Late Summer Holiday Adventuring Part 1 (2nd – 7th September).

 Late Summer Holiday Adventuring Part 1 (2nd – 7th September).

When the holiday roster was announced around this time last year, I looked at the 2 weeks I got allocated for my summer holiday being in the last period (although September is better than having it during school holidays where places are more expensive), using up some additional annual leave to link up some rest days to give myself 3 weeks off work.  Originally, I was planning to have a holiday abroad somewhere but stuff happens and I never actually got around to booking anything, instead I ended up booking 3 nights in Hamilton one week, 3 nights in Whitley Bay the following week, with day trips (and a couple of overnight stays) on a busy couple of weeks.

2nd September – Dodging the Rain on the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation

My original idea for my first day was to head towards Leicestershire for a stroll from Syston station towards Leicester via the Watermead Country Park but the weather forecast looked quite damp, so instead I looked towards Essex with a navigation I was originally going to push until 2027 owing to time constraints.  The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation runs for around 14 miles from Heybridge Basin (near Maldon) towards Chelmsford via the Essex countryside.

The trip began with the 06:57 service from Grateley with 158886, 159010 & 159012 taken to Waterloo, where I transferred to a very busy Waterloo & City line (this was prime commuting time after-all) with 65503 & 65504 taken to Bank, followed with a Central line service to Liverpool Street (91191, 92464, 92194 & 91095).  I had time to grab some supplies before boarding 745102 on the 09:00 Norwich train with the nonstop run to Chelmsford, where I made my way to the bus station for the First Essex run route 73B service towards Heybridge Basin.

745102 departs Chelmsford Station

This bus headed via the Chelmsford city centre before heading towards Beaulieu Park, detouring to serve Chelmsford Parkway station before heading towards Hatfield Peveral.  Afterwards it headed towards Heybridge Basin via Heybridge & Langford (where it passed over the route of the old railway line walk from Maldon towards Witham).  I left the bus in the village of Heybridge Basin, making my way towards the coastal path alongside the River Blackwater Estuary.  

I followed the Blackwater River towards the entrance lock to the otherwise isolated Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.  The first section of the navigation was along a purpose-built canal, a reasonable surface towpath with a fair few boats moored up, with countryside on my right-hand side.  I soon reached Heybridge with the canal skirting the edge of Maldon, the towpath being part of a cycle route on this section.  The cycle route soon departed with the towpath turning more rural as it headed towards Beeleigh Lock with the canal section heading into the river section (River Chelmer).

Sea Lock on the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation, Heybridge Basin

The river hid away at times along this walk, with the path surface being reasonable this time of year (a few sections it was a bit overgrown) but somewhere I wouldn't want to walk during the winter months due to mud.  However, I continued my stroll in mostly isolation, heading in some pretty countryside, passing a couple more locks with the path swapping sides a couple of times.  The busiest section of the river walk was near Paper Mill Lock to the north of Little Baddow, which featured a little tearoom, an ideal spot for my lunch break.  After my break I continued along the river, weaving its way towards Chelmsford, the road noise increasing as the river headed towards the very busy sounding A12 road.

After running close to the road for around a mile, the river headed underneath and headed west, back into the peace & quiet.  Still quite rural considering the area, as the navigation headed towards Springfield basin.  I did a loop around the basin (as much as I could do as parts weren't accessible), before following the river Chelmer towards the city centre and the station.  An enjoyable countryside stroll in the sunshine (although it did look like it was going to rain a couple of times but nothing came of it).

Springfield Basin on the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation, Chelmsford

Anyhow it was back to the trains with 720563 & 720581 being the first option to take me towards Stratford, where I switched to the Jubilee line (although I do wonder if using the Lizzy to Tottenham Court Road & Northern line is slightly quicker to Waterloo).  96024 & 96079 took me to Waterloo, where I jumped onto 159010 & 159011 on the 17:53 service back to Grateley to end the little day trip to Essex to begin my holiday.

3rd September – The Golden Sands of North Devon

I decided it would be a good day to head towards Devon to walk the old railway line path from the Ossaborough area towards Illfracombe, also as an excuse to visit Okehampton Interchange.  The day started with a drive to Salisbury for the 06:30 service to Exeter St Davids with 159008 & 159002 on this very busy train (college kids).  I alighted at Exeter Central and after grabbing some supplies from the nearby Co-Op took a seat on 150266 & 150265 on the next Barnstaple train to take me to Barnstaple.

With time to kill before the bus, I had a gentle stroll towards the bus station going via Rock Park before boarding the Stagecoach run route 303 service towards Woolacombe.  This was in the hands of a modern Solo (and a former London bus driver) as it followed the A361 (detouring to serve Braunton Tesco) and the B3343 road.  This bus does a loop via the pretty coastal villages of Mortehoe & Woolacombe with some nice coastal views (although the rain did attempt to spoil the view).  I left the bus outside the Golden Coast Holiday Park where my walk began.

View from Bus near Woolacombe

The first section was via the holiday park, passing The Old Mill Pub, and following the road towards a little car park where the cycle route following the route of the former railway began.  A decent tarmac path as I headed back towards the holiday park (on my left hand side) with a caravan park on the right.  Once I was away from the holiday parks, crossing the B3343 the countryside opened up with the path slowly dropping towards Ilfracombe.  A pleasant walk passing a couple of reservoirs and even a tunnel.

The cycle path came to an end near the site of the former station, now an industrial unit as I made my way down a very steep hill from Cairn Road to St Bramock's Road to a nearby bus stop for a Stagecoach run 21B to take me towards Barnstaple.  A decent visit to Illfracombe will have to wait for another day, for a stroll alongside the coast.  This was a busy double decker which took me towards Barnstaple station where it was a bit on the tight side to make 158798 on the next Exeter bound service, which I took to Crediton.  At Crediton I crossed over to the opposite platform to await 150246 on a busy Okehampton service to visit the recently opened Okehampton Interchange, a station I suspect I will use again in the future to connect with a bus towards Tavistock when I eventually get round to visiting the old railway line path between Tavistock & Plymouth.

150246 at Okehampton Interchange Station 

A short time at Okehampton Interchange and 150246 returned to take me to Crediton, where I had a gentle stroll to the nearby Tesco (not the most direct route access from the station) to grab some supplies for dinner before making my way back to Crediton station to board 150265 & 150266 for the second time that day to take me towards Exeter where the units split with 150265 continuing to Axminster.  Solely for the slight novelty of having a 150 to Axminster, getting very busy on departure from Exeter Central due to the reduced SWR timetable.

