13th June – 17th June. Long weekend in Scotland

 13th June – 17th June.  Long weekend in Scotland

Time for a long weekend in Scotland to visit the recently reopened line to Leven and other bits, based myself in the guest house in Hamilton I’ve used a couple times before (because £35 a night is a bargain compared to what other places were wanting, especially when it’s less than 10 minutes from a station, so excluding those places like Bridge of Weir which will require buses).

13th June – Onwards to Aberdeen

The trip began with the 17:59 service from Grateley after getting a lift to the station due to the heavy rain reminding me of the day 5 years ago where I was heading for a long weekend in the Highlands when a van crashed into my car when driving home.  Time does fly.  Anyhow it was onto 159004 for the run to Waterloo (pushing it over 6 thousand miles in my records) where the rain had ended allowing for a gentle stroll towards Euston, only starting to drizzle when I was near the end passing Tavistock Square Gardens so good timing to waste some time before the sleeper to Scotland.

I was booked on the Highlander service for Aberdeen (of all places), so once I got to Euston, I sat down relaxing when waiting for it to start loading.  92028 was the loco up front for the section under the wires to Edinburgh and the seated portion was quite busy, I only counted a handful of empty seats on departure from Euston (and I think those filled up at Crewe).  At Edinburgh I would guess a third of the seated coach changed for the Fort William portion which was a lot less than I was expecting but thankfully unlike previous trips there was no noisy people talking loudly.

92028 at London Euston

14th June – Central Scotland Day 1

The sleeper continued after Edinburgh with 73969 on the front running early, as it headed towards Aberdeen getting held at Dundee for around 15 minutes before carrying on to Aberdeen where I had around 45 minutes before my booked train back south.  After visiting a Sainsburys local near the station for breakfast I did some photographs of passing buses (including a couple of the lesser spotted bendy buses) before returning to the station to board the famous Aberdeen – Penzance train, formed of 221133 and I got a seat in coach B.

The main reason for coming to Aberdeen was to tick off XC coverage of the line between Dundee & Aberdeen, but mainly because I do fine the section between Aberdeen & Stonehaven where it runs close to the sea as very pretty, as well as the section near Tayside when it speeds past all the limited served stations (Golf Street, Barry Links etc).  I alighted from the voyager at Kirkcaldy, which was cheaper than buying an advance to Markinch, I presume due to competition between LNER & XC.  I headed to the ticket office to buy my Central Scotland Ranger, which for £55 for 3 days coverage isn’t that bad value for money (although I know it isn’t as good value as it used to be when it was a “3 in 7” style ticket).

221133 at Aberdeen

Anyhow back at Kirkcaldy station, it was a short wait before 158735 rolled in to take me to the recently opened station at Cameron Bridge on the reopened Leven branch line, first impression of the line is that it’s not the fastest due to the numerous curves, but it has got some nice views.  The station at Cameron Bridge felt like it was incomplete with the emergency exit paths on the Kirkcaldy bound platform seemingly ending rather than connecting anything up.  Not a lot around the station area other than a large car park, but at least it is served by one bus route as I saw a bus arrive & depart with no takers when I was having a little stroll to the roadside.  158735 returned from Leven quite busy, and it only got busier by Kirkcaldy as I stayed on to Kinghorn to reduce time spent in the rain (also to remind me what a lovely view it is from Kinghorn station).

The next Leven train rolled in formed of 158721 which took me to the end of the line at a long island platform near the town centre, but due to the changeable weather I didn’t go that far away from the station before boarding 158721 once more, for the long trip towards Edinburgh.  Not as busy as the train an hour earlier and this service uses the loop between Dalgety Bay & Inverkeithing to allow a fast train from Aberdeen to pass.  I remained on board to Edinburgh Waverley popping out of the station to grab some late lunch from Sainsburys before taking a seat on 385012.  This was working a service towards Glasgow Central going via Carstairs.  This train only really got busy after Carluke where it was a few minutes in front of the usual half hourly service from Lanark, and I alighted at Motherwell for a change of platform to platform 3 to board a Dalmuir service formed of 320304 & 320317 to take me to Hamilton Central.

385012 departs Motherwell Station

At Hamilton Central I made my way towards the guest house to get checked in and to empty my bag, getting the same twin room I’ve had on my last couple of stays (the owner remembering me which is always a nice touch, asking about how I've been and what walks I had planned etc).  I exited the guest house making my way back to Hamilton Central station to jump onto 320305 & 320311 for the run to Glasgow Central, making a connection onto 385040 working an Edinburgh service going via Shotts as a semi-fast service (although always gives the impression it could be faster due to sitting at Shotts for 5 minutes).  I took this 385 to Haymarket, exiting the station for a gentle stroll towards Waverley station via Princes Street going via Boots to grab dinner.

After my walk I arrived at Edinburgh Waverley, boarding 170403 on a Dundee semi-fast service, making use of declassified first class for the slow run (got caught behind a late running Perth train) to Kirkcaldy and a short wait before 158741 rolled in on the next Leven service to take me back to Leven, using platform 2.  However, the words “oh bugger” popped up when I saw the 19:20 service to Edinburgh (formed of a 158 sitting on platform 1 having arrived empty from Glenrothes with Thornton) was showing as cancelled.  But at least I managed to grab platform 2.

158741 alongside 158740 at Leven Station.

With an unexpected hour to kill I headed for a little explore of the waterfront, ending up in a large Sainsburys to waste some time.  I did consider doing a bus service towards Markinch but decided against it (which turned out to be a good move as the train it would have connected into at Markinch lost 30 minutes at that station and ended up behind the next stopper).  After my little walkabout I returned to the station to await 158735 to roll in from Edinburgh to form the 20:25 service.  This took me to Edinburgh Waverley where I had a nice connection onto 385123 & 385115 working the next Glasgow Queen Street via Falkirk service.

Darkness was falling as the train departed Edinburgh for the trip via Falkirk High to Glasgow Queen Street where I had a fast walk across the city centre (playing dodge the drunk) and to Glasgow Central, making my way to the low-level platforms to grab a decent seat on 318252 working a Larkhall service.  This 318 took me back to Hamilton Central where I had a gentle stroll to the guest house and relaxed after a busy day going back & forth in Fife.

318252 at Hamilton Central

15th June – Central Scotland Day 2

Due to the later than expected finish on the Friday I pushed my departure time back an hour, the weather forecast was quite changeable, but it settled on being dry during the day with rain coming in the afternoon as my original idea was to walk the old railway line path from Alloa to Dunfermline but that got changed to a shorter canal walk.  The day began with 318251 from Hamilton Central to Glasgow Central, where I exited the station for a gentle stroll across the city centre to Queen Street (going via a couple of shops for breakfast items & drink).  At Queen Street it was onto the Falkirk Grahamston service with 385110 on the slow train via Cumbernauld to Camelon, where I enjoyed the declassified first-class area.  Just got me thinking of what this area was like on my first visit in May 2014 when it was all diesels before the wires got put up.

