Trips in November 2022

Trips in November 2022

6^th November – London in the rain

The weather forecast was a bit rubbish this entire weekend so any ideas I had for walks got put on hold, however with the Saturday meant mostly at home on the laptop, I headed out to the station for the first London train to take me towards Clapham Junction, where I changed for a busy pair of 450s to Richmond to change over to the Overground (as it has been a while since I last did an Overground from Richmond).

 

My idea for today was to hunt down some of my Overground units needed for ten miles, so I spent the next hour or so pinging back & forth before ending up at Gospel Oak where the trains were terminating due to engineering works.  I did a little ping on the Gospel Oak – Barking line, landing on outright required 710272 which I took all the way to Barking to clear it for ten miles, before changing to a busy pair of 357s to Fenchurch Street.

 

710272 in the bay at Barking

 

The subway giving access to the entrance close to Tower Hill Underground was closed (the signs said for flooding) so for the first time I exited Fenchurch Street station by the main entrance, and due to the sunshine, I decided to walk to London Bridge station to meet up with Dan for it was time to head to the Elizabeth line as today was the day it was joined together.  A Thameslink service took us to Farringdon where we had a short wait before a Heathrow train took us to Acton Rain Line where the sunshine an hour earlier had been replaced with pouring rain.

 

345068 departs Acton Rain Line

 

We crossed over to the opposite platform to take the next Abbey Wood train, changing at Paddington low level for a Gidea Park service to tick off the new section between Whitechapel & Stratford.  Another change saw the first service we boarded sent towards Liverpool Street high level when it failed to change signalling systems, but the next Paddington train was right behind which took us to Whitechapel where I said farewell to Dan and headed to the District line for a district line service to West Ham.

 

My original idea was to head towards Laindon & Basildon for some unusual track, but I decided to ditch that, as I took a C2C service to Barking.  A little time-wasting spin to Upney before I took a 710 to Wansted Park, spotting a low mileage 710 on the Barking bound so I took up a seat and waited for it to return (as the next Gospel Oak train wasn’t needed for anything).  I took this 710 to Upper Holloway, pushing it over ten miles.  After exiting the station, I made my way up the hill (swinging via Tesco for some dinner) to reach Archway underground station for the Northern line to Waterloo.

 

At Waterloo I took a seat on the 17:45 service to Salisbury which took me to Grateley, the end of a nice little day in London.  A short social meet-up with a good friend and some Overground hunting and covering the new track on Crossrail/Elizabeth line.

 

159017 at London Waterloo

 

 

12^th November – West Yorkshire (Day 1)

 

I had booked a room in a place in Dewsbury for the Saturday night and managed to get reasonably priced advances on LNER to take me to & from West Yorkshire for my weekend getaway for November.  The weather forecast was looking good which is always a nice bonus as it allowed me to look up options for a walk, although what I had planned [Rochdale Canal] didn’t work out as I had a change of heart.

 

The day for me started with the 05:24 service from Grateley (as I didn’t fancy paying £50+ for a hotel room in the London area), with a pair of 159s taken for the run to Waterloo, where after grabbing food [for both breakfast and something for lunch] I headed towards Kings Cross [mixing it up with the jubilee to Baker Street followed by the metropolitan line].  I was booked on the 08:03 service to Leeds, with 91130 hauling the Mk4 coaches.  First time I’ve seen the new colours and they look quite good in daylight.

 

91130 at London Kings Cross

 

A couple hours of bouncing later I alighted from the Mk4 at Leeds and headed towards a 195 for Chester.  This train got extremely busy so by Bradford after noticing it called at Low Moor, I decided enough is enough and jumped off at Low Moor.  I was going to do the walk I had planned for the Sunday, walking along the former Spen Valley Line which led towards Dewsbury via Oakenshaw, Cleckheaton, Liversedge & Heckmondwike.  It was a tarmacked path, bit woody in places and well used.  It was easy to reach from Low Moor station due to having an entry point from the Halifax bound platform, although the stations along the way have all but disappeared, no remains of platforms.

 

In Heckmondwike I turned off the Spen Valley Greenway onto the Spen Valley Ringway, which uses the trackbed of the former “Leeds New Line”.  The first section was a bit overgrown before reaching tarmac around the Heckmondwike Cutting, I followed this path to the end at Royds Park around Liversedge.  I dropped south to join the Spen Valley Greenway to walk that section again, carrying on via Dewsbury Country Park.  I carried on over the River Calder, underneath the main railway line and walked to the end of the Greenway path as it dropped down onto the Calder & Hebble Navigation.  I did a U-turn to walk back towards the junction with the A644 and followed the “Calder Valley Greenway” path to reach Dewsbury town centre with a short walk to the station.

 

Spen Valley Ringway in Heckmondwike Cutting

After a short break, an 802 took me to Huddersfield where I popped out of the station for some supplies from the nearby Tesco, returning for 68029 hauling the Mk5 coaches for a trip to Garforth, returning to Huddersfield on winner 68022 and a short wait before a very busy pair of 185s to Dewsbury, where I went towards my accommodation in a pub to get checked in.  A glance earlier at RTT saw only one required LNER Azuma floating around later that night, however issues on the ECML meant it was a bit chaotic so that plan went into the bin.

 

I got back to Dewsbury station after checking in, and was considering going towards Brighouse, but the 2 coach 158 which rolled in looked very busy, so took a 3 coach 158 on the train from Wigan to Leeds, along the way I noticed a 195 was on another Wigan – Leeds train, so at Leeds I made a tight connection to a 3 coach 195 on a Manchester service, being surprised that I managed to get a seat (all be in the front coach), and I took this to Hebden Bridge.

 

195133 at Hebden Bridge

 

A short wait at Hebden and 195128 rolled in from Wigan which took me back to Leeds, solely to tick off the route via Brighouse for 195 coverage (not like I had anything better to do).  At Leeds it was a short wait before a 2 coach 195 was on the next train towards Dewsbury [next TPE wasn’t due for 45 minutes as TPE had started to collapse].  This was quite busy, but I got a seat for the run to Dewsbury where I headed towards the pub, to relax for the remainder of the evening, spending time looking at the maps to decide what I could do on the Sunday.

 

13^rd November – West Yorkshire (Day 2)

 

The day began with a freshly cooked breakfast (yum yum) before I headed out of the pub towards the River Calder in Dewsbury to walk a path close to the river, coming across an old railway viaduct (which I think was the Great Northern route).  I went a bit cross-country to reach the Dewsbury – Ossett greenway, built on the former railway route (in places).  I walked this route to the end in the fog (so no good views of the countryside), returning via the Earlsheaton Tunnel to the junction.

