Travels 2021

Covid is still with us so there have been almost no trips this year. The closure (for regauging) of the scenic interurban between Liberec and Jablonec (CZ) in July allowed a long weekend and also was the testing ground for my new camera (the old one broke down early last year but I still managed some pics then with the help of older equipment, my iphone 12 and a camera lent to me in Gothenburg). I’m rather satisfied with the new camera (Sony Alpha 7 III). It takes great pics even in dull and dark light (and the first day in Liberec was extremely wet – the second day was almost too hot). If there is the time I’m now putting some of the images through Luminar AI to optimize the light & colour and sometimes I even replace very dull skies with something more fitting.

• Łódź (PL) – Another visit to Poland: amongst other images there is Brus museum (inkl. more night shots), Telefoniczna depot and two charters (first one using a rare three-car 805Na-set and later a night charter with an ex-Bochum car)

• Thuin (FR) – August (our road trip coincided with the big 2021 Festival du tram – we could only attend on the Saturday so missed the Sunday only operation on the original line to the harbour)

• Valenciennes (FR) – August (line T2 running north is the most interesting: lots of single track running mostly in the middle of the road through various communities, reminiscent of the old Vicinal in nearby Belgium but there they mostly ran along the side of the road)

• Lille (FR) – August (the two remaining old interurban tram lines will receive new rolling stock soon – during our visit the outer end of the Roubaix line was out of action / the two VAL metro lines use different rolling stock / only one tram operated on the nice Tramway Touristique de la Vallée de la Deule which is near Lille – quite a number of passengers on this weekday)

• Luxembourg (LU) – August (all very modern and free to use – the little museum line was closed during our visit / the two parallel inclines are operated by the state railway CFL and connect a suburban station with the trams – one was under repair during our visit)

• Brest (FR) – August (BRT / we did not spend much time here and only managed photos in one location)

• Nancy (FR) – August (TVR tram/trolleybus – this Transport sur Voie Réservée line will possibly disappear soon / they call it a tram locally but it is of course a guided trolleybus that can operate with a diesel engine and is only guided in certain sections / the leg south of the railway station was out of action during our visit so we spent more time on the operational section than we would have done in normal circumstances: luckily this section is the more scenic)

• Łódź (PL) – August (just a very few tram photos this time as the main purpose of this rather short visit was attending a wedding – includes a brief visit to the Brus museum depot / Lilpop #15 is just a mock-up in another museum – that museum was closed during our visit because of a leaking roof but they kindly let us take a few pics of the tram)

• Hamburg (DE) – August (V7E 3363 inside the old but rebuilt Krohnskamp depot which is now a supermarket plus views from the old Gaertnerstrasse depot where only the tracks are original and possibly the block of living quarters – the other brick building remains are from a later built and then demolished supermarket that tried to mimic the old depot halls)

• Aarhus, Museum Skjoldenæsholm and Odense (DK) – July/August (we had hoped to see some test running in Odense but as can be seen in the last image, there was nothing running that day)

• Liberec & Jablenec (CZ) – July