Category: Europe

After my summer visit to the wonderful Douro Valley in Portugal it is time to pay a return visit to another delightful outpost of heritage rolling stock in Continental Europe and the one and only narrow gauge railway run by Bulgarian state operator BDZ, the Septemvri-Dobrinishte railway.

For the fourth time in four years I am back at Velingrad “Spa capital of the Balkans” to travel and photograph this remarkable 78-mile (125km) long 760mm (2’ 6”) gauge route that wends its way up from a main line junction on the Sofia-Plovdiv route to the renowned ski resort of Bansko, and terminates at Dobrinishte, a few miles further on.

Continue reading “Return to the Rhodope Mountains”

After all the sadness at Felletin, proof that rural railways in France can be revived comes when I travel from the now rail-less town to Limoges by bus, then head south by rail via Toulouse to a place south-west of Toulouse called Montréjeau-Gourdan-Polignan to sample a 36km (22½-mile) branch line to a ski resort called Luchon that re-opened to passengers on 22 June 2025, after being closed since November 2014.

The Occitanie région of France seems to have a rather different approach to rural railways to that prevailing in Nouvelle-Aquitaine and this eagerly-awaited re-opening, after a total investment of €67 million, is planned to be the first of a number of railway revivals across this part of southern France.

Continue reading “Branch line revival in SW France”

Shortly before 7.15pm on Sunday, 31 August 2025 the 143-year life of Felletin railway station was brought to an end when railcar X73810 drew into the station with train TER 868716 from Limoges Bénédictins, setting off numerous detonators as it drew in, and became the last ever passenger train to serve this attractive small town in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Central France.

Despite an energetic local campaign, with demonstrations, an anti-closure petition attracting more than 30,000 signatures and a visit by local dignitaries to meet political leaders in Paris, the scenic 33km (21-mile) branch line from a junction at Busseau-sur-Creuse, around 60 miles east of the city of Limoges, has gone the way of so many similar rural lines across France.

Continue reading “Final train to Felletin”

Imagine one of Europe’s most scenic railway lines, almost 100 miles in length, where virtually all services are worked by vintage British-designed diesel locos from the 1960s hauling equally-aged passenger coaches, with the added bonus of a seasonal weekend historical train along part of the route.

It may sound too good to be true, but this is the Douro Line in Portugal (Linha do Douro) which runs inland from Porto along the north bank – later crossing to the south bank – of the Douro River, and until a few years ago linked up a handful of remarkable narrow gauge railways that ran north from the Douro Line up picturesque tributary river valleys.

Continue reading “Vintage British diesels in the spectacular Douro Valley”

Fancying a change from the steam action at Wolsztyn, my fascination for narrow gauge railways takes me on a day trip to a place called Pleszew, one hour south of Poznań Główny station by regional (KW) train and location for the only mixed narrow/standard gauge railway in Poland.

Here there is a 3km (1.9 mile) branch line that runs from Pleszew Wąsk. (narrow gauge), adjacent to the main line station, to Pleszew Miasto (Town) station, a line that has closed, then re-opened in recent years, was operated by 750mm locos and railcars, but now has its regular passenger services formed by ex-Czech Railways (CD) 4-wheel railcars.

Continue reading “A mixed-gauge curiosity in Central Poland”

Scheduled daily steam services have resumed at Wolsztyn in Western Poland after a pause in operations during late April to prepare for the annual and highly popular “parade” event on 3 May 2025.

But the current weekday round trip from Wolsztyn to Zbaszynek on the Berlin-Warsaw main line and a rather longer Saturday trip to Poznan and back will come to an end on 16 August 2025 when Wolsztyn depot’s one working main line loco will be stopped for repairs.

Continue reading “Springtime steam action at Wolsztyn”

Barring a last minute miracle, 31 August 2025 will see closure of a scenic 33km (21-mile) branch line in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Central France that runs from a junction station at Busseau sur Creuse, around 60 miles east of the city of Limoges, southwards to a small town called Felletin.

Line 25 in the TER Nouvelle-Aquitaine network currently sees two daily round trips, with weekday departures to Limoges-Bénédictins from Felletin at 06.23 and 16.42, and return services from the city at 13.06 and 17.10. But an end-to-end journey time of two hours is almost identical to the time it takes on a “Cars Regionaux” 204 bus and the bus fare is vastly cheaper than the train.

Continue reading “Death of a French branch line”

Being the last place in the world to operate scheduled standard gauge steam passenger services has not prevented a tourism crisis in Wolsztyn, the attractive town in Western Poland that until mid-2023 was home of the Wolsztyn Experience (WE) and its world-renowned footplate experience courses.

During the 25 years WE operated (1998-2023) countless thousands of overseas visitors flocked to Wolsztyn, but its closure following the death in June 2023 of  founder Howard Jones MBE has led to the current crisis facing the town and its devastating impact on local businesses.

Continue reading “Tourism crisis hits Wolsztyn”

For all the rail trips I do around the UK and have done in Continental Europe, there is something totally compelling about Bulgaria’s only narrow gauge railway, which persuades me to return for the third consecutive year to Velingrad “Spa Capital of the Balkans”.

Velingrad stands roughly one-third of the way along the remarkable 78-mile (125km) long 760mm gauge railway that runs from a junction called Septemvri on the main rail route from Sofia to Plovdiv, all the way to the renowned ski resort of Bansko and its terminus at Dobrinishte a few miles further on.

Continue reading “Autumn colours in the Rhodope Mountains”

After a fascinating visit in November 2023 to the last narrow gauge line to be run by Hungary’s state railway operator, I am making return visit to the country to travel and photograph the country’s longest surviving 760mm gauge forestry railway network.

This is a 109km (68-mile) long system in the south-west of Hungary near the border with Slovenia that begins in a small town called Lenti before heading east to its base at Csömödér and then south to a terminus at a remote spot called Kistolmács.

Continue reading “Hungary’s longest narrow gauge railway system”