 

I carried on along the old railway line as it crossed the river Calder on the viaduct I walked underneath earlier, carrying on over the Calder & Hebble navigation to the end of the path where the rails are still in use for Dewsbury cement works.  I did a loop via the housing estate to reach the canal basin joining the towpath to walk the Dewsbury arm to the end at Thornhill Lees.  I had the option of either turning left to walk towards Wakefield or turning right to head towards Ravensthorpe area.

 

Earlsheaton Tunnel on the Dewsbury to Ossett Greenway

 

I turned right following the canal towpath (which was variable in surface quality), reaching the River Calder and followed the path alongside the river towards the Mirfield area where the next canal cut was available which took me into Mirfield itself, where I swung via a little Tesco for lunch.  After lunch I returned to the canal towpath to walk to where it once more joined the river and had a detour via the roads going underneath the railway twice in order to cross the river, returning to the river bank for the quiet walk towards Battyeford where the next canal cut came off.

 

This next cut was quite busy with fishermen, and I had a little detour to a footbridge over the railway line near Heaton Lodge junction before heading back to the canal to carry on the towpath to the end of that little cut in the Bradley area.  I crossed over the river once more and carried on the path underneath the railway (Brighouse line) reaching the next small canal cut, near to where the Huddersfield Broad canal reaches the river Calder and comes to an end.

 

Railway Lines near Heaton Lodge Junction

 

The next section was long term overgrown (shows you can’t always trust Open Street Maps), which forced a little detour via the road to rejoin the river path near Bradley Park.  This section was a lot more rural, and once it went underneath the railway and onto the “Kirklees Cut” it was very scenic.  Underneath the M62 and I reached the outskirts of Brighouse where the river path ceases to exist, so it was onto a rural path which ran towards the railway line coming out into an industrial area.

 

I carried on the roads, crossing over Blakeborough's Bridge and reached Brighouse canal basin for one final section of the canal, before swinging via Sainsburys for some supplies before making my way to Brighouse station, collapsing onto a bench.  I had 2 options to reach Wakefield to pick up my booked train [I booked from Wakefield as it was £4 cheaper than booking from Leeds], either a Northern 158 to Leeds [via Bradford] for something to Wakefield, or a Grand Central service direct to Wakefield [for a 195 up the hill to Westgate].

 

Calder and Hebble Navigation, Kirklees Cut

 

I went for the cheaper Grand Central option [using a “Not via Leeds” ticket] with a busy 180112 taken to Wakefield Kirkgate, connecting onto 195025 to take me to Wakefield Westgate [engineering works on the usual route via Woodlesford], so a bit of a novelty of a 195 on the Wakefield connection curve.  After a photo of 91111 working a late running Leeds service, I had a short wait before winner 801219 rolled in on the London train.  This was quite busy but thankfully nobody was sat in my reserved seat this time, and an uneventful 2-hour journey [arriving around 7 minutes late due to being held at Peterborough for a late running train from Aberdeen and hence losing the path over the 2-track section at Welwyn North].

 

195023 at Wakefield Westgate

 

A quick exit at Kings Cross with the underground taken to Waterloo (Victoria followed by Bakerloo), and I arrived with time to spare for the 19:45 Salisbury train, a single 159 for the trip to Grateley, it was reasonably busy but not as bad as I have seen in the past.  A quick walk home and I relaxed for the remainder of the evening.  An enjoyable waterside walk, seeing parts of West Yorkshire I wouldn’t have seen travelling by train.

 

19^th November – Peterborough

 

When I saw that trains were using the Werrington Dive Under due to engineering works, I came up with a plan.  I had hoped to do the dive-under at the start of the month, but that was the day where the strike got called off at the 11^th hour.  This time I was doing it “on the cheap” with a day return to Spalding [splitting along the way].  Although with the shorten days it did mean a 2^nd Saturday starting with the 05:24 service from Grateley (yay!).

 

The day started with a single 159 for the run to Waterloo, where I decided to walk towards Blackfriars, staying on the south bank of the River Thames to cross over the Millennium Bridge to walk towards Southwark bridge on the north bank, just to clear a couple small gaps.  I ended up at Mansion House underground station for the short trip to Blackfriars, arriving with time to spare before 700122 rolled in on the next Peterborough service.

 

St Pauls at the end of the Millennium Bridge

 

I made myself comfortable in the rear declassified first class section for the trip to Peterborough, arriving to find the next EMR train was running late allowing me extra time to pop out of the station to a nearby Tesco for some food items before returning to the station awaiting 156406 to roll in and do a good impression of a clown car in that people kept on coming (must have taken a good 4 minutes for everybody to offload).  I managed to get a seat for the run to Spalding, going via the dive-under (big tick) where I had just over an hour before the next Peterborough train so went for a little walk.

 

This walk took me south, via the long St Johns Road footbridge (where the tracks for the former Midland & GN Joint line came away from the remaining line) and to the overgrown track bed of the GN & GE joint line (towards March).  This took me towards an old railway bridge over the river Welland, where I made the wrong call to walk back towards the town centre on the eastern bank (as the pavement switched to the other side of the road).  I made it back to the town centre, swinging via Sainsburys to waste time before returning to the station, only to find that the train was both late (15 minutes) and the platform was very busy (I would guess around 50 passengers).

 

802301 passes Spalding

170515 eventually rolled in, I was lucky to get a seat and I think everybody managed to squeeze on (didn’t help the number of large suitcases blocking aisles).  The 170 returned me to Peterborough, going via the dive-under once more, where I exited the station for another walk.  Although along the way I changed it from walking alongside the River Nene due to the adverse weather conditions (and that the ground was soaking).  After exiting the station, I headed towards the river, crossing over to the south bank and started walking west.

 

I went underneath the railway bridges, passing the Nene Valley heritage station and followed the heritage railway on a mixed used path.  This path took me towards Orton Mere station, carrying on via some woodlands to Overton for Ferry Meadows before crossing over the railway once more in the Orton Wistow area and into Nene Park, where the rain started.

 

Nene Valley SJ Y6 B-2 Helga

 

Following a path which went around the edge of Gunwade Lake, then Overton Lake, a couple places it was flooded due to the volume of rain in the last few days, but I made it without major issues.  I came across the tracks used by the Ferry Meadows Miniature Railway, before exiting the main park via Bluebell Woods, and onto some more mixed used paths reaching a Rowing lake.  I followed the path alongside the lake, before some more paths eventually the station, arriving with a couple minutes to spare before the next Horsham train was due to depart.  It was the return of 700122 getting some extra mileage as I grabbed a seat in the rear declassified first class area to dry off (and to give my phone a charge).

