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A Personal Introduction |
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Being only a "thirty-something" means that I was unfortunate to miss steam on the mainline railways (apart from special excursions). I blame my passion for railways on my father who grew up in the last days of steam and who introduced me to the delights of the preserved lines closest to my home in Evesham. It was my father who first took me to the Dean Forest Railway in the mid 1980's. Back then, the railway was in its infancy and wasn't even running to Lydney. I made one or two more trips during the early nineties after passing my driving test and the seeds of my love affair of the Dean Forest Railway, and the Forest of Dean itself, were planted. However it wasn't until August 1996 that my relationship with the railway became serious. Myself and a group of friends travelled down to Norchard to see demonstration trains running to Parkend. By the end of the day something inside of me had clicked and I resolved to give this line more support. By the end of the year I had managed to borrow the three volumes of the Severn and Wye Railway history books and had enrolled as a member. This site has grown from my interest in the railways of the area. Since 1996, I have visited the Dean Forest Railway on many occasions and have also attempted to find areas of the dismantled sections as well, with some success (this task has been made easier in recent years with the conversion of much of the Severn & Wye trackbed to cycle paths - good for cyclists, not necessarily good for possible DFR northern extensions). I often wish I could have seen (and photographed) the railways in their prime, though.
Richard Kyte |