This gave me around 20 minutes to kill at Axminster, time spent relaxing on a bench for 159007 & 159004 to arrive with a Waterloo service, to take me back to Salisbury & a drive home.  An enjoyable day in Devon, not the longest of old railway line paths but one of those awkward ones where the bus service is more limited.  I will need to return to Barnstaple again at some point as I’ve still got some unfinished business with the short old railway line path towards Taunton, but that can easily be a job for winter time.

150265 at Axminster Station

4th September – Walking the East Coast

My good friend Stu was walking the route of the East Coast Main Line & towards Inverness (in a walk which sadly got cut short due to injury at Newark), as I missed out on his last long walk in 2024 due to being in training I joined him on a short section of his walk-in outer Thameslink land.  A walk full of ups & downs.

The day began with the 05:55 service to Waterloo with a lightly loaded 159107 & 158880 where I had a gentle stroll to Blackfriars to jump on a Peterborough bound 700149 ahead of my schedule.  This emptied out within the Thameslink core before heading towards Biggleswade where to waste some time before Stu was due to arrive, I headed to a nearby Asda for some supplies.  I got quite lucky as the next train skipped Biggleswade due to a tragic incident around Welwyn with some serious delays with the rest of the day.  The weather was a bit drizzly in Biggleswade with the train passing through a band of heavy rain, but thankfully nothing really came of the rain.

700149 departing Biggleswade Station

I met up with Stu with the walk beginning, as we headed via the suburbs towards Fairfield House, crossing over the ECML on a modern bridge (replacing a flat crossing).  We headed towards Biggleswade Common, crossing over the route of the former railway to Cambridge, skirting round The Lodge Nature Reserve to reach Sandy.  This is when we had a decision to make as originally the route was going to be alongside the A1 towards Tempsford before picking up another path to take us towards St Neots, however Stu looked up on Google Maps which suggested an alternative route on the eastern side of the railway which would avoid walking on a path alongside a busy dual carriageway.

With the massive benefit of hindsight we should have stuck with the original route, for little did we know the massive farce to come near St Neots.  Anyhow leaving Sandy we followed the Greensand Ridge Walk along the route of an old Roman Road, the surface being quite changeable.  This took us past the former Tempsford Airfield, walking along part of the former runway area.  This bridleway eventually took us onto Drewels Lane where the planned footpath we were thinking of taking didn't exist (no evidence where it left the road, so clearly one of those footpaths lost to the history books).  This meant a longer walk on the quiet road, passing a large housing development.

Woodland between Biggleswade Common & Sandy

This is where things started to go wrong as we reached the area where a new road is being constructed with the existing road getting diverted before coming to a dead end, the B1046 was split in two with no access towards St Neots.  Plan B involved walking along this road away from St Neots, passing a closed footpath to reach a restricted Byway, Hail Lane as the map suggested there was some footpaths heading towards St Neots.  All was going well until the footpath simply ended with a sign saying "footpath closed" at the closure point, a few choice swear words were said (which for someone who has no emotions says something).

Plan C time as we headed towards the medieval village of Wintringham to reach the busy A428 where finally we managed to cross over the new road being constructed, nearly 2 hours after reaching the first closure.  We ignored the "pavement closed" signs as by this time we had enough, picking up the B1428 road to reach St Neots, where even Stu had enough as he was originally planning to end his day at Huntingdon.  We said farewell as he headed towards Huntingdon to relax on a peak time 387 service and I boarded a heavily delayed 700151 to take me back towards London Blackfriars, annoyingly the rear First Class area was locked out of use.

An Azuma passing Sandy Station

At Blackfriars I had a gentle walk to Waterloo, where I boarded the 19:20 service with 159019, 159103 & 158880 for the trip home, taking a seat in the partly refurbished 159103 to sample the new seat coverings.  An enjoyable sociable day with a good friend, even if the last couple hours was a massive pain trying to reach St Neots due to the construction site.  What was even more annoying was the complete lack of signage, or even Open Street Maps/Strava not marking the paths as impassable considering from the looks those paths have been closed for at least a year if not longer.

5th September – A couple of Walks in Greater Manchester

I decided it would be a good day to head back towards Greater Manchester to finish the Roe Green Loopline path, as well as several other bits in the North Western corner between Wigan & Manchester.  The day started with the 05:27 from Grateley with 159009 taking me to Waterloo, followed with 51664 & 51663 on a Northern line service to Euston where I had time to grab some breakfast from the Sainsburys before boarding 390141 on a Manchester Piccadilly service for the speedy run via Stoke on Trent.

In Manchester, after grabbing some lunch items I headed to platform 14 and onto a busy 331028 & 331021 to take me to Bolton where I just missed a route 36 bus by seconds (it was pulling out of the bus stop outside the station as I was close by).  I had a gentle stroll towards the bus station to await the next Bee Network route 36 service to Manchester (a slow bus route!)  This busy bus route (most stops called at) took me towards Farnworth where I left the bus near Tennyson Road where my walk began.

66133 at Manchester Piccadilly

The first section of today's walk was along a mixed use path on the north side of the M61 towards Anchor Lane, meeting up with the point I headed north the previous week when walking towards Bolton.  I crossed over the M61 joining the northern section of the Roe Green Loopline towards Amblecote playing fields where the Linnyshaw Loopline path began.  This path took me back towards Buckley Lane, close to where I began!  I headed into Ashtons Field, passing what appeared to be some old locks before the path started to look like an old railway line route as I headed towards Worsley Road.

Crossing this road and I was soon in the Blackleach Country Park, passing a nice-looking reservoir.  This was a path which felt like it had some money thrown at it in recent times with a surface which felt like old rubber had been mixed with the tarmac (it was a bit bouncy if that makes sense).  A busy path with other walkers, joggers, cyclists, certainly a decent little stroll towards Linnyshaw, the path ending alongside the A6.

Linnyshaw Loopline in Ashtons Field, Little Hulton

The next section was via the roads, crossing over the railway near Walkden & the A580 "East Lancashire Road" to reach Roe Green where I headed onto the Roe Green Loopline close to the junction where the Tyldesley path branched off.  I followed the route of the old railway towards Walkden, linking up with where I joined the previous week at Parr Fold Park.  I continued along until the start of the Ellenbrook Loop path, following this path (another decent path) to reach the guided busway near the start, where the first of today's walks ended, as I awaited a V1 service to take me along the busway to the bus stop near Cooling Lane.  I was impressed with the quality of the seating on the new electric buses used for the Leigh Busway, comfy seats with some tables.

