Notes

Today, my father and I went on a short trip to see whether there was anything to see on the Rübelandbahn. The Rübelandbahn from Blankenburg to Rübeland is a very steep line, completely electrified and used only by heavy freight trains which bring the products of a lime quarry out of the Harz mountains. Consequently, you can find a lot of heavy power here, and when that is needed, locomotives of DR class 130 (DB classes 230, 231, 232, 233, 234 and 241) will always be present.

These 3000 HP engines, built in the soviet union in Luhansk, are just about every german railfan’s favorite diesel, commonly known under the nickname “Ludmilla”. Here, in Blankenburg, is where the electrified line ends and trains have to change to diesel, so my guess is that they are at least partly for this purpose here.