Were you lucky enough to visit the Valley over the festive period? Things were humming from Boxing Day through till 4 January.
And what a high we ended the season on! Two days of sunny but cold weather and a Winter Steam Gala as well. What more could we ask for? No wonder all the photographers were happy, and by all accounts, the passengers were too. Coming on the back of our ‘magnificent’ Winter Diesel Day, it certainly felt like a triumphant finale. We’ve reports on both events and galleries of photographs to delight your eyes.
Now in our winter shutdown, we’re looking forward to reopening for the 2026 season on 14 February, and to the rather special Branch Line Weekend that’s happening at the very end of that month, celebrating the DMUs, the Autotrain and more.
From across the line this month, we have updates on carriage and wagon work, the permanent way, the hazards of prepping steam locos in cold weather and a nostalgic look at our tiniest station, Eardington, in the dark.
Keep warm, keep smiling and keep coming back to the SVR – we can’t wait to see you again!
Lesley Carr, editor
The Branch Lines team is Lesley Carr, Karen Crick, Gary Essex, Amy Baker, Pete Cherry and Nicola Fox.