Anyhow at Camelon my walk began, the first section was following the A803 (passing the Alexander Dennis bus factory) before picking up a path running close to the railway (Carmuirs Path).  This path led me towards the Forth & Clyde canal near the Falkirk Wheel and I turned eastwards to follow the towpath to the south of Camelon.  The towpath was quite busy with other users but there wasn't much in the way of boat movements.  I carried on my walk as it reached some locks reaching the outskirts of Falkirk itself.

I presume at one stage there used to be a foot crossing of the railway line near lock 9 as the towpath is diverted via some steep steps to cross the railway on the nearby road bridge before some more steep steps back to the canal side.  My walk continued reaching the more industrial area before going underneath the A9 where the canal turned more rural.  A sharp left-hand bend meets the newer section of canal (as the route of the original canal got lost during the period it was closed.  I continued to reach the old lock linking the canal with the river Carron (so shouldn't the canal be called the Clyde & Carron?) with the very impressive Kelpies overlooking the basin.  A lot bigger than I had previously imagined.

The Kelpies, Falkirk

I turned onto the newer section of canal, following the Charlotte Dundas heritage trail leading to the newer lock linking the canal to the river (this section bypasses a couple low bridges).  After a photograph of the entrance, I headed back towards the A905 bridge to cross over the river Carron.  At one point I was toying with walking the path following the Carron towards the Forth, but I didn't know what the quality would have been like after the recent rain.  So, with this in mind I followed a cycle path on the north bank of the river back underneath the M9, passing the closed river lock and reaching the Carron House Dovecote, crossing over the river and following various other paths running close to the river reaching Carron where I had a couple options, either head towards Larbert or go back towards Camelon.

I decided to head towards Larbert, crossing the river for the last time and along a road towards the Grahamston Ironworks Gate following the so called Nicoles Way which was a beautiful woodland path reaching Carronvale Road where I followed the road network to Larbert station where I was close to meeting a Dunblane bound service but went the wrong way as the station footbridge was closed due to the ticket office being closed.  Ah well, as I took a seat and relaxed watching a HST pass heading north and a 158 passing from Aberdeen (cosy!) before a busy 385121 rolled in from Dunblane on the next Edinburgh train.  This is an area on my list to return to for some more exploring.

158736 passing Larbert Station

This busy 385 took me to Haymarket where I had a short wait before 385046 & 385028 rolled in on the next Glasgow Central service running semi-fast to Shotts (where it enjoyed a near 10-minute dwell, which was nearly enough time to change platforms with the massively long ramps).  The rain had started as I took 385045 to Fauldhouse where I decided to carry on with my plans picking up a path which followed an old railway line (Wilsontown, Morningside and Coltness Railway I believe).  There is a missing section in Bridge Street where the map seems to have a gap but I wasn't sure if there was access via a driveway so I followed the roads (Greenburn Road & Willow Brae) to pick up the old railway path (seems there is a path looking at street view so I must have missed a sign.)

I was soon on the route of the old railway line as it left Fauldhouse heading into countryside with some lovely views when the cutting ended.  Soon the path reached the Longridge Railway Woods going via some woods to reach the A706 road the end of the railway path (I wonder how people walked this path back in the days when Breich had a limited service).  I headed towards Breich station with a steep hill with the last section being without a pavement, thankfully the rain had stopped for the most part of the walk which was very enjoyable with a decent surface.  One of those old railway paths which doesn't feature on Google Maps.

Railway Viaduct in Fauldhouse

At Breich there was one more passenger waiting for the Edinburgh train and one passenger on the opposite platform for the Glasgow train as 385028 & 385046 returned from Glasgow to take me to Wester Hailes (a station I wanted to revisit for better photos).  I popped out of the station towards the little shopping centre (being surprised that it doesn't open on Sundays) picking up a bite to eat for a late lunch before returning to Wester Hailes station to catch a busy 385105 to Kirknewton for a short wait before 385022 rolled in on the next Shotts stopper to take me to Addiewell where I had a 20 minute wait for 385002 on the next stopper (which runs nonstop to Livingston South due to the next Carstairs service being behind it).

A result of this unusual timetable meant the train spent nearly 10 minutes at Shotts to get it back onto the usual timings (I presume due to the 2-track bottleneck section at Cambuslang).  It would be ever so handy if these services called at Cambuslang to allow an easier change for Hamilton (as it seemed like Bellshill’s footbridge is currently out of action so it’s not worth attempting the tight connection to a Lanark train had it been running (for this is the time of day there is a gap in service levels).

397006 passes Wester Hailes Station

I stayed on the 385 to Glasgow Central where thankfully it arrived a few minutes ahead of schedule meaning I could have a more leisurely connection to 318252 & 320313 on the next service towards Hamilton Central, the sky turning an inky black like a heavy downpour was due as the rain resumed as I headed towards the guest house, dropping off my rucksack and heading back out to visit a pizza takeaway.  Returning to the guest house with said pizza to eat it in the bedroom which is something I don’t like doing due to the smell).  I relaxed for the rest of the evening listening to the rain.

320313 at Hamilton Central

16th June – Central Scotland Day 3

The weather was looking a bit changeable this morning as I decided to have a little stroll from the guest house towards the Strathclyde country park to pick up the Clyde walkway path alongside the loch.  At the northern end I followed a path to cross over the interchange between the A725 & M74 (seeing an unusual 70mph speed limit sign on the slip road for the M74) before picking up the Clyde Walkway near Bothwell Bridge (I wasn't sure if the route of the original path was available as there was a difference between what was shown on Strava to Google Maps and even the OS Maps app).  I went via the remains of Bothwell Lido following a woodland path which randomly ended at a fence forcing a U-turn to find a path across a field with long grass trying to follow the route of the path.  Thankfully a more solid path appeared with some steep climbs as I left the field and into a woodland path heading towards Blantyre, leaving the walkway to the south of the station following a path leading towards the car park where I had a short rest before 318256 & 320306 rolled in to take me to Glasgow Central.  The section of the Clyde walkway between Blantyre & Newton via Uddingston will be done on another trip, and I’ve got no idea with the longer section between New Lanark & Hamilton.

Anyhow back to the trains as I alighted at Glasgow to find the ground very wet (seems I got lucky with only light drizzle) and busy with runners after a race as I swung via a supermarket to grab lunch before making my way to Glasgow Queen Street to board the Inverness train formed of a busy 170408, which only got busier after Stirling with passengers from Edinburgh boarding.  I was glad to escape at Dunblane where the rain had returned and crossed over to 385030 on the next Edinburgh stopper, departing from platform 3 using a recent(ish) crossover to the south of the station to save the need to shunt from platform 3 to platform 1.

