FOTR Trip to Waterval Boven Photos and Report April 25 1999

Friends of the Rail have an annual trip to Waterval Boven to ride the Oosterlijn Express, from Waterval Boven to Waterval Onder. A group of 17 visitors, including Friends of the Rail and Reef Branch RSSA members descended upon the station at 10:30 a.m. to ride the train.

11:00 a.m. departure, and a tender-first 15F 2985 led the train through the many curves and across the magnificent concrete arch bridge just out of 'Boven. Once through the first tunnel, magnificent views were had across the valley and of the waterfall. Waterfall
Waterval Onder After arrival at Waterval Onder, the crew staged a false departure which not only gave some of the passengers a fright, it also provided a great subject for the many photographers and videographers amongst the visitors. The sun had appeared and the gleaming locomotive looked and sounded great!
Sound wave of 15F 2985 at Waterval Onder (25 sec. stereo 168k MP3 encoded WAV)
15F 2985 had her work cut out on the return, and sounded fantastic thundering up the valley beneath the high rock walls and around the horseshoe curve. We took a couple of pictures at Onder Valle, and the loco climbing away was music for the ears!
15F 2985 (31 sec. stereo 219k MP3 encoded WAV).
Arrival at Waterval Boven gave us another photo opportunity, both of ourselves and the locomotive and crew. The train pushed back for a false arrival, then we all posed by the engine to preserve the moment for posterity. Many thanks to all the people at Waterval Boven who run the Oosterlijn Express, we had a magnificent trip in fantastic scenery!
The Oosterlijn Express operates every Sunday from Waterval Boven station. It leaves at 11:00 a.m. for Waterval Onder, and departs 'Onder at 12:30 p.m., arriving back at around 1:00 p.m. There are three steam locomotives there, 15F 2909 (green, hand-fired), 15F 2985 (black, stoker-fired), and a ZASM 'B' locomotive. I believe today was the last run with steam until the summer months. The trip will probably run with diesel or electric for the next few months.

All photographs copyright © 1999 Trevor Staats - Photos were captured from a Sony TRV7 video camera.

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