Thursday 5 August Madiun to Solo via Soedhono and Tasik Madu

Our journey today took us back to two mills we had visited on the outward journey.
At Soedhono this time, following a request made on the outward trip, the Orenstein & Koppel well tank was in steam and hauling cane. This is the only 'small' locomotive we have seen in use at a sugar mill on this trip.



























The diesel locomotives on cane haulage here are equipped with small 'tenders'.

We saw the photogenic sugar run in operation again.

As is often the case, the rice fields are just outside the mill boundaries.

Waiting for a train: Cliff (Pittsburg, USA), Scott and Danielle (Mackay), and Kelvin (Melbourne).

The Javanese like caged birds and here is one I saw just outside the mill yard gates.

We had satay goat for lunch and very nice it was too.

At Tasik Madu, much to our surprise the Lüttermoller was working again. It looks like it wants to be an 8F when it grows up.



























The art deco engine shed at this mill is a bit different.




























We also took a ride on their tourist train, and a very good one it was as it took us through many parts of the mill complex.

Wednesday 4 August Purwodadi and Rejo Agung

Today we visited two mills in the Madiun area.
The first was Purwodadi that we had visited on the way out. On that occasion they were thrashing the two steam locomotives in use so it was not surprising when we found that these were broken and that the other serviceable one was working in tandem with the big diesel.

There is a nice bridge here that the trains cross but a hazardous road and not completely favourable light makes photographing it a challenge.



























Firing methods in Indonesia can be unconventional.

After a long lunch break we visited Rejo Agung, in Madiun itself. This is a privately owned one and we were able to get permission to visit speedily and without advance notice. Shortly after arriving we experienced a tropical afternoon downpour, so a locomotive cab made a nice place to shelter while it lasted.

This mill has a roundhouse although the turntable is welded in one position.


In the shed we found an interesting home-built locomotive.

Most of the locomotives working in the yard were modern Schömas that appeared well maintained.

Tuesday August 3 Kediri to Madiun via Mojopanggung, Ngadirejo and Merican

Our first visit today was to Mojopanggung, where we were received very enthusiastically and were guided around by a bevy of managers.

This mill is notable in having the only Australian locomotive supplied to a Javan sugar mill, an EM Baldwin built in Sydney in 1974. Unfortunately, it is no longer in use.

Only one diesel locomotive was in use in the yard, together with animal power, but another was demonstrated for us.

There is a nice locomotive and train preserved outside the manager's house.

We made a brief unauthorised visit at Ngadirejo to see a plinthed Mallet locomotive. This mill has eliminated locomotive power and uses oxen for shunting. They apparently work in convoy.

Finally, we returned to Merican for the benefit of those entirely devoted to steam locomotives.

Not a great deal happened but the sun was bright and the drivers put on a show.

We observed aspects of steam locomotive architecture,

saw some goats tethered in the yard,

some boys trying to capture wild birds,

locomotives reflected in the weighbridge windows,

and the workers at the truck shop fitting wheels to axles by heating the wheel in a fire, fitting it to the axle and shrinking it into place.

Monday 2 August – Situbondo to Kediri via Gending and Gempolkrep

The 'post-tour' tour involves a small group returning to Jakarta via bus retracing a lot of the journey, revisiting some mills and also calling at some new ones.
Today was the longest road leg of the trip. On the way we went back to Gending, which most people had not visited with me the previous week. (Having a sugar mill machinery group as well as a cane railway group meant that some choices had been possible.)
I took this photo to show the Islamic type of school uniform that most girls do not wear, although a sizeable minority do. Even in schools where Islamic dress seems predominant, you often see a few girls wearing a secular version.

There was a fair amount of activity involving three locomotives between unloading station and the mill.

We saw loco number 1 haul a train of portable track into the mill yard. This had obviously just been lifted from a harvesting site somewhere. It then promptly departed with a field train of empty wagons.

This was one of the more mean-looking volcanoes we have passed.

We arrived at Gempolkrep late, and as predicted the formalities took a lifetime to complete before we could get off the bus. The light was already going fast but we were delighted to see this vintage internal-combustion engined locomotive of German ancestry 'preserved' in the grounds. This was of similar design to those used by the German Army in the Great War and must be more than 80 years old.

We found a large quantity of out of use steam locomotives in the shed and some diesel action. The large Japanese diesels here are different because they do not have outside coupling rods. It was a very hurried visit and we got to Kediri after 7 o'clock and well after dark.

Sunday 1 August – Wringinanom, Panji and Assembagus

Today was the last day of our official tour, and we finished up at Java's easternmost sugar mill. The post-tour tour starts tomorrow.
The hotel where we were staying at Situbondo was one of the more pleasant ones – particularly from the outside of the rooms.

The first visit of the morning was to Wringinanom mill, where there was an array of interesting diesels including some smaller Japanese ones as exemplified by the top and tail of this parade.

We also saw a field train departing with empties.

The second visit was to Panji, a 600mm gauge mill. This smart little Schoema was working at the carrier.

This more usual type of Japanese loco was shunting outside the mill.

On our way to Assembagus we passed a large number of squads of school students – on a Sunday – practising their marching for Independence Day later in August in convoy, including this determined-looking group of boys.

Assembagus was most enjoyable. This American Brookville diesel is seen crossing a small bridge over what is normally an open culvert beneath the line outside the loco shed.

At the field we again saw oxen hauling cane along the temporary tracks – obviously they are not as strong as the water buffalo that we saw handing much longer 'trains' elsewhere.

And finally a typical east Java cane railway scene: steam loco, rice paddy, volcano, palm trees – and power line.