24th – 26th January, Another trip to Merseyside & SWR bits

24^th – 26^th January, Another trip to Merseyside

This trip came about when the Branch Line Society announced their latest tour in conjunction with Merseyrail, an early farewell to the 507/8s covering the 7 terminals of the Merseyrail network in 7 hours.  It picked my interest as it covered the stock interchange line (between James Street & Central), plus did the rarer used platforms at West Kirby & New Brighton, the tour was reasonably priced, with reasonable prices charged for hotels in the area (selecting on a place near Bootle on grounds that it was close to the station) and the tickets from London were standard price.

Originally the idea was to be home on the Friday night, heading up to London on the Saturday, but I didn’t fancy the magical mystery tour via Staines, so I ended up making use of a Travelodge sale to book a night at the Travelodge in Hounslow, close to Hounslow Central LU station.

24^th January – South Western Railway land

With the Friday evening in London, I had several ideas, in the end deciding on a good clear-out of my remaining SWR stations within London, plus a little trip towards Effingham Junction as I needed a couple stations in that area, and it is slightly easier in the peak time (as off-peak the connections at Effingham Junction are a bit poor).

The day began with the 14:59 service from Grateley (158880, 159004 & 159012), running a few minutes late, to take me to Basingstoke, followed by 220027 for the run to Reading (managed to get a seat on this busy voyager), where I made a tight connection to 800311 on the London bound to take me to Paddington.  It was down to the Bakerloo with 3247/3547 taken to Waterloo (I had time to spare so didn’t bother changing at Baker Street, besides I had a seat).  Next up was over to platform 1 for a Dorking bound service (455710/455851) to take me to Epsom, this is one of the peak-time services which skips a couple stations between Raynes Park & Epsom, and I believe the first time I’ve gone south from Ewell West, the previous times I’ve come north.

A voyager at Reading

At Epsom, I stepped back a Horsham bound service, to board a Guildford bound Southern service (377302, 377325 & 377144) to take me to Bookham where my planned linear fester of 5 minutes turned into 20 minutes due to delays caused by congestion.  Eventually the Effingham Junction bound service (456023, 455905 & 455852) arrived to take me the one stop to Effingham Junction, where due to the timetable having a lot of padding arrived only 5 minutes late (timetabled to sit outside the station to allow a fast Portsmouth train to pass).  I managed to make the connection to the next Waterloo via Cobham service (455708 & 455706) which took me to Oxshott.

Thirty minutes later, the next Waterloo bound service arrived (455719 & 455714) which I took to Surbiton, where I bailed for the sole reason for needing the toilet.  Unusually this service went into platform 2, but lost time due to being stuck behind a late running stopper from Hampton Court, so I actually beat it to Clapham Junction with the service from Basingstoke (450092, 450003 & 450072).  At Clapham Junction I walked over to the Windsor line side, awaiting the next Windsor service (707022 & 707029) to take me to Feltham, giving me a chance to look at the new platform extensions over the former level crossing.  707021 & 707017 were up next to take me back to Whitton, returning to Feltham on 455729 & 455854.

No more short platforms at Feltham, a few months ago this was a level crossing

Next up was 707007 & 707008 to take me to Syon Lane (with a long walk between platforms due to the old entrance being upgraded with a lift), 707024 on its own back one stop to Isleworth, before 450099 & 450090 to Brentford and an extended fester before 707010 & 707025 took me to Hounslow, to complete SWR within the zones.  A gentle walk towards Hounslow town centre saw me swinging via a Tesco Express for some supplies, before checking into the Travelodge.  I was tempted to head back out for a little jolly to Heathrow but decided against it as the temperature was a bit chilly.

Overall a productive Friday, for station revisiting with my camera, the weather was kind with no rain, the Travelodge is reasonable, a bit of road noise but well located for the Piccadilly Line, with a few nearby bus routes.

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25^th January – Another day in Merseyside

The idea for today was to continue my station revisiting in Merseyside, focusing on the Northern line plus the Northern services served by DMUs which I couldn’t do a couple weeks ago due to engineering works.  It was a later start compared to previous weeks (booked on the 09:07 service from Euston), so I was out of the hotel for around 07:00, a short walk to Hounslow Central station before taking a seat on Piccadilly line set 173/242 for the run to Green Park, followed by 11061/11062 on the Victoria line to Euston.  At Euston I had time to visit Sainsburys to pick up breakfast, before waiting for the Liverpool train to start boarding.

London Underground at dawn

I took a seat in coach C on 390126, for this was booked on the mobile version of the old Virgin Trains website which didn’t have a seat selector, so it ignored my request for a table and put me into an airline aisle seat, and relaxed for the speedy run towards Lime Street, the train getting busy at Crewe due to a couple London Northwestern 350s running hopelessly late (I think one ended up being turned at Stafford, the next at South Parkway and another at Crewe).  Arrival at Lime Street was pretty much bang on time, allowing me time to pick up my lunch and also a Saveaway (making sure I got it from the Northern ticket office to avoid having to pay extra to put it on a smartcard).

