This section shows the details of the trip on a day by day basis. If you’re looking for loco numbers or individual workings, you’re in the right place.

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These notes follow on from a short visit to the Czech Republic (Czech notes here).

After crossing the border north of Trencin, I headed for Chynorany, the closest point on the diesel worked Nove Zamky to Prievidza line. Although I’d photographed in Slovakia before, this was my first visit to this line and I didn’t really know what to expect. Ominously, there were very few pictures on the usual Czech and Slovak websites, which came as a surprise given that most passenger trains are loco hauled. If there were any good locations, I’d have expected to see evidence of them on the web.

My worst fears were confirmed during the drive to Prievidza. The line runs along a very broad, very flat valley through decaying industrial towns and run down villages. Hardly inspirational stuff.

After checking into the Hotel Preuge, close to Prievidza station and booked through Booking.com, I visited the shed where nobody seemed at all interested as I wandered round. Nice to find no less than 5 Hectors (Class 721) on shed. All looked to be in working order, complete with plates, and several even had the full UIC numbers. 721.116 was definitely in traffic and took fuel before being stabled.

Prievidza Depot

Loco
721.053, 721.079, 721.083, 721.116, 721.126 736.102 750.238 751.128, 751.200, 751.208 preserved: T444.0055, 464.001

The rest of the afternoon was spent attempting a trip to Jelsovce and back to check out the line. This was my first Slovak train journey and got off to a less than excellent start with dirty graffiti spattered coaches and some sort of problem with the brakes that meant we were almost 20 minutes late getting underway. In the event I didn’t risk the connection at Jelsovce and got off at the previous hovel, Vycapy-Opatovice. There would have been a 3 hour wait if I’d missed the train back.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a number of potential photspots worthy of further investigation and decided to stay a second night in Prievidza in order to check them out properly. Another surprise was to see 754.083, complete with Humenne allocation on the cabside, working local passengers vice a Nove Zamky 750.

Prievidza

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.110		Stabled	13:50
736.103	Os5006	14:27 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	13:50

Novaky

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.223		Stabled	14:51
754.083	Os5029	13:49 Topolcany - Prievidza	14:54

Zemianske Kostolany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.040		Shunting	15:00

Velke Bielice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
813.008	Os5079	14:49 Topolcany - Prievidza	15:22

Chynorany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
811.011	Os5409	15:18 Chynorany - Trencin	15:29

Topolcany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.043		Stabled	15:43

Vycapy-Opatovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.101	Os5005	14:48 Nove Zamky - Prievidza	16:18

Topolcany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.083	Os5008	15:45 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	16:59

Chynorany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.110	R720	16:36 Prievidza - Bratislava hl.st.	17:20

A remarkably good day despite the forecast of continuous cloud everywhere west of Kosice. The cloud was around but it sat somewhere to the south west until mid afternoon before spilling north just as the afternoon procession of southbounds was getting underway. I spent the day between Partizanske and Prievidza, photographing at the locations I’d spotted from the train on Saturday, most of which turned out to be more than acceptable.

Everything seen was worked by the diagrammed power. There should also have been a southbound 751 hauled freight around 09:00 but I didn’t see any sign of it.

Bystricany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.201	R721	06:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Prievidza	09:19
736.103	Os5002	09:54 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	10:22

Oslany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
813.009	Os5020	12:16 Prievidza - Topolcany	12:42

S of Kos

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.102	Os5006	14:27 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	14:34
736.101	Os5008	15:45 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	15:53
750.182	Os5079	13:48 Nitra - Prievidza	16:02
750.201	R720	16:38 Prievidza - Bratislava hl.st.	16:44
750.182	Os5010	17:07 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	17:14

Once again the day turned out better than the weather forecast predicted. The morning started overcast in Prievidza, as expected, with the best chance of sun seeming to be towards Zilina. I started by heading for the Banska Bystrica - Vrutky line north of Turcianske Teplice, moving on to Harmanec Jaskyna at lunchtime and ending the day at Hronsek, between Banska B and Zvolen. Well lit shots were had at each location but they were few and far between after lunchtime.

Highlights were getting 750.300 in supershine blue/grey livery, complete with yellow lightning stripes, working Os7303 at Jazernica and all-over red 754.054 blasting out of the tunnel at Harmanec Jaskyna on Zr1842. It was also good to see so much freight but every train bar one passed in poor light.

I continued to Zvolen where I stayed at the Hotel Polana, a few minutes walk from the station and booked through Booking.com.

N of Jazernica

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.003 736.005		NB Light Engines	09:41
813.035	Os7525	09:39 Vrutky - Prievidza	10:07
810.009	Os5607	08:53 Prievidza - Vrutky	10:12
751.124	Mn85301	07:16 Vrutky - Horna Stubna Pick-Up Freight	10:16
751.084 751.198		NB Light Engines	10:39
750.300	Os7303	11:06 Vrutky - Zvolen os.st.	11:36
736.005 736.003 banked by 751.198 751.084		SB Freight	11:53
750.094	Os7302	10:30 Zvolen os.st. - Vrutky	12:03

Harmanec Jaskyna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.023 736.005 736.003 banked by 751.198 751.084		SB Freight	13:14
754.054	Zr1842	13:18 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	14:26
754.035	Zr1841	13:15 Zilina - Banska Bystrica	14:38
736.023 756.008		NB Freight	15:16

Hronsek

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.011	Os7304	16:42 Zvolen os.st - Vrutky	16:56
754.033	Zr1843	15:16 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	17:07

The day’s first location was near Hronsek, where I finished off the previous evening. Despite having now spent around 2 hours on the electrified Zvolen - Banska Bystrica line, I’ve yet to see an electric loco, everything has been diesel worked so far.

The real target for the morning’s photography was train R811, which runs over the extremely scenic but lightly trafficked line from Banska Bystrica via Brezno and Cervena Skala to Margecany. Indeed, east of Brezno, R811 and the return working, R810, are the only loco hauled passengers. In spite of the train’s leisurely pace, it wasn’t easy to chase due to the state of the roads. As well as the shot east of Slovenska Lupca, I managed another at Helpa and just scraped a third near Dedinky with only a couple of minutes to spare. The line has incredible photographic potential but it needs to be ridden to work out exactly where the photspots are.

Then it was back over the mountains to Lovinobana on the Zvolen - Kosice line for the afternoon. Once again, the weather was excellent all day.