 

It was an enjoyable walk, I wouldn’t mind revisiting Nene Park to explore some more, when it wasn’t raining.  I think I made a wise decision as it looked like the river path was more grass so that would have been very muddy in places.  Anyhow the 700 took me to St Pancras where I had a short wait before another 700 took me to Blackfriars, popping out to grab dinner before taking a seat on 700050 which I needed for ten miles (my last 700 which was under a mile).  I took this 700 to Shortlands, returning to Peckham Rye on another 700 with the idea to intercept a low mileage Overground 378.

 

700050 at London Blackfriars

 

However I made a tight connection onto the next Dalston Junction train which was also low mileage (149) which I took to Whitechapel to push it over ten miles.  I crossed over to the southbound platform and the first southbound was another low mileage unit, this time 378153 which I took to Rotherhithe which was more than enough to push it over ten miles (it was on something like 8.9 miles before).  A short wait before the next Clapham Junction train arrived which was 142.  I took this to Wandsworth Road (deciding to give that 378/2 I saw earlier a miss).  A short wait before my run of luck ended with 154, which I took to Queens Road Peckham, changing to a Southern 377 to London Bridge (as I needed to use the toilet!).

 

At London Bridge, I headed up to the Charing Cross bound platforms and jumped on the first train, a pair of 465s, for the run to Waterloo East.  I crossed over to Waterloo to take a seat on 159010 working the 20:50 service and watched as it filled up.  I was in the front coach and that was busy on departure from Waterloo with people standing in the aisle near the rear of the coach [the front door is locked out of use on the SWR diesels].  After Clapham it was very much overcrowded with people standing in the aisle all the way to the front, with extended dwells at both Woking & Basingstoke [where thankfully it did empty out, still very busy].  It was still quite busy after Grateley (at least in the front 2 coaches), but I got home without further issue.

 

An enjoyable day in Peterborough (other than the weather!).

 

378150 at Queens Road Peckham

 

20^th November – Dawlish

There was engineering works at Basingstoke meaning trains from Grateley were only going as far as Andover before replacement buses.  I was heading out with mum and was torn between heading towards Dawlish for a wall along the sea wall, or towards Reading [going via Southampton for a XC on tour].  In the end I decided to head to Devon, to make the most of the weather.  Mum and I left home to walk to the station to catch the 08:32 Exeter train, a pair of 159s, which got quite busy the closer it got to Exeter.

 

We alighted at Exeter Central to waste some time before Tesco opened to grab lunch before returning to the station for a pair of 150s to Dawlish Warren where we started the little walk, however by the time we reached the shopping area of the campsite the sunshine had been replaced with a sudden rain shower, it lasted only a few minutes before the sun returned.  We got to the footpath alongside the sea, dodging the puddles and taking photos of passing trains.  I did this walk back in Dec 2020 but at that time part of it at the Dawlish end was closed for rebuilding, it still is closed at Dawlish, but I got further than in 2020.

 

800036 on the Dawlish Sea Wall

 

It was a steep climb away from the path to the road near the Coastguard Cottages, but what goes up must come down as it was a downhill section leading into the centre of Dawlish where we popped via the Co-Op to waste some time before heading to the station to catch a 166 on the next Exmouth train.  I looked at the map & timings and decided to jump off at Exeter St Thomas for another walk (the sun had returned at this point).

 

The 2nd walk took us from St Thomas to the banks of the River Exe, where we followed a mixed-use path alongside the river (then onto the “flood relief channel”), taking us underneath the railway (sadly no trains due) then to Station Road, passing the Exeter depot and the level crossing, before heading to Exeter St Davids arriving with 5 minutes to spare before the next Andover train.  We took a seat and where it was busy along the way, by Axminster the coach we were in (5 of 6) was lightly loaded.  A couple hours later the train arrived at Grateley where we alighted and walked home in the twilight.

 

River Exe in Exeter

 

An enjoyable day in Devon with mum, other than that short shower the weather was perfect.

 

26^th November – Thames Path

 

The idea for today was to walk some more of the Thames Path, this time starting from Slade Green station to head east along the river towards Greenwich.  The day for me started with the 06:59 train to take me to Waterloo, where I set off on foot towards Blackfriars before taking 700012 to Slade Green where I started my walk.

 

I headed out of the station towards Moat Lane, following the signage for the London Loop, via a scenic path before it reached the banks of the river Darent.  I continued along the path as it turned industrial (something which would be a feature of today’s walk), the path quality was reasonable [I had feared it might have been muddy.  I reached the Dartford Creek flood barrier where the Darent flows into the river Thames and continued along the path reaching Erith, where I had to join the roads for a short section.

 

I re-joined the river around Erith Pier (where I had a little detour to visit), the path was a bit narrow in places with some sharp blind bends, it was a bit sad seeing some of the old piers rotting away, even one with an old rusting crane overlooking.  Anyhow I carried on leaving Erith behind and entering the industrial area with ships being unloaded and security increased with the fences getting higher with more barb wire at the top.

 

Old Crane on Erith Waterfront

 

The industrial area gave way to the Crossness sewage treatment works, which was quite smelly, before reaching Thamesmead, where I paused for some lunch, listening to the door release buzzers of a 710 at Barking Riverside, on the opposite site of the river.  I continued along the path reaching Woolwich, passing the ferry (which wasn’t sailing on the day), and having to do a little detour away from the river due to a closure of the path due to construction works.

 

I re-joined the path, heading towards the Thames Barrier with another short detour from the river, reaching the visitor centre area, and continuing pass the barrier and into another area of industry with Angerstein wharf, soon that industry gave way with the cable car (how very purple) and the O2.  The path continued passed some modern houses (I dread to think how much they would be), passing the pier of the riverboat and around the perimeter of the O2 itself (another tall fence for security).

 

Thames Barrier

 

The view of Canary wharf was quite nice, especially with the older single storey houses dwarfed by the skyscrapers, the path went a bit industrial again with some boat yards and in one place was flooded due to the high waves going over the wall, so I had to be careful with timing to avoid getting wet legs.  Sadly, it didn’t work as my feet got a bit wet (I think I need new boots again).  The path got busier the closer I got towards Greenwich with another flooding path (this time I took a detour on a higher path near the old naval college).  The queue for the Uber boat was very long as I passed it doing a little loop to finish the walk at Cutty Sark DLR station, just shy of 17 miles.

 

Canary Wharf from banks of River Thames

 Down to the platforms via the emergency stairwell due to the down escalator were closed, and I jumped onto a Stratford bound DLR service (Bank was closed for engineering works so the Lewisham – Bank trains were merged with the Canary Wharf – Stratford services with passengers for stations towards Tower Gateway having to change at Poplar.  I’m not sure if I had previously covered the small crossover north of Canary Wharf station, but I was relaxing as I alighted at Bow Church for the short walk to Bow Road, ticking off another “station connection” shown on the TfL route map.

