Pictures from a journey done by IRFCA Pune members Jattin Bhavsar, Raj Bhavsar, Dinesh Hukmani, Ashwin Rao and Harsh Dinesh in the famous Neral-Matheran hill railway in the small toy train.
NRL NDM6 #603 prepares for departure with the 8:50 service to Matheran (Harsh Dinesh)
Let the journey begin.... (Harsh Dinesh)
The cute little wheels of the cute little toy train. (Harsh Dinesh)
MDM1A #550 reverses back into Neral DLS for refuelling. (Harsh Dinesh)
A fully functional 0-4-0T steam loco sleeps off at Neral DLS. This loco is used only for chartered trips. Note the coal in the tender just behind the boiler. (Harsh Dinesh)
The driving cab of the steam loco parked at Neral DLS. (Harsh Dinesh)
NDM1A negotiates the tight twists, turns and an enormous grade on its way to Matheran. (Harsh Dinesh)
A semaphore hand overlooks the mountains. (Harsh Dinesh)
NDM1A #550 waits at Jummapatti for a crossing. The passengers take this opportunity to reconnoiter around. (Harsh Dinesh)
On the rails to heaven...... (Harsh Dinesh)
Finally, we reach Matheran. The NDM1A takes a good rest after climbing a huge grade over a distance of 20kms. (Harsh Dinesh)
The brakes of the Neral-Matheran rolling stock. These levers are controlled by gangmen who dangle between the 2 coaches. The synchronisation by which they perform is worth watching. Right now the brakes are fully applied. (Harsh Dinesh)
"The Train woke me up". The man appears to say that as he is woken up by the sound of the passing Deccan Queen at Neral Jn. (Dinesh Hukmani)
Life as usual for the mountain folk irrespective of the toy train chugging up the hill. (Dinesh Hukmani)