S of Hronsek

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.009		NB Light Engine	07:42
750.273	Os7319	08:02 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	08:21

E of Slovenska Lupka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.011	Os7703	09:18 Banska Bystrica - Brezno	09:33
754.054	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	10:29

Lovinobana

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.185	Os6213	13:41 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	14:36
754.052	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	15:08
750.032	Os6215	14:42 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	15:31
742.286	Mn83302	16:06 Lucenec - Zvolen nakl.st. Pick-Up Freight	16:12
736.010		SB Light Engine	16:17
754.082	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Presov	16:31
750.148	Os6216	14:42 Rimavska Sobota - Zvolen os.st.	16:44

Mytna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.005	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	18:14

Imagine sitting beside a double-track main line, halfway up a mountainside, enjoying the sight and sound of a pair of 751s grinding past on a heavy stone train. A few minutes after they’ve disappeared another pair of 751s come round the corner, this time one at either end of a long mixed freight. Shortly after they’ve gone, yet another pair of 751s appear, pulling a train of steel coil and then a single 751 follows the rest on a pick-up goods. That was Hrhov, at the east end of the Zvolen - Kosice main line, this afternoon between 13:50 and 14:32 and, before you check, this wasn’t written on April 1st. All the trains ran pretty well as expected except that, apart from the pick-up, they were diagrammed for 736s, not 751s.

I began the day at Podkrivan, between Zvolen and Lucenec, then drove east to Hrhov, stopping briefly at Gemerska Panica, south of Plesivec, for a shot of R932. After a splendid afternoon at Hrhov, I went back south to Gemer, north of Tornala, for the last couple of shots. After a day that started with a pair of 756s and peaked with three pairs of 751s at Hrhov, what better way to end than with a 751+752 double header on freight and a pair of 754s on R933. An excellent day with weather to match.

I stayed at the Hotel Kras in the centre of Roznava (the station is around 3km away, well beyond the outskirts).

Podkrivan

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.295	Mn83301	06:19 Zvolen nakl.st. - Lucenec Pick-Up Freight	08:05
756.004 756.007 banked by 736.010	61304	01:16 Kosice - Zvolen nakl.st. Freight	08:23
813.012	Os6207	08:10 Zvolen os.st. - Lucenec	08:47
754.069	R930	06:06 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	08:57

Gemerska Panica

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.005	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	11:14

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.015 736.012		WB Oil Tanks	12:44
813.028 813.021	Os6404	12:09 Kosice - Jesenske	13:18
751.129 751.196		WB Stone Hoppers	13:50
751.206 banked by 751.xxx		WB Freight	14:04
736.022 736.024		EB Freight	14:05
751.173 751.076		WB Steel Coil	14:18
751.113	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	14:32
813.021	Os6407	14:05 Plesivec - Kosice	14:42
751.113		EB Light Engine	15:05
754.033	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	16:07

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.026 752.020		NB Freight	17:24
754.069 754.014	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Presov	18:04

Another Grumpy freight fest at the east end of line 160. I went out early in the expectation of photographing two passenger trains but came back with shots of four freights as well. A good session on the climb through Hrhov in the early afternoon and a few more freights either side of Plesivec late afternoon took the day’s total to eleven, of which eight were 751 hauled with two worked by pairs of 756s and a single pair of 736s making up the remainder. According to the diagrams, 736s should work the bulk of the service with just a handful of 756 or 751 hauled trains. Obviously this isn’t happening but it’s not clear why. Whatever the reason, it’s great to see so many 751s in action.

N of Tornala

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.082	R930	06:06 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	07:26
810.391	Os6263	06:42 Jesenske - Plesivec	07:33
754.072	R931	05:47 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	07:56
756.005 756.008		NB Containers	08:04
751.125		SB Freight	08:19

S of Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.171 751.109		NB Freight	08:47
751.196 751.129		NB Freight	09:16

Vidova

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.057 751.123		EB Light Engines	10:48
754.033	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	11:06

Jablonov nad Turnou

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.109 751.171		WB Steel Coil	12:58
813.028 813.027	Os6404	12:09 Kosice - Jesenske	13:19
756.007 756.004		EB Freight	13:41
813.027	Os6407	14:05 Plesivec - Kosice	14:39
751.123 751.057 banked by 751.206		WB Stone Hoppers	14:46
751.171 751.109		EB Light Engines	15:15
751.206		EB Light Engine	15:19

S of Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.076 751.173		NB Gas Tanks	16:07
751.129 751.196		SB Freight	16:13

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.072	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	16:48
751.125		SB Freight	17:12
736.004 736.006		NB Oil Tanks	17:38

N of Tornala

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.033	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Presov	17:56

After several days of excellent weather and rewarding photography, a dull day provided the opportunity to do some travelling, specifically to try to find more photo positions in good scenery.

I left Roznava on R930, just after 07:00, and travelled to Zvolen. Once again, the stock was in appalling condition with windows so dirty it was difficult to see out. The next leg of the journey took me via Banska Bystrica, Brezno, Cervena Skala and Margecany to Kosice over one of Slovakia’s most scenic lines, seen from the luxury of a clean, comfortable, first class coach. The train was composed almost entirely of CD stock, including the coach I was in, and the first leg of the journey, to Banska, was behind a CD loco. The red beast was on the front from Banska to Margecany where a ZSSK 163 took over.

Two surprises en-route concerned pick-up freights. The first surprise was seeing a 742 on one at Cervena Skala - I didn’t think the pick-up from Brezno worked beyond Helpa these days. The second surprise was seeing the pick-up that works the east end of the line out of Margecany, hauled by a 721. This train has been booked 731 for years. Photographically the line has tremendous potential but more than 90% of the prospective shots are ruined by a line of telegraph poles that runs along the south side most of the way from Banska to Margecany.

From Kosice I travelled back to Roznava on a railbus rather than jostle with the crowds fighting to get on every long distance train. By the time we arrived at Roznava, the sun was coming out and, after a quick dash down the road, the cameras came out for the first time all day to record 751.118 leaving Slavec Jaskyne with the pick-up to Plesivec. I hung around in case something else turned up but the cloud filled in again before anything of interest came.

Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.126		NB Freight	06:55
754.035	R930	06:06 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	07:04

Plesivec

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
721.028 736.004 736.006		Stabled	07:17

Filakovo

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.311 742.352		Stabled	08:20

Zvolen os.st.

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
240.121	R830	08:48 Banska Bystrica - Bratislava hl.st.	09:30
242.274 (CD)	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	09:39

Sliac

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
240.103	Os7321	09:28 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	09:50

Vlkanova

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.020 736.023		SB Freight	09:55

Banska Bystrica

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
240.081 240.096 736.002 736.010 742.634		Stabled	10:15
754.054	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	10:15

Brezno

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.267		Stabled	11:02

Cervena Skala

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.021		WB Pick-Up Freight	11:51

Nalepkovo

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
721.099		EB Pick-Up Freight	12:46

Margecany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
731.035		Stabled	13:25
163.055	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	13:28
363.145	R603	07:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	13:31

Kysak

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
131.058 131.057		Light Engine	13:51

Kostolany nad Hornadom

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
131.031 131.032		NB Freight	13:57

Kosice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
110.023 721.049		Station Pilots	14:14
121.004 (SZDZ) 131.039 131.040 150.215 (CD) 163.049 163.059 163.104 163.105 460.042 460.043 460.057 754.082		Various	14:14

Haniska pre Kosiciach

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
131.069 131.070		EB Freight	15:11

Turna nad Bodvou

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.082	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	16:03

Lipovnik

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.076 751.173		EB Freight	16:32

Slavec Jaskyna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	16:57

A frustrating day at the east end of line 160 with enough trains and a good deal of sunshine but rarely both at the same time. The morning started foggy so I checked out a few locations spotted from the train yesterday.

