August Annual Leave Madness (1st – 10th August)

 August Annual Leave Madness (1st – 10th August)

1st August – Reaching Mile Post Zero on the Grand Union

When I went to bed on the Thursday in the Chesterfield Premier Inn I was stuck trying to pick between 3 options, either Long Eaton to Nottingham (along the Trent & Nottingham Canal), Langley Mill towards Long Eaton (along the Erewash Canal) or to head towards Leicester to walk towards Glen Parva with a mix of the Grand Central Way & Grand Union canal.  My decision was made when I woke up and looked at the train times having just missed the hourly train to Langley Mill and a 45 minute wait for the next train to Long Eaton (changing at Derby from the fast Sheffield – London train wouldn’t have made much difference and to be honest I wanted to stay away from Derby due to the Greatest Gathering, considering some of the security contractors the previous evening shouted at a XC driver as he was behind the yellow line when he was checking the front of his train.

I checked out of the hotel, and headed to the station to jump onto a reasonably busy 222022 on a London train, with the train emptying out at Derby allowing a better seat for the nonstop run to Leicester where my walk began.  Heading towards the city centre and Castle Gardens (passing the cathedral along the way) when the weather changed to be a bit damp (even forcing me to grab my coat out of my rucksack) before I picked up the Great Central Way, a path along the route of the former Great Central railway heading away from Bede Park towards the city suburbs & the Aylestone Meadows.  Thankfully the rain didn't last for long and by the time I was crossing the canal my coat was off as I arrived at Glen Parva detouring the roads & an old road to reach the canal at Whetstone Lane, the point where I left it in July.  I dropped down onto the towpath and entered some more rural Leicestershire as the canal took me back north towards Leicester, skirting round the edge of the Aylestone Meadows Nature Reserve before the ruralness gave way to urban life, going underneath the mothballed (?) Leicester - Burton freight line near the football stadium, the canal now being part of the River Soar (with weirs alongside the locks)

Grand Union Canal (Leicester Arm) in Leicester

I continued north passing Castle Gardens once more, reaching West Bridge where in my eyes the waterway changes from the Grand Union Canal to the Soar Navigation (based on the bridge numbers resetting and there being a zero mile marker post alongside the waterways).  Although it's one of those things where some say the modern day Grand Union continues to a point to the north of the city where the River Soar comes back into the navigation.  Anyhow I continued along the navigation towards Frog Island, my original exit point being blocked by housing construction.  I headed along Groby Road towards Stokeswood Park to pick up the route of the former Leicester and Swannington Railway route back towards the city centre and the site of the former West Bridge Railway Station.  Just one of those paths I saw on the map and decided to visit.

My main walk complete for the day and I headed back towards the station via the city centre, to pick up some supplies for the journey south and onto 222018 on a nonstop service to St Pancras, even getting lucky with a decent seat in coach D.  The rain had returned when I reached London so it was onto 700118 to London Bridge & 465161 + 465035 to Waterloo East, having to exit via the fire escape at the country end subway (due to the main entrance being closed due to a gas leak).  A short wait at Waterloo before I jumped onto 159008 & 159107 to take me home, to sort out my rucksack ready for the weekend.

Zero Mile Marker on the Grand Union Canal (Leicester Arm) in Leicester

2nd August – A Day Trip to West Midlands

A day out with mum, with an overdue visit to the West Midlands (after a couple previous attempts were put on ice due to hot weather), with the day starting with the 05:59 to Basingstoke (159014) before picking up 221134 for the long run to Birmingham New Street, being delayed at Reading due to the police needing to attend the train (I was glad I paid extra to go towards Coventry rather than towards Dorridge considering the connection onto Chiltern was missed).

After visiting Tim Hortons for breakfast, we headed towards Moor Street and onto 172214 & 172212 for the run to Stourbridge Junction and onto 139002 down the hill to Stourbridge Town where I had a change of plan and headed to the bus station to jump onto bus route 9 (with National Express bus 6939 on this busy route).  We took this bus back towards Birmingham city centre (Colmore Row) going via Halesowen, Quinton & Bearwood, areas I have never been to before.  After grabbing lunch we headed to the tram stop at Bull Street taking tram 21 to Edgaston Village (where I popped out to the Morrisons to make use of the toilet) before we took tram 52 all the way towards Wolverhampton Station.  I was glad it was one of the newer batches as the seats are slightly more comfortable.