 

Entrance to Bow Road Underground Station

 

At Bow Road I took a district line service to Whitechapel, changing to the Overground where I got news that 2 of my last 4 Thameslink 700s needed for mileage were out, so I formed a plan after seeing a couple northbound 378s which were needed.  I changed platform jumping onto 378255 as it took me to Dalston Junction, for a short wait for 378225 to Rotherhithe, then 378138 to Honor Oak Park.  Swapping over platforms saw me push 378146 over ten miles with the run to Canada Water, which is where things nearly went wrong.

 

The underground platform was very busy, and the next Jubilee not expected for 7 minutes, so when it rolled in was extremely busy.  I was lucky to squeeze on and a couple stations later at London Bridge it was a fast-paced walk to platform 4 to board 700049 on a very busy Rainham bound train [I got a seat after asking a lady to move her oversized handbag].  I was originally going to take this to Charlton, but a mix of the train being delayed and being at the back meant I changed to bailing at Westcombe Park, enough to push it over ten miles regardless.

 

700049 at Westcombe Park Station

 

700040 rolled in on the next Luton train, another very busy train (that is what you get when there are no South Eastern services running), I took this 700 to Blackfriars, transferring to platform 3 to take a seat on 700059 on the next Sevenoaks train (I went for the single seat behind the cab at the front), this also got extremely busy after Peckham Rye, and a bit of a delay at Ravensbourne caused by someone pulling on the emergency door release meant I bailed there instead.  Although I was rewarded with a pair of 73s working a RHTT passing, before low mileage 700056 rolled in, my last “ultra-low” mileage 700 which was previously only had for just over a mile, the last two I need are on 8 & 9 miles so shouldn’t take that much to push them over ten.  Anyhow I took a seat on this 700 for the trip back to Blackfriars, where due to the weather I took the underground to Waterloo [District to Embankment, followed by the Northern line].

 

I wanted to get to Waterloo in good time for the 20:50, as like last Saturday it was only a single unit and after Clapham it was once more very busy, not as busy as the previous week.  I can’t help thinking that SWR should make the call at Woking on these XX:50 services pick-up only to ease overcrowding.  Anyhow 159006 took me to Grateley, becoming the 2^nd of the 159s to be cleared for 5000 miles.  I walked home in the light rain and relaxed for the remainder of the evening.

 

27^th November – London (in the rain)

 

The forecast for this Sunday kept on changing, on the Saturday evening when I checked it was forecast to be heavy rain most of the day.  I checked it again on Sunday morning and it was going to be dry with rain coming in the afternoon, which was better as it would allow a walk, even if cut back from what I had originally planned.

 

The day began with the 07:36 service from Grateley to Waterloo where it arrived 15 minutes early due to the Sunday morning timetable (which is for 2 tracks operation at the London end).  I headed to the Jubilee line for a jubilee line service to Canning Town, changing over to the DLR to Custom House where it was still raining but I started my walk (with the option of ending it early if the weather didn’t improve).

 

I headed towards the Beckton Corridor, via Cundy Park, a mixed-use path along the trackbed on a former railway route towards Beckton Gas Works.  This was very scenic and comes out opposite Beckton DLR station.  Thankfully the rain had come to an end allowing me to continue my walk, heading towards a cycle path which runs close to the A1020 road before gaining access to the Greenway, a 4-mile-long mixed-use path which is on top of a sewer.

 

Beckton Corridor

 

The first section had some works on the cycle path side of the path (seemed to be getting a new surface), and it was a nice walk in an area of London I had never visited (other than a short section near West Ham).  I decided to carry on when I reached West Ham to make the most of the dry weather and finished the Greenway with a detour near Pudding Mill Lane to go underneath the railway lines.  The path ends near Hackney Wick where I headed along some roads to reach the River Lea at Old Ford Locks.  I did a loop along the water front, going round the Olympic stadium on the City Mill River then Waterworks River towards Carpenters Road Lock, joining the road to walk towards Hackney Wick station just as the rain had resumed.  If the weather wasn’t forecast to be wet, I would have followed the Lea Navigation towards Bow then towards Canning Town but that can wait for another day.

 

River Lea near London Stadium

It was time to play with some trains as I turned down the first Overground service as it was running late (and was very busy), the following one was a couple minutes later and was a lot quieter (378228 in case anybody was interested).  At Stratford I exited the station to visit the Sainsburys in the shopping centre, before taking the jubilee line to West Ham for a short wait for a C2C service to Basildon. I was planning to do this a few weeks ago but ran out of time, a bit unusual in going via platform 2 at Laindon to run “wrong line” to Basildon due to engineering works beyond.  I took a seat on the pair of 357s for the run (nice to sit down after a 11-mile walk) and put my phone on charge with my battery bank.

 

The rare track was scored going into platform 2 at Laindon (it’s like Leigh on Sea in having a centre platform used to turn back some peak time extras), then continuing to platform 1 at Basildon.  I noticed part of the eastbound platform had been removed (guess same issue with the concrete which caused the high-level platform at Lichfield Trent Valley to be closed for a couple weeks earlier in the year).  The same pair of 357s took me to Laindon where I stepped back to await the following service, which was starting from Laindon (I needed some better pictures).

 

357317 at Basildon Station

 

I returned to London, changing at Barking to start a short Overground hunting session, pinging back & forth between Walthamstow Queens Road & Wansted Park, the only success being 710268 being cleared for ten miles, the other units out on that line today weren’t needed.  I took 273 to Gospel Oak, changing over to the North London Line coming up with a couple plans on how to reach Waterloo, the first couple westbound trains weren’t needed, but low mileage 378231 popped up which I took to Willesden Junction, bouncing back to Brondesbury on another 378 before 378232 took me to Clapham Junction.

 

A short wait at Clapham Junction before a quiet triple 159 rolled in on the 17:45 Waterloo – Salisbury train which took me back to Grateley to end the day.  An enjoyable walk followed by some unusual track in Laindon, and a couple more Overground units pushed over ten miles.

 

More photos are available here: Flickr Link

Trips in October 2022

Trips in October 2022

Compared to previous months, October was a quieter month for long distance travels.  A mix between hotel prices being higher than previous years & the uncertainly over strike days.

 

2^nd October – Grand Union Canal

The day started with the 08:56 service to Reading, followed by a quick change onto a 345 towards Iver, where I did the walk, I was planning for the previous weekend but got ditched due to cancellations at Reading.  The start from Iver was a last-minute add-on (only decided to do it the night before seeing as GWR weren’t calling at West Drayton). I followed a couple paths in the Thorney area, before following the Colne Brook via some woodland to join the Slough arm of the Grand Union, before reaching the main Grand Union Canal.

 

I turned north to follow the canal, going via Cowley & Uxbridge (noticing that there was a lot of boats moored up), after Uxbridge the urban area gave way to the Denham Country Park.  I carried on along the canal passing Harefield and some other nature reserves (it was very pretty in places; I love trees this time of year for the colours).  Soon I had reached Rickmansworth where I swapped from the canal towpath onto the track bed of a former railway line, now a mixed used path called the Ebury Way).