The spot near Hrhov that I chose to photograph the morning passenger must have been one of the few places where the fog didn’t clear in time but that wasn’t obvious when I went there. The rest of the day was spent around Jovice watching the light disappear almost every time a train appeared. In total, six freights were seen, not bad for a Saturday with a late start and an early finish.

Ironically the late afternoon was spent driving to Michalovce, on the Banovce - Humenne line, in glorious sunshine.

I stayed at the Hotel Druzba in the town centre, a curious mixture of truly luxurious rooms and a restaurant stuck in a communist era time warp.

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.012 736.015		EB Freight	09:23
754.082	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	10:41

Jovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.005	R1931	09:45 Zvolen os.st. - Presov	12:13
751.057 751.059		EB Freight	12:53
736.006 736.004 banked by 751.173 751.076		WB Oil Tanks	12:55
756.007 756.004		EB Freight	13:20
751.129 751.196		WB Stone Hoppers	14:23
751.123 751.171		WB Freight	15:56
754.005	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	16:22

The Banovce - Humenne line has to be among the least photogenic lines in Slovakia. It runs through a fairly featureless landscape and is poled and heavily overgrown. It does have a good service of loco hauled trains but I couldn’t find anywhere worth photographing them.

In the afternoon I moved to the Humenne - Presov line where there were three loco hauled trains booked. This line is also poled and overgrown in places but it runs through hilly country and there are a number of good photo positions. The best shot on the line is of a westbound train crossing the viaduct immediately west of Hanusovce nad Toplou mesto in the middle of the afternoon and Sunday is the only day there’s a loco hauled train in the right direction at the right time. The last of the three trains was a bit of a let down. Instead of expected three coaches with a 754 on each end, it turned up with just a single 754 hauling an 812 plus trailer.

Strazske

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.014	R443	21:17 Praha hl.n. - Humenne	09:13
754.056	Os8906	09:35 Humenne - Kosice	09:45

Michalovce zastavka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.014	Os8908	11:35 Humenne - Kosice	12:11
754.056	Os8907	11:09 Kosice - Humenne	12:27

Hanusovce nad Toplou

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.085	R1504	14:20 Humenne - Bratislava hl.st.	15:09
754.073	Os9111	15:00 Presov - Humenne	15:39

Hlinne

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.085	Os9113	16:36 Presov - Humenne	17:26

I had planned to spend the day exploring the Humenne - Medzilaborce line and checking out a hunch that there are more freights than the diagrams show. However, it was expected to be the last really sunny day for a while and it seemed a shame to waste it on such a speculative venture, so I headed west to have another go at the shots I’d failed to get on Saturday at the east end of line 160. With all the westbound freights scheduled to run except the oil train, which was 736 hauled anyway and therefore low priority, it couldn’t possibly go wrong.

The first shot was of the westbound passenger near Hrhov and it was even better than expected with the light at the perfect angle and a clean, red and white loco on red and white stock. Then it was off to Jovice where absolutely nothing appeared westbound during the five hours I was there. Of course, when the light had gone too far round and I gave up and started moving to a spot for the afternoon passenger, the stone train appeared. Then the sky, which had up to then been mainly blue, suddenly filled with cloud before either the pick-up or the passenger arrived.

So I might as well have given up at 11:00 and gone back to Humenne to explore the Medzilaborce line anyway.

I had decided to stay in Lucenec for a couple of nights but struggled to find a hotel. The first two I tried were full and the third, the hotel Slovan near the station, only had one room and only for one night. Everywhere else I’d been the hotels seemed almost empty, with only a handful of guests, probably because everyone was in Lucenec for some obscure reason.

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.173 751.076		EB Light Engines	10:37
754.033	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen	10:38

Jovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.057 751.059		EB Freight	13:06

Lipovnik

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	16:12
754.072	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen	16:18

Another frustrating day, this time at the west end of line 160. The forecast was poor and it was raining when I left Lucenec. The weather looked brighter to the north and by the time I’d checked out a couple of spots around Krivan and Detva the sun was breaking through.

There should have been a couple of freights during the morning but nothing appeared. After yesterday’s performance I wasn’t too surprised. It was only when two loco hauled passenger trains due around midday failed to appear that I realised that something was wrong.

A quick check of the timetable revealed that there should have been a couple of railbuses during the morning but they hadn’t run either. Down at Krivan station a fleet of buses was leaving the station in the direction of Zvolen and all became clear. I’d been waiting for a train on a line that was closed for engineering work!

Trains were operating east of Krivan but the cloud was still pretty solid in that direction. I found the sun again south of Lucenec but had just missed a couple of trains and had an hour to wait for the next one. In the meantime, I checked out the line from Filakovo to the Hungarian border at Somoskoeujfalu, where the daily freight is booked for double headed, double banked 751s, but it looked next to impossible to photograph in the early afternoon when the trains are booked to run.

By the time I’d got back to the main line between Lucenec and Filakovo, the sun had gone. I continued to Mytna and spent the afternoon there. Most trains passed in cloud and I managed to screw up photographing the couple that passed in sun. There was an extra loco hauled passenger, Os6217, normally a railbus, but that passed in cloud as well.

The day ended with a shot of R934 at Podrecany. The sun was out and I managed to get the shot right but the stock was so disfigured by graffiti that it’s far from ideal.

The engineering work continues tomorrow between Zvolen and Krivan from 09:10 to 16:00 and between Jesenske and Rimavska Sec from 07:30 to 16:00.

After the difficulty getting a hotel in Lucenec, I went back to the Polana in Zvolen for the next few nights.

Holisa

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.033	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	14:35

Mytna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.033	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	15:10
750.148	Os6215	14:42 Zvolen os.st - Filakovo	15:43
754.072	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st - Kosice	16:31
750.032	Os6216	14:42 Rimavska Sobota - Zvolen os.st.	16:51
754.070	Os6217	16:05 Zvolen os.st - Filakovo	16:52
746.008 banked by 736.009	Mn83302	16:06 Lucenec - Zvolen nakl.st. Pick-Up Freight	17:17

Podrecany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.082	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	18:09

The day got off to a good start with three trains photographed in the sun at Velka Luka between Zvolen and Banska Bystrica. After about 40 minutes, a huge raft of cloud moved in rapidly from the west. I headed east, to Brezno and beyond, but couldn’t catch the blue sky as it retreated eastwards.