First up was a TfW Rail service to take me to South Parkway, 158831, mainly to complete a bit more coverage of the TfW Rail network by TfW services (I believe from memory the only major bit outstanding is Wolverhampton to Crewe via Stafford), also this was to avoid overcrowding of the next stopper (due to the 350 starting from South Parkway).  At South Parkway I decided to head over to the Merseyrail platforms and took 507015 one stop to Hunts Cross, mainly for a time wasting move, before 150121 rolled in to take me to Hough Green.

A pair of 150s rush through Hunts Cross

A nice gentle interchange here, and onto a couple minute late running 150137 & 150144 to take me to Mossley Hill, where I broke into a fast walk, dodging the various broken paving stones and walked to West Allerton, these two stations are on that list of being underneath wires but only served by DMUs.  150135 & 150148 were up next to take me to Halewood where my fester was extended due to the next stopper running late (for it was held at Oxford Road for 10 minutes due to the late running EMR service from Nottingham to depart first).  A choice overheard comment that the train “was crowded” from a group when 150131 rolled in (yes it was busy, but barely a quarter full, they were unhappy the better seats had gone, leaving the airline seats with little legroom).  I bailed from this 150 at Hunts Cross, making my way over to the Merseyrail platform, where for ease of writing I will do my moves in a summary.

Station building at Aigburth

Hunts Cross -> Aigburth, 508117

Aigburth -> Brunswick: 508124

Brunswick -> Seaforth & Litherland: 507019 (little mileage boost for this sub mile unit)

Seaforth & Litherland -> Sandhills: 508120

Sandhills -> Kirkby: 508131

Kirkby -> Rainford: 150134 (where my fester was extended due to the next Kirkby service running late)

Rainford Station

Rainford -> Kirkby: 150275

Kirkby -> Rice Lane: 507004 (where I headed to the road for another fast walk)

Orrell Park -> Maghull: 507025

Maghull -> Old Roan: 508126 (The little tesco express nearby isn’t the easiest to reach!)

Old Roan -> Aughton Park: 507026

Aughton Park -> Town Green: 508115

Town Green -> Aughton Park: 508115

Aughton Park -> Moorfields: 507026

Moorfields -> Bootle Oriel Road: 507027

I left the network, to get myself checked into the hotel I selected, it was quite reasonable inside (a bit of money has clearly been spent on new carpets and other interior fittings), but the area wasn’t the nicest to walk around.  I had planned for 30 minutes, but it took me slightly longer as I wasn’t in any rush as I knew the two low mileage units were due to come back north.  Unlike the other lines which drop to 2tph after around 7pm, the Southport line keeps 4tph until the close of play.

Bootle Oriel Road -> Freshfield: 508124

Freshfield -> Formby: 507027

Formby -> Hillside: 507019

Hillside -> Ainsdale: 508117

Ainsdale -> Birkdale: 507015 (last Merseyrail served station to revisit!)

Birkdale -> Southport: 507012

Southport -> Meols Cop: 150116 (last Merseyside Northern station to revisit, easier this time of night

Meols Cop -> Southport: 150273 & 150108

Southport -> Waterloo: 508123

Waterloo -> Hall Road: 508124

Hall Road -> Bootle Oriel Road: 508120

And on arrival at Bootle Oriel Road, it was a gentle walk back to the hotel, where I put my phone on charge, backed up the many photographs over WiFi, had a nice shower and relaxed for the remainder of the evening.  Reflecting on a very productive day clearing Merseyrail and also the Northern stations covered by the Saveaway.  3 more units also were cleared for ten miles which was a nice bonus.

Bootle Oriel Road, behind the lift tower is the overgrown North Mersey Line towards Aintree (and lines towards the docks)

26^th January – BLS Merseyrail Overground & Underground Explorer

The day began with the first southbound service from Bootle Oriel Road, formed of 507027 to take me to Liverpool Central, where I discovered a Sainsburys Local located pretty much outside, so that saved me a walk to Tesco Express.  I headed to the Wirral line platform, turning down the first couple services, boarding 507023 to take me to Birkenhead North, where the tour was starting from (using the rarely used platform 1).

Retirement party for 508134!

I was in coach A, and other than coach letters it was a free for all, so I ended up in the aisle seat of a bay (giving both myself and the quiet person sat opposite legroom).  Soon to be retired* 508134 and 507001 were the two units heading out on tour today. (*this unit run out of time before needing an exam, which isn’t being authorised by Merseytravel due to the 777s, today was the last day in service).  The train departed heading towards Liverpool, the first stop being Lime Street to pick up remaining passengers, before a spirited run towards Chester, pausing at Hooton for a photo stop (also for a pathing stop as it had caught up with the previous Chester service).  Onwards to Chester, where it was a visit to the toilets and a reversal back to Hooton, before another reversal saw the train head to Ellesmere Port, the doors not being released due to limited time allowed.