The second walk was something I was hoping to do back in July, but bailed from that walk early due to the temperature getting rather toasty.  It was to follow a path (which the OS Map & Google Maps suggest is a cycle path, but is nothing of the sort in my eyes) from the busway towards Howe Bridge.  Some nice woodland along the way, but the surface was a bit muddy in places & also flooded.  A short detour was needed near to Howe Bridge as the original route seems to have been lost to history.  After crossing the A579 road, the path quality did improve a bit as it headed towards Hindley Green but the decent path randomly coming to a sudden end (like I reached a boundary between council areas).

 

Hindsford Brook between Tyldesley & Howe Bridge 

I continued along this path which had its good points, but also negative points, mainly the steep slope near Leigh Road.  The path came away from the route of the old railway line in this area, running along the top of the cutting in some nice woodland, passing close to some industrial units.  I soon reached the ending point where I had a couple of options, either head north towards Hindley or south towards Bickershaw.  The bus connection heading south looked tight, especially with a path of unknown quality, so I played it safe and headed towards Hindley, ending the walk at the bus stop close to the Council Offices, turning down the first Wigan bound bus as that goes round the houses and doesn't serve the station area.

It was onto a route 607 service to take me towards the bus stop near Wallgate (where once more the bus pretty much emptied out).  Quite a lot of police floating around due to the football (Wigan vs Stockport), but thankfully I made it to Wigan North Western for a slightly delayed London train formed of 390137 on a fast service.  I managed to get a seat with a working power socket and settled down for the speedy run to Euston.  51701 & 51501 took me to Waterloo on the Northern Line, where I had a 55-minute wait for the next Salisbury train, formed of a very busy 158883 & 159017 to take me home.  A day of two different walks, I would recommend the Linnyshaw & Roe-Green paths as all year-round walks, but the old railway towards Hindley was best done when I did it, as I suspect the winter months it might even become impassable with flooding.

 6th September – Welsh Coastal Path & the Neath Canal

I had an overnight stay booked in the Travelodge close to Cardiff Central station on a random booking, the idea for today was a late notice change from what I was originally planning to do.  The day began with 159103 & 158888 to Andover, followed with 159022 to Reading where I had time to head to Wendy’s for some breakfast items before boarding 800017 on a Swansea service to Port Talbot Parkway, arriving around 20 minutes late due to awaiting a member of staff at Reading who had been delayed heading towards Reading from elsewhere.

Leaving the station at Port Talbot, I headed towards Tesco close to the River Afan to grab some lunch items, cutting via the shopping centre to reach the bus station (which looked all closed up and at first glance disused).  I picked up a cycle path underneath the A4241 before walking alongside the river towards a roundabout, following the A4241 towards Victoria Road & Newbridge Road, picking up cycle route 4 (I think it was) alongside the river once more.  This walk gave some nice views of the docks at Port Talbot, which must have been alive in the olden times with ships.  I passed an fenced off bridge which gave the impression of something railway related.

I reached Aberavon Beach which was very beautiful, walking along the path alongside the beach towards the Baglan Moor area, where I had an option of taking the cycle route via an industrial park or carrying on with the Welsh coastal path.  I decided to stick with the Welsh coastal path, as I crossed over some dunes to walk on the actual beach at Baglan Bay.  I followed the route of the coastal path across the sand dunes towards some industrial wasteland, quite a strange sensation, going underneath an old pipe before reaching what I can only presume was an emergency access road to the power station when it existed.

Aberavon Beach

This former access road took me towards the side of the River Neath, and in typical Welsh fashion a blocked path with some large blocks.  Thankfully there was a route alongside the block (although I did catch my hand as it started to bleed).  After this block in the road, I continued along the Welsh coastal path passing the Armstong's Hydraulic Accumulator, part of the former Briton Ferry docks.  I headed underneath the M4 & A48 into Briton Ferry itself, leaving behind cycle route 4 as that headed to run alongside the A48 (and A483) towards Swansea as I picked up cycle route 47 at the entrance to the Neath Canal, seeing where it would have once joined up with the River Neath.

The towpath of this canal was decent tarmac, although a couple parts it was a bit overgrown & narrow (with a very low bridge underneath the Swansea District Line).  Quite a pleasant stroll for views as it headed towards Neath, where originally, I was considering carrying on towards Aberdulais to finish the Tennant Canal but when I reached Neath I decided to call it a day, swinging via Morrisons to grab some more liquid before making my way to the station and onto 800034 & 800028 to take me to Cardiff Central.

Swansea District Line railway bridge over the Neath Canal between Briton Ferry & Neath (Duck!)

In Cardiff I had around half an hour before the next train to Treherbert as I had some unfinished business with visiting the rebuilt Ynyswen station (after ditching my visit back in December last year with multiple delays & cancellations).  I decided it would be a good excuse to get checked into the Travelodge, just to save a job and get rid of some weight from my rucksack, getting a so-so room overlooking the bus station (not as bad as a room overlooking the main street, but the best rooms in that hotel are those which overlook the central core).

I returned to Cardiff, randomly bumping into my good friend Jules who was in Cardiff with family visiting Barry Island (one of those completely chance meetings) before I took 756007 to the rebuilt Ynyswen station.  A station which has 2 platforms rather than a single platform like it used to have and similar to Dinas Rhondda which is another rebuilt station on the line with the improvements to allow 4 trains per hour.  I took 756007 towards Pontypridd where I headed out of the station to visit the nearby Spoons for dinner, mainly to waste some time but also because I was hungry.  I returned to the station, turning down the next 756 to Cardiff Central for the Cardiff Bay train from platform 1, formed of a shiny 398031 for my first taste of the new Tram Trains.

398031 at Pontypridd Station

Seats were comfortable but quite narrow, they felt reasonable for the job they were designed for (other than for the lack of a toilet).  Certainly, felt fast accelerating although I suspect the driver wasn’t giving it the full power owing to the timings being based on a 150 (not much point speeding to the station only to sit there for a couple of minutes for right time departure).  I took this 398 to Cardiff Queen Street, stepping back onto 231006 to take me down the hill to Cardiff Central, where I had a gentle stroll to the hotel to relax for the remainder of the evening.

7th September - Ogmore Valley Railway

South Wales has quite a few old railway lines which have been turned into mixed used paths, the Ogmore Valley Railway is one of such paths running from the former mining community of Nant-y-Moel to the north of Bridgend.  After leaving the Travelodge and grabbing breakfast related products I headed to Cardiff Central to board 153333 & 153909 on a Swansea stopper to take me to Bridgend.  This was the first time I’ve had 153333 since 2015 (when it was a Great Western unit).  Anyhow in Bridgend I had a gentle stroll to the bus station to await the next First bus operated route 74 to Nant-Y-Moel heading via Sarn and following the A4061 with various detours on his hilly route.  I left the bus at the terminus at Nant-Y-Moel with the old railway line path easy to access.

