SBC-BZA-UBL-SBC Trip Report

by Naren Damodaran

2004-05-05

I undertook a trip to BZA and VSG (later only till UBL) in order to catch the WDG-4's in action on the GTL-UBL/Londa sector!! and secondrarily to catch some electrifying action at BZA..so here goes!!!

DAY ONE: 2/5/04 Sunday:

Left for BZA from SBC by 7009 Seshadri Express at 13.15 hrs. Loco was a GTL 2. I went to SBC at aroudn 12.30 itself to try and catch the Brindavan coming in, unfortuanetly I missed it because it was late.

Anyway, I caught the other action, saw the WDP4 waiting for the UBL Intercity to arrive and the blood red ED WAP4 waiting to slam on to 2640 Brindavn to Chennai.

By 13.15 I got onto my coach, AC 3 Tier, and to my luck the dude who had the window seat ddin't turn up, so I got the window seat all the way to BZA. Anyway the train left 5 mins late at 13.20 hrs and then stopped again as some idiot pulled the chain as usual. After an agitated blast the GTL WDM2 reared it's angry face and began to belt straight away. Reached Cantt. pretty soon and there after the GTL loco began putting up a spectacular show. All the way till Katpadi it was doing around 75-80Kmph non-stop. The DM2 was real impressive. By now, the lady opposite me with 2 kids requested me fir the middle berth which I had, and I readily agreed, so the top berth was mine!!!

At 15.00 hrs exactly, we came across the late runing Brindavan Express with an ED WAP4....sad indeed that this trian was so late!!

On the way Kovai was crossed near JTJ and later at Katpadi the MAS-SBC Express...both blasting away with the marvellous ED WAP4 leading the way!

At Katpadi, the katpadi-Chittooor-Tirupati newly converted BG line takes a left off the main SBC/SALEM-MAS Line. Electrification is not provided on this stretch. This stretch was an MG domain and it was my privilege once to see a steam engine with a passneger on this very streatch a long tiem ago..and we ran with it on the road for quite a distance, but I was far too young to venture out to check out the loco from the road at that time!!

Now the GTL baddy began to dispaly it's true prowess, it simply nailed the throttle back and slammed away at the miles only to stop at Ramapuram...for....YES a CROSSING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now, this was no ordianary crossing...this was TOKEN territory so...the crossing train wud have to be given the token!!!! waht a sight that was to be!!

Anyway the train rolled onto the loop line and the same was the Platform line. Here there was a guy with the token and he was just about to hand it out to teh driver of our train when the SM pulled the fellow from behind and told him to give the token to the passing train and not this one....iamgine what wud have happened if otherwise!!!!!!!

Anyway I moved onto teh opposite side, as the doorway had now become my fav seat, and looked out into the dusk sky. This was a picteresque section, with hills and trees as far as the eye could see with lots of curves. In about 10 minutes the signal turned green for the LTT- Kanniyakuamri Express to pass. The dude with the token stood on the concrete pillar of the signal between the two tracks ready to give out the token to the asst.driver of LTT1 as it was called in rly terms that day. Soon from the seeimgly holow space between the rocks and trees I spotted a curving silver snake, the train!!!..it was ripping!!!!!!!lead by a GTL WDM2 as well it blasted past us and it was a sight to see the dude hand over the token as he half-hid behind the pillar hugging the signal for all he was worth and then released the token as the train blasted past!!...What a sight..and in those picturesque surroudnings even more awesome!!!!!!!!

Soon we departed and with the fading light, I faded away from the door too to return to my well not used seat!!

We arrived at Chitoor and then at Tirupati to a rousing hot and sweaty atmosphere which was killing. Soon I was bored of TPTY station as I have been there many times for religious purposes but for the first time was on a train to TPTY. Anyway on the adjacent platform came the TPTY-MAS Pass which was hauled in from MAS as the MAS-TPTY Express with an ETS WAM46P in charge. A KJM WDM2 brough tthis train in and was to be the power for it that day to MYS. People, rather devotees, swarmed in like a horde of flies on a garabge heap, for the train was no less, and quickly filled up the seats.