507001 was leading the train back towards Hooton, and then for a nice non-stop run towards the city centre, and after the tunnel under the Mersey took the connection towards platform 2 at James Street, and continued towards Liverpool Central via the Stock interchange line, a little highlight for me.  A brief pause on platform 2 at Liverpool Central, before it was a trip to Hunts Cross, crossing over before the station to use platform 2 (on the main-line, rather than the bay), before another quick reversal before going underneath the city and out to Kirkby.

508134 at Liverpool Central Platform 2

Another quick reversal at Kirkby, and it was a trip to the Sandhills reversing siding and a run to Southport, where we caught up with the previous Southport bound service around Freshfield.  A well earnt lunch break was had at Southport before it was back onto the units for a trip back towards the Sandhills Reversing Siding and a trip to Ormskirk to complete the Northern Line.  Back towards Liverpool and as the tour train was put out in front of a Hunts Cross service at Sandhills junction which meant some confusion during the reversal at Liverpool Central to head back to James Street and onto the Wirral lines, and onward to West Kirby using platform 2.  Another reversal took the tour back to Birkenhead North, pausing beyond the station to reverse, passing the station once more to head to New Brighton (using platform 1).  One final reversal saw the tour arrive back at Birkenhead North, into platform 1, pretty much 7 hours after departing.

When I booked this trip, I decided to book on the 19:47 service to Euston, mainly because it was cheaper than the 18:47 service, and mainly because the 18:47 service didn’t really give a nice connection to a diverted 159 (IIRC it gave 16 minutes, which is doable if the train is on time, but would mean a fast walk, sadly going via Reading wasn’t an option as the connection at Basingstoke was poor).  With being on the 19:47 it gave me a chance to see what units was floating around on the Chester/Ellesmere Port services, so it was a busy 507007 to Hamilton Square, where I noticed a low mileage 507 on the Ellesmere Port bound, working out it would be clear for ten miles with Green Lane to Lime Street, so it gave me some flexibility.  Onwards to James Street (via the loop) on 507029, followed by another spin around the loop on 508128 before 507030 took me to Rock Ferry where I had a +3 to board low mileage 507009 for the run to Lime Street, taking me needs to 3x 507 & 4x508s, as I’m back in the area in April hopefully it should narrow some more of these down before they get retired.

507001 at Southport

Anyhow, back to Lime Street, it was time for some dinner, before boarding a lightly loaded 390044 for the run back to London, it only really got busy at Crewe.  At Waterloo I decided not to mess around with Thameslink tonight, and went straight to the underground with 51702/51508 taken to Waterloo, where I made use of some spare time to pick up some tickets for future travels (with the appearance of one of those TVM scammers who “needs a couple quid” to get home [where they bring up the ticket they want in the hope someone gives them money, only to cancel the transaction to pocket the money], sadly mate I don’t think a 1-6 travelcard at 23:15 is the most wise ticket to try and select.  At least be blunt and ask for money, rather than trying to scam it from other people.  Anyhow rant over, and the units for the 23:47 arrived, with 159107 & 159102 taking me home, arriving around 01:38 due to the service going via Staines, and also being that oddity which calls at Farnborough & Fleet.

Needless to say on the Monday, I was a bit of a zombie in the afternoon when at work, the tour was worth it for the novelty of going non-stop through many of the Merseyrail stations, plus the non-preferred platforms and the stock interchange line on a cheap railtour.  Also a nice way to say an early farewell to the old Merseyrail stock before they slowly disappear when the new stock comes into full service.

Not the best time to be arriving home on a work-night!

17th January - 19th January. SWR stuff, Manchester & Cambridgeshire

17th January - 19th January.  SWR stuff, Manchester & Cambridgeshire

17^th January – The Road to Stockport

I decided to have a little trip to Manchester on the 18^th January, as usual I booked up a room on the Friday night in the Stockport Travelodge and booked a cheap seat on the 20:40 service from Euston towards Manchester, this gave me a few hours to play with within London, a good chance to revisit some more SWR stations I needed for photographs.   After finishing work, and getting home it was a gentle walk to the station for the 14:59 service to take me to Woking, 158885, 159008 & 159004 formed this 8 coach service.

I had a tight (and very unofficial) connection at Woking to board a pair of 450s from Alton (450032 & 450050) for the single stop to West Byfleet, followed by a short wait for the Woking – Waterloo stopper (455860 & 455920) to take me to Surbiton, West Byfleet was a bonus station score as it saves me a job for another day.  At Surbiton it was a visit to the toilets, before heading over to board the Hampton Court train (455739, 455903 & 456011) for the 2 mile trip onto the Hampton Court branch to visit Thames Ditton.  20 minutes later the same triple set returned from Hampton Court to take me towards Raynes Park, for a platform swap to board a Kingston loop service.

