Watercress Line - 'Spring Steam Gala' 30/04-01/05/2023

Over the bank Holiday weekend of April 29th-May 1st, there would be a healthy dose of Steam in the Hampshire hills, as the Mid-Hants Railway 'Watercress Line' held their 'Spring Steam Gala'. 5 locomotives would be in steam on the 10 mile heritage line between Alresford and Alton over the course of the event, with a mix of home-fleet and visiting engines. The headline guest for the event came in the form of 4079 "Pendennis Castle". Based at the Didcot Railway Centre, the 'Castle' would a visit to the gala as part of its extended tour of heritage railways. The locomotive suffered some reliability issues over the gala, being failed on two of the three days, while crews worked tirelessly to keep the 'Castle' going. Announced as a last minute addition, 5239 "Goliath" would visit from its base at the Dartmouth Steam Railway. Built in 1924, the locomotive survives as a stalwart of DSR operations, with its trip to the Watercress Line marking the first time it's worked services on any other heritage railway in preservation. By extension, this visit also marked the first time 5239 has ever worked east of Swindon. The gala featured an intensive timetable of passenger services, with the inclusion of a demonstration freight service. While the timetable stayed the same across each day of the event, the locomotive allocations varied marginally. 506 would only operate on the Sunday. Meanwhile, 41312 was pressed into service on all three days, despite not being scheduled to run on rhe Sunday, due to 4079 suffering a failure. Locomotives: Ex-LSWR S15 Class - 506 GWR 4073 'Castle' Class - 4079 "Pendennis Castle" Ex-S&DJR 7F Class - 53808 GWR 5205 Class - 5239 "Goliath" BR(M) Class 2MT - 41312 All footage filmed on Sunday the 30th of April, and Monday the 1st of May, 2023.