Forest Railway II
Mainline steam with 475.196
Following the highly successful tour in May 2025 around Vrútky and Banská Bystrica, another special opportunity arose in October 2025: a genuine express train—consisting of ten (!) Y-type coaches and locomotive 475.196—could once again be operated on these lines. Impressive shots of the long train were captured along the double-track main line between Vrútky and Diviaky.
From Diviaky, the journey continued onto the forest railway—initially with four coaches, and later five, as the rails were extremely slippery in places due to fallen leaves. Autumn showed its most beautiful side along the route: vibrant colors, atmospheric landscapes, and the occasional ray of sunshine breaking through the clouds.
The locomotive crew from Vrútky once again demonstrated their expertise and collaborated perfectly with the photographers and videographers; some of the run-pasts were simply spectacular. Express train steam power in 2025!
Just as in the spring, this event was complemented by historic vehicles, perfectly rounding off the overall scene.
Saturday, 25.10.2025
We set off early in the morning from Vrútky, initially making our way to Diviaky with a ten-car express train. However, due to traction issues with the standard motive power on the subsequent steep section, we continue the journey from there to Kremnické Bane with only four cars instead of the originally planned five. Afterward, the "Bardotka" hauls us back to Príbovce before we complete two additional shuttle runs between Príbovce and Diviaky. Finally, in the evening, we travel to Čremošné, where the first day of our tour concludes.
Sunday, 26.10.2025
This Sunday, our day begins early once again in Vrútky, where we set off along the main line to Diviaky with a ten-car express train. From there, the grand loop via the forest railway awaits us—a route that is particularly colorful and atmospheric this autumn. We traverse this section with five cars. Passing through Čremošné and Harmanec, we first reach Banská Bystrica. We then continue via Zvolen, branching off onto the secondary line to Kremnica shortly after leaving the station. We return to Diviaky in the late afternoon, where we pick up the cars we had previously uncoupled, allowing us to complete the journey with the full-length express train once more.
