Mon 23 May 2011

A spur of the moment trip to southern France for a few days photography on the main line from Montpellier to Barcelona on the Cote Vermielle where the railway hugs the Mediterranean coast, just north of the Spanish border. I flew with easyJet from Gatwick to Montpellier then drove down to Port Vendres, between Perpignan and Cerbere, where I based myself for the trip. The weather was wall to wall sunshine from dawn to dusk every day. It’s not often I get to say that!

Three freights were seen north of Perpignan, two hauled by BB27000 (or BB37000) and one by a BB26000 “Sybic”. An hour by the lineside in the evening, just south of Port Vendres, didn’t produce any freights and only one loco hauled passenger, the Lorca-Sutullena to Montpellier Talgo, hauled by 7265. As expected, both the local passenger trains seen were EMUs, one a pair of Z7300 2-car units and the other a Z27500 4-car articulated AGC unit. These, and all the other EMUs I saw carried Languedoc-Rousillion’s red and yellow colours.

S of Port Vendres Ville

Loco Train
No.
Train Details Notes
7265 TLG460 08:20 Lorca-Sutullena - Montpellier St. Roch 19:15