To drive a steam has got to be in the top ten of boyhood dreams. Stoking the fire, and building up a full head of steam, the screeching of the whistle, and the slow starting chuff, chuff, chuff, as the locomotive slowly pulls out of the station. Those old bygone days, with their bygone aromas and sounds that warmed many a boys heart.
So much so, that steam trains were popular in childrens television programmes. Thomas the Tank Engine is probably the most popular, narrated by Ringo Star. Trumpton also featured a little train, the catchy son echoed and romanticised the boyish dream of becoming a rain driver.
Time flies by when I'm the driver of a train,
and I ride on the footplate there and back again,
Under bridges over bridges to our destination,
Puffing through the countryside there's so much to be seen.
Passengers waving as we steam through a station.
Stoke up fireman for the signal is at green.
Ivor the Engine was another much loved steam train, who ran through the welsh countryside with his own distinctive chhh-ta-cuff sound. The magi of steam trains was emphasised with a couple of welsh dragons that had taken up residence in Ivors fire box.
Of course our love affair with steam locomotives started with first appearance of steam trains. The majestic power and beauty of these huge engines boasting our incredible engineering skills and capabilities of the day. The splendour and the speed of these magnificent wonders dazed people; Robert Louis Stevenson decries this wonder in his poem From a Railway Carriage in which you can actually hear the sound of the engine powering along -
Faster than fairies,
Faster than witches,
Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches;
And charging along like troops in a battle,
All through the meadows the horses and cattle,
All of the sights of the hill and the plain,
Fly as thick as driving rain;
And ever again, in the wink of an eye,
Painted stations whistle by.
No wonder then that we have model train enthusiasts who hanker over these large, powerful and romantic locomotives, building model railways in the loft, or running larger model rail ways for children to ride on at local parks during the summer months. They want to keep the magic alive.
Of course you can indulge yourself in a romantic Nostalgic Steam Train Journey. Some steam engines are kept in good order for people to travel on. No need to try to recall what an old stream train journey was like, you could enjoy a day trip on a train, and pass on the excitement of steam trains to another generation.
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