Hunter Valley Steamfest 2023: An Onboard Journey With Locomotive 6029 On The Paterson Shuttles.

This is a video from the Hunter Valley Steamfest in 2023 from the Paterson shuttles of an onboard journey with steam locomotive 6029 "Garratt" from Patterson loop to Maitland Railway Station.
Maitland has a population of about 90000 people and is located 166 km north of Sydney NSW. Maitland is the heart of the Hunter Valley coal mining area and is also home to numerous quality wineries and in recent years has been developing its tourism industry through food and wine experiences. The Hunter Valley Steamfest is a key part of the growth in tourism industry in the region.
Maitland is located at the junction of the NSW North Coast Railway (Maitland to Brisbane) and Main North Railway (Strathfield to Armidale via Maitland). The town has a long history with the railways that has helped shape the growth of the town since the 1850s. Today the railways still provide an important source of income and employment for the Maitland region.
Maitland Railway Station can be easily accessed by multiple daily NSW Trainlink trains from Sydney and Newcastle. However there is no commercial airport in Maitland itself. This is not a issue as there are multiple daily flights into Newcastle Airport that is about 36 km away at Williamtown. There are regular local buses linking Newcastle Airport with East Maitland.
The Hunter Valley Steamfest was founded in 1986 and is one of the biggest annual events in the Hunter Valley region and by far the best mainline steam railway experience in Australia. Steamfest can attract over 50,000 people to the Maitland area each year.
The Hunter Valley Steamfest takes place annually on a weekend in April the dates do vary from year to year. The event consists of various steam locomotive hauled shuttle trains that run from Maitland Railway Station to Branxton, Paterson, Newcastle Interchange and Port Waratah. These shuttle trains operate a few times on each route on each day of the festival. In addition to the steam trains there are various historic and industrial activities at the Maitland rally ground located south of Maitland Railway Station. Also around the station itself is a fairground with food trucks. So there is something for everyone.
However on the Sunday morning is the main event of the Hunter Valley Steamfest this consists of an extremely rare quad parallel run between 4 different steam locomotive hauled trains that race each other and a tiger moth aircraft from Waratah Railway Station to East Maitland Railway Station on the quad track main line that runs between Waratah and Maitland. This is a very spectacular event and is a must see part of the Hunter Valley Steamfest. Due to two rail flyovers on this line the steam trains appear to change tracks throughout the race.
The following locomotives were featured during the Hunter Valley Steamfest: NSW Rail Museums steam locomotives 3801 and 6029 "Garratt" and diesel locomotives 4201 and 4501.
Sydney Rail Services steam locomotives R766 and 5917.
Also operating at steamfest were the Rail Motor Societies CPH railmotors.
If you get the opportunity to attend the Hunter Valley Steamfest it will be one of the best steam train experiences you can get in Australia and a right of passage for any steam train enthusiast. For more information please visit www.steamfest.com.au/
The footage in this video was produced in April 2023.
#australiantrains #steamlocomotive #steamtrains #heritagerailway #steamfest #huntervalley #maitland #trainride