139002 at Stourbridge Town Station

At Wolverhampton station, we headed back to Birmingham New Street with 196104 before doing some shopping deciding to head back south an hour earlier than planned due to the city centre being manic and onto 221132 for the long trip to Basingstoke before heading back to Grateley with 158884 & 159017 getting lucky as the following service was caught up in some signalling issues and ended up being something like 25 minutes late.

Not the busiest of days for me, but after the week I had I needed a quieter day and it made mum happy as she got out of the house for the day.

3rd August – Gapping the Mole

Originally my idea for today was to head towards Luton to walk a path from Leagrave towards Dunstable & back towards Luton near the Busway but when my alarm clock rang, I decided to stay in bed a bit longer.  I looked up various options, deciding to head towards Dorking as there was a 450 working on a Dorking service (for the novelty of having a 450 to Dorking rather than the more usual 455 (or 701).

I drove to Andover and onto a busy 159104, 159008 & 159003 to Waterloo where I made the connection onto 450041 & 450071 on the next Dorking service, it had been a while since I last came out this way and I felt it was a good day to walk the Mole Gap path, something I was planning to do a couple years ago when I walked the Thames Down Link but ditched it due to the warmth.  I exited the station at Dorking where my walk began.

450071 at Dorking Station

The first section was along some roads to pick up a wooded footpath, before following a footpath which went via a Vineyard, crossing the North Downs Way on the outskirts of Westhumble before going into the village with some narrow footpaths (the sort of path you couldn't pass anybody on), reaching the roads and the station.  The next section was across a field with the railway on my right hand side before crossing over the River Mole near the railway viaduct, moving away from the railway towards a farm track climbing up a steep path towards Norbury Park (the railway has an advantage of going through this hill via a tunnel!).

Some nice woodland in this area as I followed the path, keeping an eye on my OS Maps app to ensure I didn't go the wrong way as signage was a bit poor in places, eventually dropping down from the hill to go underneath the railway to follow a path alongside the river towards Leatherhead.  I went underneath the railway lines (the route to Dorking & towards Guildford) to Leatherhead Common, picking up a footpath to finish with a walk along the road to the station.  One of those walks I was glad to get it done but won't be rushing back to do.

Railway Viaduct over the River Mole, Leatherhead (Guildford Line)

I returned to the railway, and onto 455717 & 455714 from Guildford (I think) into Waterloo, part of me was tempted to jump off to try and intercept a winner 701 at Thames Ditton but I decided against it.  At Waterloo I popped out to the Iceland near the station (which I had discovered is open most of the day on Sundays) before returning to the station and onto 159105, 159001 & 159022 on an Exeter service back to Andover.  I drove home to sort my rucksack out ready for another little getaway for the 2nd week of my annual leave.  I don’t rest!

4th August – August Winds

It was time for an overdue visit to the North East, as since my last visit the Tyne & Wear Metro has introduced some new trains and the North East is an area where I could probably easily spend a week exploring various disused railway paths.  With my rucksack all packed I headed to Grateley station and into Waterloo on the 05:55 service (with 159107 & 158888), having a gentle stroll across to Kings Cross (getting in my miles just in case I couldn’t do anything in Newcastle with the weather).  At Kings Cross it was onto 180114 working the next Grand Central service to Sunderland (because I wanted to make my good friend Dan jealous with a fast run on a 180 lol).

A busy train from Kings Cross, but it did empty out a little bit at Peterborough before 75% of the rear coach emptied out at York.  I remained on board for the scenic (if a bit slow) run towards a place where the sun doesn’t shine, Sunderland (the station that is).  I picked up my Nexus Day ticket (once I found the exit at Sunderland) and got lucky with winner 555028 on the next South Hylton service.  Had the weather been a bit more agreeable I would have walked the old railway line path towards Washington, but instead headed towards Pallion along a cycle path, the rail popping up on a road section (I was originally planning to walk to Millifield but diverted towards a handy Iceland to pick up some fizzy pop).



