Zenica in daylight

A morning at Zenica afforded us the chance to see the class 62 locomotive at the wooden loading facility in daylight. Our luck was continuing to hold – production at the mine had only recently re-started and prior to today the mine had been without a working steam locomotive (they had borrowed a diesel from the nearby steel works to tide them over).

I can’t believe there are many more photogenic spots in the world to photograph steam than this place. It was a delight to watch once again…

A night at the mine

In late-afternoon we set off for the mine at Zenica where we found another class 62 locomotive under repair in their shed. It has to be said that this place almost feels like an industrial theme park such is the air of antiquity that the wooden loading facility evokes and it’s almost inconceivable that it is actually a fully operational mine.

Having mentally preparing myself for a sequence of communist-era hotels I was rather taken aback by the relative luxury of the four star Hotel Zenica and the somewhat grand affair that awaited us at dinner.

Once night had fallen we returned to the mine for a night shoot that would have given the shivers to any health and safety inspector in the UK. We stood around in the dark as the USA tank shunted around us with a set of wagons, throwing up sparks everywhere and laying a trail of glowing cinders. An utterly amazing spectacle to witness in the 21st century.

62-633 at Zenica

After some frantic photography the shoot finished around 11.15pm at which point we swapped our historic surroundings for all the luxuries of the modern world.

More photos from Zenica