Soon we left TPTY bound for Renigunta where a welcome change awaited us...yes RAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The GTL loco jus cruised thru from TPTY-RU and as we entered RU I saw an ED WAP4 there. This was about 20.30 Hrs, any idea for which train the ED WAP4 was waiting?...Kerala Express??

It began to drizzle and I got inside after watching the detaching of the WDM2 and the attaching of a BZA WAM4 to the Seshadri. This was to be my power for the run till BZA!!

The Krishna Express led by the famous WAG-7 arrved on an adjacent platform.

Soon we departed and I was enjoying a hearty dinner, which was not all that hearty after the rice was tasted!!..and then the sack!!!.I wanted to get up early at around 3.00 AM to watch the high speed section to BZA.

I kind of slept, as I hate sleeping on trains, and was soon dreaming of WAP's. WAM's and WDM's and lickin my lips in the prospect of being in the midst of WDP-4 and WDG-4 action very soon!!!

At 2.45 I awoke and went to the door. Surprisingly inspite of the rain it was warm and not the least bit cool..so I stood sentinel at teh door of the Seshadri. We were at Tenali and soon after departing, we hit a speed stretch but after that we slowed down all the way to BZA. We crossed 3 WAP-4 headed trains although I didn't know which trains those were..any ideas?????

As we entered BZA at around 4.00, for the record, I absolutely love the approach to BZA, first the Krishna Canal Junction, then the mighty Krishna and finally BZA!!!!!!....neway at the Electric Loco Shed I saw a host of BZA WAM-4's and WAG-5's and 2 WAP-4's from LGD.

As we arrived at Pf no 5, Falknuma was on 6. So I stayed on at the station for a while to catch soem action. Falknuma pulled out, HYB- Narsapur Exp came in with a GTY 3A, Charminar with a WAP-4. Konark with a WAP-4. On the subject of the Konark Express, this train reverses at BZA right?...and does it get the same WAP-4 on reversal?..I think so...can any one elucidate please?

HIGHLIGHTS:

At KJM, I saw for the first time in this region, an Mued WAG5 from JHS and a WAG7 from LGD!!!
At Bangalore Cantt, I saw the RDSO Coach with a luggage van and an ED loco on the middle line.
There was a WDM2 from M.S.E.B Chandrapur at JTJ. It was in ED livery with a darker shade of magenta on top. Also anotehr GTL WDM2, any idea for which train?
The crew of Seshadri from SBC detrain here.

DAY 2: Monday 3/404:

Then at around 5 AM, I went to get a room, and got a bloody hotel instead, but I was too sleepy to protest..so off I went. But I didn't sleep for very long either, and stayed put at the hotel till 2pm when I was getting awfully bored and did not want to destroy my walkman anymore with the voices of Deep Purple and Judas Priest.

Then I left for BZA station. And I immediately hit Pf1. to watch the action only to be hit by the humidity and the sweat. Thankfully it was not HOT as it is usually here!!!

I checked out the trains in and out and later retired to the A/C waiting room to get more bored and return to the pf later!!!

HIGHLIGHTS:

22313 LGD WAP4 in blue, is this the beauty contest WAP4?
22219 ED WAP-4 came in and out with with the MS-BZA-MS Jan Shatabdi.
22388 ED WAP-4 with Kerala Express to Trivandrum.
22069 LGD WAP-4 with incoming Ratnachal from VSKP.
Which WAP-4 does the Konark get?..i.e which shed and form where to where is it under wires?
21257 BZA WAM-4 6 PE with the Jannabhoomi Express...dirty rake!!!!!!
23848 BZA WAG 5E with the Swarna Jayanthi Express...with a dirty rake!!!!!!!
23768 BZA WAG 5HA
WAG 5E Krishnaveni with VSKP-SBC Prashanti Express.
There is a KJZ loco that is not fot for passenger nor goods as written on the side of the loco and a GTL WDM2 17782 doing shunting jobs at BZA.
Also saw for the first time, WDP-1's (15063, 15069, 15061). Used on both passenger and expresses right?? coz a few were with the passengers and one with my 7227 Express to VSG.
I also saw a host of LGD WAG-7 and BZA WAG-5HA's with a million goods trains!!!!!
Saw Coromandel, Konark, Navjivan Expresses as well.
BTW the fruit juice stall at BZA pf 1 is AMAZING!!!!!!..i cudn't help going back for more and more so much so that the dude there asked me to pay him once and for all!!!!!