Surface quality was good, some beautiful views of the countryside  as I headed south, mostly downhill, towards Wyndham & Ogmore Vale passing the remains of the stations.  After Ogmore Vale the scenery changed to more woodland as it headed towards Blackmill and Brynmenyn.  A very nice former railway line path I would easily recommend.  The old railway line path itself ends in the Brynmenyn area as there is some massively overgrown track (which would head towards Tondu junction).

Remains of Ogmore Vale Station

The next part of today's walk was alongside the Ogmore River heading towards the Sarn & Aberkenfig area, going underneath the railway near Sarn station, joining up with part of the path I walked many years ago when visiting the stations (as Tondu & Sarn are easily walkable in the time between stations).  After crossing the busy A4063 I headed onto a section of the path which was a boardwalk heading towards a bridge carrying the M4.  A minor road followed before I resumed the walk alongside the Ogmore River towards the Wildmill area of Bridgend, the riverside path ending in Wildmill itself with the remainder involving walking along a pavement alongside Quarella Road, detouring into the Tesco at Bridgend before a fast walk to the station to jump onto a busy 800004 on a London Paddington service.

This took me to Reading, where I made a connection onto a late running 221138 to take me to Basingstoke, and onto 159012 to Grateley where my Welsh trip ended, but Scottish trip began.  After sorting out my rucksack and other general bits & bobs, I left the house to catch the 17:59 service from Grateley with 159007 & 158885 to Waterloo, where with time to kill before the sleeper I took winner 701049 to Kingston, intercepting 701015 back to Clapham Junction (clearing it for 10 miles).  At Clapham Junction it was a change onto 701050 to Stoneleigh for a short wait for winner 701003 back to Waterloo.

701003 at London Waterloo

I had a gentle stroll towards Euston, arriving with plenty of time to spare before boarding the sleeper to Glasgow with 92010 providing the power this evening.  This trip I managed to get a berth towards the centre of the coach which was far nicer than a berth over the wheels, just ruined somewhat by someone in the next room listening to an art history documentary without headphones (“what was the artist thinking when he painted such a painting back in the 17th century?”.  And that feels like a good time to end part 1 of my Late Summer Holiday blog post, as always thanks for reading, a lot more photos can be found on my Flickr *here*.  Part 2 will follow at some point which involves Scotland.

18th & 19th August – Lancaster Canal & Walking in Walkden

18th & 19th August – Lancaster Canal & Walking in Walkden

18th August – Return to the Lancaster Canal

Earlier in the month when I was walking from Preston towards the Bilsborrow area along the Lancaster canal, I decided when the time came to walk the section from Bilsborrow towards Galgate to look into staying overnight in the general area.  I ended up booking a night in the Manchester Central Travelodge (the one on Blackfriars Street alongside the River Irwell, between Salford Central & Victoria) as for a Tuesday night it was good value.  Also having stayed there back in September 2020, I found it reasonable, not too much noise from nearby roads).

The trip began with 158883, 159003 & 159005 on the 06:57 from Grateley to take me towards Waterloo, where I had a gentle stroll towards Euston, mixing things up by going a different route which took me near Euston Square.  After grabbing some late breakfast, I boarded the 09:30 Glasgow train, which was a busy 390154 to take me towards Preston, only losing a few minutes due to congestion caused by a late running Liverpool train (which was loading up alongside the Pendo and it was very lightly loaded (one of the last peak time trains).  In Preston, after swinging via the little Tesco outside the station for some lunch, I strolled towards the large bus station and onto the Stagecoach run route 40 service bound for Lancaster.

This bus took me (slowly due to traffic) towards the Barton Grange Garden Centre (a busy bus stop as half a dozen others alighted from the bus here).  After a short walk along the A6 I reached the canal with the stairs used earlier in the month and I resumed the canal walk along the grassy towpath.  I will admit the first mile or so wasn't the nicest of walks due to the traffic noise from the M6 drowning out sounds of trains as all 3 forms of transport run side by side towards the Barnacre area where thankfully (for my ears) the canal started to drift west, leaving the endless traffic noise behind.

A Lumo 222 alongside the Lancaster Canal between Brock & Bonds

This section was very rural, mostly a grassy towpath with fields, weaving its way towards Bonds where the towpath became a hard surface with the canal entering the town of Garstang where the canal got busy with moored boats and towpath busy with other walkers.  Soon I crossed underneath the A6 again, passing a couple of marinas before the canal returned to being in the middle of nowhere with not much noise.  Some beautiful countryside scenery along the way with the canal heading generally north, twisting & turning at times, passing some small settlements.  Very nice it was, the nature of a rural canal in the countryside (and unlike some canals, the edge of the canal was reasonable quality with no large holes in the towpath caused by erosion, I guess with the Lancaster canal being effectively isolated it doesn't get as much traffic as some of the canals within the centre of the country).

I continued the walk along the towpath, passing a static caravan park and not a lot else.  Time flew by as I strolled on the grass, the sun making an appearance.  Some nice woodland sections along this canal, as well as a cutting close to the junction with the Glasson branch.  I was worried when I saw a sign ahead saying "towpath closed" but all it seemed was a bridge carrying a minor road being partly blocked off which didn't affect me.  I reached the junction with the Glasson branch and reached Galgate, coming away from the canal near the marina with a link not shown on Google Maps.  This took me towards the busy A6 at a poorly marked bus stop near the Plough pub.

Lancaster Canal between Garstang & Galgate

The first southbound bus was a Stagecoach run route 42 service to Blackpool, which followed the A6 towards Garstang & Claughton-on-Brock.  Before following the A586 via St Michaels on Wyre & Great Eccleston to reach Poulton-le-Fylde where I left the bus near the church (it was that time of day where I reckon the run towards Blackpool itself would have been very much stop-start with heavy traffic).  A gentle stroll took me to the station and onto a Manchester bound 331021 & 331026, I was expecting it to be busy but the front unit was near enough empty until Preston where it did get a bit busier.  This was an all station (to Bolton) stopper so wasn't the fastest but the days of fast Blackpool - Manchester trains are in the history books.  Due to a 25-minute wait for the next Victoria bound train at Salford Crescent, I stayed on to Oxford Road, walking to the Travelodge via a Spoons close to St Peter's Square tram stop.

After checking in, I found my room (not the best due to overlooking the kitchen area), and relaxed after a mostly enjoyable canal side stroll.  I will probably do the section to Carnforth before the year is out (as that is a cycle path quality hard towpath) but the section towards Kendal (including the disused sections) will wait until next year.