Back to the metro and onto winner 555005 to Pelaw, where I noticed the line between Hebburn & South Shields was closed… There went a crazy idea to walk the tunnel from Jarrow to Howdon to get checked into my accommodation.  A short wait at Pelaw before I boarded winner 555002 to take me all the way to Newcastle Airport (been a while since I last visited this part of the network for, I had forgotten how rural it gets in places).  After visiting the toilets at the airport, I boarded 4085 & 4008 with the idea of taking these to South Gosforth but another 555 passed me as it was leaving the Airport so I bailed at Callerton Parkway for a short wait before winner 555009 on the next train.

My luck continued as the next coast bound train was 555011 which I took to Whitley Bay, where I headed to my accommodation (Pines Hotel, a small guest house around 5 minutes from the station), getting checked in, handing over my money (£35 a night in my eyes was a bargain for August time, especially for somewhere close to the Metro).  I was toying with walking towards Newsham via the coastal path, but that idea went into the bin after getting blown around with a short section of coastal path near the beach, that wind was strong!



I returned to the Metro, going via a handy Morrisons near Monkseaton and getting lucky with winner 777027 on the next service to St James, which I took to St James (to clear that short branch for 555 coverage).  I exited from the system to walk back towards Monument, spending the next couple hours getting 555003, 008 & 015 into my little book, along with my last 2 active “MetroCars” (4017 & 4068) I needed for a mile, having missed out on another one which was an early scrapped and 4002.  I decided on having another walk from Heworth towards Hebburn.

This walk took me towards the Tyne, dodging various fallen branches towards the Hebburn Riverside Park, one of those paths I had spotted when looking at Google Maps.  At Hebburn I had just missed a departure (probably would have made it had I not stopped for a photo of an old church) but it wasn't long before 4044 & 4056 rolled in on the next departure, going from platform 1 to use the crossover to the south of the station (BLS hat time lol).  I decided to call it a night as frequencies had started to drop and the early morning was catching up with me.

Metrocar 4044 at Hebburn Station

Back at Whitley Bay and to my guest house, where the bed was reasonably comfortable and there was hardly any outside noise, other than the noise of the wind gusts.  I slept well, snore snore.

5th August – Not walking the Derwent Valley Railway Path

The Derwent Valley Railway path runs from the town of Consett towards the Tyne near Blaydon, the walk I had decided on for the Tuesday, a decision which didn't last...  The day began with 555028 to Monument station and a walk to the Eldon Square Bus Station for a route X45 bus (Go North East's 6239) for a trip towards Consett via the shopping paradise known as the Metrocentre, Rowlands Gill & many other settlements along the way.  My plan changed when I noticed the bus route crossed the railway line path in Blackhill, which in my mind at the time made more sense due to Consett having 4 old railway line paths.

I alighted from the bus at Blackhill, somehow completely missing the Tesco Express as I visited a Londis for some supplies before heading towards the crossroads where on seeing a sign saying "Durham 13 miles" I had a complete change of plan and instead of the Derwent Valley Path I would be focusing on the Lanchester Valley Railway Path.  The first section was heading south from Blackhill towards Fawcett Park & Lydgett's Junction where the Waskerley Way path crosses overhead (Consett towards Stanhope/Rookhope, a path which looks to be beautiful if not a bit hilly).

Old Iron Wagon alongside the Waskerley Way at Lydgett's Junction (Consett)

I started with the Lanchester Valley Railway Path, a path which turned quite rural with some beautiful views of the Durham countryside with a short section near Knitsley where the route has been lost, but there is a well-marked detour which runs close to a road before picking up the route of the old railway for the run into Lanchester with some beautiful woodland and some more countryside as it reached Langley Park, a place I detoured to a handy Co-Op as I was getting hungry.  After a late lunch I continued with the path as it skirted Bearpark (where sadly I didn't see any bears), running close to the ECML (where there used to be a junction) and to the Broompark Picnic Area where the old railway path continues, but as the Deerness Valley Railway Path towards Crook with another path which heads towards Bishop Auckland.

In theory I could have caught a bus into Durham city centre, but as it was only a mile and a half (and with the uneven train timetable, it would have made little difference as I would have probably been sitting at the station for 25 minutes.  A case of following the A690 towards Nevilles Cross and a side-street, narrowly missing out on the golden shot of a train crossing the viaduct I headed up the hill to reach Durham station, getting lost trying to find the path to the northbound platform, before boarding a late running 802205 on the next Newcastle service & onto a busy 158853 on the next Ashington bound service to take me to Newsham station.

