Uploaded July 2022 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
On July 16, 2022, ex-LMS Princess Coronation class 4-6-2 no. 6233 "Duchess of Sutherland" was at the helm of the Railway Touring Company's "The Cheshireman" excursion from London to Chester, England. The trip began early in the morning at London Euston station, racing up the electrified West Coast Mainline to Crewe before turning onto the Chester-Crewe line. I was at the Dublin airport in Ireland when the train left London, however it made many stops for passengers and a long water stop at Rugby which allowed me to catch a plane to Birmingham, clear customs, pick up a rental car and figure out how to drive on the left with enough time to intercept the northbound run twice. After a four hour layover in Chester for passengers to visit the old Roman city, the train retraced its steps as the sun began to set. Unfortunately, the Duchess would allegedly start some lineside fires and was removed from the train at Rugby. With an ongoing drought and a record-setting heatwave forecast for the following days this led Network Rail to institute a mainline steam ban in England and Wales that would sadly remain in place for the remainder of my time in the UK.
On July 16, 2022, ex-LMS Princess Coronation class 4-6-2 no. 6233 "Duchess of Sutherland" was at the helm of the Railway Touring Company's "The Cheshireman" excursion from London to Chester, England. The trip began early in the morning at London Euston station, racing up the electrified West Coast Mainline to Crewe before turning onto the Chester-Crewe line. I was at the Dublin airport in Ireland when the train left London, however it made many stops for passengers and a long water stop at Rugby which allowed me to catch a plane to Birmingham, clear customs, pick up a rental car and figure out how to drive on the left with enough time to intercept the northbound run twice. After a four hour layover in Chester for passengers to visit the old Roman city, the train retraced its steps as the sun began to set. Unfortunately, the Duchess would allegedly start some lineside fires and was removed from the train at Rugby. With an ongoing drought and a record-setting heatwave forecast for the following days this led Network Rail to institute a mainline steam ban in England and Wales that would sadly remain in place for the remainder of my time in the UK.