26th August – Old Railways in Walkden & Lostock

After considering various options for the Wednesday, I made up my mind (although I did end up swapping direction of walk).  After checking out of the Travelodge I headed towards Salford Central via the riverside path via the front of the Lowry Hotel & the New Bailey towards Irwell Street (complete with lots of construction work), after swinging via a little Tesco Express I headed to Salford Central for the first time in a few years and onto a Headbolt Lane bound 150206 to Walkden where my walk began.

River Irwell from Irwell Street, Salford

Back in February I made a start with the Roe Green Loopline path (which runs from Eccles towards Bolton) leaving it at Roe Green itself to head towards Leigh alongside the busway.  After leaving Walkden station I followed the roads towards Parr Fold Park (which was quite beautiful).  I picked up the Roe Green Loopline path near the park and followed it in a north western direction.  It was mostly within a woodland cutting which sheltered the busy path from the urban environment it was located in.

This path took me away from Walken to Little Hulton where I had a little detour along the route of the former Peel Hall Colliery Railway, doubling back to the Roe Green path to carry on towards the Amblecote Playing Fields where the cycle path towards Linnyshaw (along another old railway in parts) began.  The next section was via a road to cross over the M61 as I entered Farnworth, the old railway route being lost to developments in this area.  I followed cycle path 55 as it headed north via the suburbs (mix of high fences and dog-poo), passing the Royal Bolton Hospital and into the Great Lever area of Bolton.

Parr Fold Park, Walkden

I continued along the path as it entered a short section of the old railway route which hadn't been built over (a cutting with road bridges), this section headed towards Heywood Park where I switched to the roads.  Cutting through the suburbs of Bolton I soon reached the start of the cycle path which runs alongside the railway towards Lostock, close to the River Croal (and the Middle Brook).  The first section of this path wasn't the nicest for fly tipping/litter but it soon changed into some nice woodland, crossing over the river itself.

Soon I was walking with the railway line on my right-hand side and Middle Brook River on my left-hand side, as the rain started (arriving earlier than expected).  After pausing a couple of times for photos (and to listen to a 769 on heavy acceleration), I soon reached the Lostock area.  I was originally going to continue towards Horwich Parkway station following another cycle path, but with the rain getting heavier I decided that could wait for another day.  I reached Lostock station and onto 331015 & 331023 to take me towards Manchester Piccadilly where I headed out of the station to grab some food for lunch before boarding 390153 on the next London train.

331018 from the path alongside the Middle Brook & Railway Line, between Bolton & Lostock

An uneventful journey to London on this fast service (Stockport, Stoke & Nuneaton) and I reached the sunshine in London.  With the sun out I headed towards Waterloo on foot to take a seat on 158881 on a Salisbury stopper to take me to Andover where I got picked up by Mum so we could head to Tesco for some shopping for the week ahead.  And that rounds up my adventures for August, as always thanks for reading, and more photos can be found on my Flickr *Here*.  September is going to be a busy month as my 2 weeks annual summer leave has arrived.

11 – 16th August Trips (North East, Staffordshire, Kenilworth)

 11 – 16th August Trips (North East, Staffordshire, Kenilworth)

I booked a guest house in Whitley Bay for 3 nights with multiple ideas for walks, some of those ideas got put back on ice due to the hot weather forecasted, but like always with my North East trips I changed my mind more times than a weather vane in stormy weather.

11th August – Onwards to Newcastle & Newburn Riverside

With my rucksack packed, I left the house to walk to the station for the 06:57 service to Waterloo with 158883 & 159009 on this busy short formed (5 coaches instead of 8) service.  At Waterloo I had my usual stroll across the city to Kings Cross arriving with time to spare before boarding 801225 (the one with Eleanor Rigby vinyl) working the 09:30 Edinburgh fast service.  As usual I had reserved a seat in coach G which wasn’t that busy (private table to York where I was meant to be joined with 3 others who didn’t show up).  A speedy run to Newcastle where my walk began.

I had decided it would be a good day to walk the cycle path alongside the north bank of the Tyne which turns into an old railway line path (the original route of the Tyne Valle line which used Scotswood Railway bridge).  Exiting the station at Newcastle I made my way down the steep hill towards the Tyne and cycle route 72 joining the path near the Metro bridge.  I paused near the railway bridge for a photograph of an Azuma crossing the river before continuing along the busy path (it was a sunny day and it was lunchtime).  This side gave some nice views of the Dunston Staiths before the cycle path moved away from the river front in the Benwell area of the city.

A LNER Azuma crossing the King Edward VII Bridge in Newcastle

The next section was a path alongside Scotswood Road before picking up the former railway route, heading further inland with some woodland before dropping back down towards the road (and also the Tyne).  I headed underneath the A1, reaching the Newburn Riverside Park, a path which follows the river round a bend with office & industrial buildings on the right-hand side.  The riverside path ended in an industrial estate area, which I followed a short cut to join the route of another old railway line heading towards Lemington, passing the point I joined this route earlier in the year where I randomly decided to walk to Prudhoe in the drizzle.

This old railway line path ended near the A1 (where I believe the railway used to go into a tunnel which has since been sealed up), and I followed another path to cross over the A1 into Denton Burn Dene Park (and the football ground of Newcastle Blue Star FC) before heading north via a very nice woodland area (a bit hilly but beautiful woodland).  After leaving the woodland I followed the path via Denton to reach Stamfordham Road, near the Stagecoach depot at Slatyford.  I jumped onto a stagecoach run route 62 service towards the city centre (would continue towards Killingworth, part of me was tempted to stay on to Four Lane Ends but I bailed near Monument.

Denton Dene, Scotswood, Newcastle

 

I headed towards the metro station and onto 555003 to take me towards Whitley Bay (via South Gosforth) to get myself checked into the guest house, going via Iceland to pick up some supplies of bottles for the following days.  After getting checked in, emptying out my rucksack (and relaxing for 10 minutes) I headed back out, going via Morrisons for some bottles of flavoured water and back to Whitley Bay, annoyingly just missing a winner 555 heading to South Shields (if I had gone towards Monkseaton Metro I might have caught it).  I jumped onto 555019 on a St James service to take me towards Monument (via North Shields) where I spent the next hour (or so) with my little red pen, finishing the day with 555033 back to Whitley Bay.  After visiting the local Spoons for dinner (I was going to have a burger as it was Tuesday Burger Club night, but they had fish & chips on a special offer).  After dinner I headed towards the waterfront for some photos when it was quieter (I dread to think how busy the beach would have been during the day).  When I got back to the guest house, I relaxed thinking about options for the following day making a decision to reverse the direction of a planned walk.