158853 departing Newsham Station

Not much around the station area, although I’m sure it will be nice when it’s all finished and landscaped, as I waited for 158853 to return to take me into Newcastle city centre.  Part of me was tempted to bail at Manors, and I wish I had because when I went to the Metro platforms the next northbound train was showing as being in 18 minutes with delays.  I strolled to Monument with the crazy idea of joining a St James service (4027/4024) as it would form the next train towards Whitley Bay…

Nope, those units went out of service and with security cracking down on some anti-social idiots whom were smoking at the bottom of the stairs, it caused a delay with the next service until one of those idiots left the station after he returned after getting evicted.  Eventually he got the idea and left the train as 4056 & 4044 got some more extra miles (same pair as I had the night before, crazy that) to Monkseaton where I walked back to Whitley Bay via Morrisons, had it been a bit earlier I was tempted to visit Spoons for a hot dinner, but I needed some more drink.

An enjoyable walk in County Durham, if the other railway line paths in Consett are anything like the Lanchester Valley path, I will be in for a treat.

6th August – Valley of the Esk

I decided to have a quieter (ha!) day today with an early start to head towards Whitby as it had been a while since I had the delights of the Esk Valley line (late 2020 I believe).  It was to Whitley Bay station for 4090 & 4049 to take me to Central Station where I managed to grab some breakfast before boarding 158853 on a limited stop Middlesborough service, settling down to enjoy the Durham Coast.  At Middlesborough I had time to pop out of the station to visit a couple of shops for some supplies before joining a large group of passengers on platform 2 as 156423 & former Scottish 156496 rolled in from Whitby to form the next Whitby train.  Fair play to Northern for running 4 coaches on this line due to the crowding (even if pretty much all of the stations it was local door only and the guard being unable to do any revenue, reminds me a bit like Scotrail with the Mallaig line when they run pairs of 156s as that’s local door only pretty much everywhere between Fort William & Mallaig.

Anyhow I took a seat in the former Scottish unit, going for an airline style seat due to the rubbish legroom at the tables, sitting back and relaxing for the next couple of hours looking out of the window at the scenery with the run into Whitby itself.  I headed across to platform 2 to ask if there was space on the next North Yorkshire Moors Railway service, and on being told “oh yes” I took my seat behind 37688 for the run towards Grosmont (platform 2 at Whitby and connection into Grosmont platform 2 ‘ticked’ off).

37688 at Whitby

At Grosmont there was a set swap, so everybody heading towards Pickering swapping over to platform 3 for a service hauled by steam engine 80136 (choo choo!).  When researching the timetable last night, I noticed there was references to a disused railway line path from Goathland towards Grosmont, so I decided it would be rude not to bail at Goathland (cue the Heartbeat theme song), and headed into the village centre (up a steep hill!) and picking up the route of the former railway which was changed to avoid the Beckhole Incline.  An enjoyable 2 and a bit mile stroll along the route of the old railway coming in alongside the railway line near the depot with various locos on display.  Even the climb up the large hill was worth it for the stunning view from the top.

I returned to Grosmont station with plenty of time to kill before jumping on 156471 & 156488 on the next Whitby service which I took to Ruswarp to undertake a walk which had been on my list for a while, a footpath which is between the railway & river towards Whitby, going underneath the Larpool viaduct (one of these days I will walk the disused railway line towards Scarborough, although most likely splitting it at Robin Hood Bay due to length).  I headed into the town and to the bus stop for the next X93 service to Middlesborough… only for that service to end up being cancelled (I presume due to a lack of driver considering the bus was seemingly dumped at the stand, with door left open with nobody in sight).

Larpool Viaduct near Whitby

A large queue was building and with the buses to Middlesborough via Saltburn departing very much full & standing, the queue did halve when a Scarborough bus rocked up (which again departed pretty much full).  Thankfully the next service arrived with bus 7401 (annoyingly with vinyl Poppies on the side which restricted viewing), even getting a decent seat with legroom for the speedy run towards Middleborough mostly following the A171 over the hills giving some beautiful scenery, before a run towards Middleborough town centre via the suburbs.  A fast walk took me to the railway station to board the next Newcastle service in the hands of 156486 which I took to Sunderland, deciding I would head towards Pallion to finish the walk from Monday.