That was an awesoem day of railfanning!!!!!!!!!

Next part of the trip with the commencement of my trip from BZA to UBL by 7227 to follow!!!

BZA-UBL Trip Report Part 2

At precisely 17.30 Hrs, I was dead bored in the A/C waiting room, so I decided to get out onto the Pf after dying of boredom inside that hall for around an hour. So I now went over to pf no 6 and got an empty bench at the Krishna river end of the station. No sooner had I sat down than some guy who probably saw me and decided that I was a generous guy came up and started in Telugu (which I don't know, but can understand because of it's somewhat similar meaning in Kannada, asked me for some money for his eye operation in Puttaparthi. At first his mumbo jumbo led me to believe that he was asking which train goes to Tirupati, so I gave him the apparently right info, only to be shown a beggar style hand and then I realized this dude wants some money..and as I had no more money for that day except the last Rs. 20 left for juice and water just before I left, I gave him 1 Re that I managed to find in my ramble pockets. In his collection he had all Re.1 coins..so I joined the party.

Anyway on the siding (dead line) between Pf 6 and 7 there was the DRM's Inspection coach getting all ready to get attached to some train. There was a load of electrical stuff goin on there with a maze of wires on the ground to match the maze of wires overhead. Anyway after a lot of tripping and near falls the duded finally got their work done and looked happy at the end of it all. Meanwhile there was constant goods action with the WAG-7's doing duty like champions!! I really love that loco!!!!!

There were numerous passengers bound for various places leaving BZA. One of them came in with a WDP-1 and one left with a WDP-1 as well. Now,are these loco's are destined to haul passenger trains insipte of having the same capability of a WDM3A and the odd express train???

The sky was now dark and the station lights began to come on. This is what I love the station lights in the night really make the station look awesome like some forbidden jungle and it's just awesome!!..

Anyway at around 19.00 hrs the empty rake of the 7227 BZA-VSG Amaravathi Express was shunted onto Pf 3 by the KJZ loco. Surprisingly, on the days this train runs to VSG it is not called the Amaravathi Expresss, but the BZA-VSG Express. However it was only at BZA that it was announced as BZA-VSG Express and at every other station along the route it was called the Amarvathi Express.

At the same time the Ratnachal Express was due to come in, but then got delayed again and again to my consternation as I wanted to catch the WAP-4 in charge. Finally at 19.40 it arrived with WAP-4 22069 of LGD. Now I had just 5 minutes to cross the Pf and run to my coach-AC 3 Tier. and then I proceeded to the hot seat or the door. There I met 3 other guys probably in their 30's who were on their way to VSG form BZA after business hassles, and they were pretty friendly and nice. So I struck up a conversation with them as they were talking about trains, I initially thought they were IRFCA dudes, but then they didn't really seem to be one. Hence I asked them whether it was worth my while to go all the way to VSG to catch the bus back to UBL the next night.but he said I would be cutting it too close as in Goa, as I know, by 5.30 everything closes and it wud be next to impossible to catch the bus to UBL after the train reaches MAO at 6.30 pm. So I had to detrain at Hubli the next day! Anyway what was to come WAS THE GOD-DAMNED BEST DAY OF MY LIFE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So I stood at the door and watched the DP1 take off..it was a pretty rough ride actually dunno why coz when I came by Seshadri it was smooth.!!

Anyway at around 21.45 we reached Guntur where the WDP-4 would take over. So I ran over to witness the handing over of the throne from the DP1 to the beast the DP-4!!!!but for over 10minutes there was no sign of the WDP-4 at all!!!!!!..then from across the curve came the soft whine of the motors that could only be a DP-4 or a DG-4, in this case a WDP-4.