450050 (back to its original number after being 450550) departs West Byfleet

A roundabout under a little 2 arch bridge at Thames Ditton

This service (456014, 455901 & 455723) took me just over five miles back into zone 6 and to Teddington, where I crossed over the footbridge to board the next “Via Wimbledon” service (456010, 455866 & 455868) a couple stops to Kingston, followed a few minutes later with the next service to Norbiton (455863 & 455715).  This station has had barriers fitted since the last time I was here and you can no longer cross between platforms without having to exit the “paid” area, also the subway is still in Stagecoach colours.  Sadly this is when my rough plan went a bit wrong as the next Shepperton service was running a few minutes late.

Stagecoach lives on at Norbiton

 Eventually the Shepperton service arrived (707006 & 707005) to take me to Fulwell but the connection was lost, I did have an idea to walk to the nearby bus stop to take a bus to Twickenham, but the bus I was hoping to catch either didn’t exist, was running late or running early, so it was back to the station to fester before the next Waterloo service arrived (455741 & 455735).  This took me to Earlsfield for a short wait before the next service (455870 & 455750) to take me into Waterloo, keeping one eye on the time I decided to call it a night, swinging via Tesco outside the station for dinner, before taking the Northern Line (51570/51571) to Euston, and festering around the top of the ramp where the 20:40 were depart from, being one of the first to board 390123 for the run to Stockport via Crewe.

After-all the only run on a Pendo which beats non-stop to Crewe is non-stop to Warrington, although the service did lose some time along the way so was around 5 minutes late into Stockport, and 5 minutes after arriving I was checking into the hotel to relax and sleep.  A handful of SWR stations visited on a quiet evening.

One good thing at staying in the Stockport Travelodge is passing the magnificent Stockport Viaduct

18^th Jan – Greater Manchester Day

The idea I had when I threw together a rough plan for today was to revisit several stations I needed for photographs within the Greater Manchester PTE area, the ticket I would be using is the GM Rail Ranger product (one reason why I selected Stockport instead of Macclesfield as both places were the same price).  I checked out of the Travelodge, popped into the 24 hours McDonalds for breakfast and headed to the station, buying my rover from the TVM before heading up to await the first Manchester bound service.

A very quiet (and required) 331002 rolled in from Hazel Grove to take me to Salford Crescent, not enough to push this 331 straight over ten miles, but 8 miles is better than 0.  I crossed over to the opposite platform to board 156459 for the mile leap to Salford Central, mainly for a time wasting move before 150116 arrived for the trip to Kearsley.  A station stuck in time, all be it with shelters with the sides smashed out, there was even a sign saying “British Rail” by the entrance at the road side.  This is one of those stations which are under wires but served only by diesels (I believe), but this is the time of day there is a random call on a Rochdale service from Blackburn, so it was onto 142036 & 158845 for the trip via Manchester Victoria to Castleton.

British Rail lives at Kearsley!

15 minutes (or so) later (time I spent by popping to a nearby Co-Op to waste time), the pacer + sprinter combo returned from Rochdale to take me one stop back towards Manchester to Mills Hill where my plan was to wait for the unit from Leeds which has a random additional call here, but the next Rochdale bound service was running 5 minutes late which allowed me to make the connection, with 142055 & 158791 to the bay platform, sadly it was a bit of a waste as the next Leeds stopper got cancelled at Manchester Victoria due to staff shortage so I had a longer fester here before the Blackburn bound service rolled in, with 150120 & 150143 taken to Littleborough.

The end of Greater Manchester, beyond lies dragons!

The platform to platform change at Littleborough isn’t the easiest to do on a tight connection, but I made it to the opposite platform in plenty of time before a Wigan bound 150141 rolled up to take me across Manchester to Atherton where I had to jump across the platform in a hurry to board 150277 which had just arrived from Kirkby to take me to the hourly served Moorside (brings back memories of hanging around here in November 18 awaiting for a late running bus to take me to Clifton).  A short connection here at Moorside before 150128 rolled in to take me back to Atherton, this time I could take a few pictures before 150123 popped up to take me to Daisy Hill.  Another short fester (enough time to pop out of the station for some pictures) before 150141 returned from Wigan to take me to Manchester Victoria.  My original plan was to bail at Salford for a Hazel Grove bound service but that was running late, and besides I was now ahead of my rough idea [due to making the tight connection at Moorside].

