My only steam train ride so far this year was three weeks ago when I visited the Pockerley Waggonway.
The railway is set in 1825 when the Stockton and Darlington Railway first carried passengers on a steam hauled train as a publicity stunt. Prior to that, trains were normally used only for hauling coal and were often horse drawn.
This is the scene as you arrive in the station yard.

The fingerpost sign directs you to the train in archaic English, while in the background an old boiler improvises as a ticket booth.

The roster includes a working replica of Stephenson's Locomotion number 1

Inside the shed we find the Steam Elephant, a working replica of an 1815 colliery locomotive.

Meantime the enginemen are preparing the replica Puffing Billy of 1813 for the trip. An identical original engine, the Wylam Dilly, built in 1815, is displayed in the Royal Scottish Museum, Edinburgh.

The enginemen bring the experience to life, with their period costumes and they speak an archaic dialect.

Soon the train gets under way.
It is fascinating to watch the overhead beams on the locomotive rock back and forth as they transmit the reciprocal motion from the piston to the crankshaft.

The train steams through the 1825 countryside.

The view from the train towards Pockerley Manor, note the ridge and furrow ploughed fields and the riven oak fencing.
More to follow shortly.