 

Grand Union Canal between Harefield & Rickmanswort

 

The Ebury Way took me towards the outskirts of Watford (Oxhey), where I joined up with the River Colne going via Oxhey Park, walking underneath the railway viaducts to come out near Bushey station.  A pair of 350s took me to Euston (getting lucky with a 350/4 leading a /2 for that bit of extra comfort), where I changed over to the underground, making the mistake of going via Oxford Circus as the Bakerloo line had fallen over somewhat (in hindsight I should have escaped on the Central line to Lancaster Gate for the short walk to Paddington, but hey-ho).

 

Once I reached Paddington, it was onto a pair of 387s on a Didcot Parkway semi-fast (would have gone towards Oxford if there wasn’t engineering works on).  This took me to Reading, where I swapped over to a pair of voyagers to Basingstoke (having noticed the 2 coach 165 on the Basingstoke train being hopelessly overcrowded).  I had a 30-minute wait at Basingstoke for a 159 to roll in from Salisbury to return back towards Salisbury.  A nice day involving a beautiful canal side walk.

 

Ebury Way Path

 

9^th October – London

 

Due to it being the day after a strike, the first train from Grateley wasn’t until the 08:56 (the 07:36 was starting from Basingstoke), so I drove to Andover.  A quiet 158 rolled in on a Basingstoke terminator (would have been Reading, but Basingstoke – Reading was closed for engineering works), where I made a tight connection onto a pair of 450s on a stopper (it was either that or wait 30 minutes for a triple 450, which wouldn’t have made much difference in terms of arrival time).

 

The train was delayed along the way due to signalling issues around Hook, time it never gained back (but still arrived before that triple 450).  At Clapham Junction I changed over to platform 3 to take a 707 to Queenstown Road, where I started my first of my trio of walks today.  I headed into Battersea Park, using the Central Avenue (which was very pretty with trees), before walking on the road to reach Battersea Bridge over the Thames.

 

 Central Avenue in Battersea Park

I picked up the Thames Path, walking towards Battersea Power station, and finally onto Vauxhall, to clear a gap in my Thames Path coverage.  At Vauxhall I headed towards Clapham Junction on a busy 458 before going to Waterloo on a triple 450, before heading towards Tower Hill, where I started my second of today’s walks.  This walk also involved the Thames Path as I plugged another gap, between Tower Bridge & Limehouse.  A bit in & out with the river bank in the Wapping area, mixed up with areas where the riverside path had been closed due to construction of the Tideway sewer.

 

Tower Bridge

At Limehouse, it was a swap from river to canal, with the Limehouse cut taken towards the Bromley by Bow area, and Three Mills Island.  Since I was last in this area (May 2021) the path along the outside of the island had reopened, so that was walked before a mixed used path called the Channelsea Path which came out near Stratford High Street DLR station.  It was an enjoyable walk with a mix of rivers, old buildings, canal & rural.

 

At Stratford High Street, I jumped onto a DLR to Stratford, changing for a 345 to Forest Gate, followed by a short walk to Wansted Park for an Overground service to Barking Riverside.  My 3^rd walk was something I had planned to do when I first visited Barking Riverside but lost out due to delays heading to London.  I exited the station, and headed towards a footpath running along the riverfront, a different view of the river with industrial buildings on the south bank and the river being a lot wider.

 

710273 at Barking Riverside

 

I did a loop coming back to the station, and started to make my slow way towards Waterloo, involving an Overground 710 to Barking, a pair of C2C units to Stratford before a triple 321 (although the refurbished sets are a bit like ordering a Pepsi Max in a restaurant only to be served supermarket own brand cola, it might be the same, but different [solely due to the lack of windows].  A Metropolitan Line service was taken to Baker Street, followed by the Jubilee to Waterloo, arriving with 15 minutes to spare as I took a seat on the 17:20 train.

 

This took me to Andover, where I swung via a pizza place to eat a pizza before driving home.  A successful day in plugging some gaps on my Thames Path coverage, along with ticking off a revisit to Barking Riverside

 

15^th October – London (again!)

 

I had a few potential ideas for walks today, however due to the weather forecast being changeable I decided to play it a bit safe.  I also put a request out for some required units (both outright & for mileage), getting a good result in terms of what was out.

 

The day trip began with the 07:59 service from Grateley to take me to Waterloo, followed by the Jubilee line to London Bridge (where I got the news at what was out, also news that the DLR was closed between Canning Town & Beckton which messed up my plan).  Anyhow I headed towards platform 3 to take a service into Cannon Street, where I took a seat on 376011 my second last 376 needed for 10 miles.  This was cleared for mileage by Deptford, and I returned to London Bridge on a busy pair of 465s and headed towards the Charing Cross bound platforms.

 

My last 376 (026) needed for mileage rolled in on the rear of the train from Hayes.  I took this to Charing Cross, waited 10 minutes before it departed on a Dartford service which I took to Hither Green, clearing it for ten miles (being glad I no longer have to keep my eyes peeled for the 376s!)  I reboarded 376011 (which was on a Cannon Street rounder) back towards Cannon Street.  Unusually going direct to St Johns due to engineering works in Lewisham (although it did sit at St Johns for a few minutes to get back on the right time).

 

707029 & 376026 at London Charing Cross

 

At Cannon Street, I walked across to Bank underground, attempting to locate the platforms of the DLR, and taking a DLR service to Shadwell, for a quick spin to Tower Gateway, remaining on the same pair for the run to Poplar (where it terminated into platform 4 for a random crossover).  I crossed over to the opposite platform island for a Stratford service to All Saints where I started my little walk.

 

The first part was full of path closures, but I eventually reached the Thames Path opposite the Millennium Dome on the Prime Meridian Walk.  I headed east just as the rain started, skirting around the outside of the East India Dock Basin and onwards to Trinity Wharf for a photo of the lighthouse (also making use of some public toilets).  This marked the end of the Thames Path on the north bank of the River Thames, it continues on the south bank another 10 or so miles towards Erith, which is a job for another trip).

 

Entrance lock into the East India Dock from River Thames

 

Thankfully the rain didn’t last for long as I walked a path in Leamouth, crossing over the River Lea to reach Canning Town underground station.  It was the first time I’ve used the rear entrance, as a busy DLR service took me to Stratford, where I crossed over to board a Central line service to Liverpool Street (for the fun of some fast running on the underground).  After confirming my last 745 was on the next Stansted service (and hence buying a ticket to Harlow Town), I popped out to get lunch before taking 745103 to Harlow Town, the class clearance cannon being sounded.

