60001 just catches the very last of the weak late afternoon sunshine on 26 January 2000, as it passes Challow with the Wednesdays only 6B24 15:33 Didcot Power Station to Cardiff Tidal empty oil tanks. I was just walking back to the car when I saw this coming, and luckily managed to find a large enough gap in the roadside bushes to get a reasonably unobstructed view. Not a technically very brilliant picture due to it being taken with the lens wide open on 35mm Fujichrome, but included because of the excellent lighting and the fact that 60001 is one of those locos that always seems to have eluded me.

60002 Capability Brown passes through South Elmsall station with the Pathfinder Tours 'Donny Deviator' railtour on 10 July 1994, at this point running as the 1F52 16:05 Doncaster to Doncaster (via Milford). The tour had started from Derby at 09:05 as the 1Z42 to Doncaster with 58034, this was followed by 37694 & 37698 working top'n'tail with 56077 on the 1F50 11:42 Doncaster to Doncaster (via Silverwood). The next trip was the 1F51 13:48 via Drax. After all this excitement the tour headed back to Derby behind 31271 & 31276 as the 1Z42 1800 ex Doncaster!

60002 High Peak passes the site of Uffington loops with the 6B33 12:12 Theale to Margam Murco oil empties on 27 September 2008. The public footpath crossing here provides clear views in both directions, although a longer lens is now required for trains from this direction in order to clear a recently erected radio mast. Uffington station, the former junction for the Faringdon branch line, was situated just beyond the roadbridge in the background.

60003 Freight Transport Association passes Manningford Bruce on 17 February 2001 with the diverted 6C64 11:59 Didcot Power Station to Avonmouth empty MGR. The train's normal route via Swindon being closed for engineering work. Ah, the good old days, with Class 60 haulage and four wheel HAA wagons!

The race is on at Marshfield on 27 August 1998! 60004 passes by with the 6V75 09:02 Dee Marsh to Margam steel empties, while 158843 is about to overtake it with the 1F12 09:24 Portsmouth Harbour to Cardiff Central service. Normally the foreground train would partially obscure a train on the fast line, but here the low empty wagons have allowed some extra space, and by sheer good luck at the critical moment the front of the Sprinter exactly corresponds with a clear gap in the wagon uprights.

60004 passes Melton Ross on 26 July 2003 with the 7C76 12:20 Immingham to Scunthorpe coal, running slightly late. At this time the lengthy run of Class 56 haulage on these trains was coming to and end, in favour of Class 60s. However the following train was still in the still in the capable hands of the veteran class.

60004 accelerates away from a signal check at Shrivenham with the 6B33 13:30 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 8 August 2006. All down trains were being stopped at the signal pictured here due to a signaling fault a mile further up the line at Bourton. An excellent excuse to use a slow shutter speed of 1/250sec to gain extra depth of field on a 200mm lens! During my three hour visit, one HST actually ran wrong line using the up line. The Great Western main line has been signaled for bi-directional working for many years, as can be seen from the two signals on the gantry in the background. However, it gets very little use.

60005 BP Gas Avonmouth passes Little Haresfield with the 6B47 16:10 Westerleigh to Robeston empty Murco oil tanks on 4 July 2008. It is slowing down on the approach to a red signal, just prior to being looped to allow a northbound Cross Country service to overtake it. Note the evidence of recent tree removal by Network Rail on the side of the cutting. Just visible in the background is the signal that controls Standish Junction, where the Swindon line diverges from the Bristol route.

Judging by the shadows in the foreground, I wasn't the only person on the Archers Road footbridge at Eastleigh on 14 September 2002 to witness the Pathfinder Tours 1Z96 17:10 Southampton Central to Derby 'Soton Vinegar' railtour pass through on its way back to the Midlands. The silver livery of 60006 Scunthorpe Ironmaster glistens in the evening sunlight as the train round the curve from Eastleigh station.

60007 passes Engine Common (near Yate) with the 6V70 10:00 Cliffe Vale to St Blazey china clay empties on 17 July 2002. At the time I was still lamenting the loss of 37s on these trains, but a Loadhaul Class 60 is certainly a more than adequate substitute!