That plan didn’t last all of 3 minutes and instead of heading south, I was heading north with 555002 to Fellgate to begin a completely random walk Doing a loop in Hedworth Park before heading north following a path which ran close to the Calfclose Burn before a path close to the River Don in the Monkton area.  Quite a nice area, far removed from the urban landscape at times.  I continued with the path going underneath the A19, the Metro line and A185 towards the disused Jarrow Bridge over the Don with the river turning wider as I headed north towards Jarrow Slake before heading back west passing close to the fuel terminal storage tanks.

I joined the road for a short while before picking up a path towards the banks of the Tyne and to the southern portal of the Tyne Pedestrian Tunnel, taking the lift down and walking underneath the Tyne (somewhere you don't want to hear dripping) to the north bank at Howdon.  A short walk followed towards the Metro station, finishing the day in darkness with 4035 & 4015 to Whitley Bay.  Something else I can now tick from my oversized list.

Tyne Pedestrian & Cyclist Tunnel(s), Howdon Side

After leaving the station at Whitley Bay, I returned back to my accommodation to rest, getting my rucksack ready for the Thursday, being unsure what to do as it is quite hard to make a decision (and stick to it!)

7th August – Coastal Path to Blyth

I checked out of the guest house, somewhere I would use again if I was ever in Whitley Bay (which seems likely considering all the old railway lines to explore as well as more Tyne & Wear Metro stock entering service), still being undecided as I headed towards the town centre area to pick up some breakfast.  After breakfast I decided to do a walk, I was toying with doing back in 2023 when I took a bus to Blyth (only to walk some old railway lines instead), which was the coastal path considering it wasn’t windy this morning.

So, I headed towards the beach near the Premier Inn (I dread to think how much they would have wanted to stay for 3 nights in August!), picking up the path which followed the beach heading away from Whitley Bay towards Brierdene and St Mary's Lighthouse.  The path has been diverted inland a couple of times due to erosion of the cliffs.  After the Lighthouse I headed towards Hartley & Seaton Sluice before following the path near the beach towards Blyth.

St Mary’s Lighthouse, Whitley Bay

My coastal adventure ended at the South Beach, doubling back to visit a Co-Op before following another path to end up at Newsham station, resting before boarding 158849 on a Newcastle bound service.  I hung around Newcastle for a short while before boarding 801219 on a semi-fast service from Edinburgh (the next fast was from Inverness so I didn't fancy my chances in the half of coach C lottery as LNER don't like turn up and go passengers, even those with tickets from Blaydon).

Thankfully I got a decent seat in coach C and relaxed for the long journey to London, where I had time to stroll towards Waterloo for 159016 & 159020 on a service to take me to Grateley to finish my little North Eastern adventure, with a little red pen day in London on the Friday (scoring 4 more 720s, 2 more 730s & 3 more 701s along with some more Central Line & DLR units for a mile.

9th August – Stratford Canal

Time to do a walk I was planning to do in July but changed due to the weather forecast, the last two sections of the Stratford Upon Avon canal.  The day starting with the 05:59 towards Basingstoke (with 159012 & 158882) and a trip to Leamington Spa on 221121.  I had time to pop out of the station to the nearby Morrisons for some supplies before returning to take 165023 on the Chiltern service to Stratford Upon Avon where the first walk began as I headed away from the station along Western Road to pick up the canal near the Premier Inn, at a spot I left it back in 2021 when I walked towards Honeybourne.  It was only a short distance along the canal before I reached Bancorft Basin and the entrance lock onto the River Avon.  I crossed the Avon on the old Tramroad bridge before walking south along the route of the old Stratford and Moreton Tramway towards the Rosebird roundabout.  Next was a stroll on a footpath running close to the Seven Meadows Road, taking me towards the Avon where I headed north back towards the Tramway bridge.

After crossing over the river again, I headed back towards the station swinging via Tesco to grab some lunch and onto 172211 & 172337 with the next departure towards Birmingham via Whitlock's End.  I took these units to Shirley where the second walk began.  I headed away from the station towards the Shirley Drawbridge to join the canal, skirting around the edge of Major's Green and underneath the railway.