 

745103 departs Harlow Town

 

I had a tight connection at Harlow Town, as I crossed over getting lucky with a very busy (kickball was on) required 720582 to take me to Tottenham Hale.  I headed to the Victoria line to take me a couple stops to Finsbury Park, changing over to a Thameslink service to East Croydon. I confirmed the next Uckfield train was a pair of reformed 171s (former 2 coach 171/7s gaining a coach from a 4 coach 171/8 to form new 3 coach units getting renumbered 807-812).  It was 171812 & 171810 so I purchased a ticket to Hurst Green and taking a seat on this lightly loaded service to Hurst Green, clearing both for ten miles (I suspect the others will be ticked off on runs between Croydon & Bridge).

 

171810 departs Hurst Green

 

A pair of 377s took me back towards East Croydon, where I changed to another pair of 377s to take me round the corner to Selhurst station, where I set off on another walk.  This walk took me via the outside of the depot on a path via Heavers Meadow to the Norwood area, before Brickfields Meadow & some roads to reach Blackhorse Lane Tram stop, where I walked the Addiscombe Railway Park towards Addiscombe, followed by some roads to reach the tram stop just as darkness had begun to fall.

 

Another little former railway line route within London ticked off, as I took a tram to Beckenham Junction, followed by a pair of 377s to Crystal Palace, where I did some 378 hunting for mileage needs (as I’ve decided to hunt both the 378s & 710s for ten miles instead of five, just to give me something to do during the winter months).  Some linear hops got me 378220, 378136 & 378141 over the 10-mile line, before a Jubilee line service took me to Waterloo followed by a busy 159 on the Salisbury train.

 

A decent little day trip in London, last couple 376s cleared for mileage, last 745 cleared outright, a couple short walks to remove from my massive list of things to do.

 

16^th October – Didcot – Oxford, along the Thames Path

 

Back in August I walked from Culham towards Cholsey on the Thames Path, leaving a gap between Oxford & Culham.  My original idea was to start from Appleford but the weather forecast on the Saturday wasn’t the best for the area, so formed a revised plan to start from Didcot Parkway instead, making use of a mixed used path on cycle route 5 to head to the Appleford area (along with a footpath).

 

I headed towards Reading on the first train from Grateley, stepping back at Andover, before popping out of the station at Reading to a nearby Tesco for some supplies before an 800 took me to Didcot Parkway, where I started my walk.  This walk took me via the Ladygrove loop (which followed the railway) before going rural following a mixed-use path alongside the Moor Ditch which would have taken me to Long Wittenham but I turned off across a footpath to reach the village of Appleford.  I crossed over the railway at Appleford station before following some footpaths which ran alongside the road (behind a hedgerow) before it went cross country towards Sutton Courtenay.  I carried on before joining the River Thames in the Sutton Pools area before joining the Culham Cut.

 

River Thames at Sutton Pools

 

Carrying on along the Thames Path, reaching the town of Abingdon, crossing over the Thames at Abingdon Lock, where the path went via rural (and muddy in places).  Fields to my left, the river to the right (hidden at times behind hedges/trees), it was very peaceful for the 4 and a bit miles to Sandford lock, only a boathouse around Radley and the odd private house broke the rural feel. I continued along the path as it went via Sandford lock, passing a pub I’ve visited a few times in the past.  Around the Kennington area where the railway bridge for the Cowley branch the path went tarmac as a bike route joined the riverside path.

 

I carried along the path, as the river got busier with rowers (and path got busier with both cyclists and walkers).  I reached the Oxford city centre, carrying along the river path to reach the station area, where I broke away from the Thames to reach the station, jumping on an 802 on an Oxford starter.  This took me to Reading where after a visit for a much-needed dinner from Wendys I boarded the 17:12 service to take me home to Grateley.

 

A voyager crossing the River Thames on the Osney Railway Bridge

 

A very enjoyable walk along the Thames, one I glad to have done sooner rather than later as I suspect it will get muddy in places over the winter months.  I’ve now cleared the Thames Path from Leamouth to Oxford, beyond Oxford it gets a bit more difficult as it involves buses due to the Thames going into more rural Oxfordshire, but that will be a job for next year if not the year afterwards.

 

­21^st October – Onwards to Crewe

 

I booked up 2 nights in my usual accommodation in Crewe (5^th time I’ve stayed there, so it must be doing something right) as I needed to have a weekend away from my own bed.  I had previously had this booked for the 7-9^th October, but that booking got cancelled due to the strikes.

 

After work, I got home quickly, and got a lift to Andover station arriving with time to spare for the 17;37 service to London.  At London I waited until 7pm before taking the Northern line to Euston and taking the 19:46 LNR service to Crewe, taking a seat in the front coach of 350107 leading a 350/2.  Busy on departure from Euston but emptied out in the front around Rugby, but nothing unusual happened along the way and soon I had reached Crewe, for a walk in the rain to reach the shared house and relaxing for the evening.

 

319012 & 350107 at London Euston

 

 22^nd October – Rochdale Canal Walk

 

My list of things to do in the Cheshire/Manchester/Merseyside area is quite long, in the end I decided on a canal side walk along the Rochdale Canal, starting from Littleborough.  Thankfully the forecast was looking promising with rain arriving in the evening time.

 

The day for me began with 319372 working the stopper from Crewe (a £3 advance special), this took me to Piccadilly, changing over to a pair of 331s to Salford before a 195 to Littleborough where my walk began.  There is easy access to the canal at Littleborough station (cross over the road and its there) and the towpath condition was reasonable.  A few puddles along the way [especially under bridges] but it did rain a bit the night before.

 

Rochdale Canal

 

My walk took me along the towpath of this scenic canal [although compared to other canals I’ve done, not the busiest with only 2 boats moving and a handful moored up].  I passed Smithy Bridge before entering Rochdale where the towpath disappears forcing a little detour on the road [the canal has a tunnel underneath a motorway].  After regaining the towpath I continued along the canal, passing Castleton, and underneath the M62 on a floating towpath.

 

The railway was quite close to the canal in places, and I enjoyed the sound of a class 60 loco working hard with a Biomass train, the canal going underneath the railway a couple times before reaching the Mills Hill area.  I continued to reach the Middleton Junction area where I had a little detour onto the remains of the Middleton Junction and Oldham Branch Railway line for a short distance towards Chadderton (passing some youths letting off some fireworks).  My little detour complete, I returned to the canal towpath to carry on towards Whitegate where once more the towpath left the canal due to a motorway tunnel.

 

I continued along the towpath going underneath the Metrolink line around Failsworth where the scenery turned from more woodland/rural to industrial & residential.  I continued along the towpath going underneath the line towards Ashton (and the freight line towards Ashburys).  The path got busier the closer I got to Manchester as soon I was in the New Islington area, covering a section I did last year, and headed towards Piccadilly to play with some trains.