60007 approaches Circourt Bridge, Denchworth with the 6B33 13:30 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 2 November 2006. The original Loadhaul livery has been defaced by the crude application of the EWS "three beasties" logo on top of the "Load" part of the Loadhaul branding. As the train was on the relief line, and was obviously going to be stopped just up the line at Challow to allow the passage of at least one HST, I decided to try for a second picture further along the line.

After chasing it from Denchworth, and initially heading for the bridge at Baulking, which was unfortunately completely in the shade, I wasn't sure that I would make it in time to the footpath crossing at Uffington to see 60007 with the 6B33 13:30 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 2 November 2006. Leaving the car in the farmyard, and sprinting across the field, I was glad to see a HST coming from the east, which meant 60007 hadn't gone yet. A few minutes later after I was in position on the right side of the line, 60007 passed heading west in glorious autumnal light. This is the site of Uffington loops, lifted shortly after the installation of the Challow to Wantage Road relief lines.

60007 The Spirit of Tom Kendell approaches Circourt Bridge, Denchworth with the 6B33 13:35 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 18 October 2011. Considering the loaded train was heavily delayed before arriving at Theale, this has done well to regain time, and is in fact only a few minutes late at this point. This explains why it is running main line, having no need to wait in the loop to allow First Great Western HSTs to overtake.

Perfect blue skies at Uffington on 22 October, as 60007 The Spirit of Tom Kendell heads westwards with the 6B33 12:12 Theale to Margam Murco oil empties. Running just a little late, the train had been looped between Wantage Road and Challow to allow a pair of First Great Western HSTs to overtake.

60008 Gypsum Queen II ambles along the down relief line at Coedkernew on 3 September 1999 with the 6B40 11:55 Llanwern to Port Talbot iron ore empties. Already obsolete even when this picture was taken, the black and orange Loadhaul livery was certainly the most stylish of the original privatised company's colours.

60008 Gypsum Queen II approaches the site of Crosby Garrett station on the Settle to Carlisle line with the 6E13 13:00 Newbiggin to Knottingley empty gypsum containers on 30 October 2003. For once an appropriately named locomotive for the traffic carried! Even on a typical dull S&C day (note the clouds over the fells in the background) the autumn colours of the silver birch trees really stand out.

On a very gloomy 27 March 2007, 60009 passes Little Haresfield with the 6E41 11:22 Westerleigh to Lindsey oil empties. It's probably just as well that there is no sun here, as otherwise it would be exceedingly backlit, as unfortunately is the case for most locations on 6E41's route.

Over four decades after it closed to passengers, Charfield station building still survives, although virtually all other traces of the station have disappeared. 60009 passes the site on 2 March 2010 with the 6E41 11:41 Westerleigh to Lindsey oil empties. In 2010 this train is virtually the only working left that brings a Class 60 to the south of England. The ridge of the Cotswold Hills can be seen in the background, with the 1846 built Somerset Monument at Hawkesbury Upton just visible against the skyline on the left.

Not surprisingly still looking smart, as it was less than three months old at the time, 60010 Pumlumon / Plynlimon rounds the curve at Llangewydd with the 6V32 Albion to Waterston oil empties on 15 April 1991. The loco only worked off Cardiff for a further month before moving to Toton.

On 10 August 1991, 60010 Pumlumon / Plynlimon & 60041 High Willhays pass through Atherstone station with the 1T60 16:54 Derby to Crewe (via Nuneaton) stock positioning move in connection with the following day's Trainload Coal Motive Power Day on the North Wales Coast. Unusually, this wasn't an empty stock working, so that those in the know could get some extra Class 60 mileage. Admittedly the weather was poor, bit if I remember correctly I was the only person on the platform to witness this. Of course if this happened today I wouldn't attempt to go to this location, as the platform would be heaving with photographers, all getting in each other's way, such would be the attraction of a pair of Class 60s on a passenger train.