172337 departing Shirley Station

After the railway bridge, I continued along the towpath skirting the edge of Dickens Heath.  Quite a busy towpath this and quite beautiful with woodlands.  After leaving the urban area of Dickens Heath the canal turned rural (although still with a reasonable towpath) as it headed towards the noise of the M42 and running close to a minor road towards Hockley Heath.  After Hockley Heath the canal reached Lapworth and the Lapworth lock flight, until I reached Mill Lane, which is the point I joined the canal back in June with Jules, allowing me to say Stratford Upon Avon canal, tick.  One of these days I will need to get myself a map of the canals (and other inland waterways) for the UK to start colouring in my various canal (and other inland waterways) coverage.

Anyhow with the canal finished, I decided to head to Lapworth station via the roads and onto 168326 & 168108 on a busy service from London to take me into Moor Street where I crossed over to New Street and onto 196107 on a Shrewsbury 'semi-fast' service, just one of those things I wanted to do since they were introduced.  The reason to heading to Shrewsbury wasn't to see some 37s on a charter but to intercept a required 197 which was on a Manchester train, however due to a farce involving the charter blocking platform 4 (which is the only platform a train from Craven Arms heading towards Crewe can use due to the signalling), I wasn't quite on the ball when the 197s rolled in unannounced on platform 6 before departing back towards the signal box only to pass through the station on the centre line (only to end up getting caught behind a busy 158 on the stopper as some of the signal sections were quite long).

197027 passing Shrewsbury Station

I was expecting TfW to do something random like a unit swap at Shrewsbury and sending the pair of 197s which had rolled into platform 7 on a Birmingham service to Manchester with the pair from Cardiff being sent to Birmingham, but alas 197033 escaped me (again!), one of these days I will be able to hopefully intercept it considering it was inactive for a while.  All wasn't lost though as I took a seat on 197046 & 197016 back to New Street to clear Shrewsbury - Wolverhampton for 197 coverage, which I believe only leaves the Maesteg branch for routes which currently sees 197 working.

After popping into the chaos of Birmingham city centre on a Saturday afternoon, it was onto 221121 for the run to Basingstoke (making a bee-line for coach B) and back to Grateley on a busy 159006.

The Sunday was spent in London with mum doing some bus routes and getting a couple more 701s into my book, a quiet day in preparation for the return to work and the chaos of the emergency timetable west of Salisbury.  Anyhow as always more photos can be found on my Flickr *Here*, thanks for reading.

Trips in (Seemingly) Nonstop July

 Trips in (Seemingly) Nonstop July

July was a busy month for me with both exploring, railtours & with work.

My first adventure of July was on the 2nd when I headed towards Leicestershire to continue my coverage mission of the Leicester arm of the Grand Union canal, catching a bus (the route LC4) from Market Harborough to Foxton village to pick up the main canal at Foxton locks for a sunny walk in rural Leicestershire to finish on the outskirts of Leicester at Glen Parva (with bus route 85 taken into the city centre and a speedy 222 back to London.

7 late shifts at work later, it was then onto a long hot weekend with The Thundering Positioning Move tour from West Ruislip to Ropley on the Mid Hants Railway (doing the connection from Platform 2 at Alton onto the heritage line).  To reach West Ruislip I went via the WCML to sample my first 730/2 on a Tring semi-fast, although couldn’t really make any real judgement calls with the short journey within the oyster area (other than the tables being a bit on the small side).  A trip on Chiltern took me to West Ruislip where I picked up the tour which was 50008 hauling the very warm 4TC set on a trip to Alton via Hounslow & Frimley.  At Ropley I was one of many who headed to the road side to join a Winchester bound route 64 bus to the city centre where after a walk to the station saw some chaos due to a failed freight train, eventually reaching Basingstoke for a short connection onto a pair of Sprinters back home, for a much-needed shower to wash away the sweat.