Plan B, section 14, subsection C, clause 5 allows for a change of direction southwards in such circumstances, so I returned to Brezno then drove down to Mytna on line 160, where the sun soon came out. By this time the afternoon passenger service was getting underway and I’d made sure I was on a section of line that was actually open today! Although there were some fairly substantial wodges of cloud around, everything was photographed in good light until almost 17:00 when the sun gave up and went home to bed.

Just after the sun finally disappeared, Humenne’s wandering grotbox 754.014 turned up on Os6216. This loco was seen heading east, coupled inside the train engine on a Zvolen - Kosice fast train when I was at Roznava last Wednesday, then turned up on Humenne - Banovce trains when I was around Humenne on Saturday. Now it was back at Zvolen. I wouldn’t mind but it’s probably the dirtiest loco in Slovakia and dirty grey green engines don’t photograph well.

Velka Luka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	Zr1847	05:47 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	07:38
736.020 736.011		SB Freight	07:56
750.273	Os6210	08:02 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	08:22

Mytna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.032	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	12:47
750.181	Os6211	12:11 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	13:11
754.070	Os6212	13:17 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	14:03
750.032	Os6213	13:41 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	14:41
750.181	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	15:13
754.070	Os6215	14:42 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	15:41
746.008	Mn83302	16:06 Lucenec - Zvolen nakl.st. Pick-Up Freight	16:22
754.082	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	16:29
754.014	Os6216	14:42 Rimavska Sobota - Zvolen os.st.	16:50
736.023 736.003		WB Freight	17:03

A strange sort of a day. It seemed that everywhere I went, a freight turned up soon afterwards. Unfortunately, the clouds were less co-operative and most trains seemed to be half lit although a couple did pass in full sun.

The forecast was better in the south, so I started by heading out on line 160. First stop was Podkrivan where the classic shot overlooking the curve was checked out. If I hadn’t photographed there almost a decade ago, I would never have believed there had been a photo position there at all. Sorry Brian, not worth bothering with.

Most of the morning was spent checking out line 160 east of Filakovo, where I’d seen some potential locations from the train. This took me to Tornala in time for the mid-morning passenger from Kosice. Being that close to Roznava, it seemed a shame not to have another go at the shots around Jovice I’d tried to get on Saturday and again on Monday. This time I wasn’t totally unsuccessful, getting one freight in full sun and another in half sun.

The rest of the day was spent near Holisa, between Lucenec and Filakovo. Os6215, booked for loco haulage turned up with an 813 instead. Probably revenge for Tuesday when Os6217 was loco vice railbus.

Podkrivan

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
756.004 756.007 banked by 736.009		WB Freight	08:24

Holisa

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.076 751.173 T669.516		WB Freight	09:03

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
756.009 756.006		EB Freight	10:51
754.035	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	11:17

S of Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.129 751.196		WB Freight	11:40

Jovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751059 751.199		EB Light Engines	12:05
756.009 756.006		EB Freight	12:31
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	14:05
751.171 751.123		WB Freight	14:26
751.199 751.059		WB Stone Hoppers	14:43

Holisa

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.181	Os6216	14:42 Rimavska Sobota - Zvolen os.st.	16:18
754.035	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	17:03
736.004 736.006		WB Freight	17:14

A good day on line 170 north of Zvolen, although I had to move around a bit to avoid the worst of the cloud. The day started and ended at Velka Luka, between Zvolen and Banska Bystrica with the middle of the day spent at Harmanec Jaskyna and Dolny Harmanec on the climb north of Banska Bystrica.

I finally got a shot, several shots in fact, of electric locos on the Zvolen - Banska Bystrica line. The trains that were booked for 240s ran with 240s but the two that were booked for 263s both turned up behind CD 242s. R811 was also a 242 vice 263 when I rode it last Friday.

I was expecting a northbound freight sometime during the afternoon but the motive power was a pleasant surprise, a pair of Prievidza 751s, rather than the anticipated pair of 756s. Another pleasant surprise, after being forced back to Velka Luka by advancing clouds, was getting immaculate 754.054 in full sun, less than a minute before the light finally disappeared for the day.

Velka Luka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	Ex240	07:19 Zvolen os.st. - Praha hl.n.	07:30
754.055	Zr1847	05:47 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	07:41
750.273	Os7319	08:02 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	08:21
736.007 736.019		SB Freight	08:32
240.028 on rear 754.053	Os7324	08:39 Zvolen os.st. - Banska Bystrica	08:50
240.083	R830	08:48 Banska Bystrica - Bratislava hl.st.	09:04
240.080	Os7321	09:28 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	09:45
242.243 (CD)	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st - Kosice	09:50
750.300	Os7302	10:30 Zvolen os.st. - Vrutky	10:41

Harmanec Jaskyna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.300	Os7302	10:30 Zvolen os.st. - Vrutky	11:31
750.094	Os7303	11:06 Vrutky - Zvolen	12:16

Dolny Harmanec

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.192 751.033 banked by 736.004 736.006		NB Freight	13:22
754.055	Zr1842	13:18 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	14:11
754.035	Zr1841	13:15 Zilina - Banska Bystrica	14:35

Velka Luka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.035	Os7327	15:21 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	15:41
242.252 (CD)	R833	12:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Banska Bystrica	15:55
736.023		NB Freight	16:05
754.069	Os7360	16:03 Zvolen os.st. - Banska Bystrica	16:17
754.070	Os7304	16:42 Zvolen os.st. - Vrutky	17:00
754.054	Zr1843	15:16 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	17:12

Another day of very mixed weather. I intended to start somewhere other than Velka Luka but it seemed to be the only place there was any chance of the sun. Even so, of the eight trains that passed, only one was fully lit. Of the eight, three were freights but only the 751 + 736 combo was anywhere near getting the sun.

The plan had been to move on to the Banska - Brezno line for a couple of hours but the sky looked very black in that direction so I had a look at the Hronska Dubrava - Turcianske Teplice line instead, managing somehow to get a shot of spotless 750.300 in full sun near Turcek. Then it was on to the Prievidza - Nove Zamky line where the afternoon was spent on the deviation between Kos and Novaky, again with some success.

I stayed at the Hotel Preuge again.