The canopy at Atherton

A very crowded 185106 took me around the curve to Manchester Oxford Road where I had a couple options to visit a couple stations I needed on the airport line, either East Didsbury or Heald Green, on looking at RTT highlighted the train from Blackpool which would call at Heald Green was running late and would likely miss the connection to the Liverpool train at the airport, I decided to do East Didsbury first, so it was onto 175101 bumping into two very dodgy characters at Piccadilly (*Waves at Stu & Paul*).  We alighted at East Didsbury for a short fester before winner 195114 arrived from Liverpool to take us to Manchester Airport for a short fester for the Blackpool train to arrive.  Well the good news was it arrived and was a pair of required 331s, but the bad news is that the call at Heald Green had been removed due to late running (we will ignore the fact that it lost a couple more minutes after the Airport due to being behind the Liverpool 195), so it was onto 331016 & 331001 for the non-stop (ish) run to Piccadilly.  I ditched Heald Green as that could wait for another day as I had spotted something else I could do which would save time for another visit.

After grabbing lunch and saying a quick farewell to Stu & Paul, it was onto the New Mills Central bound service, with 150134 taken to Ryder Brow.  The weather was nice and so I had a gentle walk to Reddish North, coming across the Fallowfield Loop cycle path along the way.  At Reddish North it was a short wait for a busy 150126 to take me to Romiley, where I switched platforms to wait for 150106 to arrive from Rose Hill to take me one stop to Woodley.  Another platform change and it was onto 150133 to Rose Hill Marple, and after a quick photograph it was back on the same unit for the run to Gorton.  A short fester here before 150106 returned from Piccadilly to take me to Guide Bridge, where I crossed platforms to board 150274 to Fairfield.  When I first did this station back in December 2015, the timetable gave a very tight connection at this hourly served station (something like a plus 1), thankfully the connection has increased to give me a chance to look at the reduced station, evidence of the former platforms for the extra lines still in existence, but it wasn’t long before 150133 returned to take me to Guide Bridge.

Fairfield, a bit bleak and featureless

 Time to say farewell to the diesels, and hello to the electrics, I was still half an hour ahead of my rough plan so this allowed me to tick off a bonus station with 323235 taken to Broadbottom, crossing the footbridge to board 323229 (first experience of a refurbished 323, seems to be a decent job) to Newton for Hyde.  Back to the Hadfield bound platform and for a short wait for 323225 to arrive to take me to Hadfield, before remaining on board via the reversal at Glossop to Dinting.  323229 returned to take me back to Glossop where I confused the barrier staff at wanting to exit and return a short while later (sadly the Co-Op which was outside the station a few years ago is now a B&M).  323229 returned from Hadfield to take me to Piccadilly where it was time to grab dinner.  I was going to linear hop to Stockport, but on noticing the crowds of kickball fans I decided to take my seat on 390126 nice and early.  Back to London via Crewe, the idea when I booked this train was that it gave a nice connection to the 22:20 Salisbury at London (or even the 21:50), but due to the engineering works, like the previous week I booked a room at the Croydon Travelodge to avoid the crawl via Staines.

At London, it was a short walk to St Pancras, getting lucky with the first southbound service being both for Croydon (Gatwick Airport terminator) and being a low mileage unit, 700052.  I took this 700 all the way to East Croydon, walked to the Travelodge, and relaxed in the room, reflecting on a productive day in Greater Manchester.  Yes I lost out on Heald Green but I gained Ryder Brow & Broadbottom which means those lines are cleared [just need New Mills Central plus a couple towards Sheffield].  On balance Heald Green is easier to do than Ryder Brow (3tph instead of 1tph), and can be planned for a GM Wayfarer day later in the year.

150106 at Guide Bridge, no Northern logos.

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19^th January – A Trip to Cambridgeshire

I had a few ideas what I could do on this Sunday, in the end deciding on a trip to Cambridgeshire to revisit the stations I needed on the Hitchin – Cambridge branch, the weather was sunny (but a bit chilly) which was a nice bonus as I had a couple long festers.  The day began at East Croydon with 700115 taken to London Bridge where it terminated, meaning it was to the Northern line to carry on my trip to Kings Cross (51525/51717).  I arrived with time to spare to look at the engineering works and to notice the dreaded words “formed of 4 coaches” for the first Cambridge train from Kings Cross...

Needless to say when 387125 did roll in a few minutes late, it was a free for all, I ended up in first class as it was the door I was at, and considering it was standing all down the aisle it was probably declassified, absolutely hopeless at providing a single unit for the first train.  Anyhow it was a speedy run north to Cambridge where the train emptied out (and I shifted to standard class) and the unit continued to Waterbeach.  The level crossing was being worked on and the platform extensions to allow 8 coach units to call are coming along well, and it was back to Cambridge on 387129, where it was time to change to a stopper.

Trains at Cambridge

387116 was on the next Kings Cross stopper which I took to Meldreth for a nice hour fester, not a lot around the station itself, but the sun was out and I had a book to read, the time passed before low mileage 700054 was up next to take me to Ashwell &Morden for another gentle fester, interrupted by passing trains (as the ECML was closed there was an hourly LNER & additional Hull/GC services passing).  Next up was 700017 to take me to Foxton where I had a nice gentle walk to Shepreth, returning on 700017 to Baldock.