170408 departs Dunblane Station

This 385 took me to Edinburgh as I headed towards one of the east facing bays passing a revenue block to board a triple 158 on the next Tweedbank service (158720, 158740 & 158702) to take me towards Tweedbank as I hadn’t been that way since 2017 (at least in daylight).  Front coach of this triple 158 was lightly loaded and I settled back to look at the scenery before arriving at Tweedbank and setting off on a gentle walk towards the town of Melrose, picking up a footpath which followed the river Tweed towards a chain bridge to head into town (where there was a book festival on).  After a little detour via Melrose abbey, I headed to the former station where the rain began.  I returned towards Tweedbank station following the route of the former railway close to the A6091, arriving back with around 15 minutes to spare before the next departure…

…which had been cancelled (for feck sake!)  Tweedbank station hasn’t got a lot of the way of shelter, so I decided to continue my walk following “The Black Path” (as it was called on Strava), a path following the railway line over the river Tweed on the Redbridge Viaduct, picking up a cycle route on the outskirts of Galashiels which followed the route of the Gala Water towards the town centre where I swung via the big Tesco for dinner before making my way to the station which was quite busy for 170434 on the next Edinburgh service as I dived into declassified first class grabbing a single seat for that bit of extra comfort

River Tweed in Melrose

On the way back to Edinburgh I was trying to think at what to do for the rest of the day, sadly no HSTs were floating around on Stirling – Glasgow services (the next couple departures would have been 170s) so I decided to jump onto 385109 & 385116 on the next Glasgow service, going via Falkirk Grahamston due to engineering works on the route via Falkirk High.  Onwards to Queen Street where I had a gentle walk across the city centre to Glasgow Central to take a seat on 318265 & 320413 on a Lanark service.  The idea was to take these to Motherwell for a +8 to a service towards Hamilton, taking a seat in the motor coach of the 320.  That plan went into the bin when the train was held for 7 minutes around Larkfield junction for an ECS TPE unit to get put ahead into Polmadie depot.

I decided that the connection was far too risky at Motherwell so bailed at Cambuslang and taking a seat on 320315 with a complete late idea of taking this service to Chatelherault for a walk as the sun had popped out. At Chatelherault I left the station, heading towards the country park following a cycle route which reached a bridge over Avon Water on the outskirts of Hamilton (along the way crossing over the railway line when it was within the tunnel).  I picked up the "Avon Water Walkway" path which followed this river via some lovely woodland, even if the traffic noise from the M74 & A723 never was too far away.  The Avon Water met up with the Clyde and I was soon at a point where I was earlier in the morning near the Hamilton entrance to the Strathclyde Country Park.

Path alongside River Clyde, Avon Water Walkway, Hamilton

I carried on passing the Hamilton Mausoleum, staying straight going up a steep road (The Furlongs) coming out near the Lidl where it was a short walk to the guest house for a nice relaxing shower before calling it a night.  A late notice walk but it's something which was on my oversized wish list of ideas around Hamilton and the weather was reasonable.

17th June – Scotland Day 4

I was booked on the 14:35 service from Glasgow to London so had the morning to play with.  The weather had cheered up quite well compared to the weekend (isn’t that just typical) so after checking out of the guest house (I will hopefully be back, not sure when) I headed towards Hamilton Central station.  I was hoping to have gone towards Hamilton West and the large Sainsburys for breakfast but ran short on time as I wanted to catch the Cumbernauld service.  This was formed of 318251 & 318267 to change at Whifflet for 320314 to Hyndland.  At Hyndland it was a short wait with 334029 on a random linear hop to Westerton before 320308 for the long trip to Balloch to begin my walk.

I exited the station at Balloch heading towards cycle route 7 (one of these days I will carry on getting photos of Loch Lomond but that wasn't on my plan today).  This cycle route follows the route of the river Leven heading mostly south (with several bends although two are bypassed by the path).  I carried on heading towards Alexandria & Renton on this busy path. Leaving the urban landscape behind going underneath the A82 where the path moved away from the river and across a field of cows (moo).  A bit unexpected as I played dodge the cow and into a lovely woodland section going underneath the railway line near Dalreoch and putting a bit of speed on to jump on the Edinburgh train as it was rolling in.

River Leven in Renton

An enjoyable short stroll along the pretty river, saves a job for another trip to continue with cycle route 7 towards Bowling on the old railway route.  Anyhow it was onto 334039 & 334033 on the Edinburgh service to take me to Partick where I exited the station to visit Morrisons for some food before going to the subway with a rather successful red pen session with sets 310, 309, 308, 312 & 305 falling to my little pen with one more unknown set out which I didn't manage to ID, but I had run out of time.

My final Scotrail service of this adventure was 320404 to Glasgow Central low level, where I had a slow walk towards the high-level station (going via Tesco to grab items for dinner) before boarding 390148 on the 14:35 service.  I turned down my reserved seat, instead going straight to coach G to grab a table seat on the left-hand side (in the direction of travel, considering the last couple times I've been on the northern end of the WCML I've been on the western side)

320404 at Glasgow Central

Nothing unusual, happened heading south with the Pendo keeping to good time and my table remaining private with a good nonstop run from Warrington.  The train did loss around 5 minutes caught up with congestion at the London end due to earlier signalling issues but nothing that major as I headed towards the underground to take the first southbound service (51654/51655) to Waterloo with my final train of the trip being 159018 working the 19:50 to Salisbury.  Non-stop between Clapham & Basingstoke is always a nice way to travel and soon I was at Grateley, having a gentle walk home to sort my rucksack out and get sorted for the week ahead at work.

More photos from my weekend can be found on my Flickr, thanks for reading.  An enjoyable long weekend, sadly both my long walks didn’t happen but I did manage to do some shorter walks changing from canals, rivers & old railway lines.

Trips 8th & 9th June (Grand Union & Forest+Worth Way)

 Trips 8th & 9th June

8th June – Grand Union Canal in rural & urban Warwickshire

Making the use of the £2 bus scheme when it lasts, I decided to return to an area I was 3 weeks ago to walk some more of the Grand Union Canal, heading from Napton towards Leamington Spa and Warwick.  The day began with the 05:59 service from Grateley formed of 159001 & 158885 to Basingstoke, where I changed to the Manchester service at 06:47 formed of 220031 & 221134 and I went straight for the unreserved coach on the 5-coach voyager, enjoying it pretty much to myself until Oxford.

I took these voyagers to Banbury where I changed to board 168217 & 168323 on the next Birmingham Moor Street service taking them to Warwick with a 5-minute walk to get between platforms due to the subway being closed to install lifts (I believe).  168215 & 168107 took me to Leamington Spa where I exited the station and made my slow way towards the bus stops on Upper Parade, swinging via Boots for lunch items before relaxing as I waited for the Napton on the Hill bus to roll in.

165001 arriving at Warwick Station

Stagecoach’s 37071 rolled in from Napton being quite busy but departed on the 09:44 service to Napton (route 664) with 4 passengers.  Unlike a few weeks ago there was no more people boarding the bus along the way and the first time the doors opened after Leamington was in Long Itchington where the 3 other passengers alighted as various stops in the village leaving just me on board (other than the driver) for the section to Southam and to Napton on the Hill where I alighted at a temporary bus stop due to road works.  Thankfully where the lane from the Kings Head pub towards the Oxford Canal was passable on foot as it’s closed for roadworks, where I decided to take a road running alongside the canal to reach Napton Junction to avoid the poor towpath, where I picked up the Grand Union canal heading north away from the Oxford canal.  I guess if the £2 bus scheme does somehow get extended again, I will return to this area during the summer to walk the Oxford canal towards Fenny Compton but who knows what the future holds.

