Spectacular Seas Pound The Royal Duchy. Dawlish Sea Wall. 23rd Sept 2012

34067 Tangmere hauls The Royal Duchy through unforgettable conditions.
On one of those rare occasions when the weather, sea conditions and high tide combine to assault a passing steam train, in this case: the last RYTC "The Royal Duchy" of the season, we decided to vacate our dry and cosy home to brave the wild and wet coast for what promised to be an unusual scene. Luckily we found a subterranean shelter in the cliff to protect us from the torrential rain driven by the first of the season's easterly gales, whipping up a huge swell directly onto this exposed piece of track. A passing "top & tailed" Track Maintenance Train runs the gauntlet before the headlight of 34067 appears through 1.5 miles of solid rain and proceeds through the onslaught from the waves. As you watch the train's progress, consider the fact that the largest waves are not only throwing up tons of water but also sand and gravel, and sometimes pebbles as large as cricket balls; definitely not a time to be sticking your head out of the window!! Progress slows to an unscheduled stop at Dawlish, which must have seemed a better prospect to some passengers than Dawlish Warren in these conditions! Luckily a couple of local tourist board representatives are on hand to demonstrate to any alighting passengers how to have fun during their stay.....or maybe not? With a full head of steam, Tangmere, with a usual initial loss of footing, heads the train off for the remaining challenge along the coast to Teignmouth and ultimately to Par in Cornwall, a long way on a day like this and one I am sure, the crew and passengers won't forget in a long time!

UPDATE Dec. 2020: the sea wall section between the station and the tunnel (6:00 to 7:30) has now been completely reinforced and clad with solid concrete sections curved at the top to throw the waves backwards into the sea. Work is now being undertaken to protect the station, see here: https://www.newcivilengineer.com/latest/dawlish-sea-wall-plans-approved-to-protect-rail-link-21-08-2020/

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