A 180 passing Ashwell & Morden

A busy 700145 was up next (a Hull Trains service had terminated at Cambridge due to late running, so everybody transferred to this 700), which took me one stop to Letchworth Garden City, for a short fester before low mileage 700024 rolled in from the sidings (starting from Letchworth instead of Peterborough) to take me to Stevenage, where progress on the new platform 5 was coming along well.  A low mileage 717018 took me one stop to Watton at Stone where I got bowled out with the next train being cancelled (it made it to Hertford North but got turned around due to no driver), and Watton isn’t the best station to hang around due to the poor seats in the shelter.  Eventually winner 717015 arrived to take me to Stevenage, transferring onto low mileage 700018 to take me a few stops to Hatfield, stepping back to winner 717003 for the trip to Finsbury Park.

At Finsbury Park it was down to the Victoria Line with 11053/11054 taken to Oxford Circus, with 3567/3265 taken to Paddington, where I had a few options to reach Reading.  I decided on 800021 & 800012 for the run to Reading, and a short transfer onto 158885 working the Salisbury train to take me back to Grateley.

Overall a productive day, Kings Cross to Waterbeach is now cleared for station photographs, I just need two stations between Hitchin & Peterborough, plus everything Ely – Kings Lynn, a few more 700s into my book for mileage, plus mileage boosts for a couple 717s, other than the delays and the overcrowding of the first Cambridge it was a nice day.  Some pictures are below

800104 passing Foxton

A Hull bound 802 passes Foxton

A 387 & 180 passing Shepreth

11th January – A trip to Liverpool & 12th January - London

11^th January – A trip to Liverpool

For my first overnight long distance trip of the year, I decided to head to Liverpool, mainly for the idea of hunting down my last few 507/508 units for mileage as they will soon be departing.  What I didn’t notice at the time of booking that I picked a weekend where the Northern line services were pretty much out of use due to engineering works (doh!)

I arrived into Liverpool on the Friday night, and as I was booked on the 18:33 departure (same price as for the 21:0X service) all I did in London was stepping back at Woking for some 442 based noise, some Northern line and 390050 to Liverpool, with a gentle walk to the Easy Hotel in Liverpool city centre (near James Street station).  The hotel was quite reasonable, certainly one I would use again if the price was right.

It was an early start for me, as I walked to Lime Street (via McDonalds for breakfast) before boarding the first Wigan bound service, formed of 331111 to Garswood for around a 25 minute fester (I could have caught a 319 on a stopper, but decided I wanted some speed).  The time passed and 331111 had returned from Wigan to take me a couple stops to Thatto Heath.  This is when my rough plan changed as originally I was going to have a thirty minute fester here (it’s the station where the Wigan stoppers pass at), but noticed on Google Maps there was a potential bus move to Rainhill, which would save some time.  Over to the bus stop with a route 10A double decker Stagecoach service (Bus 15564) for the short trip to Rainhill.

Garswood at 6am... Quite Quiet!

The bus was running late, but so was the Liverpool bound service so I made the connection onto 319367 for the short leap to Whiston, changing platforms for winner 331107 to take me the 4 miles to St Helens Junction and a short fester.  Next up was 323232 to take me to Lea Green where I turned down a 68 in exchange for waiting for 331107 to return from Warrington so I could push it over ten miles, easily done by Edge Hill.  Plenty of chances in the future to score 68s on Lea Green leaps, but for me is was back a couple stops to Broad Green on 319381 before heading to Lime Street on 319386, which clears the Liverpool – Wigan & Liverpool – Manchester via Chat Moss for station photographs, and with engineering works around Hunts Cross there was nothing towards South Parkway (why Northern couldn’t run a half hourly shuttle between South Parkway & Lime Street to give those two stations a service, and have the replacement bus starting from South Parkway is a bit of a mystery).

195127 passing Edge Hill on an ECS from Blackpool

Anyhow with Northern dealt with, it was time to head underground where luck was with me as I caught 508115 to Birkenhead Central, followed with 507004 to Green Lane.  I noticed one unit on Chester services was running around 7 minutes late so I decided to gamble that it would run fast on its return so ignored the existence. 508143 took me to Bromborough with 508117 taken back to Spital (a good decision as that Chester train ran fast from Liverpool Central to Hooton!).  Next up was a low mileage 507026 which I took to Hooton (for it was Ellesmere Port bound), before 507024 took me to Bache to complete the Chester line.  A short wait for this unit to return from Chester to take me back to Lime Street where I went off in search of lunch, but first my eye was taken by a 331 on the Blackpool bound.