A word here about the WDP-4, this loco has even caught the attention of my girlfriend for it's awesome pull that she has seen it with the KCG Express as her house is right next to the line as it blasts past from 0 to 85 kmph in a small stretch she absolutely loves this loco though she's not a railfan in any manner!!..though she appreciates the pull of the loco and is equally astonished by the speed of the dual headed Karnataka Express!!

It was saddled to the load of 16 coaches LHF and the number was 20005. Within 6 minutes the piercing horn of the beast ripped through the silent night and we were off. The DP-4's horn broke through the night like an electric guitar plugged into a thousand watt amp!! .Everyone knew the DP-4 was on the prowl. But I guess the DP-4 was not happy enough with 16 coaches so he didn't cross 80 Kmph at all!!! although he did some awesome speed runs and slammed home the brakes the rouse the brake pads from their sleep so much so that they did give up a lot of smoke n smell!!

We passed the now famous (in IRFCA circles) Phirangipuram!!..and some other small stations enroute. In the meanwhile, the DP-4 was accelerating pretty hard but because of the rain I guess the rain as well as the LHF position, which made driving in the rain even more difficult, hampered him. However I could hear the turbo revving and everytime he picked up what a sound!!!!!!!!!..absolutely sensational!!!!!!!!..I could die for that sound!!!! It had now begun to rain and at 22.30 I went off to sleep as I wanted to wake early and catch the action at Guntakal. And for the first time in my life.I was to share my top berth with someone...heehee...no ideas please...it was a cockroach!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway after a restless sleep coz I could hear the DP-4 blastin away in the night and so badly wanted to be at the door but just couldn't. So finally at 05.00 AM I jumped down from my berth and proceeded to the door. It was a little chilly and still drizzling pretty heavily. We were late as we were to reach GTL at 05.30 but reached only at around 06.15 AM. There is a humongous and long curve to GTL from the Dronachellam side just before entering the station limits and on this curve it is possible to see the whole rake of a max of 25 coaches on the curve with plenty to spare. However we were just 16 coaches and even this was enuff!!!..it looked really neat on the curve. The DP-4 was doing around 75 kmph when all of a sudden the signal turned red!!!!!!

THE SOUND AND LIGHT SHOW:

The driver slammed the brakes so hard that in the early dawn with half the sky still dark and half just about to wake up, the sparks from the DP-4 were a sight to behold!!!! It flew up and in alldirections like fireworks as the driver screeched to a halt!!!..it was like a sound and light show when all the smoke from the ground rises up on stage..it was just like that when we had stopped!!!!..acrid fumes of brake pads rose up from the ground like ashes from dust!!!AWESOME!!!! to hear the DP-4 screech to a halt just a few meteres from the signal..!!! truly awesome!!!!!!It was the Phantom Lord at work!!!!!!!! Mastery at it's best!!!!

Anyway in a few seconds the sounds, lights and sparks had all risen into vapour and sanctity was restored. Alas, only a few like myself could witness that spectacle, coz the rest were still fast asleep..the lazy bums didn't wake up till 10.30 AM!!!!!!!

Soon we drifted into a wet and sulky Guntakal. Here is where I saw my first bit of heaven!!!!!! Hiding on the siding lines with a goods was a WDG-4!!!!!!..the very locos I had traveled all this way to see!!!!! It was the yellow and white one and my second WDG-4 after seeing the dead one at SBC but the first that was live and attached to a load!!..my dreams are coming true..and no one to smash it!!!!!!

My other exhilaration was at seeing the MG lines in good state with both the rolling stock and locos looking fresh. I guess it's coz of the rain!!!!!! The GTL YDM-4's were all fresh and shining!!.and very pretty crisp too!!

The WDP-4 detached, went to the other Pf, took on the HYB-VSG part of another train (which train brings this portion to GTL??) and attached itself back to the 7227. Now it was 4 extra coaches with another AC in front!!!