12th August – Hart to Haswell & Bedlington

I had decided to walk the Hart to Haswell Walkway path which roughly follows the route of the “Hartlepool Dock and Railway” route from Hart (north Hartlepool) towards Wingate, Shotton Colliery & South Hetton, where it would meet up with a walk I did earlier in the year from Seaham towards Ryhope.  My original idea for this walk was to catch a bus to South Hetton (3 buses an hour from Newcastle) to walk south & east towards Hartlepool, but I decided to swap the direction so the sun would be behind me.

The day began leaving the comfy bed in the guest house to Whitley Bay Metro to catch 555031 to Central Station, where after grabbing some breakfast items I jumped onto 802218 working the first available service towards Durham, before making my way to the bus station for an Arriva run route 24 service bound for Hartlepool for an enjoyable trip across the county.  This bus ran via Sherburn, Haswell, Shotton Colliery towards Peterlee, then towards Hartlepool via Horden & Crimdon.  I left the bus in the area known as Hart Station (named after the former Hart railway station where the disused railway path connected with the Durham Coast line.  A walk via a housing estate led me towards the railway path.

Hart to Haswell Walkway (Cycle Route 14) at Hart Station (Hartlepool) (From footbridge over railway)

The first section ran alongside the existing railway before the railway branched northwards towards Crimdon and I carried on towards a very pretty wooded nature reserve area.  The sound of traffic soon disappearing as I entered countryside, the path was decent all be a bit narrow in places.  I reached Hesleden close to a land regeneration site before returning to countryside & Castle Eden.  After going underneath the busy sounding A19 the path turned direction towards Wingate where it joined up with the Castle Eden Walkway old railway line path from the Stockton direction.

I was now following cycle route 1 as well as route 14, skirting round the edge of Wingate before having to detour to cross over the A181 ro
ad (which wasn't the nicest of road crossings).  After re-joining the route of the old railway I continued towards Shotton Colliery with a planned detour to a nearby Co-Op was foiled by a locked gate near a footbridge over a cutting.  I continued along the busy path (other walkers, joggers & cyclists, thankfully not many idiotic dog walkers as it was far too hot to take dogs out).

Junction between the Hart to Haswell Walkway (Cycle Route 14) & the Castle Eden Walkway (Cycle Route 1) in Wingate

Near Haswell the route of the original Hartlepool Dock and Railway carried straight on, with the cycle path following a NER built chord towards the Durham and Sunderland Railway route to Seaham Harbour.  This took me towards South Hetton where the walk came to an end near the former South Hetton Colliery.  I was lucky and didn't have long to wait for the next Go North East operated X1 service to Peterlee which headed to the town centre bus station via Easington.  I headed towards a nearby Asda for a late lunch as well as getting something cold to drink.  Returning to the bus station gave me multiple options, either a fast service (X10) towards Newcastle via Heworth or a fast service (X6) to Sunderland.  As it was a X10 up first (from Middlesborough) with a double decker complete with comfortable table seats (even if it was a bit warm upstairs).   This bus route took me away from Peterlee and on the A19 dual carriageway, detouring via Dalton Park Shopping Centre before resuming the fast run along the A19 towards Boldon & the A184 towards Heworth & Gateshead where I decided to bail, an enjoyable limited stop fast run (and who doesn't enjoy travelling on a double decker on a dual carriageway!)

I jumped on 555017 to take me to Gateshead Stadium to enjoy the fresh-ish air and broke out my little deckchair before winner 555020 rolled in to take me to Central Station, where I came up with an idea as I wasn’t getting into the groove of Metro hunting, taking 555013 to Haymarket where I transferred to the bus station and onto an Arriva run X21 bound for Newbiggin.  Earlier in the year I had some unfinished business around Bedlington Station.  This warm double decker took me towards Bedlington itself via the Regent Centre & Hartford Bridge.  Plessey Woods Country Park & Northumberlandia (Lady of the North) have gone onto my list to further investigations.  Anyhow my walk began as I headed towards Netherton Lane and onto a footpath heading towards the A1086 & towards Millfield, one of those mysterious paths which looks interesting on the map.  After detouring via a housing estate, I picked up a cycle path which ran alongside the River Blyth (which is still beautiful).  This took me towards the site of the former Bedlington Ironworks before I followed the north bank of the river underneath the railway viaduct and onto cycle route 1 on a path alongside the railway towards Bedlington station itself.

A Northern 156 crossing the Bedlington Viaduct

It wasn’t a long wait for 156483 to return from Ashington to take me towards Newcastle station (in hindsight I should have bailed at Northumberland Park) and onto 555013 to Whitley Bay, where sadly the cloud cover had arrived blocking out sight of the eclipse (although it did get dark during the main event).  Afterwards I went via Spoons (for lack of a better idea for dinner) and relaxed in the guest house, complete with a cool shower to wash away the sweat.  Once more I was thinking about options for the following day as I was toying with doing the long bus route to Berwick (the X18) but didn’t fancy being on a double decker on a potentially warm day.  Some buses are better than others when it comes to windows, but I decided that the X18 could wait for a cooler day.

13th August – Stockton & Darlington plus Auckland Way

The day began slightly earlier than on the Wednesday, with 555035 to Monument via North Shields (as I had just missed a train via South Gosforth), followed with 555020 to Central Station (one of those moments where it would have been quicker to walk).  After grabbing breakfast, I boarded 802205 on the 08:03 TPE service to Manchester Piccadilly to take me to Darlington to tick off the recently opened platform 5 on a new up loop to save trains heading towards York from having to cross over the down fast line into the old station building.  After a little explore at the new buildings, it was onto 156451 from bay platform 6 to take me to Dinsdale where the first of today’s walks began.

I followed the roads in Middleton St George (where Dinsdale station is located) towards the roundabout with the A67 (similar walk I did back in 2018 when I walked to the since mothballed Tees-Side Airport Station).  This time I turned left and onto a cycle path which ran along the route of the original Stockton & Darlington Railway.  It was already getting a bit on the warm side as I followed the path towards the site of the former Fighting Cocks station (couldn't get any photographs due to workmen being in the way), and once underneath the A67 the path headed into woodland before crossing the A66 on a modern bridge with the railway path ending near an industrial estate.  The route of the railway since being built over by Tornado Way with a walking route alongside the main road separated by hedges.

