It's me again!

Those who have met me will know straight away that these photos were not taken today; indeed, they couldn't have been, as none of what is in the shots apart from me (less the hair) and the engine I'm on exists any more.  However, they, and the collage, were created today, so I hope it fits the Blipfoto bill even if stretched a little.  I have bought myself two years access to a photo scanning app, Photomyne.  I have lots of old photos that are never looked at so have been planning for a long time to scan them but hadn't found an easy way to do it.  I've been trying out a trial version of this app and have been impressed; it's easy to use and can even colourise the B&W shots if wanted.  But that's enough about the app; I'm not on commission.

The pictures were actually taken on 3rd September 1968 when I was 15.  No steam trains had run on British railways for a year but I had heard that there were still some running on industrial lines around the coal pits of Co. Durham.  I persuaded my Dad to take me up to the mine at Philadelphia on the outskirts of Sunderland which was no mean feat as we didn't have a car, so had to rely on public transport.  Once there, we were wandering inside the gates when someone asked us what we were doing there; my Dad explained and we were told we shouldn't be there, but if we came back again in an hour or so and asked for 'Big Jack' he would probably see what he could do.  We went for some lunch and headed back and asked for Big Jack; turned out he was one of the engine drivers just starting his shift, and he welcomed us on board his engine.  We then spent a very happy two or three hours shunting wagons around the site, with me at the controls several times during the afternoon.  I think my Dad enjoyed it as much as I did and I've never forgotten the kindness of Big Jack for making my day into one I'd remember all my life.

For anyone who is interested, the engine I was on was an 0-6-2T No 42, which as far as I am aware, has been preserved on a heritage railway somewhere; I believe it ran on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway in the very early days.  The engine we passed in the bottom right shot was an 0-6-0ST No 63.