20140831-20140907 Japan : Shizuoka-ken Shimada-shi 静岡県島田市 - Ooigawa Railway Thomas and Friends 大井川鉄道 きかんしゃトーマス


All the digital photos were taken with Canon EOS 5D Mk.II with EF 24-105 F4 L IS USM lens,
5616 x 3744 Fine Mode, scaled down to 786 x 524 for internet access, and 282 x 188 for thumbnails.
Please click on the thumbnail images to see the larger version.
 
Ooigawa Railway Thomas and Friends 大井川鉄道 きかんしゃトーマス
Ooigawa Railway 大井川鉄道 has setup a Steam Locomotive (SL) Park SL広場 in Shinkanaya Station 新金谷駅. They also operate the world famous Thomas and Friends SL trains. The demand for tickets is very high and it is next to impossible to get a ticket.
I went to the SL Park without a ticket, and just wanting to take a few pictures of the SL Thomas run. Somehow the staff in the park handed me a helmet and I found myself inside the SL maintenance area.
Thomas and Friends is a British children's TV series starting 1984, and is about the adventures of SL Thomas and his fellow SLs on the fictional island of Sodor.

The nearest train station is Shinkanaya station 新金谷駅 of Ooigawa Railway Ooigawa Main Line 大井川鉄道大井川本線.
The famous SL Thomas SL C12 164 on the turntable SL C12 164 on the turntable
Signboard introducing the SL Park SL広場 at Shin-Kanaya Station 新金谷駅 SL C12 164 on the turntable SL C12 164 on the turntable
SL Thomas in the maintenance area SL Thomas in the maintenance area SL Thomas in the maintenance area
SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C56 44 in the maintenance area
SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C56 44 in the maintenance area
SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C56 44 in the maintenance area
SL C56 44 in the maintenance area SL C11 190 in the maintenance area SL C11 190 in the maintenance area
SL C11 190 in the maintenance area SL C11 190 in the maintenance area SL C11 190 in the maintenance area
SL C10 8 in the maintenance area A railroad crossing setup exhibit SL Thomas in the maintenance area
SL Thomas coming out of the maintenance area SL Thomas back into another part of the maintenance area SL Thomas back into another part of the maintenance area
SL Thomas in the maintenance area SL Thomas goes to the platform The start of the SL Thomas journey
   
SL Thomas at a railroad crossing