The canal in this area was quite busy with boat movements (it is an area with 3 large marinas) with the towpath being passable with some tall overgrowth blocking views as I passed the Napton reservoir and reaching the short Calcutt lock flight (for its all downhill from here).  After that lock flight I continued along the walk heading towards the Long Itchington area, with a couple of short showers along the way.  After the A426 bridge cycle route 41 joins the towpath turning it less rural and smoother as the canal drops via the Stockton lock flight.  The bike route leaves the canal to run along the route of the old Weedon - Leamington Spa railway line with the towpath returning to more rural grass and peace.

Former Leamington to Weedon Railway Line bridge over the Grand Union Canal in Long Itchington

I continued along the towpath dropping down some more locks, pausing for my lunch sitting on the steps for one of the locks before carrying on passing the area HS2 will pass the canal.  The sun had come out replacing the clouds from earlier in the day as I was enjoying nature reaching an old railway bridge where the Offchurch Greenway begins (one not worth doing at the moment as it’s been diverted by HS2 works I believe).  

 

The canal was to the north of the settlement of Radford Semele with the River Leam following the canal in parts with the towpath once more changing to be more solid due to being part of the cycle network.  I reached the Leamington Spa as it turned more urban, going underneath the Chiltern main line just south of the station where I did have an option to bail for a train, but I decided to continue, passing Morrisons and heading towards Warwick with the canal crossing the railway and the river Avon.  The canal skirted around the northern edge of Warwick with the towpath being quite narrow in places.  The canal reached the Salitsford Canal Arm which I believe is mostly moorings these days with limited public access (but that is a job for another trip).  I went underneath the A46 Warwick bypass road reaching Hatton bottom lock, crossing the canal to reach a small car park before the final short section to Warwick Parkway station, arriving with only a minute or so to spare before the next Birmingham train was due to arrive.  The timetable on the Chiltern line is still mostly hourly with some random extras giving 2 trains an hour at times.  An enjoyable walk along the canal towpath with some lovely countryside where the only sound was the birds.

Chiltern Main Line from Grand Union Canal Aqueduct between Leamington Spa & Warwick

Back to the trains with 168217 & 168323 on the Birmingham train to take me to Moor Street, where I made my way across to New Street (via Poundland for a bottle of pop as I was low on water).  Earlier in the day I asked a friend to check to see if any 2 coach 196s were floating around and he reported there was 2 sets out.  One I noticed had been cancelled earlier in the day the other should have been on the 16:50 service to Shrewsbury however there must have been a set-swap during the day as that turned out to be a 4-coach unit, maybe swapping over at Shrewsbury and with the manual signalling not reflecting on RTT with the platform change).  However not to waste my day return to Wolverhampton I jumped onto a Liverpool service formed of 350119 & 350118 which got put ahead of a late running voyager from Bristol.

The 350s rolled into Wolverhampton just as a train from Shrewsbury was arriving on the opposite platform allowing for a cross platform change onto winner 196002 & dud 196004 on a service which crawls via Tame Bridge Parkway (made worse due to being timed to call at the stations not yet opened), however another 2 coach 196 is into my book and the slight novelty of 196s on the route via Tames Bridge is also covered (as chances are the timetable will change again with a service from Liverpool diverted via Tame Bridge rather than the diesels).  Anyhow once back at New Street, I made my way towards Moor Street swinging via Tesco for dinner items and onto 168107 & 168111 working the next Chiltern service, grabbing a decent seat in the front unit for the run to Banbury.

730008 at Birmingham New Street

At Banbury it was a short wait before 220030 rolled in and I was taken completely by surprise when it rolled in with coach D barely a third full (as I was expecting the usual full & standing getting a seat if I was lucky).  Easy to grab a seat to relax for the run towards Basingstoke where this was the first voyager to call there heading south for a few hours due to XC deciding to rip out the Basingstoke call on summer Saturdays (which for me is annoying as the following GWR stopper doesn’t always connect with the Salisbury stopper due to the timetable being unbalanced.  Anyhow the voyager took me to Basingstoke giving me 25 minutes before a very busy 159012 rolled in from London, says something when even the driver opens the front door to allow passengers out due to the long dwell time (mostly rugby fans from Twickenham whom I presume would be changing at Salisbury for a GWR towards Bristol).  I was lucky to grab a pull-down seat for the trip to Grateley, following a gentle walk home and relaxing for the rest of the evening.

9th June – Exploring the Forest & Worth Way Paths

Both the Forest Way & Worth Way paths follow the route of the former Three Bridges to Tunbridge Wells railway route between Three Bridges & Groombridge (the section between Groombridge & Tunbridge Wells West is in use by the Spa Valley heritage line) with a gap in East Grinstead.  Due to the bus timings at Crawley I decided to drive to Andover this morning to catch a London service formed of 159008 & 159101 for the run to Clapham Junction where it arrived a few minutes early allowing a connection onto a busy 377410 & 377150 working a Southern service for Portsmouth Harbour to take me to Crawley.  When waiting for the train to depart I saw at least 4 passengers simply barge their way through the remotely monitored gateline on the Horsham bound platform without a care in the world.

After departing the station, I had a wait in the bus station area before Metrobus’s 6965 rolled in on the 2 hourly route 291 for Tunbridge Wells.  I wasn’t expecting a double decker for this route as it made its way out of Crawley, passing Three Bridges station and heading towards East Grinstead going via Copthorne & Crawley Down.  After doing a loop to serve the railway station the bus continued towards Tunbridge Wells going via Ashurst Wood, Forest Row & Hartfield before reaching the outskirts of Groombridge which is where I alighted (at the Florance Lane stop), which is the closest bus stop to the start of the Forest Way path.

Metrobus Bus 6911 (BJ63 UJT, Andy Durr) at Crawley Bus Station on a route 10

The first section of my walk was along a couple of minor roads to reach the starting point of the path, the first section running close to the existing Uckfield railway line (Eridge station is around 2 miles to the south, so using the bus cut out road walking).  The path soon joined the route of the former railway line and entering a tree line wonderland (would love to come back here during autumn to see the trees in autumn colours).

The path was quite busy with other users (cyclists, walkers, the odd jogger) as it crossed the B2110 road heading towards Hartfield passing the overgrown remains of a couple old platforms along the way.  A small detour in Hartfield before the path became quieter on a very rural section towards Forest Row where the path detours near the site of the former station due to modern developments.  Thankfully the crossing of the A22 road was via traffic lights as I continued on the final section of the Forest Way towards East Grinstead, the path coming to an end on the outskirts of the town, the route of the former railway being used by the A22.

