Mega rare - GWR Castle Class HSTs takeover the West Somerset Railway

What a difference a week makes.
A short trip to the West Somerset Railway for the afternoon. It is a bit of a surprise and a special. With GWR retiring their Castle Class sets after 4 years of service as 2+4, they’ve ran out of storage! Fortunately, the West Somerset Railway swooped in to secure a deal, which in exchange for storage on their heritage line, 1 set would be used for regular services. It was rather bizarre to see the HSTs on the line, these are the trains that have been my commute to Plymouth and Truro for the last 5 years, sadly no more. It’s a complete contrast to last weekend, where filming on the West Somerset had been difficult. This weekend, a joy. On this sunny Saturday afternoon, shots were taken at:
00:00 One Last Blast
00:10 Stogumber
02:10 Washford
04:34 Dunster
08:25 Bishops Lydeard
11:21 Crowcombe Heathfield
13:37 Sea Lane Level Crossing
14:50 Watchet
I hope you enjoy watching this. If you did, please like, comment and subscribe, it really is rather flattering.
Find a south-west railtour calendar, along with a heritage gala calendar and my best photos at:
www.trecanrail.com/
@steamtothewest-trecanrail
#HST #GWR #Castleclass #Class43 #westsomersetrailway #somerset #westsomerset #crowcombeheathfield #watchet #dunster #minehead #washford #stogumber #taunton #bishopslydeard #steamtothewest #trecanrail #gwr #greatwesternrailway #stogumber #somerset #steam #steamrailway #railway #heritagerailway #rare #highspeedtrain #trains #trainstrains #nortonfitzwarren #megarare #levelcrossings #power #whistles #trainwhistles #oldtrain #traingalore #UK
Disclaimer : There was no trespassing used in the making of this film, all shots were taken on roads, or footpaths.

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

If you owned a railway, you would preserve a Castle Class?

[@BertieWorth]

Yes

[@TheAlien1974]

Would never in my wildest dreams thought I would see a class 43 on that line 😮😂

[@ntsteam59]

Looks right at home on the line surely one set has to be preserved to compliment the old DMU units

[@AquaFonic]

That will depend on costs and repairs so far two have gone after repairs were not authorised

[@BritishBeachcomber]

I agree. I'm sure the diesel guys at Williton would love to have one.

[@spacellama7917]

This was parked up at Minehead when we visited the WSR on the 12th of this month.We wondered what it was there for.Nice that some are getting used for heritage lines.

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

There’s one at Bishops Lydeard too

[@spacellama7917]

Do you know which set it is,please?We're quite fond of 43016(Powderham Castle)as we've seen quite a few times.@@steamtothewest-trecanrail

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

@@spacellama7917Im not sure!

[@BritishBeachcomber]

Great to see it on my local heritage line. The fastest diesel locomotive in the world, with an absolute maximum speed of 148.5 mph (239.0 km/h).

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

Reduced to 25mph

[@lukegreen5341]

0:38 I've Didn't Know British Rail Inter City 125 High Speed Diesel Express Passenger Trains In Action At The West Somerset Railway In England In The United Kingdom. Thanks Mate. X

[@83GrailwayProductions]

Top video mate! Gutted I missed this.

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

I'm sure there'll be another opportunity. Maybe not with a Castle Class (I don't know if any have been preserved), but hopefully a proper HST set with slam shut doors.

[@thecolneranger1588]

Loving your work.

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@peter_cuthbert]

A bit surprised by the state of the WSR permanent way. Looks as if it could do with some serious wrok to bring it up to scratch. Is that down to the financial hit from the Covid Pandemic?

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

I think it is a combination of a financial hit and the fact that the WSR is run by 4 groups, who are apparently not the most cooperative, plus the track bed is owned by the council.

[@levelcrossing150]

Even the national network is the same. Nothing good about it and is unlike railways used to be. It needs sorting.

[@scottogden6301]

Went to minehead today sadly didn’t see these are they still stored on the line ?

[@AquaFonic]

Make the most some are going December 2023 !! Costs to repair and replace are staggering so they are being scrapped

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

I’ve commuted on them for 5 years. I think I’ll remember them!

[@john_critchley]

Agh... can they at least be mothballed?

[@levelcrossing150]

I bet they could find an excuse to keep them going if they wanted to. We build new steam locos these days.

[@Stubwood_on_YT]

Intercity 25

[@karlreading3201]

i see what you did there :D

[@lawrencecody4085]

Or maybe Inter-City 025.

[@bobhellier]

how fast can an HST go on the railway it used to go maximum speed on main lines

[@steamtothewest-trecanrail]

125mph on the mainline. 148mph fastest speed recorded. 25mph fastest on a heritage railway.

[@levelcrossing150]

@@steamtothewest-trecanrail25 mph is nearly as bad as the new Dripford speed limits on our roads in Wales.