We’re getting there, only about 770 left to install now to remove all the timber sleepers between Maldon and Pipeline Crossing.

Today’s effort saw 120 sleepers installed, all clipped up. This is a very good effort for our relatively small crew, our typical daily average is 80, so 120 is not to be scoffed at. 

Given our limited number, we didn’t both using the trolley, which had the tradeoff of moving things a little more manually, or mechanically in this case.

However we’ve got the system pretty down pat now, there was a bit of relearning as it’s been a few weeks, however we got there and it bodes well for finishing this stetch before the really hot weather arrives.

We spent a long time attempting to line, however it really does need a tamper to do that job justice, however it’s a lot smoother now than it was previously.

There is always a few stubborn ones, however by day’s end we’d beaten all of them into submission!

The end result is quite respectable. We still need to jack and pack tomorrow as well as tidy up the site. However, that should be quite achievable.

Tomorrow’s crew meeting at Maldon at 8am or out on site from 8.15am (we’re now well up the hill from the tip crossing).

It was a relatively quiet day today, however we did achieve quite a few small jobs.

We’ve prepared the next 120 sleepers to replace on Thursday.

We repaired a previous repair to Maldon Platform, it turns out the asphalt is about 50mm thick in places here! Anyhow the cold mix patch has come out pretty well.

That’s it for the pics, but we managed to replace the Maldon flag pole rope, clean a few gutters and tidy up the loose ends from last week’s crossing job.

We undertook our detailed monthly patrol and we’re very happy we founding nothing of any note. We even managed to fix a tap in the toilets at Castlemaine. It was quite the day really!

Thursday’s crew will be out replacing a few more concrete sleepers, meeting at Maldon at 8am or just up from the old tip crossing from 8.15am.

It’s done!

It was a busy morning of tidying up, followed by a lot of sitting around and getting all the gear back to it’s correct homes.

There was a slight delay in getting the asphalt, however the council were quick to find a different supply and the job proceeded without a hiccup.

It’s come up looking a real treat. It’ll certainly be nice if, in a future budget, we can find enough money to asphalt a few metres outside of the rails also – keep those fingers crossed.

A big thankyou to all involved, Mount Alexander Shire Council for their assistance with the road closure, gravel and asphalting. RTHV for their assistance in procuring the concrete sleepers and to all our hard-working volunteers for doing the grunt work bringing it all together.

For the time being, the speed restriction will remain. However, we’ve improved the road/rail visibility sufficiently to lift it slightly in the coming weeks once everything has bedded in.

Tuesday’s crew will probably be out doing some resleepering activities near the old tip crossing, however check back closer to time for the details.

Lots of pictures today, now that our Thursday photographer is back on hand.

It all went very much like clockwork today, with pictures telling the story perfectly.

There is always something strangely satisfying about the destruction portion of the job… gentle is probably not a word to describe us when we’re in this mode.

The roadway was actually in excellent condition, most timber was still good and the road-base was bone dry, clean as clean and a rock hard base to match – ideal.

We did give it a thorough roll with a nice small roller this time, certainly not the ground shaking excitement of a 8tonner, but it was more than adequate to compact the tiny layer of loose stuff we created.

Well ahead of any anticipated schedule, we had the rails more or less in place.

A quick bit of cutting and bolting up marked the very final end to the mainline 60lb rail and the re-railing program (there’s plenty of little bits we’ll do here and there, but no more 60lb to remove).

Some fine tuning of the line was made before the big ballast effort begun.

We have installed a drain on the north side of the crossing should water ever find its way in, however it’s probably a massive overkill.

All jacking was done using the laser method – once the grade is set, it all happens so easily.

We didn’t manage any action shots, however the crib ballast (between sleepers) was compacted with the jumping jack and nicely levelled, twice, to ensure a very firm base exists for the asphalt.

We’ve also replaced a few timber sleepers either side of crossing, with the being the final clip installed as part of the rerailing project.

The council has done an excellent job helping out with this project, at this stage the asphalt will be between the rails only, however they’re supplied crushed rock for outside the rails, for easy removal later on to continue the asphalt outwards.

The team helped to compact the first layer of this before calling it a day, we feel like we’ve set a new all time best for quickest and least hassle crossing renewal, all that planning has paid off!

We’ll go into a few more details of just how significant this crossing rebuilt is in relation to the rerailing project tomorrow night. Today’s is big enough on its own!

The asphalt arrives at 9.30am tomorrow and we’ve still got a bit to do before hand, meeting on site, Sawmill Road, from 7.30am