I also had no time of getting to the front of the train to take a still shot.
First impressions
Upon entering the car (I was in a B Class Sleeper) I was presented with beautiful wooden walls and very well kept rooms. As you can tell, I settled in pretty quickly... I'd also brought a few goodies on board. The conductor came in quite soon after to say hello and to apologise for not being able to speak English. Fortunately, my limited Japanese meant we could work out all the formalities: the coin-operated shower was in the Salon Du Nord car, dinner was in allocated time slots: 7pm,8pm,9pm (if I remember correctly) and finally I had to choose what 'type' of meal I wanted for dinner and breakfast? Japanese or Western... I wasn't on the train for Western food!
I then realised I wasn't alone in my cabin and started making new friends. Soon enough another conductor came and found me and offered to change me into another room (still a B Class 4-person) but with me being the only occupant. I couldn't turn down their hospitality and so obliged.
Salon Du Nord
Once settled in I decided to wander around to see what the train had to offer; The first target was the famed "Salon Du Nord". What I found was an amazing observation car beautifully fitted out with very large windows and two TVs. The channels were selectable, but of course, everyone had to agree to you changing the channel :) ... I do believe I watched the same movie 3 times whilst on my trip... but I didn't mind as I was mainly staring out the window.
The car also included the coin-shower and a vending machine. You could also go to the dining car next door and order 'from the bar'. I happened to have a very lovely couple of obaachans talk to me and ask me about my travels... it was quite difficult trying to converse in my broken Japanese and recall all the polite grammar forms; but it made the trip even more enjoyable. It made me laugh when they didn't believe that there were people from other countries taking the relaxed approach on a sleeper train because they liked trains... I was glad to change their perceptions.
Dining
I, unfortunately, did not take a full shot of the dining car, but I can assure you it is as tastefully fitted out as the rest of the train. The staff are fantastic and I even had my waiter ask where I was from and what I was up to. Then then offered drinks and the menu which had quite a lot of options. I, if I recall correctly, had a very lovely dish of Japanese Karaage (fried chicken.)
For breakfast I was greeted by the same staff and selected the Japanese breakfast option. There was no menu to choose from, as it was a set breakfast and I was asked to take a seat, admire the great view and await the meal. All of a sudden I had 5 dishes on my table and all I can say is yum!
I then bought my souvenirs; available from the dining car menu and returned to my room.
Other classes
I had chosen the 'shared' cheaper B Class sleeper rooms, but you could also have a completely private A Class sleeper room. This included a 1-seater sofa/couch which folded out into a bed. The A Class carriage also included a small communal room at one end.
Twilight Express operations
Now comes the fun part of the trip. Both trains, regardless of direction, have an engine swap half way on their journeys. Actually... I lie... over the trip the train encounters a total of 4 engine swaps, but you can't get out and watch the other 3 of them.
The engine swaps are:
- Twilight Express EF81 from Osaka to Tsuruga
- Twilight Express EF81 from Tsuruga to Aomori Depot
- Unknown (I didn't get to see it) EF from Aomori Depot to Hakodate Depot
- Double Blue DD51 from Hakodate Depot to Sapporo
The reason for the swaps are very simple. Hokkaido isn't 100% electrified, so the diesels are required. They use two for on-time running more than gradient climbing. The diesels can't enter the Seikan Tunnel (Honshu to Hokkaido) and so the unknown EF (a stainless steel version) is for that section. The EF81s are then used for the rest of the trip, mainly for brand-recognition :)
Southbound engine swap: Tsuruga
So, after a sound nights sleep, we arrived in Tsuruga with a warning that we'd have to stop over for 10minutes whilst they swapped the engines. We (as they pretty much expected we were all train fanatics) were allowed out to take photos but were to return to the train as soon as the buzzer was heard.
Who could resist? I got out of the train and got to the front to see our first engine (EF81 113) already detached and heading south to the depot. I then walked further down the platform to take a shot of our train next to the Thunderbird that had just arrived. I could not believe the dirtiness of our consist; I hadn't expected an EF81 to cause that much build-up on the passenger car, but it could have been caused from the entire trip.
EF81 104 then started approaching to couple up to the train. It had been sitting in the yard ready to come up as soon as 113 had cleared the points. As soon as it 'clunked' onto the train and the air flowed the buzzer on the platform went off and everyone cleared back on to the train.
Final stations to Osaka
As we got closer and closer, more and more passengers departed at certain platforms. The train was actually scheduled to only stop at stations that passengers had designated to get off at; which is now quite obvious, as it was never going to pick any up. I had booked all the way through to Osaka, but was considering getting off at Kyoto... Unfortunately we were held up due to 'unfortuante circumstances' and I ended up just relaxing in the Salon Du Nord and getting back to Osaka an hour late.
Since this trip I've now also travelled on the Hokutosei and the Kitaguni. I still recall the Twilight Express as being the most memorable and stylish... but will endeavour next to get onto the Cassiopeia.
Osaka, Yodogawa, Koyasan and Nishi-Akashi.
Just to finish off displaying the photos I took whilst in Japan over September, here are the highlights from the Kansai area whilst chasing trains.
Noda, Osaka
Full gallery here.
