Encouraged by the success of the previous volunteers camps, we would like to invite all interested to participate in this year’s edition of this event which will take place on two separate terms:

• from 18^th to 21^st July
• from 14^th to 18^th August

Everybody who is over 16 years old, is of good health and is willing to invest his free time in the rescue of the industrial heritage is welcome. Volunteer can take part in one of several activities like:

• external renovation of steam engines class Tkp 6042 ‘Śląsk’ and Ty51-1;
• renovation and maintenance works at the railway signalling and traffic control exhibition;
• track works in front of the roundhouse;
• upkeep of the roundhouse and its surroundings (cutting down overgrown plants, removal of refuse left after roof repairs, repairing missing glass in windows, fence painting);
• expanding the fence around the shed;

and more, depending on the actual needs.

To join, please fill in the participation form. The coordinator of the camps will be waiting for the participants starting from 7PM of the first day of the camp. During one of the days, participants will receive the OSH trainng. We start the activities every day of the camp at 10AM and continue till 5PM. At the of the day we provide a hot meal to all volunteers.

Each participant will be provided with:

• return of the costs of travel (valid for 2^nd class of commuter or express trains or equal bus communication, original tickets or electronic tickets printouts have to be provided);
• possibility for overnight stay in the Shed’s social area (in case of larger number of participants, overnight stay outside of the Shed will be provided);
• water and one hot meal every day;
• gloves and safety equipment;
• tools required for each activity;
• on request, a certificate of participation.

Due to the limited capacity of our social area and the need to properly plan the activities, please state your preferences regarding the need for overnight stay and preferred type of work in the participation form. You do not need to stay for the whole duration of the camp – you can join us on a specific day which you can state in the form.

Additional information can be received by contacting us over e-mail wolontariat@psmk.org.pl

The volunteer camps are possible thanks to PARE’s own resources and the support of

Sponsors of tools

On Sunday, 14th July, Skierniewice were visited by trains organized by railway tourist agency Turkol.pl. As announced earlier, the engine shed was open to the public on this day, not only to the passengers of the train pulled by the historic class Pt47-65 but also the residents of Skierniewice. 216 guests decided to visit us, among them 135 passengers of the historic train. Among them was a large group of railway enthusiasts from United Kingdom who spend over 4 hours in our shed eager to learn more about its history and our rolling stock collection.

An abroad study trips addressed to the volunteers of the shed become a constant part of the yearly schedule of our association. Apart of being a way of rewarding the most active volunteers, the trips are also a perfect opportunity to exchange the experiences with our colleagues from other countries and make observations for the potential improvements at our own Shed.

Seven members and volunteers of PARE participated in the trip from 28th June to 1st July visiting several railway heritage facilities in Czechia and in the neighbouring Lausitz in Germany.

The first stop in our trip was the railway museum ČD Muzeum Lužná u Rakovníka, where we took part in the meeting of historic DMUs during the Setkání prototypů motorové trakce. Except the unique construction of the displayed motor units, we took a special note of the historic refrigerator cars for transporting beer and the new facilities to store the historic rolling stock. The museum started as a private initiative of the railway enthusiasts and much later was taken over by Czech state railways which further developed the facility.

On the way to the overnight stay in Liberc we took the opportunity to have a ride with the interurban tram line connecting this city with Jablonec nad Nisou. We also visited the local Muesum of Technology where a part of the exhibition was devoted to the city transport. Next, we took a trip to Zittau. And interesting part of this trip was a short section of the route crossing the territory of Poland on the line № 346 which is isolated from the rest of the PKP network. The cross-border trip was much easier thanks to the EuroNysa tickets issued by the ZVON transportation association.

Our last stop was the Zittau Narrow-gauge Railway which connects Zittau with the towns in Lausitz mountains: Oybin and Jonsdorf. It is simultaneously a heritage railway and an everyday commuter railway. Nearly for the whole year, the trains are pulled by steam engines and most of the rolling stock is kept in the historic livery. For us it was a perfect example of how a historic railway should be preserved.

Due to a rainy weather on the Open Day on 6th July we were far from braking any attendance records. Still, the 247 guests are not the result to be ashamed of. As during the previous open days, guests could choose between the tour of our collection of the rolling stock inside the roundhouse, a visit at the exhibition of railway signalling and traffic control or the exhibition of photography by Zbyszek Gradowski Railways in Skierniewice.

The offer of Łódź Agglomeration Railway of free return trip for the guests of the Shed was also valid on this day. The catering was provided by the Atmosfera pizza house.

We would like to inform that on 27th June we have published the required by law financial report of the public benefit organisation for the year 2018 approved by the internal audit board of PARE. The report has been submitted to the National Institute of Freedom database and its copy is also available at our website.

We would like to once again express our gratitude to all our supporters and donors.

