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Havelock North Live Steamers - 3½", 5" and 7¼" gauges

Labour weekend, October 2009

Visit the official website at: www.keirungaparkrailway.org.nz and their photo gallery of the event.

Twice each year the Havelock North Live Steamers host a visiting engines event and I went along on Labour Weekend 2009 (i.e. late October). We decided at the last minute not to take POEM as we're still having some trouble with the valvegear and we didn't want to haul 1 ton of loco and trailer 350km to Havelock North only to experience problems. Even so, it was a great weekend and I am looking forward to our next visit.

We drove down on Friday afternoon arriving in time for early supper. John Bremner had booked us in to a holiday park at Arataki and we had a small but functional cabin for the weekend. It was a good location, quiet and on the outskirts of town - much to the chagrin of a friend who came down with us who was staying in town and had disturbed sleep each night from noisy neighbours.

Alan Ure took his 5" gauge 2-8-2T and he, John Bremner, Stefan Lipsey and myself had a great weekend. Our "other halves" also had a ball in the shops, and the weather was good too, which all made for a great weekend.

John Heald brought one of his Kerr Stuarts down from Rotorua and what a lovely loco it was. She was ticking along quite happily all weekend. John is selling his other Kerr Stuart - see the For sale and wanted page.

I also got to see the "local" Koppel rack loco as Gerard Moat brought her along. I really like these and as far as I know it is the only 7¼" gauge rack loco in New Zealand. I'd like one for myself but I think it is a little complex for a first-time construction project!

John Romanes offered me a drive of his ALCO PA1 and it is a lovely loco to drive. He also offered Pip a drive and she completed a couple of circuits with a big grin on her face. John is selling is PA1 - see the For sale and wanted page.

Dave Giles was there with his Shay and DXR "diesel" - both running well. Super-power was there in the form of a D&RGW K-37, several locos based on the popular Phantom design, two Dolgochs and numerous other locos.

There was a steady stream of passengers all weekend and even more so on Sunday; the normal public-day.

The club had done a lot of work on preparing the line for the weekend and with spring here everything was coming in to flower and the surroundings looked great. I was a little saddened that the Lone Pine had had to be cut down as it had become unsafe. Shame, because it looked great alongside the line at the end of the steel trestle.