Welcome back to the finest day of 2010 bar none. I know your thinking this is not difficult by going on the weather for the last few months but quality workings plus cracking weather with a little help from a volcano in Iceland made today excellent!

I decided to start the day out a Oxford with a couple of liners, virtually mirroring my shot from the last update a few weeks ago my first shot in the bag was 66237 working the 4O53 Wakefield – Southampton Intermodal although this time with a nice healthy load in tow. If you compare the shots you can see how the trees have started to shoot since then and a nice green covering is starting to appear.

Shortly after 66237 has passed through with its Intermodal train than Freightliner 66531 rolled into view with the 4O14 Birch Coppice – Southampton service making a fine sight.

Next up is a first for this site, my first steam photo! I’m not a huge steam fan but as this is the GWR 175 celebration year and FGW had organised a charter featuring 5043 ‘Earl of Mount Edgcumbe’ from London Paddington – Bristol and return I thought I should make an effort seeing as the Western mainline is my home. I opted for the the shot at Shrivenham and so did everyone else, the bridge was wedged with probably 30-40 photographers dotted all over the place and running bang to time 5043 rolled 1Z22 past the huge gallery!

Finally to round up the days adventures a charter had been organised from Skegness – Oxford featuring WCRC 47s though I’m not sure there is huge demand in Skegness to go to Oxford! I had seen the outward working at Shrivenham but not got a shot so decided to get the return working at Kings Sutton in the afternoon. It was running just a couple of minutes late as 47787 on 1Z52 return to Skegness passed the spire at Kings Sutton.