Velka Luka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	Zr1847	05:47 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	07:38
742.227		NB Pick-Up Goods	07:59
754.034	Os7319	08:02 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	08:22
751.047 736.003		SB Freight	08:29
240.080 on rear 754.055	Os7324	08:39 Zvolen os.st. - Banska Bystrica	08:52
240.083	R830	08:48 Banska Bystrica - Bratislava hl.st.	09:03
742.227		SB Stone Hoppers	09:27
242.252 (CD)	R811	06:37 Bratislava - Kosice	09:51

Horny Turcek, S of Turcek

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.xxx	Os7554	10:45 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	11:48
750.300	Os7551	11:06 Vrutky - Zvolen os.st.	12:10

S of Kos

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.103	Os5006	14:27 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	14:33
750.129	Os5029	13:49 Topolcany - Prievidza	14:58
750.129	Os5008	15:45 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	15:53
750.110	R720	16:36 Prievidza - Bratislava hl.st.	16:43
736.102	Os5005	14:48 Nove Zamky - Prievidza	18:06

Just a few hours on the Prievidza - Nove Zamky line before departing for Czecho (Czech report here). I’d read somewhere that a sizeable chunk of the Slovak rail freight market was in the hands of independent operators but, until 740.148 passed me today, every train seen had been ZSSK-C worked.

Bystricany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.101	Os5019	07:40 Topolcany - Prievidza	08:27
740.148 (PSZ)		SB Coal Hoppers	08:37
750.031	R721	06:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Prievidza	09:20

Oslany

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.101	Os5002	09:54 Prievidza - Nove Zamky	10:28

The day started with a pre-breakfast trip to Slatinka, between Zvolen and Zvolenska Slatina on line 160, to get the early morning passengers. After the obligatory hemenex (Czech and Slovak for ham and eggs - honestly), I went north to Medzibrod on the Banska Bystrica - Brezno line for a couple of trains.

Then it was back to line 160 for the rest of the day. The next few hours were quite cloudy but it got better by mid-afternoon with three of the six trains seen at Mytna passing in sun.

All the passengers seen had the expected traction. On the freight side there wasn’t a lot of activity. All three freights seen were pick-ups.

Slatinka, W of Zvolenska Slatina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.084	R931	05:47 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	05:55
750.148	Os6205	06:10 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	06:20
750.203	Os6202	04:52 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	06:20
742.296	Mn83301	06:19 Zvolen nakl.st. - Lucenec Pick-Up Freight	06:31
750.185	Os6204	05:40 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	07:07

W of Medzibrod

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.069	Os7703	09:18 Banska Bystrica - Brezno	09:40
742.618	Mn84360	06:52 Brezno - Banska Bystrica Pick-Up Freight	09:51
754.053	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	10:32

Holisa

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.149	Os6212	13:17 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	13:31
754.072	Os6211	12:11 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	13:41
754.072	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	14:37

Mytna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.072	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	15:15
750.203	Os6215	14:42 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	15:27
742.296	Mn83302	16:06 Lucenec - Zvolen nakl.st. Pick-Up Freight	16:11
754.033	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	16:27
750.181	Os6216	14:42 Rimavska Sobota - Zvolen os.st.	16:50
754.084	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	18:15

Slatinka, W of Zvolenska Slatina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.005	R935	18:41 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	18:52
750.181	Os6221	18:47 Zvolen os.st. - Lucenec	18:56

The day was forecast to be dull and wet and, although it was cloudy, there was no rain in the morning. The sun even threatened to break through on a number of occasions but never quite made it. I went out to Detva to see how the freights ran during the morning. Two eastbound trains were seen and their timings were consistent with those of 63113 and 67271, the only trains booked to run during the period I was there. The first train should have gone to Lucenec but the locos returned, light engine, after just 40 minutes, meaning they couldn’t have gone any further than Lovinobana. I didn’t hang about to see what the second pair did, I had a train to catch.

Plan B for a cloudy day was to ride up to Vrutky and back to check out the photo locations. Ada got into a bit of a tiz and had to phone a friend when I said I was going out via Banska Bystrica and returning via Kremnice. Both routes are 96km according to the timetable, so the fares should be identical. She ended up issuing a ticket via Banska which was accepted without quibble on the train back via Kremnice.

I almost cried off at the last minute when the sun came out at Zvolen but it didn’t last long and by the time we reached Martin it was raining heavily. The deluge continued for the rest of the afternoon.

Concentrating on potential photo locations meant that I missed getting the loco numbers of most of the trains we passed but there were quite a few freights, including a southbound at Harmanec Jaskyna banked by a pair of 746s. There was also a northbound hauled by a pair of 751s, seen at Diviaky on the way back. All the passengers seen appeared to be as booked but I couldn’t tell whether the locos were 750s or 754s.

There were a few potential spots on the section between Banska Bystrica and Turcianske Teplice but it’s pretty flat and uninspiring northwards to Vrutky. The line from Turcianske Teplice south to Hronska Dubrava is extremely scenic but almost totally overgrown.

Detva

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.005	R930	06:06 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	09:06
736.001 banked by 746.001		EB Freight	09:39
736.001 746.001		WB Light Engines	10:22
736.014 736.019		EB Freight	11:40

Slatinka, W of Zvolenska Slatina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.035	Os6211	12:11 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	12:20

Zvolen os.st.

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	Zr1842	13:18 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	13:05
240.105	R832	12:40 Banska Bystrica - Bratislava hl.st.	13:05
754.072	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	13:23
210.007		Station Pilot	13:25

Sliac

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.300	Os7303	11:06 Vrutky - Zvolen os.st.	13:35

Banska Bystrica

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.003	Os7729	13:57 Banska Bystrica - Brezno	13:53
736.011 736.015		Stabled	13:53

Martin

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.200		Stabled	14:50
730.619 (*) 725.070 (*)		Stabled	14:50 (* track contractors locos)

Vrutky

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.094	Os7505	14:37 Zilina - Zvolen	15:08

Hronska Dubrava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
730.621 (*)		Stabled	17:09 (* track contractors loco)

What a day! It all started with an early morning session on line 160 east of Zvolen. Nothing out of the ordinary to report but a couple of good shots were bagged. Then it was up north on the line to Banska Bystrica to look at a spot north of Hronsek. Shortly after I arrived an unexpected northbound train appeared behind rebuilt Goggle 757.001 in very shiny ZSSK red and white livery. It appeared to be on test as the first coach was a dynamometer car.

After a couple of trains, it was time to move on to the Banska Bystrica - Brezno line for an hour or so before going north of Banska to check a few of the spots I’d seen from the train yesterday. None of the spots was suitable for afternoon shots so it was back to the old favourites of Harmanec Jaskyna and Dolny Harmanec for the afternoon trains, which included a 736 triple-header on a freight.

The last part of the day was spent near Radvan, south of Banska with a final shot, just before sunset, at Velka Luka to finish things off.

As well as the 757 and the triple header, highlights included getting all four of Zvolen’s supershine engines in action.

