My swansong - June 1966? I'd signed up for one of David Perry's enthusiasts club tours. This one started at midnight at Paddington and arrived at Shrewsbury at about 5am. We piled out into a coach and started at Shrewsbury Coleham. shed - at least, I'm pretty sure the two pictures at the top are Shrewsbury, but haven't been able to positively confirm the bottom right

A lot of detective work was needed to locate these railtour pictures because what I remembered most vividly about the tour was the brilliant full moon as we sat in the train to Shrewsbury and the mist rising off the Severn in the morning. We got to Oswestry at about 7am but found it abandoned and the tracks taken up. We then went on to Wrexham Croes Newydd, (right) which was still functioning - close-up pictures of spotters appear in this series!

This seems like a good image to end on. What on earth my parents were doing with me down in a manky old siding I've no idea. The Northwest Railtour was my last expedition. Shortly after, possibly in unconscious emulation of Dr Beeching, I demolished my model railway. Then I disposed of my Ian Allen books and took to Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix and Existentialism