60010 manages to find a brief glimpse of weak autumnal sunshine as it approaches Tackley with the 6V70 02:20 Lindsey to Langley oil tanks on 13 November 1999. I was surprised to get any brightness at all here, as in addition to the thick cloud visible in the background, there were patches of fog drifting across from the nearby River Cherwell.

With Ashchurch station just visible in the background, 60010 powers past Natton with the 6V07 13:21 Round Oak to Margam steel empties on 3 November 2006. Admittedly emphasised by the long lens, but the appalling state of the track is clearly visible here. Considering this is a main line carrying passenger trains at high speed the switch-back nature of the track would not have been tolerated years ago. Hopefully the engineering work scheduled for the following day will see some improvement in track standards here.

Hardly the ideal photographic lighting conditions, with the sun virtually behind the train, but it does show off the recently cleared cutting at Lower Wick to advantage. 60010 heads north with the 6E41 10:42 Westerleigh to Lindsey oil empties on 12 October 2009. Note the change of gradient under the footbridge in the background.

The hills in the background are still shrouded in low cloud and fog, but 60010 manages to find a small patch of sunshine as it passes Broken Cross (between Lydney and Gloucester) with the 6B13 05:05 Robeston to Westerleigh Murco oil tanks on 3 September 2010. Although at this time there is a still pool of the class active for such trains as this, that are beyond the capabilities of a 66, worryingly, September 2010 marks the first batch of 60s put up for sale by DBS - a whopping 20% of the fleet.

60011 Cader Idris passes Finedon with the 6C31 08:37 Mountsorrel to Radlett Redland stone train on 1 August 1992. This is the site of Finedon station, which surprisingly closed to passengers as early as 1940, although it remained opened for freight until 1964. The spacious track formation here indicates the site of the former relief lines. 

After running round its train near Didcot Parkway station, Mainline blue liveried 60011 passes Foxhall Junction on 29 May 1997 with the late running 6C66 16:09 Didcot Power Station to Avonmouth MGR empties. It will take the bi-directional line as far as Steventon.

60011 passes Up Hatherley with 60068 Charles Darwin dead in tow on 6 April 2009 with the 6E41 11:18 Westerleigh to Lindsey oil empties. 60068 had run into problems two days previously whilst working the 6V98 Lindsey to Westerleigh tanks and due to loss of power arrived very late. Because of this the tatty patch painted Mainline blue liveried 60011 was sent to assist with the return empties. In view of the very small number of Class 60s left in traffic, getting a picture of two locomotives on one train, neither of which is in EWS livery was not to missed. To emphasize the point I chose to go to Up Hatherley where I had seen 60068 on the same train a few weeks before. Unfortunately by the time the train came the lighting was very poor.

60011 passes Uffington on 13 October 2009 with the 6B33 13:33 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties. Although obviously any Class 60 is infinitely preferable to a 'shed', the tatty patch painted former Mainline blue livery of 60011 contrasts especially well with the red tanks and makes a much more pleasing picture.

On its second day in traffic on the heavy Welsh oil trains after arriving from its repaint at Toton, 60011 rounds the curve at Grange Court with the 6B13 05:05 Robeston to Westerleigh Murco oil tanks on 14 January 2011. I was unable to get out for its first run on this service the day before, but was keen to get a picture of this (at the moment) unique DB Schenker liveried Class 60 while it was still clean, and while the buffers were still silver. Although unlike the previous day it wasn't actually raining, the weather was still grim, but this livery stands out in any conditions!

With the sanders creating a haze around the locomotive's wheels, 60011 applies all of it considerable power to get the lengthy 6B13 05:05 Robeston to Westerleigh Murco oil tanks moving past Little Haresfield on 19 January 2011. It is pulling out of Haresfield loop, which is just beyond the bridge in the background. The loco is already showing signs of use and is not quite as pristine as it was during the previous week's initial workings. However, the change from gloomy weather to full sun meant that another picture just had to be taken!

Although the sun is weak and hazy, 60011 is coming straight out of it at Compton Beauchamp on 17 April 2011, resulting in this poor picture. However, the combination of the unique liveried 60, slightly unusual (for a Class 60) working and abundant blackthorn blossom, is some compensation. It is working the 6W31 14:00 Barnwood Junction to Hinksey spent ballast.