Slatinka, W of Zvolenska Slatina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.005 736.006		WB Containers	05:49
754.005	R931	05:47 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	05:54
750.221	Os6205	06:10 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	06:19
750.203	Os6202	04:52 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	06:21
742.296	Mn83301	06:19 Zvolen nakl.st. - Lucenec Pick-Up Freight	06:27

E of Zvolen-Bucina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.185	Os6204	05:40 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	07:07

Hronsek

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
757.001		NB Test Train	08:32
240.092 on rear 754.054	Os7324	08:39 Zvolen os.st. - Banska Bystrica	08:57
240.096	R830	08:48 Banska Bystrica - Bratislava hl.st.	09:03

Lucatin

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.035	Os7703	09:18 Banska Bystrica - Brezno	09:36

Slovenska Lupca

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
742.618	Mn84360	06:52 Brezno - Banska Bystrica Pick-Up Freight	09:56
754.054	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	10:28

Horna Stubna obec

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.300	Os7302	10:30 Zvolen os.st. - Vrutky	11:46
750.094	Os7303	11:06 Vrutky - Zvolen os.st.	11:55

Harmanec Jaskyna

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.053	Zr1842	13:18 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	14:09
754.072	Zr1841	13:15 Zilina - Banska Bystrica	14:25

Dolny Harmanec

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.071	Zr1844	15:19 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	16:05
736.017 736.005 736.006 dit 183.040		NB Freight	16:27
754.055	Zr1843	15:16 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	16:46

S of Radvan

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.033	Os7357	15:57 Brezno - Zvolen os.st.	17:31
263.007	R835	14:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Banska Bystrica	18:01
754.053	Ex221	11:17 Praha hl.n. - Zvolen os.st.	18:21
750.032 on rear 263.007	Os7331	18:24 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	18:35

Velka Luka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.055	Zr1846	19:00 Zvolen os.st. - Zilina	19:12

A quieter day than yesterday but still good with a number of shots in the sun. Most of the day was spent on line 160. The first destination was Podkrivan for a 750 on a westbound passenger and a pair of 736s on an eastbound freight.

Then it off to the overbridge at Gemer, north of Tornala, where the same pair of 736s turned up light engine. After getting the midday westbound passenger it was time to see if I could get a room at the Hotel Kras in Roznava. I did wonder if it was acting as an overspill for the ice hockey junket in Kosice but it wasn’t and I got in without any difficulty.

The afternoon was spent at Jovice, where I’d tried to get a shot in sun on a number of occasions last trip but had failed every time. Nothing happened for two hours then, at 15:00 precisely, the floodgates opened and four 751 hauled freights rolled westwards in the next 30 minutes, three of them in full sun. While I was waiting, I noticed that the timetable revision on 1 May had all but wiped out the local passenger service at the east end of line 160 and a lot of the trains that were in the December 2010 book either don’t run or only cover part of their previous route. The service was bad enough before but now most of the intermediate stations are down to two trains a day.

After overdosing on 751s, I needed a goggle on CD stock (i.e. graffiti free) to finish the day off. Fortunately I knew where to find one and drove up to Telgart on line 173 to get R810 descending from the summit. The road parallels the Roznava - Dobsina branch, closed to passengers some time ago but clearly still open for freight. The principal source of traffic appears to be timber from Dobsina.

Podkrivan

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.032	Os6206	07:20 Lucenec - Zvolen os.st.	07:54
736.011 736.015		EB Freight	08:27

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.011 736.015		EB Light Engines	11:05
754.005	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	11:18

Jovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
756.006 756.007		EB Freight	13:00
751.196 751.206		WB Freight	15:00
751.059		WB Oil Tanks	15:06
751.113 banked by 751.118		WB Freight	15:16
751.123 751.076		WB Stone Hoppers	15:30

Telgart

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.053	R810	14:52 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	17:07

Some days go better than others. This was one of the others, spent entirely at the east end of line 160. It started well enough, with the morning passenger to Kosice passing Hrhov in glorious light, but then things started to go wrong.

The freights that usually go east during the morning didn’t appear and the afternoon’s westbounds started running much earlier than expected, catching me out as I was still waiting for the non-existent eastbounds. By the time I’d moved to a good position for westbounds, two had already gone. The remaining two were almost lost to cloud, with the sun briefly illuminating one and the second, the pick-up, being good enough to do some shunting so I could get ahead for a second shot.

At least the afternoon passengers behaved themselves, taking my tally of good shots up to five. Not bad for one day but it should have been a lot more.

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.171		EB Light Engine	08:22
754.072	R931	05:47 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	08:38
754.003	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	10:41
751.059 751.173		WB Freight	11:49

Jablonov nad Turnou

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.123 751.076		WB Oil Tanks	12:20
756.004 756.010		EB Freight	13:18
751.036 751.129		WB Stone Hoppers	13:57

Lipovnik

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	15:12

Jovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.171		WB Light Engine	15:39
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Goods	16:05

Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.173 751.059		EB Freight	16:10

Vyhybna Brzotin, S of Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.072	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	16:29

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.033	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	17:58

Another day that started brilliantly and then fell flat. An early start got me to a freezing Hrhov well before the light was on the track. The last shadow to clear was, of course, at the critical spot. As soon as the light was on I became aware of a barely audible rumble in the distance. A freight, and not just any old freight, the eastbound stone hoppers with a pair of 751s, perfectly timed for the best light.

By 07:14 the day was over to all intents and purposes. The next train, railbuses excepted, didn’t appear until after 09:00, by which time the light had gone round too far and I was on the move anyway. Soon afterwards the sky began to cloud over and by 11:00, when the morning passenger left Roznava, it was pretty overcast.

There appeared to be some chance of light in the north so I headed up to Stratena, on line 173. R811, hauled by 754.054, narrowly escaped being photographed in sun. Then it was on to Strba, on line 180, where the afternoon was spent sitting under a big cloud while the field half a mile away, but nowhere near the railway, was in almost continuous sunshine. Out of 10 trains that passed, only one was in sun and I wasn’t in a good position to get it.

On my last visit to Strba, in 2003, 183 hauled freights were a rarity so it was encouraging to find them hauling trains as well as banking them this time.

All the while, Kralova hola, the mountain above Telgart on line 173, appeared to be in sun so I drove down there in the hope of getting a shot of R810. The mountain might have been in sun but the valley, where the railway runs, wasn’t and I went all the way to Brezno before finding a half decent spot that stood a chance of being lit. The shot was in sun but it wasn’t as good as it looked from the train a few weeks ago.