507010 at Bromborough

For some reason when I scored 331005 last October I didn’t remove the number from my needs list, so I was thinking “winner” as I made use of the toilet and plug socket for the fast run to St Helens Central, returning to Lime Street on 319375.  I was keeping my eye out for the northbound Wigan service and noticed it was a 319 ending with a 1, and with 381 somewhere in the Crewe area I decided it was worth a gamble (as I only needed one more Northern 319 for 10 miles, that was 319361).  Also when running in towards Liverpool we passed a stopper from Crewe which was a required 331, so once back at Lime Street, and after lunch it was back towards St Helens Central on winner 331112.  I bailed at Eccleston Park to intercept that 319, so not quite enough to push this 331 over ten miles, but my luck was with me as low mileage 319361 rolled in from Wigan to take me back to Lime Street.  I was quite happy with getting this 319 as it means I no longer have to keep my eyes peeled for the Northern 319s, especially as they are slowly going off-lease.

319361 at Lime Street, last 319/3 for mileage :)

Next up for me was a trip back underground, this time focusing on the Birkenhead North lines, first up was a Chester bound 508115 which I took to James Street, followed by 507006 to the island platform of Birkenhead Park.  A few minutes later 507002 arrived to take me to Leasowe, where for a time wasting move I headed to Bidston on 507014 to intercept the next West Kirby service.  This was formed of 507013 which I took to Moreton (Merseyside), returning once again on 508120 to Bidston for I managed to make the tight connection.  Next up was a low mileage 507011 which I took to Manor Road, changing over platforms to board 507013 again, for another single station leap to Meols.  507014 had returned from the city centre to take me to Hoylake where it was another tight connection onto the return of 507011 to take me to Birkenhead North, the run being enough to push this 507 over ten miles.  The West Kirby/New Brighton lines had been covered for stations to photograph, but there were still two more units on New Brighton services I hadn’t identified.

507013 departs Meols, new lifts not yet working

The next New Brighton was 508137 which I took to Wallasey Grove Road for a nice connection onto low mileage 507030 which needed a run to Conway Park to push it over ten miles, after going around the city centre loop.  At Birkenhead North I managed to ID that the 4^th unit was also low mileage so that was something to try and intercept later, but for now it was a return to Bidston on 508120, before boarding my first Transport for Wales Rail service of the year, in the shape of 150262 for the short run to Neston, as I was in this area it would be foolish not to pay up the extra couple quid to photograph this station.  With 20 minutes before the northbound service to arrive, it was plenty of time to visit Sainsburys (and Tesco) for dinner returning to the station for 150236 to arrive from Wrexham, to take me back to Bidston.

Neston Station, not a lot to see around here

The rain which had been threatening most of the day had finally arrived for the short leap to Birkenhead Park with 507013, crossing over to board 508128 for the run to New Brighton, waiting 10 minutes before the same unit took me to Lime Street.  Sadly not enough time to grab a photograph of Moorfields to clear the Wirral lines, but that can wait for a couple weeks’ time when I return for a BLS tour.  I was booked on the 18:47 service to London, and when I booked this trip, it was to give a reasonable connection to the 22:20 service home (or even the 21:50), but after booking I noticed it was a weekend of engineering works, and when in theory I could have made the revised 21:47 departure towards Salisbury (or worked out a plan to go via Reading), I decided to stay overnight, picking up a bargain of a room in Croydon.  Anyhow back to Lime Street as I took my seat on the repainted 390155, this was a busy train (Brighton were playing away to Everton in the kickball, so the booze was in free flow).  An uneventful trip to London, gaining the fast lines for the 2-track section which made an early arrival into Euston, no ticket check (other than the pre-boarding check at Liverpool), and at Euston I went for a little walk across to St Pancras (deciding that going via Victoria for Croydon would probably be busy!) [Also walking to St Pancras and going via Thameslink is cheaper].

I had a short wait once I arrived at St Pancras for the first East Croydon bound service, first up was a low mileage 700053 which I took for a short run to London Bridge, giving the unit an extra 3 and a bit miles (every little helps as they say), and I scored lucky with the first service, a Horsham bound 700120 for the speedy run to East Croydon.  A gentle walk to the Travelodge to check in and relax after a productive day, scoring 4 of my Merseyrail PEPs was better than expected, plus my last Northern 319, along with a couple more 331s.

Rainham bound 700053 waits time at London Bridge

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12^th January – A London Sunday

As I was in Croydon on the Saturday, it gave me a few ideas what to do, deciding a day on London Overground for my last LO stations (all located on the lines out of Liverpool Street), plus a random jolly out Kent way to photograph a couple of the stations I needed between Dartford & Gravesend.

The day begins at East Croydon station, thankfully a bit later than first planned as RTT wasn’t showing the London Bridge terminating Thameslink services (so it would have been a stopper), the first 700 wasn’t of interest, neither was 700105, but I took it anyway.  Unusually the train terminated in platform 4, which probably meant I scored a crossover at the southern end of the station, I was expecting them to use the Southern bays.  For a time wasting move I jumped on 375628 to Waterloo East, returning to London Bridge on 465034/465020 before making my way across to platform 2 where the first (from London) Thameslink service towards Rainham was waiting.  A low mileage 700055 for the long trip out towards Kent and Swanscombe, where it was a ten minute wait for 376013/376027 to take me to Northfleet, yes a pair of the Metro 376s had escaped London on a Gravesend service!

