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• Erzurum line

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Erzincan Erzurum line

56032 plus another 2-10-0 east of Erzincan en route to Erzurum. 10 April 1975

56032 +56000 near Erzincan 10 April 1975. A pair of Henschel 2-10-0 heading up the Euphrates gorge

56032 + 56000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. This was my very first visit to the line so we didn't know what to expect round every corner

56032 + 56000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. We had some difficulty getting both engines to produce black smoke both at the same time!

56032 + 56000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. And then they performed after passing the camera, just our luck!

45036+45000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. The next train up the gorge produced a pair of Nohab 2-8-0 locos

45036+45000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. The train crew in the first van soon join in watching our chasing antics

45036+45000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. The side on shot shows that one loco is an oil burner whilst the other is a coal fired loco, very strange since I had been led to believe that coal fired locos were in the west and oil fired were in the east. Does anybody know why a coal-fired loco should have been heading so far east?

45036+45000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. With the road on the south side of the river cross shots became the order of the day on this section

45036+45000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. The two 2-8-0 locos had to work really hard on this section

45036+45000 east of Erzincan 10 April 1975. A final shot of this train blasting out of one of the tunnels towards the top of the gorge

Locos on Erzincan shed 10 April 1975. Back down at Erzincan we waited near the shed for another train up the gorge. But it was not to be, so this was the last shot of the day, since we were wary of going too near the shed for fear of being arrested, since we had had a problem at Çankiri earlier on in the trip.

Doğu Express near Tanyeri 26 March 1976. Crossing the Euphrates an east bound passenger

56546 Demirkapı 26 March 1976. Waiting in a loop for the eastbound passenger was this double header with a Kriegslok leading

45000 near Pasinler 26 March 1976. East of Erzurum we find a Nohab 2-8-0 heading a westbound freight

45000 west of Pasinler 26 March 1976. Silhouette across a snow-covered landscape

45000 west of Pasinler 26 March 1976. Another variation on the same theme

45000 west of Pasinler 26 March 1976. The line was always just too far away to consider running across to get on the sunny side

45000 west of Pasinler 26 March 1976. And the depth of snow in places made access impossible

45000 west of Pasinler 26 March 1976. Couple more pictures along this same spectacular section

45000 west of Pasinler 26 March 1976. Final posting for today, along the same lines as the earlier pictures

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Continuing the snowy scenes to the east of Erzurum

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Clearly working very hard with its westbound train

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Another cross shot of the Nohab 2-8-0

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. I make no apologies for this sequence of four pictures, since I consider them some of my favourite pictures in my collection

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Including a two arched bridge

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Telephoto lens on the two arched bridge

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. And the last of the sequence

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Eventually the road and railway came together and we were able to cross the line by way of a fragile concrete avalanche shelter, this being the first distant picture

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. Another distant view

45000 east of Erzurum 26 March 1976. The traditional front three quarters shot was a big disappointment

45055 east of Erzican 26 March 1976. Towards the end of the day we were heading west from Erzurum when we came across this eastbound Nohab 2-8-0 climbing through the Euphrates gorge

45055 east of Erzican 26 March 1976. A quick about turn and we soon caught him up again

45055 east of Erzican 26 March 1976. But the low sun and the deep gorge meant that photo opportunities were limited to just this position

Erzican engine shed 26 March 1976. After the night in Erzincan, a look at the shed produced little in the way of action

56542 east of Erzincan 27 March 1976. After a couple of hours photographing old Erzincan a train finally appeared

56542 east of Erzincan 27 March 1976. The first section out of Erzincan is all wrong for photography with the road on the north side of the line and not easily accessible

56542 east of Erzincan 27 March 1976. The loco is an oil burning Kriegslok built in 1943 by Florisdorf in Vienna, Austria

56542 east of Erzincan 27 March 1976. Very easy to loose the loco against the dark hillside

56542 east of Erzincan 27 March 1976. Silhouetted against the snow, the two oil tanks are clearly visible in the tender

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Crossing the Euphrates the railway comes onto our side of the valley

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. And traditional front three-quarter pictures become the norm

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. The road on the left hand side reminds me of the lack of traffic on it. The only traffic I seem to remember were Bulgarian registered Mercedes Benz lorries heading for Iran

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. A more head on picture to emphasize the power of the loco

Doğu Express near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. The freight train has gone in a loop to allow the Doğu Express to pass by

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. And eventually the Kriegslok appears

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. The wide angle lens covers the whole valley

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. By now the road is on the south side of the river and the railway on the north

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Working hard all the way up the gorge

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Passing the distinctive bridge for the waters from the side valley

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. A tremendous hillside next to the track must create problems with falling rocks

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Approaching some earthworks for a possible realignment

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Clearly the earthworks lead to a bridge which has collapsed

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Which, sadly judging by the memorial saw the loss of five lives

An enlargement of the memorial, Did it collapse during construction and did an earthquake cause it?