50008 at West Ruislip

Crazy fools never learn as the Friday I made use of the “off-peak all day” on Avanti with an early start to London & Preston with the 07:30 Pendo.  Thankfully I was in a coach where the AC was working.  At Preston it was a short wait for a route 2 bus bound for Southport to Hesketh Bank, home of the West Lancs Light Railway.  I picked up the Henry Alty Way, a route making use of an old freight branch line towards Tarleton where the Rufford Branch of the Leeds & Liverpool canal begins.  Once away from the industrial area of boat yards the canal turned rural with an ever-changing towpath as I enjoyed the Lancashire countryside towards Rufford and then onwards to Burscough (with an unusual railway bridge where the canal going underneath the railway at a user worked farm crossing).  I was glad to finish the canal and hit the AC goodness of the Tesco store at Burscough Bridge station for some cold liquids, before making my way back towards home with a 150/2 to Wigan Wallgate and the same Pendo I had earlier to London.  I was happy as it meant I only had one more section of the Leeds & Liverpool canal to walk which I had pencilled in for later in the month for my holiday.

The 12th July was the day of The Tytherington Quarrier tour, one I was a bit sitting on the fence for booking, eventually only booking it due to the calls at Clapham Junction meaning I didn’t have to fork out for accommodation and my travel costs were minimal.  A trip to London Waterloo in the morning followed by a gentle walk along the north bank of the Thames to reach Vauxhall, although I have no idea why I rushed so much due to the tour being 50-odd minutes late due to one coach needing to be removed due to a hot box.  Eventually the tour rolled into Clapham, and my worse fears were confirmed as the AC had packed up in the coach I was assigned making for a quite uncomfortable journey (especially with the low-down seats with hardly any legroom).

60029 arriving at Clapham Junction

Things only got worse at Yate due to a points failure meaning the main objective of the day (the actual Tytherington branch) had to be cut, the tour only getting as far as the loop on the branch line, before heading towards Bristol Temple Meads where 60029 was replaced with 56103 & 56113, although I only could bear the train to Bath before I bailed for the comfort of a wedged out 2 coach 165 (as this was a day where GWR collapsed), all was good until Westbury where we got told to leave the train as it had been cancelled and with nothing else showing as heading towards Salisbury I headed towards Reading via Newbury to head home that way.  Once home I had a much-needed shower and relaxed in a cool(ish) room.  That tour has made up my mind about doing future railtours, especially if running with Mk2 coaches as the seats are just not suitable for people with long legs.

After another week at work, where thankfully the temperatures had dropped, it was another 3 day weekend, and another BLS tour, this time The Salt and Pepper Shaker involving the Hastings Diesel unit (where thankfully my request for a seat in the wider coach was fulfilled as the bench seats in the narrow coaches are not ideal, although from what I could gather it probably wouldn’t have been an issue due to low bookings).  A wet start of the day as I headed to Willesden Junction to pick up the tour for the trip towards a wet Goole & the Glassworks branch line (passing the site of the new Siemens factory where they are building the new LU stock).  The other freight line was the short sidings near Brayton but it was another one of those tours where after we boarded at Willesden Junction, there wasn’t any sort of break away from the train.  Anyhow I bailed at Doncaster for an Azuma to Kings Cross and back home on a 5-coach sprinter (avoiding a single 158 on both the 19:50 & 20:50 services from Waterloo which wouldn’t have been comfortable).

Hastings Diesel Unit arriving into Willesden Junction

The wet weather continued into the Sunday with my planned walk being put back on the shelf as I headed into London and across to Euston for a Liverpool service (807003) which was meant to go via Northampton (for the novelty of an 80X via Northampton) but due to late running the engineering works had finished by the time the train reached Wolverton and it went via Weedon.  I bailed at Crewe for required 197022 on a Cardiff bound train which was diverted via Wrexham (another train where it departed Crewe rather overcrowded), taking it to Hereford for a short visit to Morrisons before taking required 197024 back towards Shrewsbury (along with 197007).  A large thunderstorm popped up in Shrewsbury as I took a pair of 158s to Wolverhampton before a time-wasting trip back towards Crewe, via Kidsgrove with a pair of voyagers followed by some 350s to bring me back to Wolverhampton for required 197027 to Birmingham New Street where the connection into a fast service towards Walsall was missed so it was onto 730047 on a Walsall stopping service to take me to Walsall where I was staying overnight in the Walsall Travelodge (for the first time in a good few years).