 

150004 alongside the Rochdale Canal

 

Part of me wanted to head towards Cornbrook to see if any of my required new trams were out, but I couldn’t bring up the motivation so in the end took a 769 to Bolton, returning to Oxford Road on a pair of 331s (the plug socket coming in handy!).  At Oxford Road I stepped back to board a TPE 802 on an airport service [solely to tick off Piccadilly – Airport for 802 coverage].  I returned to Piccadilly on the same pair of 331s I had earlier before taking a 769 to Ince, just for a random station revisit.

 

I had around 10 minutes at Ince, before a 156+158 combo rolled in to take me the short distance to Wigan Wallgate, where I took a pair of 150s to Salford Crescent going via Swinton.  In hindsight I probably should have stayed on to Victoria to either walk or take the tram to Piccadilly as the next pair of 331s from Blackpool was both late & quite busy.  However I made it to Piccadilly with time to spare to board 175115 working a Shrewsbury train to take me to Crewe to finish the night.

 

769434 departs Ince

 

At Crewe I had a takeaway pizza (and potato wedges) from Tiger Bite, after trying to make up my mind to what to have (there are many takeaway places along the way to the house).  After consuming the pizza in the lounge area of the house, I decided to pop to the large Tesco Extra to get items for breakfast and also some more drink.   This turned out to be a good move due to the horrible weather on the Sunday morning, and didn’t run the risk of the little Tesco at the garage near the station being bare boned like it was in the morning.

 

23^rd October – Back home, via Birmingham & Eastleigh

 

My original plan for today was to walk towards Sandbach via some footpaths before following the remains of the Sandbach branch line of the North Staffordshire Railway towards Alsager, however the weather wasn’t the nicest so that idea went back onto the shelf, as I checked out of the shared house and made my way towards the station to catch the first 350 service towards Birmingham.  This one went via Stoke and unusually used the single track chord in the Norton Bridge area (it didn’t go via the flyover).

 

After Wolverhampton it went via Tame Bridge Parkway, to allow me to tick off that section of track for coverage for a 350.  At Birmingham the weather had improved to allow me to have a little walk towards the Digbeth Branch Canal around Typhoo Basin (once I managed to get round the various road closures for HS2 related work).  I joined this short canal [links the Grand Union & Birmingham and Fazeley Canal] for a walk along the towpath, dodging the puddles.

 

A couple tunnels along the way (one going underneath the West Coast Main Line near Proof House junction + Curzon Street) and one underneath a main road, I noticed there was quite a bit of graffiti on walls & bridges along the canal.  It was interesting to see a different part of Birmingham city centre, as I carried on towards Snow Hill on the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal before doubling back towards Aston Junction to follow that canal towards Aston station.

 

 Ashted Tunnel on the Digbeth Branch Canal

 

I was originally aiming for a pair of 323s from Lichfield, but when I arrived at Aston there was a late running 350 from Walsall [turned back at Tame Bridge due to flooding] which I took to New Street, exiting the station to visit Tesco for lunch.  After grabbing lunch items, I returned to New Street to take a seat on a pair of 350s (350113 leading a 350/2).  Originally I was aiming for a Northampton train to change at Rugby, but as I had a table seat I decided to stay on the 350/1 (which was good due to the line via Weedon falling over due to a hungry Pendo).

 

A couple hours later, the train arrived into Euston, and I had around an hour to get to Waterloo for the 16:20 train [although I could have probably rushed to Paddington to catch a train to connect with the 16:12 Reading – Salisbury service).  As the sun was out I decided on a little walk, going towards Victoria Embankment and over the Golden Jubilee Bridge (attached to the railway bridge at Charing Cross).  I arrived in good time, and took a seat on a busy triple 159, aiming to change at Andover to grab dinner from a recently open takeaway near the station.

 

York Watergate, Victoria Embankment Gardens

 

Or that was the plan, the first thing I noticed was when the train went into platform 4 at Basingstoke, and I noticed on the signalling diagram the word “Tree” and “NoGo” had appeared on the route towards Andover, for a tree had fallen down between Overton & Whitchurch.  An hour or so later, there was news that the train would go via Romsey, and passengers for the intermediate stations should get off to speak with the station staff.  I got put on the follow Salisbury train which went towards Eastleigh, where it reversed to head towards Salisbury via Chandlers Ford (the line at Southampton was closed).

 

Eventually at Salisbury I got put into a SWR funded taxi to take me up the hill to Grateley (along with a lady heading to Basingstoke).  I dread to think how much that taxi would have cost at the end as it was £35 by the time it dropped me off at my house!  Anyhow I was glad to get home, all be it a good few hours late.  I never did get to try that new takeaway either.  Other than the delays at the end, it was a good weekend, nice to get away to the north again.

 

28^th October – Saying my farewell to the Class 315s

 

I had a half day holiday at work, so I was heading to London to play with some trains (and try and cheer myself up as it had been a tough week at work, where I felt like a ghost some of the time).  I finished work at 12:30, dashed home to get changed and got a lift to the station to catch the 12:59 service to Basingstoke.  At Basingstoke I changed to a busy pair of 444s for the run to Waterloo, where I had a bit of business to attend to with a low mileage 466.

 

Once I arrived at Waterloo, I crossed over to Waterloo East to take a 466+465+465 combo into Charing Cross, where I took a seat on 466009 on the rear of another pair of 465s.  This was my last active 466 needed for 10 miles (I need one more which is stored), I took it to Abbey Wood to transfer over to the Elizabeth Line for a little spin to Bond Street to tick off the Elizabeth line platforms, before heading back to Liverpool Street with time to spare.

 

466009 at Abbey Wood

 

After a visit to the toilets, I waited for the arrival of the 315s from Shenfield, and after a photo I took a seat in the leading coach for the run to Shenfield, solely to say farewell to the class as they get reduced in use from early November when the core opens up (and I didn’t fancy paying out for that 315 farewell ‘tour’).  I’m pretty sure this was the first time I had caught a Shenfield stopper all the way to Shenfield from Liverpool Street, so a good way to say goodbye to the workhorses.

 

315838 at Shenfield

 

I spent the next couple hours hunting down some required 720s between Shenfield & Stratford (which wasn’t the easiest to do at peak times due to a reduced number which call at both Stratford & Shenfield, and even a couple which have pick-up only restrictions at Shenfield).  However I did manage to tick off 720108, 720533, 720548 & 720587 so not all bad.  At Liverpool Street I decided to have a little time wasting spin towards St James Street (with the massive gap) with 710124 & 710129 getting cleared for ten miles, jumping back at Hackney for 710112 & 710114 to Liverpool Street.