That building certainly has improved since I was last here!

 Another short wait here, before 700006 arrived to take me to Dartford, where I crossed over to the opposite platform to board 465152 & 465033 on the Cannon Street service, only as far as Woolwich Arsenal, where I transferred to the DLR for something a little bit different.  Worth noting that the totem at Dartford by the roadside had the old “Overground Network” logo uncovered, a throwback to history that.  I managed to get a seat at the back of this DLR service for the run to Limehouse, where I crossed over to the C2C station for photograph.  357316 was up first to take me to Barking, where I spotted 710105 on the Gospel Oak bound, a short wait before 357326 arrived to take me passed the building site for the new flyover for Barking Riverside line, to Dagenham Dock.  A short wait here before 357315 arrived from Grays to take me to West Ham, where I transferred to the Jubilee line with 96073/96006 taken to Stratford.

The first Liverpool Street bound service was 345009, so I took that to Liverpool Street, transferring over to the London Overground platforms.  A bit of a shock at seeing a 8 coach set out on a Sunday with 315807 leading 315831 for the short run to Bethnal Green, stepping back a train for 315803 for the run to St James Street (requiring use of a parachute due to the large step!)  Crossing over to the opposite platform at a station I suspect I will be using a few times when the 710s start operating from Liverpool Street, for 315817 to take me to Clacton, and over to the opposite platform for the former TfL Rail 315836 to take me all the way to the end at Chingford.  After a brief turnaround it was back on the same unit to Highams Park where I visited a nearby Tesco for lunch during my 15 minute break (note to self, don’t buy the BBQ Pulled Pork wrap as they are a bit messy to eat).

"Wait this isn't the line to Shenfield"

Back at the station, and 315811 took me to Walthamstow Central to clear the Chingford branch, and it was to the underground with 11011/11012 taken to Seven Sisters.  This is when my plan changed as the next Liverpool Street service was running 6 minutes late (as I had planned for a gentle 10 minute walk between stations, but with the delay it would be too tight for comfort.  315812 eventfully arrived to take me to Rectory Road, returning to Stoke Newington on 315811.  315808 was up next to take me to London Fields, where I had a gentle walk along the road to reach Cambridge Heath, which clears London Overground for stations for photographs (woohoo!).  315815 was up next to take me to Hackney Downs, where I had another gentle walk to Hackney Central for the next Hackney Wick bound service.  Due to engineering works, the North London Line services were terminating at Hackney Wick, so by boarding 378203 it allowed me to score the crossover between Homerton &  Hackney Wick to arrive on the “wrong” platform [to quote some other passengers who were a bit confused].

Not the train to Stratford

With a few hours before I wanted to head home, I took a seat back on 378203 for the run to Highbury & Islington; the next East London Line service wasn’t of interest so I decided to head to the Northern City Line platforms for some 717 hunting/mileage building.  First up was 707012 which I took to New Southgate, returning to Essex Road on winner 717013, crossing over to the opposite platform got me 717020 which I took for the 5 mile run to Bowes Park, returning to Finsbury Park on winner 717018.  3 more 717s ticked off, although not for ten miles, but due to the weekend timetable it is quite hard due to the passing points of the half hourly services.  Every little helps I say, and the plug socket gave my phone a good charge, but as I was in need of a toilet, it was a handy Gatwick bound 700135 at Finsbury Park to my rescue.  This unit would be cleared for ten miles by Norwood Junction, but I decided to stay on to East Croydon as there were more options (as I know from experience some of the Southern Brighton services on Sundays can be formed of 377/3s).

717018 waits time at Finsbury Park

Sadly no such luck for me today (the one from Brighton was indeed a 377/3+377/3+377/4 combo, but neither 3 were off interest), as I called it a day with 377161/377122 from East Grinstead (always a worth hanging back for as these tend to be quieter with less luggage).  Onwards to London Victoria, with the walk to the Victoria Line reminding me how much I dislike this station.  11093/11094 took me to Oxford Circus, transferring to 3554/3266 for the run to Paddington, arriving nice and early for my few options to take me to Reading to intercept the Salisbury service.   Sadly my remaining 802/0 had no allocations, so it was onto 800007 & 800032 for the run to Reading, and onto 158890 for the run to Grateley, the unit only getting very busy at Basingstoke.

A productive day in London, London Overground is cleared, with a trio of C2C stations cleared and a trio of South Eastern stations also photographed.  Some more mileage was gained on some 717s, plus a couple more 700s pushed over ten miles.  As sad as it seems, but I suspect 315815 would be my last 315 move for a fair while.

Doing Staines Avoidance Moves has certainly gotten easier!