It’s November, therefore, a detailed track walk was required. Today was the day.

It was probably the most successful track walk we’ve ever had, with the whole length from Maldon to Castlemaine completed today, which has never happened. The main reason was that we weren’t held up attending to lots of faults.

With the exception of 3 locations, our track gauge is excellent and all of those 3 have only just triggered the ‘action will be required soon threshold’.

A few very minor things, like the odd loose bolt and a clip missing (knocked off by a digger during ballast works), but all very minor and easily fixed.

The wet ground has resulted in a bit of settlement, with one old bridge pile opening up near Pipeline Crossing, the old bridge beam and pile bolts can be seen down the hole. Easily fixed by just filling with some gravel, just as the bridge was originally filled some 100 years ago.

The down end abutment embankment at Muckleford Bridge has also fallen victim to settlement, we will be fixing this prior to the weekend’s trains, as this isn’t going to get better if we leave it. The wet of this season is quite possibly the first time this embankment has ever actually become this wet and hence has settled, since reconstruction in the 80s/90s.

Tomorrow’s crew will meet at Muckleford around 8.15am, where we’ll head out and attend to the bridge and depending on numbers we may also fix a few of the other faults.

Yesterday’s gang sorted all the jewellery we piled up previously from the rerailing job. It’s now all sorted into appropriate drums, for reuse or scrap.

It’s by no means a fun job at all, however it’s now done and dusted, with just the drums needing to be transported to where they’re next needed.

Thursday and Friday will be track inspection (track walk) days. On Thursday we’ll be meeting at Maldon at 8am and heading off, depending on how far we get Thursday will determine where we meet on Friday morning.

Sorry about the late notice. We’ll be spending tomorrow breaking up more 60lb rail, tidying jewellery and tamping the recently installed sleepers. Meeting at Maldon at 8am or out by Walmer Road Crossing (just up the bike track) from 8.30am

It was actually 5 sleepers that still needed changing and 3 fishplates, all of which we managed in good time today. The final count of Yesterday’s sleepers was an even 80.

As part of a transfer train that was running today, we’ve unloaded 176 concrete sleepers lineside near Sawmill Rd, in readiness for re-railing the next section. It’s not often we’re 6 months ahead in these things… it feels very organised!

It was a very attractive looking works train, complete with Z van!

The afternoon was spent doing exciting jobs, like collecting the last of the jewellery and breaking up the 60lb rails that were dangling from Farmers and Walmer Road Bridges. We also spent some time stockpiling old timber sleepers and tidying up lineside in readiness for a flail mow over the coming weeks.

We’ve really only got a tamping pass and a ballast drop to go and we’ll have this section more or less complete, which will probably occur in around a fortnight.

At this stage, the exact task that we’ll be up to on Tuesday is a little uncertain, so check back on Monday evening for details. Likely we’ll all be meeting at Maldon from 8am.