The end of may appeared quite fruitful for the crew taking care for our exhibition of railway signalling and traffic control.

First of all, we reached the final stage of the general overhaul of the block post lever frame. We started with repainting the block instrument from the initial bright green colour to a little more toned down. The initial colour was correct from the stand point of modern regulations, but has little to do with the historical practice. Simultaneously, we composed a complete palette, which will save us time when looking for the correct paint during the next renovation. A separate activity was taking place away from the Shed at the home workshop of our volunteer. All plates and small painted indicators were brought back to their former glory. Finally, we performed the most pleasant part which was assembling the whole lever frame into one piece, crowned when the manufacturers plate was attached back into its place. There is still a couple of bits left to finish like the reconstruction of electric circuits and assembly of the wooden panel of the block instrument. Still we are already inspecting which of the other exhibits should be taken care of in the first place.

We also should mention the improvements of the didactic value of the exhibition. Last year, we have prepared a set of information boards which in the meantime were aesthetically framed. Now we found some time to attach them close to the relevant exhibits to make it easier for the visitors to understand the inner workings of each of the devices.

PARE and the PKP Group’s Foundation would like to invite all the interested to participate in the 35th meeting at the Old Powązki Cemetery on the occasion of the 174th anniversary of opening the first section of Warsaw-Vienna Railway. The meeting will take place on 14th June and start by the grave of Stanisław Wysocki (1805 – 1868), the main designer and engineer of the Railway. Next the participants will take a tour along the graves of famous people related with railways. The tour will be led by Marek Moczulski. We meet at the St. Onorata’s gate at 2PM.

The Saturday on 1st June was fully devoted to the youngest railway fans on the occasion of the Children’s Day. During that day 693 guests visited our shed.

Visitors could see our collection of the historic railway stock displayed along the sightseeing route inside and outside the roundhouse. The exhibition of railway signalling and traffic control was also open to the public.

Our new attractions also found some interest among the visitors: the exhibition of photographs by Zbyszek Gradowski Railways in Skierniewice and, especially popular among the young guests, garden railway. At the stand of the biggest Polish goods transportation company, PKP Cargo S.A. kids could participate in various competitions with prizes and have their face painted. The PKP Group’s Foundation promoted the safety crossing action and at its own stand the Bolimów Landscape Park invited the potential visitors.

For years now PKP PLK S.A. is joining us during the Children’s Day. This time the company arrived with the road-rail vehicle Uniroll from the railway emergency services. The modern vehicle was joined by his older counterpart, Unitarpan, belonging to a railway fan from Lubelszczyzna. A patrol car represented another branch of PLK, the Railway Guards. Officers provided short lectures regarding the safety on the railway areas.

Łodź Agglomeration Railway prepared also for this event its special offer allowing the guests of the Shed to return for free to their original departure point. The Atmosfera pizza house made sure that none of the guests stayed hungry.

Many thanks to our guests, partners and volunteers for participating in this successful event.

We would like to invite all interested to yet another Photo Day in Engine Shed on 15th June. From 12PM to 3PM the Shed is open exclusively to all enthusiasts who would like to focus on photography, undisturbed by the crowds of tourists.

Registration of participants at the entrance till 12:30PM. Free admission!

For the 10th time in the history of PARE invited the residents and guests of Skierniewice to visit us during the Railway Night of Museums. On 18th May all interested could visit us during the night time (from 7PM till midnight). We noted that with 930 visitors we were close to breaking the attendance record of 2014 edition of this event, despite this time there were no special trains for rail fans from Łódź and Warsaw.
It is worth mentioning that the Engine Shed was the first and only institution in Skierniewice to join to this event in 2010. Over the next couple of years we managed to expand it beyond the boundaries of Skierniewice thanks to the cooperation with our colleagues from Rogów-Rawa-Biała Narrow Gauge Railways and other railway operators.

Due to a typo on the poster advertising the event, we opened the gates of the Shed earlier than planned. We were surprised that before the dusk more than 150 people has already come for sightseeing – after all it was still a good moment to visit us with children. With the last rays of the sun, the rolling stock inside the roundhouse was brought back to life by an atmospheric illumination. Our signalling and railway traffic control exhibition was also a major attraction allowing one to taste the atmosphere of a night shift inside the signal box.

Our guests could also visit the exhibition of photographs by Zbyszek Gradowski Railways in Skierniewice and observe the traffic on our small garden railway. Our partners also contributed to the success of this evening. The Atmosfera pizza house provided the catering and Łódź Agglomeration Railway (ŁKA) prepared a special offer of free return trip addressed to the visitors of the Shed.

Other institutions in Skierniewice also opened their doors to the visitors during this evening. The city council organized a special fare-free bus line which allowed for quick transition between the point of interest during that night.