Forest Way path between Groombridge & Hartfield

 

After walking via East Grinstead town centre (which is quite nice for old buildings) I reached the railway station where I was a bit tempted to call it quits and jump on a bus back towards Crawley when I saw the next route 400 was due in under 5 minutes but I decided to carry on (considering how expensive it is to reach East Grinstead by train).  I crossed over the railway station at East Grinstead and onto the Worth Way path.  This path took me mostly west towards Crawley Down where there was a required detour via the roads of a housing estate due to the route of the railway being lost, passing a couple of shops in the centre of the village before the next off-road section of the path heading into the countryside reaching Turner's Hill Road where the path moved away from the old railway line route via a bridleway leading to a farm track and bridge over the M23 to reach Worth in the  general Crawley area.

This is where I headed away from the Worth Way path via a housing estate to pick up the route of the old railway line, which in hindsight was a mistake due to this section being quite muddy and with a couple of fallen trees to get around.  I was glad when the tarmac path of the Worth Way came back onto the old route of the railway as I continued the final push with the old railway coming to an end to the south of Three Bridges station with a short distance along the road to enter the station to catch the next train towards London.  It was a long (18 miles) walk across the countryside, but I was glad it was done, thankfully the weather was dry, mostly overcast until the last section.  Decent quality surface throughout (other than the section not part of the official route) although probably not one to do during wintertime as I suspect some areas would get muddy and waterlogged due to being within a cutting.

Worth Way path in East Grinstead

Anyhow back to the trains, with 700141 on the first northbound service, quite busy but I got a seat in the rear 1st class area to give my phone some charge (as it had dropped to under 10%) taking this unit to East Croydon, stepping back to a very busy Southern service formed of 377202 & 377162 to Clapham Junction (lots of suitcases from Gatwick due to passengers not wanting to pay the red train premium to use the fresh air carrying Gatwick Express services).  At Clapham Junction I popped out of the station to visit both Sainsburys & Poundland to get some dinner (and a bottle of pop) before returning to Andover on a triple 159 set (159001, 159101 & 159008) being a bit smart to sit in coach 4 of 9 as it was only the front unit carrying on beyond Salisbury.

Anyhow these 159s took me to Andover, where I had a gentle walk back to my car, changing from my walking boots to a pair of old trainers (as I don’t like driving in my boots) and headed home to relax for the rest of the evening.  An enjoyable little day trip to East Sussex and another old railway line path walked whilst the £2 bus fares are on (as I dread to think how much it would normally cost for a single from Crawley to Groombridge).  I will probably return to Groombridge one of these days to do the heritage line for coverage as I really need to visit some more heritage railway lines.  More photos can be found on my Flickr Here, thanks for reading.  I was hoping to upload this post last week but ran out of time.

31st – 2nd June, Weekend in the North

 31st – 2nd June, Weekend in the North

A weekend in the north with mum for her pre birthday present, 3rd time lucky as the last couple attempts at something similar ran into strike action, so I was glad when the 2-week deadline passed.

31st May – Getting to Crewe

The trip began with the 17:59 service from Grateley, an extremely busy 159014 running around 10 minutes late due to the late running of the train from Exeter having all stops after Salisbury ripped out (and with the stopper getting an additionally call at Clapham Junction).  Large turnover off passengers at Andover but the sprinter remained quite busy throughout as it lost a bit more time outside Clapham Junction (as I presume the route was set via platform 8 whereas it needed to use the loop for that additional call pushing the total delay over 15 minutes so a bit of good news with some money back).

After visiting the toilets & Sainsburys for some dinner items we headed to the bus stop at Tenison Way for the first bus towards Euston which were bunching up again looking at the app.  Eventually LT783 rolled in on a route 68 as we got a seat at the front for the slow route towards Euston playing hopscotch with another 68 service.  I did have a look at RTT along the way to see the progress of the inbound of the 20:46 to Crewe (finding out earlier in the day that my luck with 350 roulette was still rubbish and it was a pair of 2s), seeing it running a couple of minutes late but didn’t think anything else of it.

London Eye from Waterloo Bridge

We got to Euston around 20:20 making our way towards platform 2 (which is the booked platform) when I noticed the inbound was stuck at Watford Junction, before noticing that nothing was moving due to a tragic incident around the Harrow & Wealdstone area.  Passengers for the West Midlands were being told to make their way to Marylebone for Chiltern services (I dread to think how busy the 3 coach 168 would have been on the 21:00 Birmingham service) and we headed to the waiting area to grab a seat to wait, eating food and playing solitaire.

An hour and a half later, I noticed trains were moving around Harrow & Wealdstone (the only departures had been a half hourly Overground service to Harrow & Wealdstone) when I noticed the screens for the 22:00 to Liverpool had changed to “preparing” with the 21:0X Preston service showing as “Preston only”.  Springing into action when I saw a platform getting assigned to the Liverpool service around 22:20 for a bit of a rush to climb on board 390134, grabbing a table seat underneath the pan well on coach U (the seats where the overhead luggage racks are next to useless).  I don’t think some passengers were very happy the guard was enforcing First Class & Standard Premium, but around half ten we were finally on the way (yippee!)

Not the fastest service due to running on the slow lines catching up with late running freight which had also got caught up with the tragic event, gaining the fast lines at Bourne End where speed was gained calling at Milton Keynes then nonstop to Tamworth & Lichfield before waiting time near Colwich for the Preston service to go in front, which both trains calling at Stafford & Crewe, arrival into Crewe was just after 1am, and we paused to photograph the late running Highland sleeper picking up a few passengers (with a large group in a waiting room, whom I presume were waiting for a taxi as the Preston train had the calls at Warrington & Wigan removed, due to no platform staff available at those stations I presume).

92018 at Crewe

We made our way slowly towards the shared house, getting into the downstairs room (which for me was the first time I had it as a twin room layout rather than a double bed), and didn’t last long before going to sleep.  It had been a long journey north, but thankfully we made it, although with the later than expected arrival my original rough plan for the Saturday went into the bin.

1st June – Here, There & Everywhere in Cheshire

We got up around half seven, getting ourselves sorted for the day as I did some research, my revised original idea featured the 08:42 service from Crewe to Cardiff (diverted via Chester due to engineering works on the line via Nantwich) as that potentially was a loco hauled set (for the novelty factor of 67+Mk4 coverage between Crewe & Chester) but as that was showing as a 3 coach 197 I turned that rough idea down.  Randomly searching for what my last EMR 170 was working (just in case it popped up during the day on a Crewe – Newark Castle stopper) highlighted something even better as it was working a service to Liverpool.

Exiting the house, swinging via the Tesco garage for breakfast items, we boarded 197112 on a Crewe – Manchester shuttle service for the run to Manchester Piccadilly giving us 30 minutes before 170422 rolled in on the next Liverpool service, grabbing a seat in the former 1st class area at the front of the train for the trip via Warrington Central (where it got a lot busier) to arrive at Lime Street near enough on time.  We exited the station at Lime Street heading via the city centre area to the waterfront (and the latest Cunard ship) before heading to James Street to jump on the first available train to Lime Street.