The weather on Monday (the 21st) was looking dry until afternoon when the rain would resume, so I parked my trip to Stratford Upon Avon to one side, and instead picked up my explore of the Wyrley and Essington Canal.  After grabbing supplies from the Tesco it was a short walk along the B4210 to pick up the canal near a bus depot.  This canal is quite curvy as it curved its way north skirting the edge of Bloxwich before entering countryside towards Pelsall Common.  I took a little detour along the route of the former Norton Canes branch of the South Staffordshire Railway returning to the canal via the short Cannock Extension.

Start of the Cannock Extension Canal at Pelsall Junction

My walk along the Wyrley and Essington Canal resumed heading towards Brownhills, going underneath the route of the former railway (now turned cycle path), finishing my walk near Catshill Junction, and picking up a bus on route 937 to take me towards Birmingham City Centre via Aldridge & Perry Barr, quite an interesting route for a different view of the Birmingham area.  At Birmingham I got lucky to catch a slightly late running Bournemouth bound service (even getting a seat!) to Basingstoke for a pair of 159s back home, watching the rain.

The 27th July marked the day of my 2 weeks summer annual leave period, a busy couple of weeks as I kicked things off with a trip towards Pembrey & Burry Port, featuring a crush loaded 2 coach 197 from Cardiff which bypassed Swansea by using the Landore curve.  I had a gentle stroll along the route of the former canal (and old railway) before returning to the station via the coastal path.  Pembrey Country park is somewhere I wouldn’t mind revisiting for a better explore at some point.  Back at the station it was a trip back to Cardiff, to visit the rebuilt Cardiff Bay, getting another 756/0 into my book as well as another renumbered 153 (153531), staying overnight in the Travelodge near the station.

A later start than expected on the Monday, before I headed towards Waun-Gron Park to walk the Ely Trail, a path following the Ely River towards Penarth, before taking 756006 to Coryton & back to Heath for another short walk, this time via various parks in the Roath area.  I managed to get another 153/5 into my book with a run towards Newbridge as it was on a Newport service, before heading back home via Reading.

153531 (AT03) at Cardiff Central

I wasn’t home for long as on the 29th July I departed for 3 nights away, the first 2 nights being in a shared house in Edge Hill, a place I used back in December 2023 so I knew what to expect.  So heading towards Chester via Avanti to Crewe & a busy TfW service, saw me onto a 156 to Cuddington to walk the route of an old railway line towards Winsford before scoring a couple of 730/2s even if my original plan failed due to late running missing a connection.

The Wednesday was an early start as I headed towards Preston on a 397 before heading to Adlington on a pair of 323s to walk the final section of the Leeds & Liverpool canal, with some unexpected rain along the way towards Cherry Tree, skirting round the edge of Chorley and into some nice countryside.  I made a connection at Cherry Tree onto a 150 to Blackburn for a short break before heading into Yorkshire & back towards Liverpool via Manchester Victoria & a 185.  A busy 350 saw me heading to Crewe to tick off 730226 back to Liverpool before I headed to Wigan on a 323 via Earlestown (just to give me something to do).  I returned to Edge Hill to relax for the rest of the night.

The Thursday, 31st July, I headed away from Liverpool to Crewe with a random trip towards Whitchurch on 153552 and a short walk involving an old railway line before returning to Crewe for The Creighton-Ward Explorer tour, a one-way trip to Derby behind 37307 towing a Pendo.  Ticking off the curve linking the WCML & high-level lines at Lichfield Trent Valley and the track into Litchurch Lane for the Greatest Gathering preview day.  I spent a good hour and a bit having a look around before the site closed and I headed to the station, jumping onto a 222 for Chesterfield with the idea of getting food & returning back out after checking into my hotel.

150122 departing Cherry Tree Station

This plan failed due to there being not a lot of options close to Chesterfield station, so I returned to the trains with another 222 taken to Sheffield (going via Barrow Hill) before heading back towards Derby on a 158 for the novelty factor of a 158 on the section of track between Chesterfield & Ambergate junction, a section of track which is normally “Intercity” only.  My last train of July was another 222 back to Chesterfield where I had accommodation in the Premier Inn, for the time for a while, but for £42 it was one of the cheapest places going which was reasonably close to a station.

More photos from July can be found on my Flickr here, sorry for the shorten version this month, I’m a bit behind with myself.