Now we had 20 coaches!!!..and the DP-4 was now a happy man, he was late, but he began to seek and destroy the miles as he raced out of GTL station. As we left, and turned left toward Bellary there was a huge freight coming into GTL from the Wadi side with dual KJZ's, one in the green livery!!now I noticed that the Wadi line is doubled..till where is this??????

The MG Line to Bellary now ran side by side. The DP-4 was in awesome form with super runs between station where it had to keep slowing down and stopping for a crossing or two.

This line is heaven and in heaven I saw the Gods of Freight... WDG- 4!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!and how many of them!!!!. This is the Mecca of Freight with the super WDG-3 and WDG-4's!!!!!!!!!!

At every single station on the way there was at least one train headed by the WDG-4 or a dual WDG-3 or even a triple WDG-3 pair.

But the station which took the cake was Tornagallu!!! This station is awesome. Nestled in between the hills lies the station with 2 platforms and a number of goods lines to the sidehere lying in wait for hungry for heaven dudes like mewere 2 freights with WDG-4's!!!!!!!!!!!!! This was in the blue/grey combo!!!!!awesome awesome awesome!!!!!!!..it is a sight to watch these seemingly never ending freight with those monsters in command!!!!!!!!

This section is dedicated to my SBC partner Anil Tharian (Shakti Man) who is a diesel lover like myself and he would have freaked out on this section.

There were so many WDG-4's in all the liveries!!!! and I caught the numbers of a load of them, but the rest were well hidden amongst the dust of iron ore and other goods rakes!!!..but I could see them at all stations as I distinguished them from their roof!!

At one particular station, there was an awesome goods train in that it had 3 WDG-3's Mued of course, the first one was a WDG 2A 14951 GARUDA, the next loco a WDG-3A Shakti and the third a WDG-3 with white stripes...so all in one.....Triple Sundae!!!!!

At Hospet I sighted a WDG-4 pull out with a goods rake at an awesome pick up rate!!!

The WDG-4's have an amazing range of liveries, all of them look awesome..and in the backdrop of hills and ore fields, with a cloudy sky, it was picture perfect to see these diesel beasts in action!!! no words can describe the feeling I hade and still do when I saw these beasts!!!

I was so caught up in the rainbow of WDG-4's when I realized that my own pot of gold, the WDP-4 was putting up a show of it's own..after Bellary it was treating the 20 coach load with absolutely no respect..as it twisted and turned the rake and in the process ran all the water off the roof onto me!!!!!!!!

The WDP-4 was a sight to behold as it raced thru territory of ore fields and factories, but of course the best run of the WDP-4 I have ever had was yet to come the next day by the Intercity!!

However he was doing around 100 plus continuously and the dust was all over the place!!more in my face than before!!!

I saw a few more WDG-4 rakes with 2 of them being dual headed!!..what a sight that was!!!

As we entered UBL, I looked at my watch and saw the time was 12.15!!!! The train was 30 minutes late at Gadag and here at UBL it was 15 minutes early!!!!!. Later whilst in a conversation with the head ticket collector at UBL I found out that they were expecting the 7227 at only 13.00 hrs. And to their utmost surprise it turned up at 12.15!!!!!!!

Anyway, as we entered UBL I saw a few rakes of passengers, with some VB's as well!!..

There was a DP-4 20000 at the siding at UBL before the station!!! The DP-4 was detached and a GY WDM3A attached at UBL with an Inspection Car and the train left at 13.00 Hrs. The same WDP-4 that brought us in, reversed and attached itself to the outgoing Amaravathi from UBL to BZA. This loco barely gets a rest!!!!..half an hour is all it got!!

SIGHTINGS:

Saw PA WDM2 16042 in Deccan Odyssey loco colour hauling the VB Miraj-Bellary passenger and the return train as well!!! Is this loco one of the loco's of the Deccan Odyssey..or rather was??
18842 R WDM3A KJM and 18704 R WDM 3A KJM both in ED Colours work links here as well as 17854 R PA WDM3A.