802205 departs Darlington Station

This path was followed until I reached the Red Hall residential area of Darlington, cutting via the housing estates to reach a path alongside the River Skerne, which I followed towards the Rockwell Nature Reserve (very pretty).  After the nature reserve, I headed underneath the ECML and followed the river towards the world-famous Skerne Bridge finishing the walk at North Road station (detouring via Morrisons for some supplies considering as I had the time).  This station was quite busy for the Saltburn bound service (everybody going to the beach?) as I waited for 156448 to roll in to take me to Bishop Auckland where the second of today's walks would begin.

Leaving the station at Bishop Auckland, I headed via the Asda to reach the cemetery, before following a path across the river Gaunless and onto a woodland path leading towards Auckland Park where the Auckland Way railway path began.  This is a path along the route of the closed Byers Green Branch of the Clarence Railway, once away from Auckland Park the path headed into the countryside with a bit of woodland, giving the occasional glimpse of a beautiful scenic view (for this part of the country is beautiful)

156484 at North Road Station

This path doesn't really go close to any settlements, passing the site of the Byers Green station (complete with old platform) before turning east (joining up with the route of the main Clarence Railway).  I felt the sun more on this section as it was to my right rather than behind me, as this section was more open countryside.  I soon reached the town of Spennymoor, with a little detour via the Asda for a cold drink (I partially like the Dom Simon branded Lemon & Raspberry Juice Drink, and not because it's blue), before heading to a bus stop on Cheapside.  It seemed the Newcastle bound bus was a no-show as the first bus was an Arriva run route 6 with a warm service towards Durham bus station, where I decided to sample the fast X20 Go North-East route towards Sunderland via the A690 road, detouring to serve Carrville, Houghton-Le-Spring & the south western suburbs of Sunderland).

The bus took me to the Park Lane Interchange, where I had a gentle stroll to Sunderland railway station for some fresh air, in my mind Sunderland needs a lot more signage on the platform to tell passengers which end of the long platforms trains actually stop.  I took 555018 to Pelaw where I decided to have another short walk, as on a previous trip to Newcastle I had spotted a walk near Pelaw station along what seems to be an old railway, signposted as the Angel Cycleway for a short walk towards High Heworth where I was toying with catching a bus but decided to walk towards Heworth station instead where I spent the next couple of hours having a little Metro hunt, although the only score being 555039.  I ended up with 555041 to Whitley Bay via North Shields, where after dinner I headed to the waterfront for a last night at Whitley Bay photograph on the sands.

Down on the Beach at Whitley Bay

I returned to the guest house to get myself sorted ready to check out in the morning, returning the mobile house to the rucksack and deciding on an idea for the Friday.  An enjoyable (if a bit warm!) day with varied scenery.

14th August – Visiting Newbiggin by the Sea

For my last day (boo) in the North East, I was originally thinking to head towards Sunderland to walk the old railway line path near University towards Ryhope via Silksworth to position myself for the mid-day Grand Central service however as usual I changed my mind.  So, after checking out of the guest house, I made my way to the bus stop on Park Avenue (outside the little Sainsburys Local which sadly doesn’t open until 8am) onto the Arriva run route 57 service to Ashington, with a double decker (the allocations for this bus route seem to be quite varied).

This bus took me away from Whitley Bay via Monkseaton and Earsdon towards Seaton Delaval & Cramlington.  After a detour via a hospital site, the bus continued towards Bedlington & Ashington where my walk began as I made my way to the nearby Asda for some breakfast & to make use of the toilets.  Afterwards I followed the pavement alongside the A197 at the northern edge of the town, running parallel with the existing freight line towards Lynemouth with a couple of foot crossings (giving access to the Queen Elizabeth Country Park).

Freight Railway Tracks in Ashington (near the Queen Elizabeth Country Park)

The pavement turned into a separate path away from the road going via some woodland before crossing the A189 alongside a roundabout before the old railway line path towards Newbiggin started.  A reasonable quality surface path with some rural views as it headed towards the seaside.  Once I reached Newbiggin, I followed the road towards Church Point where I joined the path alongside the Promenade for an enjoyable stroll by the waterfront.  After the Promenade I followed the Coastal Path route towards the Sandy Bay Holiday Park, detouring via the holiday park due to coastal erosion making the coastal path unsafe.  This took me towards the Wansbeck Estuary and another path alongside the river Wansbeck, underneath the A189 with the long-distance England Coastal path heading south towards Cambois and I continued along a curvy hilly path towards the Wansbeck Riverside Country Park where the path quality did increase.

I headed underneath the railway viaduct, even pausing at a reasonable location for a photo of a passing 158, only for the sun to decide to pop out from behind the clouds making the photograph not the greatest.  Anyhow I continued along the riverside path, quite busy with other path users, finishing near a car park and I made my way up a steep hill towards the roads of Ashington and via the suburbs to reach the station, arriving at the same time as 158816, which was lucky as the following service had been cancelled.  This 158 (which got busy along the way) took me to Newcastle where I had time to visit Sainsburys for lunch before boarding 801219 on a fast London service, even getting lucky to get a seat at a table which was reserved from Edinburgh to London but had nobody sitting there.

Beach at Newbiggin by the Sea

An uneventful trip towards London, where I felt the temperature rising the further south to the point that Kings Cross was quite toasty, certainly not the day to walk 2 miles to Waterloo nor get cooked on the underground, so I headed to St Pancras for 700022 to Blackfriars for the shorter walk to Waterloo.  After going via Iceland for something cold to drink I boarded a roasting hot 159007 & 159013 which was so hot it was limited speed due to the driver needing the window open to get air in the cab, to the point where I needed to leave at a busy & chaotic Basingstoke as it was running nonstop to Salisbury due to being around 30 minutes late.  Sometime later 159022 & 159015 arrived on another service, still quite hot but not as hot as the last pair, these took me to Grateley to end my North Eastern adventures.  Farewell Whitley Bay, for I will be back next month.

15th August - Churnet Valley Line

I was considering heading towards Cricklade today to finish the Thames Path, but I decided after a busy week to have a shorter walk.  After looking at various options I decided on a visit to Staffordshire to walk the path along the route of the Churnet Valley Line between Leek & Rushton Spencer via Rudyard Lake.  The day began with the 05:27 service from Grateley to Waterloo with 159016, as I made my way to the Northern line with 51613/51612 taking me to Euston where it was a fast walk to make a connection onto the 07:13 Manchester service with a lightly loaded 390155 to take me to Stoke on Trent (just to save hanging around Euston for an extra 40 minutes for a 9-coach Pendo).

