JL - 6.3.26 60026 6N87 Lynemouth - Tyne CT, Bedlington Viaduct

As we know days out photting can take many different shapes and sizes. Rather than focussing on a specific location, line or geographic area, today’s effort focused on a specific loco. My favourite class 60, GBRF’s uniquely liveried 60026 ‘Helvellyn’. She’d been employed all week on the Lynemouth biomass circuit and running the same diagrams each day. Meaning, if we got a decent forecast and I could create the time, I could prioritise shots moving through the power station complex at Lynemouth, a setting that I find provides a great context and backdrop for these 60 hauled popular workings. So that was the plan and luckily it was one of those rare days when it all fell into place. In the end I bagged 16 shots at various locations and points of my favourite 60 working in on 6N86 and out on 6N87, all under gin clear Springtime skies with a gently warming sunshine. What great way to spend the day. Final shot of the sequence was this wonderful view at Bedlington viaduct. This shot was used as a double page spread in the April 2025 edition of Rail Express.