UBL-SBC Trip Report Part 3

I was now at Hubli. It was a return to memory for me, as a kid I had been on this line on the MG to change over to BG at Miraj to Mumbai in the early 80's.. it was!

Anyway as soon as I alighted from the train I was astonished at UBL station. It has not changed one bit except for the BG!!!!!!!and some extra buildings on the exterior. but inside it was amazing!!. It had an old world charm with 4 platforms and 3 lines for goods and parking. The yard was outside the station. The station had the old style pillars with the beautifully decorated wood carvings.all in all it was a trainspotter's delight and a faraway cry from the junctions of today!!!...

Anyway after some haggling and talking I got a dormitory bed at the station and proceeded to find the bed and the loo.. The dorm was a little inside the station but the entrance was from Pf 1 and so the balcony overlooked the station!!!....awesome!!!!!

By now I had developed a headache and the WDP-4 created more havoc by shakin my grey matter around with it's horn before leavin!!!..so I took out my Dual Headed Crocin and had a shot and then went to get some food because I have a blood sugar problem and I had to eat something soon since I hadn't eaten since breakfast at BZA!!!

So after a quick lunch of Rs 20 and quick nap at the dorm I was back on the Pf at 17.00 hrs. I found two passenger trains..UBL-DHARWAD-UBL and SBC-UBL Passenger. Before I took a nap I wanted to see Chalukya Express from SBC to Mumbai and the Dadar Bangalore Express from Dadar. The Dadar Express arrived and had to wait until Chalukya had cleared in to UBL as the line was single ahead as is the case in both directions anyway both had KJM WDM2's and short 12 coach rakes.

Anyway, the Hubli-Dharwad passenger had a VB rake and was a welcome change from the blue of today!! SBC-Guntur-UBL Pass pulled in, Hampi Express pulled out and some other trains came and went.

But the highlight was yet to come!!! At around 19.30 I heard a sound that drove me into frenzy...the dinosaurish honk of a WDG-4 from Londa side.!!!!! And in a flash it appeared across the curve with a looonng load and guess what. Yes WDG-4 12020 and 12019 Mued!!!!!!!!!!!God Bless WDG-4!!!!

And then the bedlam started...wham!!Bam!! Thank You maam!!!!! WDG-4's and Shakti's (again I thought of Anil) and other WDG-3's were prowling in and out of UBL with a maximum of 10 minutes between them on either side!!..I was in heaven!!!!!!!!!

While at Pf 4 I saw a goods with 3 DG-3's lying in wait on the extreme goods line and the other extreme line had a passenger parked and the middle line was empty. I had a strange feeling inside me that I was to see something awesome!!!..so I looked out but didn't see anything!! Not a light not a sight!!

Then I heard a feeble sound...yes!!! it was a WDG-4 sliding in with out honking and I heard the turbines as idle..awesome!!!!! There they were!!!!. 3 WDG-3's idling away for all they were worth and in the brief lull the WDG-4 would idle up it's turbines in the most orgasmic of ways!!!!!

As soon as a passenger entered, the WDG-4 train left with a short blast and amazing pick up toward Londa..and soon after the WDG3 set with the goods in the same direction.

At around 21.30 I received manna!!!!!...WDG-4 12001 rolled in from Londa side...it was the first DG-4 and it was still in the original livery as delivered green, white and black. It hadGT46 MAC on the side of the cab and 1997 as well look at the pic of the brochure of Jimmy Jose's in the uploads...this loco was the same!!!..awesome livery this..!!!! I think they have not fiddled with this loco's paint job!! The first monster in India in it's original avatar!!!! Death was the only way out of this heavy metal mania of diesels!!!!!!

I waited at the Pf for the Rani Chennama and Intercity from SBC and the SwarnaJayanthi from NDLS. RC came in with DP-4 at around 22.30 and had to wait for 45 minutes at UBL till Intercity arrived from SBC....!!....At the time Intercity entered Pf 4 with DP-4 20008, RC departed from PF 2 with 20000. Swarna Jayanthi came in with a WDM2 from KJM.