60012 passes through Ashchurch station with the 6V24 13:45 Saltley to Cardiff Tidal scrap train on a cloudless 25 June 1999. Note the weed covered lines leading into the Army depot on the right, largely disused at the time, but now with much more buoyant traffic levels.

60013 Robert Boyle passes Husborne Crawley (on the Bletchley to Bedford line) with the 6H55 10:44 Bletchley to Peak Forest RMC stone empties on 5 November 2005. A very dull day, but at least the sun came out (much to my surprise!) for 40145, which was the main reason for visiting this location.

In crisp early morning light, 60013 Robert Boyle approaches Heck with the 6N81 06:10 Scunthorpe to Redcar coke empties on 14 March 2008. The train is approaching the site of the horrific accident of 2001, which is now commemorated by a memorial garden at the foot of the embankment on which I was standing to take this picture.

Welcome back to some proper traction on the Theale oil tanks! 60013 Robert Boyle passes Denchworth with the 6B33 13:33 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 8 July 2010. After many months of double headed Class 66s, at last a return to something worth photographing, but for how long! Although it was sunny when I left home, it soon clouded up (and of course brightened up again once I got back home!), but at least the dull conditions enabled this shot to be taken from the north side, which allows a wider angle for trains on the relief line at this location.

Well you would do wouldn't you! After seeing 60013 Robert Boyle pass Denchworth with the 6B33 13:33 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 8 July 2010, a quick dash was made to Baulking for a second shot, while it sat in the loop at Challow waiting for a couple of HSTs to go pass. After months of Class 66 haulage, this marks a return to proper traction for this long running train, and in on this occasion a loco in a decent livery as well, rather than drab EWS red!

60013 Robert Boyle passes the site of Ashbury Crossing, near Shrivenham with the 6B33 13:33 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 31 August 2010. After several months of pairs of 66s on this service, summer 2010 has seen a return of the proper type of locomotive to this weight of train, at least temporarily. A bit of proper maintenance wouldn't go amiss for the 60s, rather than just starting one up from the line of stored locos and then using it until it fails!

Well it was sunny when I left home! 60013 Robert Boyle passes Baulking on 25 November 2010 with the 6B33 13:33 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties. The cloud just filled in and got darker and by the time the train appeared it was really grim, but as I had trudged across a field to get to this spot, I thought I might as well take the picture. Note the two oak trees in the background, which even near the end of November are still largely covered in golden leaves.

The oilseed rape is just coming out into flower at Uffington on 7 April 2011 as 60013 Robert Boyle passes by with the 6B33 13:35 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties. Note the cloud building up from the north. If this train had been just one minute later a large lump of that cloud would have ruined the picture. I'm glad that didn't happen, as I would then really think that this loco / location combination was jinxed. Last year I was just getting out of the car when 60013 went by in full sun running mega early!

Plenty of fresh spring greenery at Baulking on 19 April 2011, as 60013 Robert Boyle heads west with the 6B33 13:35 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties, running very early and without the usual lengthy sojourn in Challow loop. Although a sunny day, the settled high pressure conditions have resulted in a very hazy background, which is partly why I chose this location, as there isn't a lot of background in the picture!

The closure of the Severn Tunnel at weekends during the spring of 2000 resulted in the 6M68 08:45 Burngullow to Warrington Arpley china clay tanks being diverted via the Lickey Incline. Due the load being in excess of the Class 66's meagre haulage capacity, a banker was provided. On 8 April 2000, 60014 Alexander Fleming is pictured half way up the formidable gradient at Vigo, giving the train a hefty push from the rear. In this case the train loco was 66053. There are not many vantage points on the incline to photograph the rear end of a train going up the bank in the evening, but this seems to work quite well, and I deliberately included a large area of sky in the picture to show off the interesting cloud formation.

Engineering work resulted in trains being diverted over the Vale of Glamorgan line on Sunday 2 June 1996. One such was the 6B71 10:28 Margam to Ebbw Vale steel coils, seen here passing through Dinas Powys station hauled by 60015 Bow Fell. Note the Buxton depot plaque below the secondman's window.