At Stoke on Trent it was a short walk over to the bay platform and onto 323205 for the speedy run to Macclesfield, departing ahead of a late running XC service and surprisingly didn’t get looped at Macclesfield for the XC to pass.  I had a gentle stroll towards Macclesfield bus station via a Tesco for some supplies and waited for the Aimee run route 109 for Leek with an old Solo (YK05 CCN) on a busy service.  It dropped a couple of passengers off near the football club at the southern end of the town, before following the A523 via some nice countryside and I left the bus in the village of Rushton Spencer where my walk began.

323205 at Stoke on Trent Station

The first section was along Station Lane to reach the old station (now a private house) and onto a section of old railway heading north west which is part of the Staffordshire Way.  The railway path ended at a road bridge close to the River Dane (the route continued but was heavily overgrown and is a dead-end since the railway bridge over the river is long gone).  I doubled back towards Rushton station, passing a pub and small car park to re-join the route of the old railway.  The car park had evidence of an old platform but it was overgrown and had vehicles parked so I couldn't get a decent photo nor investigate.

The second section of today's walk was leaving Rushton Spencer behind on a path which had a reasonable quality surface, not one to do during winter months as I suspect it would get muddy in places.  It was very woody, and soon I reached the northern edge of Rudyard Lake, a large body of water built to supply the Caldon Canal.  The path in this area was now mostly tarmac and quite busy with other visitors to this large lake, where the water level looked to be low due to exposed dried mud at the edge, the lake being hidden from view by trees but it was a delight to see it with gaps in the trees.

Rudyard Lake

My walk continued heading towards the southern edge of the lake, and I reached Hunthouse Wood Station on the narrow-gauge Rudyard Lake Steam Railway, a railway line which ran alongside the path towards the Dam at the southern edge of the lake.  Leaving the lakeside behind I soon reached Rudyard Station complete with a very busy steam service ready to depart and was soon back in the beautiful countryside.  The path took me towards the town of Leek, ending in the Westwood area of the town (the railway itself used to continue via a tunnel which has since been filled in).  The last section of the walk was via the suburbs to reach the town centre and the bus station.

The first available bus towards Hanley was the First run Route 18 service which follows the A53 via Endon & Stockton Brook to reach Stoke on Trent and Hanley Bus Station.  I had a gentle stroll towards Stoke on Trent station, relaxing before 390148 rolled in to take me to Euston with a trip on the Northern line with 51647 & 51648 to Waterloo where I managed to make a connection with a Salisbury service for 158890 & 159105 to take me back to Grateley to end a short-day trip to Staffordshire.  A walk worth doing for the scenery and a little steam train

Rudyard Station on the Rudyard Lake Steam Railway

 

.
16th August – Kenilworth Greenway

Another day where I changed my mind as originally, I was considering heading towards Wakefield to walk the Aire and Calder Navigation towards Castleford, but I decided to put that on ice (and a good thing I did considering the ECML fell over in the afternoon!)  I decided to change my plan for a short walk along the Kenilworth Greenway.  A walk where I was in two minds about doing due to the last couple of miles being a temporary route due to HS2 construction however even when the original route of the greenway gets put back, it won’t be the same as it used to be, for it will Never Be the Same Again (as Mel C once sang).

The day began with 159020 & 159016 to take me to Andover, stepping back onto 159006 on the Reading train.  At Reading I popped out of the station to grab some supplies for breakfast before taking a seat on a lightly loaded 221130 & 221125 on a rare 10 coach XC formation to Leamington Spa, where I made a fast walk to the bus stop for the Stagecoach run X17 service to take me to Kenilworth, as I didn’t noticed that the inbound for the next Nuneaton train had departed late from Coventry.

After detouring via a large Sainsburys to make use of the toilet, I headed towards the Castle Farm Leisure Centre to follow a path alongside the Finham Brook towards Abbey Fields.  Crossing Abbey Fields I detoured via the remains of the Abbey & the church before picking up the cycle path alongside the brook once more taking me to Kenilworth Common.  An area on my list to revisit on another trip (as part of an explore of the route towards Coventry via the University campus.  I reached the starting point of the greenway path, running alongside the railway near Kenilworth loop before branching away in a north western direction.

Remains of St Mary's Abbey, Kenilworth

 The first section was a bit urban, but once away from the housing the path soon opened out with countryside mixed with woodland.  A very busy path with cyclists, dog walkers, joggers for a sunny Sunday.  The old railway line path ends in Burton Green where the start of the HS2 related diverted temporary path, a path which has a decent surface and well-constructed fences as it weaves its way across some fields towards Balsall Common where Berkswell Station is located.  Not much in the way of viewing of HS2 itself (I think this section it is mostly going to be underground).  I made it to Berkswell station with plenty of time before the next London train.  One thing I will say is where the Birmingham bound platform has quite a lot of bench seats along the length of the platform, the Coventry bound platform has a couple small shelters but nothing else.

It was onto a reasonably busy 350407 & 350405 to take me to Rugby where I made a tight connection onto a late running Crewe service which was a quite busy winner 730227 & dud 730222 to take me to Nuneaton (a connection I wouldn’t have otherwise made had it not been running 5 minutes late, another 730 into my little book).  On seeing how busy that northbound service was I decided to turn down the next southbound LNR service (owing to the previous train running fast due to late running) and head towards Asda for a little potter.  I returned to the station to relax, turning down a Pendo from Manchester for 222601 from Stirling for my first taste of Lumo’s West Coast operation.

222601 at Nuneaton

I ended up (completely by chance) in the former 1st class coach which has been reseated with similar seats to the refurbished voyagers, managed to get a seat (reservation screens not working) with a ticket check soon after departure.  Arriving into Euston near enough on time, I saw the other coaches looked very busy judging by the numbers alighting from them, as I headed across to board 710378 on the next Watford service to take me to Willesden Junction where I made a swift connection onto 378231 on the next Clapham Junction take, even getting a seat near the back of the train.  All was going well until it terminated at Shepherd’s Bush for some unknown reason, making the platform very busy.  An already busy 377703 rolled in from Watford (complete with drunken kickball fans) soaking up some of the crowd (but even that left folk behind).  At Clapham Junction, it took a few minutes for the crowd to head down the stairs on P17 as I made my way to jump on the first available Waterloo train (better than hanging around Clapham Junction for longer than required), this turned out to be winner 701015.

At Waterloo, I made my slow way towards the 17:45 service formed of 159016, 159020 & 159011 to take me to Grateley to end the day trip to Warwickshire.  An enjoyable former railway line walk.  The Monday was a little restful red pen day scoring a trio of 701s & getting 701002 over ten miles after a visit to the dentist.  A quieter day to end the time away from work, allowing myself to catch up with admin & the many photos.  Those photos can be found on my Flickr *here*, thanks for reading, my final trip of August is planning to be an overnight trip to the North West.