Then I hit the sack and returned to the Pf at 5.00 am. My train to SBC was at 06.20. There were quite a few WDG-4's which had rolled in during the night and had moved onto the outer part of the station and were idling away there and I could hear them all the way at the dorm!!!

At 05.30 am, the Londa-Ubl Express came in with 4 coaches of the same and another 6 of the Nizamuddin-UBL part of Goa Express with PA WDM3A 17854R.

At 06.00 am, the Rani Chennama to Kolhapur arrived on Pf 2 with 20011 DP-4!!!..believe it or not this is the first time I saw this loco!!! And in a strange coincidence, Anil saw 20012 the same day at Bangalore!!! Anyway I filled my heart to the brim with 20011 which was being refueled at UBL.

At 06.20 I boarded Intercity to SBC and it left at 06.25. It pulled out slowly then began to pick up speed til Haveri. It stopped at every goddamned station but more than made up for the stops with amazing runs...the pick up of this loco with 23 coaches is AWESOME!!! ..at every station he hit 85 kmph before the train had left the station limits itself. At Arshikere, I spotted Sandeep's, Anil's and my favourite GY WDM3A 14042 with another GY in KJM Colours!!with a goods rake.

The run from ASK to Tumkur was top notch!!! All thru the run from UBL to SBC the WDP-4 pulled out like a sprinter and slammed hard on the brakes to frequently produce smoke and smell of brakes!!! I enjoyed every bit of it!!!!..what a loco!!!!

The Tumkur-YPR section is being doubled with the bridges already built and tracks being laid at intervals!! On the way we passed UBL bound Jan Shatabdi, SBC-UBL-Guntur Pass, Mumbai Express and a few others as well.

I was sad to enter SBC..and as soon as the train stopped WDP-4 20007 attached itself to run back to UBL. The train was 10 min late in arriving. If you want a fast run with a WDP-4 this is the train to take!!!

As soon as I crossed over to PF1 to call my brother and instruct him to wait at home for me or I wouldn't be able to enter the house...I went over to inspect a strange loco...yes an ET loco with WCR marking and in faded dark blue on top and bottom and faded shade of lighter blue in the middle...not like the light blue of KJM. This had come in with the Karnataka Express and was coupled to the normal ET liveried WDM2A. Anil had seen this loco a few minutes earlier and thought that again a KJM loco had come in with the other ET due to failure. When I finally met him today I told him that I saw this loco and hence the mystery was solved for Anil!!!!

Now I had to solve another problem...how to return home?????? My home is on the outskirts of Bangalore and I had to get home with Rs 20!!!!! So I hopped onto 2640 Brindavan heading out with WAP-4 22223 ED in charge at 14.35 hrs to reach Bangalore Cantt. At 14.50 hrs. Then I walked along the tracks to the bus stop about a km away and then as a bus did not arrive till 15.30, I took an auto to another bus stop at ITC level crossing and finally caught the bus home and with Rs.7 in my pocket had a Musambi juice outside home!!!..coz I knew my brother would have finished all the cold drinks at home!!!

This was an amazing trip and all my dreams were fulfilled...it is impossible for me to tell you how I felt when I heard those WDG-4's and DP-4's....and the enormous respect these beasts command!!!!

WDP-4's seen: 20000 20003 20005 20007 20008 20011.

WDG-4's seen: 12001 12003 12011 12015 12019 12020 12021 12026 12029 12032 12036 12042 12048 12063

These are the numbers of the loco's whose numbers I could see the others were hidden amongst other rakes, etc..!!!

WDG-4 is amazing....I have no more to say!!!

And I am leaving to Goa on Saturday on the Highway Star and hope to catch the trains on the way!!!

I have not yet recovered from the sights and sounds of this trip is apparent in that last evening at 18.30 I apparently heard KCG with WDP-4 (which I hear everyday as the lines pass a few km away from my house) and messaged Anil who was left seeing stars as the KCG had passed his house at 17.30!!!!

I am still hearing the WDG-4 and WDP-4 horns in my head and those sparks flying out like firecrackers and still smelling of brake smoke!!!!

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