Running several hours late, and therefore affording an unexpected daytime picture on the Berks & Hants line, 60015 Bow Fell passes Crofton with the 6A11 21:33 Robeston to Theale oil train on 21 July 2006. note that the original triple grey livery has been adapted yet again, this time with the EWS "three beasties" logo on a yellow patch. 

Always a good bet for a Class 60 (although not guaranteed), 6E41, the 11:41 Westerleigh to Lindsey oil empties passes Up Hatherley on 14 Mach 2011 behind 60015 Bow Fell. I had, of course made sure to check that a grey 60 was working the train the night before. No point in going out for the train if its a 'Shed'.

Almost a regular loco on the 6E41 11:41 Westerleigh to Lindsey oil empties in the early part of 2011. 60015 Bow Fell passes Croome on 25 March 2011, with Bredon Hill looming out of the haze in the background. It seems like someone has had a very half hearted attempt at washing the front end recently!

Wearing inappropriate Trainload Construction livery, 60016 Langdale Pikes passes Magor on 14 March 1997 with the 6B25 13:15 Westerleigh to Robeston oil empties. Thankfully it was running on the main line. as it is fairly obvious from this view that there isn't much of a shot for anything on the relief line!

The isolated church of St. Giles at Hampton Gay (between Oxford and Banbury) stands next to the railway line, with a derelict manor house nearby. Otherwise the area is quite deserted, as no trace of the village survives, and as there is no road access a walk across the fields is required to get to the location. This was the site of a terrible railway accident on Christmas Eve 1874, when a crowded express derailed and ended up in the nearby Oxford Canal. 60017 Arenig Fawr passes the site with the 6M23 14:12 Fawley to Longport LPG tanks on 4 May 1995.

My only decent picture of a Class 60 working the Avon Binliner. 60018 Moel Siabod rounds the curve at Thingley on 25 June 1993 with the 6C13 11:22 Calvert to Bath empties. Starting off with Class 47s in 1985, there has been quite a variety of traction on this working, including 37s, 58s & 66s, but 60s only worked the train regularly for a short period. Obviously I will have to make do with this single picture, because the train stopped running in April 2011.

60018 rolls downhill past Triley Mill, near Abergavenny with the 6V75 09:29 Dee Marsh to Margam steel empties on 25 February 2006. A bright but very cold day, fortunately this position was sheltered from the biting wind, but note the snow on the Black Mountains in the background above the locomotive.

Although somewhat ruined by that modern scourge of the railway photographer - palisade fencing, this is a location I had not previously visited. Over the years I have taken numerous pictures from the roadbridge near the site of Shrivenham station, seen in the background here, but had never ventured to this spot. 60018 passes the site of the long closed station with the 6B33 13:30 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties on 15 November 2007.

It is just after 21:00 on a mid-summer evening and the sun is just approaching the horizon as 60019 Pathfinder Tours 30 Years of Railtouring 1973-2003 passes Spetchley with the 6V37 12:59 Lackenby to Llanwern steel train. The date is 16 June 2004, only a few days away from the longest day, which is why it was just possible to take the picture, even though only the side of the loco and the tops of the trees are actually getting any sun. Spetchley is the ideal location for late evening pictures such as this, as nothing at all shades the line.

Definitely running at its top speed of 60 mph, 60019 Pathfinder Tours 30 Years of Railtouring 1973-2003 passes Compton Beauchamp on 18 August 2009 with the 6B33 13:33 Theale to Robeston Murco oil empties. Surprisingly there hasn't been a great increase in the lineside vegetation at this location in the last thirty years. This most noticeable difference since 1979 is the plantation of trees surrounding Galleyherns Farm in the background.

60020 catches one of the few brief glimpses of sunshine that I saw at Appleby Carrs (near Scunthorpe) on 4 May 2002. It is working the 6T25 13:30 Immingham to Santon iron ore. Just behind the train is the site of the 12th century Thornholme Priory, of which virtually nothing now remains except the partly infilled fishponds.