170422 at Liverpool Lime Street

The first train was winner 777022 (which was a bit annoying considering I try and do units for ten miles) for the short journey to Lime Street, coming up via the lift (to avoid a long walk as the link passage in the main concourse was closed) and boarding 390126 on the next London train to take us to Crewe, where we had a short walk to platform 12 to board a Mk4 set with DVT 82226 leading and 67020 at the rear on the next Cardiff service to take us towards Chester where I had a few ideas at what to do.  A late running 777030 arrived onto a busy platform 7 departing back towards Liverpool around 10 minutes late so I wasn’t surprised when a few seconds before the train was due to arrive at Hooton the announcement was made that it would run nonstop to Birkenhead Central with passengers for the intermediate stations asked to change at Hooton for the next train (from Ellesmere Port which was held back).

After Hooton it was a nice fast run to Birkenhead Central, even though the on-board announcements got confused “We are now approaching X” when it sped though, regaining the delay by Birkenhead Central, and we changed at Liverpool Lime Street.  The sooner Merseyrail start running 8 coach sets on Chester services at weekends the better as it was very crowded on the 4-coach unit (I still think they should have just ordered a fixed formation 120-metre-long train rather than 4 coach units).  Anyhow at Lime Street, it was another trip via the busy lift and onto 802211 on the next Newcastle service (featuring an epic seat reservation from Lea Green to Newton-Le-Willows!).  We alighted at Newton-Le-Willows to wait for the next TfW service for Piccadilly, getting a surprise with Earl of Mount Edgcumbe steam train running past on an empty coaching stock movement (which made mum very happy as she love steam trains).

GWR 4073 Class 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe passing Newton-Le-Willows

Winner 197118 rolled in on the next Manchester Airport train, which was quite busy, but we got a seat near the front and even had a clear run to Oxford Road without the usual congestion around Deansgate!  At Piccadilly we changed to board 220009 on the next Bristol service which was late arriving due to issues (which caused the following Bournemouth train to get spun at Macclesfield).  As usual for a 4-coach voyager this was quite busy, but we got a seat in coach F for the run to Macclesfield, exiting the station (after visiting the toilets) for the walk to the bus station for a bus route recommended by Jules, the High Peak operated route 58 to Buxton.  An Optare Solo (fleet 286) rolled into the bus station before departing heading via some of the Macclesfield suburbs before joining the Cat & Fiddle Road giving some excellent views on this twisty & hilly road to the Peak District.  At the Buxton end of the route, it detours to serve a housing area before going to the town centre where we alighted at the stop opposite the railway station, making our way to the platform to take a seat on 150143 & 150105 on the next Manchester service.

This pair of 150s took us back towards Manchester Piccadilly with some more lovely scenery (and some not so lovely noise being played by some other passengers because they hadn’t heard of the concept of headphones).  We had a little stroll around the station area before boarding winner 197103 on a Chester service for some more looking out of the window (being thankful when a group of loud drunken middle-aged men alighted at Frodsham).  The last train of the day was winner 197017 on a Crewe shuttle which was departing from platform 7 and was lightly loaded, however due to some poor signalling a 197 which was on test (121) got put ahead of the service train and with the long signal blocks on this line meant the 197 was 10 minutes late into Crewe (on a 12 minute turnaround for a Cardiff service, whereas the test train was running an hour early).

View from bus route between Macclesfield & Buxton via Cat & Fiddle Road

We headed back to the shared house, swinging via a takeaway to pick up dinner, eating it in the lounge of what sounded like a private house (certainly for the 30 minutes we were in the lounge we didn’t see or hear anybody else, nor did I hear the front-door unlocking when we were relaxing in the room).  Not like I’m complaining after a couple of bad experiences in the past involving lady who laughs at everything a gentlemen, she was with said with a high-pitched laugh which sounded like an engine trying to turn over.  An enjoyable & varied day in Cheshire, the highlight being that unexpected steam train and the bus.

2nd June – Back home, via Yorkshire

I guess in hindsight when I was putting together this trip, I could have done things differently with maybe the Saturday being a Heart of Wales round trip & the Sunday being a short-day trip to Liverpool using LNR on the way to Euston on the Sunday, but hey-ho.  Today was a case of heading back to London but going via Yorkshire, the day starting with leaving the shared house, swinging via Tesco for breakfast before boarding a busy 197002 on the first TfW service to Manchester Piccadilly (going via Styal for a bit of unusual track coverage with a 197).  Sadly, I didn’t research engineering works on Metrolink and found out the city centre was closed with no services going via Victoria so good in a way I gave us over an hour to get between the stations as it was a gentle stroll to Manchester Victoria (towards Piccadilly Gardens, before following the tram tracks after Market Street).

We arrived at Manchester Victoria to a station in a bit of chaos due to numerous cancellations on both Northern & TPE, overrunning engineering works at Leeds was causing some severe delays to westbound trains added with the overtime ban & lack of volunteers to work the Sunday.  We were booked on the 10:20 service which was meant to have started at Chester but was changed to starting from Manchester Victoria the night before, that was cancelled with the 09:54 service not expected to arrive until 10:35, so with the Northern Journey checker saying “if your original train is cancelled, ticket acceptance is with TPE” so we joined the large queue waiting for the Newcastle train.

I gambled on which end would be 1st class (1st class was leading) however I made use of the quieter loadings by boarding 1st class and moving down towards standard class to grab a decent seat before the masses boarded.   802214 departed rather cosy as it headed towards Leeds going via the Calder Valley for a bit of extra scenery. More fun & games at both Brighouse & Dewsbury with passengers trying to squeeze onto the train before running to Leeds where it did empty out a bit (only to get filled up again).  I was glad to have alighted, but the plan for the next trip was thrown up in the air due to an incident between Shipley & Skipton closing the line.  I was originally booked on one of the random semi-fast 333 services (just for the novelty of a fast run on a 333) but that was cancelled with the first train heading towards Skipton being a 45 minute late single 158 for Carlisle which was completely swamped with passengers.

802214 at Leeds Station

Change of plan time as Skipton was out, so for the lack of a better idea I purchased a day return for Ilkley, boarding 333010 for the run to Ilkley with a short explore (popping to Tesco for lunch) before we took the same 333 back to Leeds, popping out of the station for 20 minutes before returning to board 158757 on a Halifax service to take us to Bradford Interchange changing to board 180105 on the 15:10 departure to London Kings Cross (with 221143 working the later 15:59 service).  No seat reservation labels had been placed out but thankfully we got a table seat for the slow run via West Yorkshire the train only filling up at Doncaster.

An uneventful run on the ECML towards London, arriving a couple of minutes early.  At Kings Cross we headed towards the underground to take the Victoria line (set 11091/11092) to Oxford Circus changing to a busy Bakerloo line service (3238/3563) to Waterloo, popping out of the station to grab some food from Tesco before boarding the 18:45 service to Salisbury formed of 159008 & 158890 for an uneventful run to Grateley, where we exited the train and had a gentle walk home.  Overall, it was a relaxing weekend for me and a good weekend for mum (as she enjoyed herself).

180105 & 221143 at Bradford Interchange

Thanks for reading :)

25th – 27th May Trips

 25th – 27th May Trips

The second bank holiday weekend in May, and like the first bank holiday weekend it involved a couple of railtours and plans for a canal walk.