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.129 751.036		EB Stone Hoppers	07.14

Dvorniky-Zadiel

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.206 751.196		EB Freight	09:29

Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.072	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	11:01

Stratena

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	12:17

Strba

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
163.056	Os7806	11:20 Kosice - Zilina	13:49
163.10213	Os7845	13:04 Ruzomberok - Spisska Nova Ves	14:30
131.095 131.096 banked by 183.020		WB Iron Ore	14:37
183.035		EB Freight	14:45
363.145	R605	09:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Humenne	14:55
183.034 banked by 183.005		EB Freight	15:00
363.133	IC504	13:38 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	15:00
163.054	Os7850	14:10 Spisska Nova Ves - Zilina	15:11
163.102	Os7813	12:52 Zilina - Kosice	15:26
131.041 131.042 banked by 183.006		WB Iron Ore	15:33

Brezno

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	R810	14:52 Kosice - Bratislava os.st.	17:57

A grim forecast and a grim start with a howling gale and rain lashing down in Lucivna, near Strba, where I stayed the night. The least worst forecast was for the west, although it looked like I’d have to go a long way to find the sun. However, the cloud started thinning much quicker than expected and by Liptovsky Tepla the sun was shining. I spent a couple of hours between Liptovsky Tepla and Liptovsky Vlachy, where the line runs along the top of a low dam, getting a remarkable number of freights for a Sunday, as well as the expected passengers. The shots weren’t brilliant but I was happy to be photting in good light.

By midday the High Tatra were emerging from the clouds so I returned to Strba. At first it seemed to be a mistake, as the line was still under a mass of cloud, but gradually the point at which the cloud started to break moved further east and an excellent couple of hours was spent photographing passengers and freight passing in front of the the High Tatras in crystal clear light. A couple of 183s were bagged on freights as well as the usual 131s.

For the second half of the afternoon I returned to the Liptovsky Vlachy area and photographed around the upper curve there, again in glorious light.

In contrast to the previous two days, this one had turned out much better than expected and much better than seemed possible when I left the hotel. It was noticeable that no CD 150s, or any other CD locos, or any ZSSK 350s were seen during the day. The passengers were solid ZSSK 163/362/363.

E of Liptovska Tepla

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
363.133	R601	05:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	09:44
163.118	Os7843	08:56 Zilina - Liptovsky Mikulas	10:17
183.042		EB Freight	10:58
131.089 131.090		WB Iron Ore	11:02
131.097 131.098		EB Freight	11:31
362.007	R603	07:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	11:44
163.124	Os7804	08:20 Kosice - Vrutky	11:49
131.082 131.081		WB Freight	12:00
362.148	R606	10:07 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	12:18
362.xxx	IC505	09:12 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	12:23

Strba

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
183.034 banked by 183.043		WB Freight	13:18
163.051	Os7811	12:26 Liptovsky Mikulas - Spisska Nova Ves	13:23
183.043		EB Light Engine	13:28
362.002	R608	12:07 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	13:40
163.104	O7805	11:20 Kosice - Zilina	13:49
183.013 banked by 183.006		EB Freight	13:57
363.143	R605	09:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Humenne	14:26
163.054	Os7845	13:04 Ruzomberok - Spisska Nova Ves	14:31
131.066 131.065 banked by 183.005		EB Coal	14:35
131.017 131.018 banked by 183.020		WB Coal	14:39
362.005	IC504	13:38 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	15:01
163.056	Os7813	12:52 Zilina - Kosice	15:11
163.113	Os7850	14:10 Spisska Nova Ves - Zilina	15:12

W of Liptovska Vlachy

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
163.059	Os7849	15:14 Vrutky - Liptovsky Mikulas	16:15
131.074 131.073		EB Freight	16:19
363.133	R610	14:07 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	16:19
131.080 131.079 banked by 183.020		EB Coal	16:28
163.113	Os7850	14:10 Spisska Nova Ves - Zilina	16:32
183.024		WB Freight	16:54
363.145	IC1506	15:07 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	17:05
131.081 131.082		EB Freight	17:15
362.014	R609	13:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	17:50
163.103	Os7808	14:20 Kosice - Ruzomberok	17:51
163.114	R1504	14:20 Humenne - Bratislava hl.st.	17:58
362.007	R612	16:07 Kosice - Bratislava hl.st.	18:18
163.115	Os7851	17:03 Zilina - Poprad-Tatry	18:29
163.059	Os7802	18:20 Liptovsky Mikulas - Zilina	18:34
183.016		EB Freight	18:46

The day started well with a couple of hours photography near Strba in superb light. IC501, which should have been 350 hauled, was worked by a 362. Where have all the Gorillas gone?

A very pleasant surprise was getting 140.058 and 753.324 double heading an eastbound coal train. After more than 10 years taking photographs in the former Czechoslovakia, my very first shot of a Bobina! The train couldn’t have gone any further than Svit as both locos returned light 37 minutes later.

By 10:30 the light was getting too head on so I drove south to Stratena on the Banska Bystrica - Cervena Skala - Margecany line for R811. This was the same spot I’d tried on Saturday but this time the sun stayed out for supershine 754.055.

The afternoon was spent on the Zvolen - Kosice line between Hrhov and Tornala. There was a lot of cloud around and not too many trains but I was unusually lucky and got all but one of my shots in full sun. This included three shots of 751.118 on the westbound pick-up, which obliged by stopping to shunt Jablonov nad Turnou and Lipovnik. The afternoon passenger from Kosice was hauled by a spotless and rather noisy 750.221, vice a 754, and made a superb picture leaving Roznava.

All in all an excellent day. Hopefully, I haven’t used up all my good luck for the year.

Strba

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
131.048 131.047 banked by 183.020		WB Iron Ore	09:12
131.015 131.016 banked by 183.043		WB Iron Ore	09:21
362.005	IC501	05:52 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	09:37
362.008	R604	05:26 Humenne - Bratislava hl.st.	09:38
131.017 131.018		EB Freight	09:45
140.058 (RailTrans) 753.324 (Lokorail)		EB Coal	09:53
131.036 131.035 banked by 183.006		WB Iron Ore	10:16
362.016	R601	05:57 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	10:26
753.324 (Lokorail) 140.058 (RailTrans)		WB Light Engines	10:29
183.006		EB Light	10:31

Stratena

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.055	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	12:19

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.059 751.173		WB Stone Hoppers	14:25
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Goods	15:02

Lipovnik

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Goods	15:38

Jovice

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.118	Mn81160	11:10 Velka Ida - Plesivec Pick-Up Goods	16:13

Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.221	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	16:26

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.125		WB Freight	17:01

Roznava

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.053	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	18:19

I had some specific shots I wanted to get today and failed to get most of them. The day started with an early trip down to Gemer where 752.041, on the Lucenec - Plesivec pick-up, was just missed in superb light. The light died soon afterwards and obviously wasn’t going to come back for quite a while, so it was back to Roznava for breakfast. By the time that was done, the sky was showing the first signs of clearing in the east, so it was off to Hrhov for a shot of 754.072 on R931. A nice enough shot in excellent light but it was the same loco I’d photographed on Friday at the same spot, on the same train, although the stock was graffiti free this time.

By 09:30 the sun had gone too far round and no freights had appeared. I set off to find the pick-up on the Dobsina branch but drew a complete blank. Maybe it hadn’t run today, or it had stopped short and gone back, or I’d missed it on one of the wooded sections. Whatever the reason, I got to Dobsina without seeing a train.