A very grubby 60020 emerges from Wickwar Tunnel with the 6B13 05:10 Robeston to Westerleigh Murco oil tanks on 9 August 2007. I only just got this one in sun, as can be seen from shadows in the background! The bridge in the distance is a combined footpath and aqueduct.

60020 approaches Wickwar on 30 January 2008 with the 6B13 05:10 Robeston to Westerleigh Murco oil tanks. I wasn't too impressed with this choice of traction, as it was on the train the last time I photographed this working just over a mile south of this spot! The long lens has compressed the perspective here, bringing up the houses at Charfield and the Cotswold Hills in the distance.

60021 passes through Ninian Park station with the Pathfinder Tours 1Z42 13:50 Margam to Crewe 'Valley Vostock' railtour returning from a reversal at Radyr on 7 February 2004. Eventually the sun decides to shine at the critical moment, after a day of largely cloudy skies. 

60021 Pen-y-Ghent approaches Circourt Bridge, Denchworth with the 6C23 10:29 Hayes to East Usk empty hoppers on 2 November 2006. The train is traveling on the down relief line, which means it will stop at Challow to allow a passenger to overtake. The fenced area on the right is a road access constructed a few years ago to field used for keeping horses. Luckily the original crushed stone surface as now become overgrown, once more blending into the scene.

60022 Ingleborough in a almost complete state at Brush's works at Loughborough on 11 August 1990.  Note that although the loco has already been named, it does not yet carry any bodyside numbers or sector branding on the triple grey livery. It was finally handed over to BR at the beginning of the following year. It is seen here in the company of 60026 William Caxton.

60023 passes Woofferton on 6 November 1999 with the 6V75 09:02 Dee Marsh to Llanwern steel empties. An ideal photographic vantage point on a sweeping curve with a background of trees and semaphore signals. Although I haven't been there for a few years, I would imagine the silver birches in the foreground are probably no longer just bushes and are blocking out the view, rather than just being a welcome bit of foreground colour!

New steel sleepers await installation at Appleby Carrs on 4 May 2002, as 60023 passes by with the 7C77 13:35 Immingham to Santon MGR, just fifteen minutes behind 60020 on 6T25, but in noticeably worse light!

60024 Elizabeth Fry passes Baulking on a very dull 21 April 1992 with the 6V13 12:18 Furzebrook to Hallen Marsh LPG tanks. This wide open view, with unobstructed views of the surrounding countryside (and Didcot Power Station in the distance!) has long since been replaced by the usual mass of uncontrolled lineside vegetation.

60024 was one of the first Class 60s to acquire EWS livery. It is seen here in ex-works condition at Melton Ross on 18 July 1996 with the 6D96 13:00 Welton to Immingham oil tanks. I am convinced that the early EWS repaints used either a slightly different colour or a higher gloss finish, as all later locos seem to look very drab by comparison.

One tenth of the Class 60 fleet can be seen in various stages of construction in this view of the Brush Works at Loughborough taken on 11 August 1990. In the foreground, 60025 Joseph Lister is nearing completion, with 60033 Anthony Ashley Cooper & 60030 Cir Mhor behind. On the extreme right, with roof hatches open is 60026 William Caxton. The others are unfortunately unidentified.

60025 approaches Linlithgow on 24 May 1999 with the early running Mondays only 6N71 17:05 Linkswood to Mossend oil empties. This service provides aviation fuel for RAF Leuchars. Note the two Forth bridges on the horizon. Although this looks like a pleasant spring day, there was in fact a terrific gale blowing and it was all I go do to keep the camera steady and pointing in the right direction. Also the shadow just behind the train was traveling up the line faster than the 60, so I was lucky to get this in the sun!

60025 Caledonian Paper passes Broken Cross (between Lydney and Gloucester) with the 6B13 05:10 Robeston to Westerleigh Murco oil tanks on 18 February 2008. Note the crude patch painting of the yellow front end, which certainly needs some attention. Luckily the sun is still just glancing across the front end, but the lighting is not as good as when 60071 passed a little earlier, especially as the frost has now disappeared from the ballast.