Too soon!

It may have been a bright day on the Chengzihe section of the Jixi Coal Railway, but it was also very cold and very windy. We had withdrawn to a cafe for some reviving noodle soup after nearly contracting hypothermia and frostbite whilst waiting at the lineside. Thinking we had the inside information on when this train would run we lingered in the slightly less cold cafe rather too long and when we returned it was almost too late. Running up the lineside in deep snow whilst the sound of the train came nearer was not much fun, but it did warm me up. In the end the train won the race and I had to stop and grab a shot.

With the wind whipping the exhaust away, the morning train of spoil tippers heads up from Zhengyang mine to the tip at Xinghua where it will back up onto the mound. These days the poles for the pending electrification are either in situ here or will be very soon.