25th May - The Hanson Hanse Tour

When this tour (and the tour on the Sunday) were announced back in December I booked onto them as it looked like it would be a good day trip to King’s Lynn with the benefit of a call at Basingstoke which saved the cost of accommodation.  The day began with the 05:59 service to Basingstoke formed of a very quiet 159021 & 158887 giving me just over an hour in Basingstoke.  Time, I spent having a little stroll into the town centre area, a place which was quiet.  I returned to the station swinging via Greggs (for a free sausage bap) and Tesco for some bits for lunch later.

To platform 3 at Basingstoke for a short wait before 50008 rolled in with the London Transport 4TC set and 20007 on the rear, I was in coach D today which meant sitting near the 20.  A coach which sounded like it had a wheel flat (maybe the same wheel flat from the tours at the start of May) which did get a bit annoying after a while (especially in tunnels where it was a bit loud).  I had a private table until Slough where 2 other passengers boarded and the 4th boarding at Ealing Broadway.  After Ealing Broadway the tour headed via Acton yard to join the North London line to head towards Gospel Oak taking the connection onto the Goblin to head towards Crouch Hill and taking the Harringay curve to join the ECML.

50008 arriving at Basingstoke

The tour headed into the Hornsey reversing siding with the 20 taking charge for the trip over the flyover and into Kings Cross for the final pick up.  After Kings Cross the charter headed north along the ECML taking the Hertford North loop to go via Hertford North to rejoin the main line at Stevenage to take the Cambridge line towards Royston where it did the loop before the station and headed towards Cambridge where it had a little pathing stop on platform 4 to allow a XC 170 to depart as well as a 700 on an Ely service (I presume had the loop been available further north near the junction with the Bury line it would have sat in that loop).

Anyhow after Cambridge the train made a call at Ely to set down some passengers before heading onto the Fen Line to head towards King’s Lynn, which unusually for a charter train headed into the station itself (rather than into the yard).  I alighted from the train and headed for a gentle walk along the Sandringham railway path, a path making use of the former railway route towards Hunstanton.  Once I gained the old railway line path, I walked via the Gaywood & Lynnsport area of the town.  The path came to an end at the Edward Benefer Way Road to the north of the town (near North Lynn Industrial Estate) and I did a U-turn to head back towards a path alongside the Bawsey Drain towards the docks.  In the Lynnsport area I had a little detour towards the King's Lynn Miniature Railway which sadly was closed.

Lynnsport Station on the Lynnsport Miniature Railway (King’s Lynn & District Society of Model Engineers)

I randomly came across an old railway crossing for the old disused docks branch with the track still embedded within the road (John Kennedy Road).  I returned towards the station via Morrisons for some supplies for dinner and took my seat as the train headed into the King's Lynn EMU siding running alongside the Middleton Towers branch.  After the trip to the siding the train returned to the station using the other platform to pick up any passengers who didn't want to do the siding (it was a BLS tour after-all).

The tour departed King’s Lynn for the 2nd time heading back towards Ely but avoiding the station by using the curve onto the line towards Peterborough, going via the loop before March before crossing over to reverse on the Ely bound platform at March station.  Departing March via the other goods loop for a XC service to pass before heading towards Ely once more, pausing at the station to pick up passengers before carrying on towards Cambridge.  After Cambridge the train continued south passing the future Cambridge South station (which is coming along well from the looks of things) and onto the Greater Anglia route with pathing stops in the loop to the south of Bishop Stortford, a longer stop at Harlow Town and a stop at Broxbourne.

20007 at King's Lynn Station

After Broxbourne the train continued towards Cheshunt, turning away from the main-line and onto the Overground route via Edmonton Green towards Seven Sisters where it took the curve towards South Tottenham and towards the Greater Anglia line (the route used by that Saturday mornings London Overground PSUL from London towards Enfield).  The train continued towards Lea Bridge and taking the High Meads loop line to approach Stratford from the west which is where I bailed from the charter (it would continue back towards Lea Bridge then onto the Goblin to take the connection towards West Hampstead Thameslink and the Dudding Hill line to rejoin the GWML, nothing I hadn’t done before).

At Stratford I took a Central line service formed of 91157, 92014, 91175 & 91019 to Tottenham Court Road changing to the Northern line with sets 51725 & 51665 to Waterloo.  Made a difference from using the Jubilee line all the way from Stratford.  At Waterloo I headed towards the platform where the 20:50 to Salisbury was located getting on board 158888 (yep, a single 2 coach unit had escaped to London).  Wasn’t too bad in the front coach on departure from Waterloo but soon filled up at Clapham Junction, emptying out somewhat at Basingstoke (the 30-minute gap between fast services doesn’t help).  I was glad when it arrived at Grateley and I had a gentle walk home as that early start twinned with a poor night meant I was tired, had I stayed on the tour I would have got home around 90 minutes later after a near hour fester at Basingstoke.

158888 at London Waterloo

An enjoyable tour nether the less, it had been a while since my last trip to the Fen Line in daylight, although the 4TC set isn’t the best on warm days due to the limited opening of the windows.  20007 made a good noise for the sections it worked, pretty sure the last time I had haulage from a class 20 was back in 2018 on the GBRf 4-day tour.

26th May - The Millbrook Meander Tour

The second of this weekend’s tours involved an Eastleigh start, although as I was a bit uncertain with car parking around Eastleigh (and not wanting to fork out £5-odd to park at the station) I headed towards Romsey, catching 158886 towards Chandler’s Ford station to have a gentle stroll to waste some time, following a path alongside the Monk’s Brook then over the M3 into the Boyatt Wood area of the town with a couple of urban paths followed by a road towards Eastleigh station, swinging via a Tesco Express in a garage to grab some items for lunch.

Revenue protection was in full swing at Eastleigh due to the kickball playoff at Wembley, as well as some additional trains running nonstop towards Waterloo after Eastleigh or Winchester.  Eastleigh station itself was a bit chaotic due to signalling issues meaning everything going south needed to go via platform 3, including the nonstop services so by the time the charter rolled in with Freightliner’s 66509 on the northern end & 50008 on the southern end.  Stopping at the southern end of the platform causing a large surge of passengers (which annoyed one person taking a photograph as he was quite rude when people got in his way at taking the ‘perfect’ shot of the 66).

66509 at Eastleigh Station

Anyhow it was onto the London Transport 4TC set, today I was lucky to be behind the 50 in coach A (and thankfully no wheel flat), as the charter train departed Eastleigh picking up at both Southampton Airport Parkway & Southampton Central before going via the Freightliner terminal at Millbrook (to the north of the tracks) before going towards the Freightliner Maritime Terminal (on the southern side) reversing on one of the lines behind Redbridge station with 08785 attaching to the 66 to haul the train towards the wagon repair sidings, where I was stopped underneath a road bridge.  The shunter detached and 50008 took over to exit the freight terminal and onto the goods line behind Redbridge station to rejoin the passenger network near enough on time and headed towards Romsey & Salisbury for a final pick-up.  I think I saw a couple passengers jumping off at Salisbury as the more unusual track of the Freightliner terminals at Southampton was done.