56542 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Last picture of this train before we met a west bound freight

56510 + 45001 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. Here we have the west bound freight with a smoke deflectored Kriegslok piloting the first Nohab 2-8-0

56510 + 45001 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. A side on view of the pair drifting down the gorge

56510 + 45001 near Demirkapı 27 March 1976. A little bit of exhaust as the 2-10-0 leaves a passing loop

Bullock cart near Tanyeri 27 March 1976. An ancient bullock cart not very far from Erzincan

Bullock cart near Tanyeri 27 March 1976. Remarkable wheels with the only bit of metal appearing to be the wheel rim!

56545 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 13 March 1977. Not wishing to drive the road from Palu to Erzincan in the dark, we left the Elazıg area and headed north. After a very tortuous journey we arrived in the Euphrates gorge just as a train was heading east. The light was beginning to fail but the results have certain appeal to me.

56545 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 13 March 1977. Higher up the gorge we ran into a snow covering

56545 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 13 March 1977. With the light almost gone, this was a final picture for the day.

56000 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Time for some more blasts from the past, this time a whole day spent up and down the Euphrates gorge starting with a west bound train at the Erzincan end of the line

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı .14 March 1977. A question for you experts, what is the story behind the unused tunnel on the right of the picture? Clearly the lack of any smoke markings indicate that it had not been used and yet it didn't appear newly constructed. Had there been geological problems during its construction, did the money run out or was it an earthquake. Further up the gorge there were the remains of a bridge crossing with a monument alongside, was this connected with realignment?

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı .14 March 1977. More pictures of the Kreigslok heading east

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. The 1944 built loco was formerly numbered DRB 52.7432

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. In places the road and railway shared one side of the river and in other places the river separated us from the train, thus giving plenty of opportunities for different types of pictures

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. With almost unbroken sunshine the south facing side of the gorge soon started to lose its snow covering

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Yet another shot of the same train

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Back on the trackside a close in shot

56551 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. The last picture was a telephoto shot and this is the standard lens version at the same location

3310 at Erzincan 14 March 1977. Having got 23 pictures of the previous train on file, we returned to Erzincan and found this old beast in an industrial siding

3310 at Erzincan 14 March 1977. Built in 1910 this was the last of 10 locos built by Henschel for the Controller of Military Railways

3310 at Erzincan 14 March 1977. Sadly the loco was inactive all the time we were there

3310 at Erzincan 14 March 1977. Boredom must have been setting in as I seek a reflection picture

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Eventually we find another eastbound freight

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Having visited the line in both 75 and 76, we were keen to chase a late afternoon train up and through the gorge

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. I make no apologies for posting so many pictures of one train, since it will hopefully give a good impression of the line for those who haven't visited the area

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. The 1941 built Henschel has its right hand side cylinder cover missing

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977.

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. This little tunnel always reminded me of one I had on my model railway as a child, about a coach length!

56067 heading up the gorge between Tanyeri and Demirkapı. 14 March1977

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Continuing the sequence of the Henschel 2-10-0 up the Euphrates gorge

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. The slow speed enabled us to use loads of film on this train

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. In the cross shot the missing cylinder cover is apparent

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. One section where the road and railway are both on the same side of the river, the railway cuts through a couple of small tunnels and this shot is between them

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Bursting out of the second tunnel the train is really struggling. Anybody know the gradients on this section?

56067 between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Obviously picked up a bit of speed by the look of the exhaust, the train hurries towards Demirkapı

56067 running alongside the Euphrates river between Tanyeri and Demirkapı 14 March 1977

56067 even further up the gorge between Tanyeri and Demirkapı. 14 March 1977

The chase continues as 56067 struggles against the grade alongside the Euphrates en route to Erzurum

Having passed the double headed downhill train, 56067 continues its eastward journey towards Erzurum 14 March 1977

56016 and another Henschel 2-10-0 head downhill towards Erzincan photographed east of Demirkapı 14 March 1977

Having climbed out of the Euphrates gorge 56067 accelerates its train eastwards beyond Demirkapı. 14 March 1977

At the end of excellent day photography; 56067 catches the last of the day's sun as it hurries across the plateau east of Demirkapı. 14 March 1977

56016+56000 east of Demirkapı 14 March 1977. While our train waits at Demirkapı, a westbound double header clears the section ahead

56067 east of Demirkapı 14 March 1977. A distant view of our train before it ran into the ever lengthening shadow in the foreground

56067 east of Demirkapı 14 March 1977. As it reaches the top of the gorge the low sun still catches the track

56067 east of Demirkapı 14 March 1977. Starting to leave the hills behind and accelerating hard

56067 east of Demirkapı 14 March 1977. The hills are now a distant image as the train heads east for Erzurum

56067 near Tercan 14 March 1977. The final picture of the day and the last of 56000 I have in my files of this train that afternoon, as it catches the low side lighting near Tercan