I carried on to Telgart and managed to get a shot of 754.054 on R811 on the upper level of the spiral in full sun. Well at least that was one of today’s objectives achieved.

Back to Hrhov to see if I could get a freight in the straight west of the station with the light on the nose. Four freights were photted, two each way, but nothing went west after 15:00 when the light was far enough round. One of the westbound freights comprised 15 Ukrainian covered hoppers that dwarfed the pair of 751s that hauled them.

Gemerska Panica

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
752.041	Mn83101	01:40 Lucenec - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	06:33

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.072	R931	05:47 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	08:37

Telgart Penzion

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.054	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	12:07

Hrhov

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.024 banked by 751.118		WB Stone Hoppers	14:02
751.196 751.206		WB Covered Hoppers	14:26
751.024		EB Freight	15:52
751.129 751.036		EB Freight	16:01
754.072	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen	16:06

There wasn’t a cloud in the sky in the Roznava area all morning but there weren’t any freights either. That’s not strictly true, I did see the back end of one disappearing near Plesivec around 06:30, as I was driving out to Gemer, and the Dobsina pick-up came through Vidova at lunchtime while I was set up for something going the other way.

It didn’t get any better at Holisa,between Filakovo and Lucenec, a shot that’s only any good for westbounds, when two eastbound freights passed in quick succession.

Later in the afternoon there were a couple of trains of continuous welded rail at Slatinka but the first went through as I arrived, leaving the other as the only freight photographed today. At least it was an interesting combination of locos, both the right way round for once.

A little later a great fat cloud came and sat in front of the sun and stayed there for two hours until I gave up for the day.

Of course there were also the passenger trains. Just as well, as the day would have been an almost complete disaster without them. One unexpected working was 750.194 on Os6219, the 17:44 Zvolen - Filakovo, a train I thought was booked for a unit. On 3 May when I arrived in Zvolen from Vrutky, coincidentally behind 750.194, the platform indicator showed the next departure to be the 17:44 to Filakovo. I assumed the indicator was a bit premature and a unit would work the train but maybe the loco haulage is regular.

Gemer

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.005	R930	06:06 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	07:27
754.082	R931	05:47 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	07:57

Tornala

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.072	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	11:23

Vidova

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
751.126	Mn82170	10:16 Dobsina - Plesivec Pick-Up Freight	12:47

Holisa

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
736.017 736.022		EB Freight	14:14
751.xxx banked by 751.077 751.xxx		EB Freight	14:28
750.032	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	14:36

Slatinka, W of Zvolenska Slatina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
746.001 742.296		EB Welded Rails	15:25
750.032	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	15:48
754.072	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	16:00
742.286 736.015		EB Welded Rails	16:40
746.001		WB Light Engine	16:58
750.181	Os6216	14:42 Rimavska Sobota - Zvolen os.st.	17:26
742.286		WB Light Engine	17:57
750.094	Os6219	17:44 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	18:05
754.082	R934	15:27 Kosice - Zvolen os.st.	18:45
754.033	R935	18:41 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	18:53
750.181	Os6221	18:47 Zvolen os.st. - Lucenec	18:57

Another largely sunny day spent on lines 160 and 170 in the Zvolen area. First destination was Velka Luka on line 170 where there were plenty of passenger trains as well as a couple of freights in the two and a bit hours I was there. The southbound freight was notable for its triple headed 736s.

Another unusual combination was on Os7324. This train is usually hauled by a 240 with the 754 that works R811 forwards from Banska attached to the rear. This time it was 754 hauled with three coaches, a 750 mid train, another three coaches and a 754 on the rear. The reason was almost certainly the 2-hour engineering occupation that was due to start at 10:00 between Vlkanova and Banska Bystrica. The 750 and its three coaches would have been going to Banska to work Os 7305 forward. Not sure why the whole thing was hauled by a 754 and not the booked electric though.

There was no point in staying on line 170 when there would be nothing moving for two hours. Instead I went to Detva on line 160 where virtually nothing moved for two hours. As I was arriving a 750 went east on two really manky coaches, which had to be Os6209, booked for a railbus. Sure enough, a couple of hours later, 750.203 returned with the same two coaches on Os6210, again vice railbus. The eastbound freight I was hoping for didn’t materialise but there was a westbound with a pair of 746s.

At lunchtime I moved to Slatinka where another westbound freight turned up almost immediately with a 746 on the front and a 736 pushing. The afternoon’s passengers were only notable for the amount of graffiti on every single set of coaches.

By 16:00 the same cloud that had caused problems yesterday reappeared (how does it always know where I am?), so I went to investigate some potential spots near Sliac that turned out to be less interesting than they had looked form the train last week.

Velka Luka

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.003	Ex240	07:19 Zvolen os.st. - Praha hl.n.	07:31
754.054	Zr1847	05:47 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	07:39
736.016 736.020 736.024		SB Freight	07:57
742.286		NB Pick-Up Freight	08:05
750.273	Os7319	08:02 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	08:23
754.071 mid train 750.300 on rear 754.055	Os7324	08:39 Zvolen os.st. - Banska Bystrica	08:52
240.122	R830	09:05 Banska Bystrica - Bratislava hl.st.	09:05
240.046	Os7321	09:28 Banska Bystrica - Zvolen os.st.	09:47
242.227 (CD)	R811	06:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Kosice	09:53

Detva

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
750.xxx	Os6209	10:03 Zvolen os.st. - Lucenec	10:33
746.003 746.005		WB Freight	12:04
750.203	Os6210	11:47 Lucenec - Zvolen os.st.	12:35
754.011	Os6211	12:11 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	12:51
754.082	R932	09:05 Presov - Zvolen os.st.	13:14

Slatinka, W of Zvolenska Slatina

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
746.001 banked by 736.007		WB Freight	13:44
750.185	Os6213	13:41 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	13:51
736.007		EB Light Engine	14:05
750.181	Os6212	13:17 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	14:44
750.203	Os6215	14:42 Zvolen os.st. - Filakovo	14:56
736.007 736.005 736.017		WB Light Engines	15:40
754.011	Os6214	14:22 Filakovo - Zvolen os.st.	15:47
754.004	R933	15:53 Zvolen os.st. - Kosice	16:01

Sliac

Loco	Train No.	Train Details	Notes
754.011	Os7304	16:42 Zvolen os.st. - Vrutky	16:50
754.003	Zr1843	15:16 Zilina - Zvolen os.st.	17:13
263.008	R835	14:37 Bratislava hl.st. - Banska Bystrica	17:50
754.071	Os7357	15:57 Brezno - Zvolen os.st.	17:54

Summer had arrived. It was warm, dull and wet in Zvolen and it was time to leave for the Czech Republic. I drove north via Zilina where the sky turned very black and the contents of a small ocean rained down within a few minutes, and crossed the border east of Valasske Mezirici en-route to the Sumperk - Jesenik line.

See the Czech section for further details