After Salisbury the charter continued towards Yeovil Junction pausing at Gillingham for a heavily delayed 159 to pass (running an hour late due to earlier issues) before reversing down the hill to Yeovil Pen Mill allowing passengers on the train to tick off 66509 for haulage (which for me makes it my 100th 66 for haulage), a few more passengers alighted at Yeovil Pen Mill to get a taxi back to Junction including the person sat opposite me so I had a bit more extra legroom.  The weather at Pen Mill was heavy rain (compared to sunshine at Junction) and the train got delayed due to a late running Weymouth bound GWR service (which needed to clear the single-track section between Yeovil Pen Mill & Maiden Newton.

50008 at a wet Yeovil Pen Mill Station

The charter departed around 15 minutes late, and I was a bit tempted to bail at Maiden Newton (to walk the short railway line path) where there was another pathing stop.  This stop was extended further as the northbound train the charter was due to pass at Dorchester was passed at Maiden Newton, much to the annoyance of passengers on board as the doors weren’t released for the 10-minute stop.  Anyhow after Maiden Newton the train continued south, much to people’s surprise it didn’t stop at Dorchester West (which was a set-down station) and continued to Weymouth where thankfully the sun was out so I headed away from the station going towards Morrisons via the Radipole Park Gardens, returning towards the station via a cycle path which ran close to the Lodmoor Country Park passing the Weymouth Bay Miniature Railway.  I reached the seafront near the Sea-Life centre and followed the path back towards the town centre in some beautiful sunshine.

Weymouth Beach (Greenhill area of town)

I returned to the station which was a bit chaotic due to a police incident on the line towards Wareham with 2 Waterloo trains cancelled (first time I’ve seen a 444 using the shorter platform at Weymouth where it just about fitted).  The charter returned from the sidings and departed on a detour towards Castle Cary & Westbury with the 66 leading.  A reversal at Westbury with the 50 now leading and I made use of the additional call at Salisbury to bail out to avoid a highly likely hour fester at Southampton for the next Romsey bound service.  After buying a ticket it was onto a Portsmouth Harbour bound 158760 & 158762 for the run to Romsey, walking back to my car and driving home.

158762 departing Romsey Station

An enjoyable day trip made longer due to the tragic event near Wareham but thankfully the route via Yeovil Pen Mill was available with the Sunday frequencies for that line coming in handy (as there was nothing heading south until the charter avoided Frome).  Although the route did get me thinking about my future with rail tours, I prefer to be more active than sitting down for most of the day, especially when you get tables where the other passengers are quite quiet in terms of chatting.  They are certainly getting more expensive and where I’ve got lucky lately with tours which start or pick up in the South which does reduce the cost for accommodation & other travelling costs.  I can see the number of tours I do decreasing again, being more selective with what ones I decide to do.

27th May – A failed attempt to return to Weedon with an unexpected trip to Newport Pagnell

After 2 days of mostly sitting on my rear end I decided on the bank holiday to head towards Northampton to catch a bus to Weedon Bec picking up where I left my explore of the Grand Union canal to walk towards Blisworth before the Northampton arm of the canal back to Northampton, with hopefully not a late finish due to a busy Tuesday.  However, things didn’t go to plan.

The day started with the 06:59 service from Grateley formed of 159022 to take me to Basingstoke where I stepped back to board a very quiet 450100 & 450108 on a nonstop to Clapham Junction service where it arrived ahead of schedule due to not following a late running train from Guildford after Woking (which looped the 450s at Clapham Junction which is I think is the first time I’ve seen a train passing another service there).  After popping out of the station to grab some supplies from Sainsburys I returned to board 377704 on the next Watford Junction service to take me to Watford Junction where I noticed things had gone a bit, Pete Tong.  However, I did see my last 710 heading south on the 09:15 departure which I made a note off.

450100 at Clapham Junction

Due to large scale signalling issues around Cheddington (International Parkway) the WCML had fallen over with nothing expected to move for the next half an hour if not more, so with lack of a better plan (and a massive crowd waiting around) I jumped onto a very busy 710264 to take me towards Kensal Green to intercept winner 710374 on a northbound service with both trains using platform 3 at Watford Junction (one of these days I will score platforms 1 & 2, but it’s like Clacton in being low on my list of things to do).

On arrival at Watford Junction, things had started to move again and I jumped onto a very busy 390013 which was standing room only even in coach A to Milton Keynes Central with plan B in my head, as I headed out of the station and towards the bus stops outside for the next Arriva run route 2a service to Newport Pagnell (A StreetLite 3304), going via various places in Milton Keynes and I alighted at the Fire Station (where the bus does a little loop) to start a cut-down walk.

710374 at Watford Junction

This walk took me along the route used by the former Wolverton – Newport Pagnell branch line, closed in the 1960s and now part of a popular mixed used path (even with the weather being quite changeable with short light showers popping up every now and again).  The walk passed the remains of the stations at Great Linford & Bradwell as it headed towards Wolverton crossing over the Grand Union Canal with a couple short sections where path users had to crossroads on the flat (mostly little residential roads).  The path came to an end near the WCML with the last bit following the canal towards The Secret Garden.  The last section I put up a bit of extra speed to catch a train from Wolverton as the following service was showing as cancelled (and I didn't fancy trying to get to Milton Keynes Central via a bus).

Remains of Great Linford Station (Wolverton to Newport Pagnell line)

Earlier in the day I did see a pair of 730s heading south from Milton Keynes (passed around Bletchley) which I was toying with doing for the novelty of a 730/0 from Milton Keynes, but the northbound service had been cancelled (along with a lot of other services) so that idea was parked as I climbed on board a busy 350235 & 350241 (yay another pair of 350/2s!) on a busy service from Birmingham as I managed to grab a seat in the former 1st class area for the run to London Euston, where I headed out on foot towards Waterloo in a strange case of localised weather as my good friend Jules was in the New Cross area at the same time and reported that it was throwing it down when I had sunshine.  Gave an interesting view from Waterloo Bridge with blue skies to the north and black skies to the south.  Anyhow I made it to Waterloo without getting wet and onto 159003 on the 15:50 service to Salisbury, a service which was quite busy but like on the Saturday did empty out somewhat at Basingstoke (I can’t help think SWR should insert a Basingstoke call on the XX:35 trains for Weymouth to help take some passengers from the XX:50s).

Anyhow an hour and a bit later I alighted from the 159 at Grateley, making my way home (again getting lucky with the lack of rain as an hour later it started to throw it down for the rest of the evening).  Not the best of days with my original plan having to be ditched but at least I managed to knock out an old railway line path and cleared the 710s.  Plus, the early finish was good for getting ready for the busy day on the Tuesday.  More photos can be found on my Flickr, thanks for reading (assuming I haven’t sent you all to sleep).  I shall leave you with the Thames:

River Thames from Waterloo Bridge (eastwards), May 2024