As I was staying near Noda(JR) Station on the Osaka Loop Line, I was able get an elevated view of it from the building stairwell. Fortunately, this station is located between the Ajikawaguchi branch and Umeda, so I got to see the freight pass through, as well as the express services to Kansai Airport and Wakayama.
Southern end of the Umeda Freight Terminal
The west-most track of the Umeda Freight Terminal is used as a single-track bypass of Osaka station between Nishikujo and Shinosaka. Freight trains to Ajikawaguchi and all expresses to Kansai Airport and Wakayama (and further) use this track. Note the second last photo which shows the speed limits for a variety of express trains which travel this section of track:
Noda Hanshin Station
The Hanshin Railway runs from Umeda to Kobe. It is underground from Umeda Station before climbing above ground before Noda Hanshin Station. It does this just before the Osaka Loop Line, which travels over the top.
Noda JR Station
A favourite, Noda JR Station allows you to see for quite a while towards Nishikujo along some very straight track. This provides some great shots at full zoom of the loop line trains and other expresses heading south.
Yodogawa Bridge
This bridge provides a connection east of Osaka City for freight trains from Suita to Hirano in South Osaka. There have been rumours that it will also soon get it's own passenger service. The line is currently being upgraded.
Suita Station, Osaka
I walked back to Suita Station from Yodogawa Bridge hoping to see another service pass along the line; unfortunately the scheduled trains never arrived. Either way, once at Suita there was action in every direction.
Koyasan
Full gallery here.
I travelled with a friend on the back of his motorbike up to a temple in Koyasan, but on the way we stopped at a Gusto Restaurant near Nankai Mikkaichicho Station.
Nishi-Akashi Station
After spending a night in Ako City, I took my time returning back to Osaka and stopped by Nishi-Akashi Station. This is on the main line between Kobe and Himeji and sees a lot of freight passing through. Since it is a larger station, all passenger expresses stop, but the freight trains pass... so you knew when and where to look for them. Note that the first shot is from Ako station of the local to Himeji and the second and third are from Himeji Station.
Gakunan Railway
I'd heard a lot about this railway, and had seen the models released by Tomix, but wanted to see it for myself. I'd been in Tokyo overnight and decided that, although I had my RailPass, I wanted to also ride the Odakyu Express to Odawara and then commute further to Yoshiwara to ride this railway. This trip therefore also involved catching the Shinkansen.
After a quick trip on the Tokaido Line, I arrived at Yoshiwara to find a DE10 in the yard. I later realised that this was the marshalling area for the freight that then gets taken by the Gakunan railway.
I caught the next service through to Hina, as this was the best location at the time to see the most freight movements. I'd gathered this via the 2010 Japan Freight Timetable (but you can also get the timetable here.)
I was greeted at Hina by some archaic looking machines. After around 15minutes of checking out the area, the boom gates came down and then I saw 5 WAMU wagons coupled together and rolling towards me. One of the shunters was hanging on the back and one was in the middle. The guy in the middle all-of-a-sudden jumped off the consist and then jumped back on as the cars kept rolling. I then realised there was no engine attached as the shunters grabbed the handbrake on the wagons.
Before they'd dragged that rake to a hault, the engine (which may have given them a push... it was out of sight) then came through the crossing and coupled up to another rake of WAMUs.
Unfortunately, this was then the total of the freight action seen on the Gakunan Railway itself. But before I returned to Yoshiwara, I checked out the area. There's a few abandoned carriages around the station.
I then waited for the next service back to Yoshiwara. I must note that the passenger services are spaced half-hourly and they give you a good deal of time to check the area out.
Back at Yoshiwara, I checked my freight timetable and saw that there'd be a JR service arriving shortly to drop off cars for the Gakunan Railway. There were also to be other services passing, so I grabbed a bite to eat and waited.
I then returned to Osaka, taking the Tokaido Line to Shizuoka and the Shinkansen from there. You can find the complete photo album for the Gakunan Railway here.
Minoakasaka and Tomida
The Seino Railway runs from Minoakasaka to Otomesaka just west of Ogaki. JR drops off empty wagons to Minoakasaka from Ogaki and then waits for the return full freight cars. This is a very scenic area and recommended to all. Just make sure you get there when you can get a JR service between Minoakasaka and Ogaki. This is only in the early mornings or late afternoons, as around lunch there are hardly any services!
And yes, I failed miserably to stick to the timetable I had previously wanted to follow. I'd slept in and therefore got to Minoakasaka around 1100 for the 1108 JR service. It was still definitely worth the wait. Below are a few of the good shots (including some of the Yoro railway.) Note that I walked from Ogaki to Minoakasaka and I do not recommend this, it's a considerable distance.
Here's a link to the full album.
Note that once the JR engine has detached, the Seino diesel hooks and pulls away very quickly, they have no other traffic on their line and don't wait around!
I then proceeded to run back to Ogaki as I'd realised there was no JR passenger service at 1200 and there were also no visible taxis (I should've asked the station attendant!). On the way I dropped my camera battery, ruined my feet due to my sandles and missed the ~1300 Yoro Railway service. I then jumped on JR and got to Tomida to see the cement trains. If only I'd gotten up on time!!
Once in Tomida, I got to see one cement train leave and then two JR oilers pass... not as much as what the timetable would have indicated should have passed. There was a strange bogie-carrying-maintenance-car on the Kintetsu line though! I soon returned back to Osaka.
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