 

After arriving back at Liverpool Street for the last time, I headed towards Bank on the central line, swapping for the Waterloo & City line to Waterloo, where I arrived at Waterloo in around 14 minutes.  I headed over to board a pair of 159s on the 21:20 service to take me home, where thankfully I had no issues getting home tonight.  A nice little evening spin in London.

 

29^th October – Walking the final part of the Basingstoke Canal

 

Back in the summer over a few trips I walked from Byfleet to the Hook area on the Basingstoke Canal, leaving a gap to the end of the navigable canal, plus the collapsed tunnel & the section beyond the tunnel which is now a nature reserve.  I had hoped to do this walk in September but had engineering works between Basingstoke & Woking on several weekends, so I decided to do it on this Saturday.  Weather looked decent, after a wet start, which pushed my start time back an hour.

 

I took a 159 to Basingstoke (where it terminated due to lack of paths at the London end), swapping to a pair of 450s on the stopper which took me to Winchfield.  I followed some footpaths, going underneath the M3 and over the railway at “Potbridge Lane” bridge.  Although the paths soon turned out to be a bit wet under foot with long grass, mud & poorly maintained stiles, eventually I reached the outskirts of Hook, doing a loop around the Bassetts Mead Country Park to reach Holt Lane, crossing over the M3 and via some more paths reached the Basingstoke Canal near North Warnborough.

 

River Whitewater from the Bassetts Mead Country Park

 

I followed the canal towards the collapsed Greywell Tunnel, with a little loop of the remains of Oldiham Castle.  I left the canal to go over the hill following various footpaths, before joining a permissive path leading towards the remains of the western portal of the tunnel and into the nature reserve which followed the remains of the canal towards Up Nately, where it comes to an end, the part of the canal beyond this point to Basingstoke being built over.

 

Greywell Tunnel on Basingstoke Canal

 

After leaving the canal, I followed another path, getting a bit lost (ended up in a farm area near an old bridge), but I soon gained some more rural footpaths to reach the village of Mapledurwell, following some more paths before crossing over the M3 once more and into the Hatch area.  I followed the road going via a mixed-use path behind the houses at Basingfield Close, before a path via Crabtree Plantation (which was an unexpected bonus as I never knew it existed).

Bolton Arch at the Black Dam & Crabtree Nature Reserve

 

 

I followed some more paths to reach Basingstoke town centre, heading towards the station and onto a train to take me home to Grateley.  It was a good little walk, other than some of the mud at the Hook end, I do like the Basingstoke Canal for it is very pretty in places.

 

30^th October – Ayot Greenway & Upper Lea Valley Walk (Welwyn to Leagrave)

 

Today’s trip was to walk the remains of the Luton, Dunstable & Welwyn railway line between Luton & Welwyn.  Called the Ayot Greenway between Welwyn Garden City & Wheathampstead, then the “Upper Lea Valley Way” on the section towards Luton, with around a mile gap in the middle where the route has been lost.

 

As the clocks changed, to be on the safe side with the more limited hours of daylight, I decided to drive to Andover to catch the 06:58 service to London, before heading to Kings Cross to take the 09:03 Cambridge stopper to Welwyn Garden City (featured a RPI check after Finsbury Park, and the train terminated at Welwyn due to no onward driver).  The rain had mostly stopped by the time I got to Welwyn, it was light drizzle, but it was a short walk (once I managed to escape the shopping centre) to the former railway line accessible from steps at Digswell Road.

 

Before I headed west, I headed east following part of the disused railway line within the trees to where the route came to an end near the junction with the ECML.  I did a U-turn to head back towards the entrance and carried on along a scenic route (with the trees in various colours).  The former railway route goes via the Sherrardspark Woods (which is somewhere I wouldn’t mind revisiting for a decent explore).

 

Ayot Greenway in Sherrardspark Woods

 

A small detour via the roads, crossing over the A1 (M) to reach the former railway line in the area of the old Ayot Green station (no remains), and onto the path towards Wheathampstead where I did a little loop along the old railway line to where it joined up with the B653 before returning to a little crossroads to follow the marked path which went underneath that busy road.  Afterwards it was onto a bridleway into Wheathampstead itself (not along the old railway route as that has been built on), doing a little detour towards the former station which has been restored and features an old wagon.

 

Wheathampstead Station

 

I carried on along a muddy footpath across a field to reach Leasey Bridge where the railway returned to being able to get explored, going round the edge of a golf course and into the suburbs of Harpenden.  A small section of road walking in the outskirts of the town before rejoining the former railway line path, as I carried on as the urban landscape turned rural once more, with the Midland Main Line coming in on the left hand side (with some nice engine noise from a passing 222).

 

I continued along the path as it went underneath the Midland Main Line and into woodlands in the New Mill End area, very scenic again.  Walking some more as the path went out into the open, passing the site of the former Luton Hoo station, where the building is now a private house.  I carried on in the open over a long hill, passing some figures of famous people of Luton, underneath the A1081 near Luton Airport Parkway station.  I was in two minds to continue or call it a day; foolishly I decided to continue along the route of the Upper Lea Valley Way along a mixed use path, where it started to rain.

 

Local Heroes on the Upper Lea Valley Way, Luton

Thankfully the rain didn’t last for long as I followed the roads (and the marked path), passing a Premier Inn and going underneath a roundabout before passing a church to reach Luton town centre.  I continued some more, passing the guided busway to Dunstable, and along the main road to reach Wardown Park, then Stockingstone Meadow, following the rough route of the River Lea.  I continued following the river path into the Limbury nature reserve (and Westmorland Park).  After the end of this path I crossed over the road to reach the source of the River Lea in Leagrave Park, before heading to Leagrave station.

 

An 8 coach 700 rolled in (where I made a bee-line for the rear 1^st class area for the plug socket as my phone had dropped to below 15% after the 20 mile walk).  I took this 700 to West Hampstead Thameslink where my original plan was to transfer to the Jubilee line for an easy way to Waterloo, however a low mileage 700 rolled in on the stopper from Luton, which I couldn’t turn down, as it would be cleared for ten miles by Blackfriars.

 

Wardown Lake, Luton

 

With delays showing on the district line, I decided to walk to Waterloo (as it probably would have been quicker).  First time I’ve used the entrance to Blackfriars on the south bank as I followed Google Maps to take me to Waterloo via some back streets, taking just under 15 minutes so not that bad (considering I wasted a couple minutes waiting to cross a road).  I took a seat on the 17:45 service to Salisbury, which took me to Andover without issue tonight, where I decided to try out the recently opened Burger King to see what it was like, before driving home.

 

An enjoyable day, getting lucky with the weather being mostly kind, only a couple light bits of rain.  Another former railway line walk ticked off my list.  I suspect the last time I will be hitting 20 miles this year with the days getting shorter.

Anyhow more photos taken throughout October are here:

Flickr Album