Trips 16 -18th August (Grand Union, Staffordshire & Test Valley Buses)

 Trips 16 -18th August

16th August – Grand Union canal in the Northamptonshire Sun

I had an unexpected day off training, so unexpected that I only found out about it on the Thursday when the trainer handed out the training schedule which had annual leave for this day, giving me a couple of options, either a London day to see if I can pick up some of the C2C 720s which seem to be out most of the day these days (rather than being peak time only) along with 730s from Euston and maybe some other GA 720s.  As the weather was quite nice, I looked into doing my last section of the Mainline section of the Grand Union canal from Weedon Bec to Gayton Junction, something I was considering doing on the bank holiday Monday if the weather was nice.

The day began with the 07:27 service from Grateley formed of 159012 & 159108 for the run to Waterloo, nonstop after Basingstoke where I enjoyed a private table throughout.  After grabbing some breakfast (discovering that the Sidings branch of Sainsburys does warm croissants as part of the meal deal, yum yum) I headed towards the former international platforms to board winner 701039 on the Windsor service, yes it might have taken me since January but I had finally opened my book with the 701s.  Quite nice inside, maybe could do with the window seats being a bit further from the train walls but certainly a good replacement for the 455s.

701039 at London Waterloo

I decided to take this 701 to Staines for the fastish section outside London and to linear hop to Egham with 450082 & 450039 to intercept 458422 & 458426 on a service from Weybridge to sample a refurbished 458.  Like the 701s I was quite impressed, decent quality seats (other than the fixed window-side armrest), as it took me to Vauxhall via the Hounslow loop.  At Vauxhall I transferred to the underground to jump on a hot Victoria line service to Euston (set 11032/11031) where in hindsight I should have detoured via Sainsburys for lunch but instead headed to the platform where 350267 & 350108 was loading on a Birmingham service, the front coach of the /1 getting quite busy on departure (good turnover of passengers at Watford Junction).  This service ran along the slow lines towards Watford to make use of the crossover at Watford North which is the first time I’ve gone from slow to fast lines there in quite a while.

This service took me to Northampton where I exited the station, heading towards the town centre swinging via Boots to grab lunch (one of these days I will look for that Tesco Express) before catching the route D2 service to Weedon Bec heading out of the Northampton suburbs following the A4500 towards the M1 then going via Upper Heyford & Flore to reach Weedon Bec where I alighted outside the Tesco Express just after the A5 where my walk began. I picked up the Grand Union canal at the point I exited on a previous walk, going via the village of Weedon Bec (with the soundtrack of various trains on the WCML).

Grand Union Canal between Nether Heyford & Bugbrooke

Soon the canal turned rural and headed away from the railway (which goes via a short tunnel which the canal goes round the side).  I reached Nether Heyford with the canal skirting round the edge of this small village running alongside the railway (but sadly no real decent photo chances due to trees).  The canal skirted round the edge of Bugbrooke with the towpath being quite variable in quality as I continued towards Gayton Junction and a lot of moored boats, I was happy when I reached the junction as it meant the mainline of the Grand Union canal had been walked (London to Birmingham).

At Gayton Junction I turned onto the Northampton arm of the canal which compared to the last hour was quite noisy due to running close to the A43 and dropping down a long lock flight.  I went underneath the M1 which crosses the canal on a tall bridge and soon I reached the industrial outskirts of Northampton where the towpath was good quality but at times, I couldn't see the canal due to the overgrowth (reminded me a bit like the Selby canal).  The canal skirted round the edge of the Hunsbury & Briar Hill area of the town, going underneath both the active railway (Northampton loop line) and a disused railway bridge (the freight line towards Bridge Street).  The canal ends at the town lock giving access to the River Nene Navigation with a small detour via a housing estate.

Northampton Loop of the WCML bridge over the Northampton Arm of the Grand Union.

Looking at the time, I decided to swing via Morrisons to grab dinner items (and more liquid as it was very hot out on the canal) before making my way to Northampton station ready for another spin on the “Desiro Wheel of Destiny”.  I got lucky with 350255 leading 350124 on a service from Birmingham, even getting lucky to get a table seat on the /1 to have my dinner when my phone was getting charged as I relaxed on the service towards London, losing time at Milton Keynes due to a late running stopper getting put ahead and hence losing the path across the WCML so arrival was 9 minutes late, annoyingly missing a connection to a pair of 730s on the next Tring train.   I boarded the Milton Keynes stopper (350261 & 350119) for the run to Harrow & Wealdstone where I easily made the connection for winners 730044 & 730001 on a stopper from Milton Keynes.

These 730s took me back to Euston where after cursing for the lack of a 20:50 from Waterloo to Salisbury on weekdays (as that train starts at Basingstoke with no connection from Waterloo) I headed to Euston Square for lack of a better idea.  A Hammersmith & City line service (21407/21408) took me to Farringdon where I changed to 700025 on a Rainham service to London Bridge, finally jumping on the first service for Charing Cross (which seemed to hang around until correct departure time rather than going when ready) which was 707020 & 707001.  This pair took me to Waterloo East where I crossed over to the main area of the station to board the 21:20 service which was formed of 159019 running solo (cosy!)

730001 at London Euston

I took this 159 back to Grateley, doing some research with ticket pricing and coming up with an alternative plan for the Saturday as my original idea was the Kennet & Avon canal between Pewsey & Devizes, but instead I was going to head towards Staffordshire.  I was happy I had finished the Grand Union, other than the Leicester arm and doing some research it seems there are a couple parts of that canal where the towpath is currently closed so sadly might have to wait until next year.

17th August – Making a start with the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal

The Staffordshire & Worcestershire canal is a 46-mile-long canal linking Stourport & Great Haywood, and today I decided to make a small start with the coverage of this canal at the northern end from Penkridge towards the junction at Great Haywood (making use of the £2 bus fares in case they disappear in December).  The day began with the 05:27 from Grateley (feels like ages since I did this particular service) for the run to Waterloo with 159103 where I had a gentle stroll towards Euston via a quiet London where I had a short wait for the inbound for the 07:46 Crewe service to pop up (as it was running late).  Departure was around 5 minutes late with 350236 & 350267 (thankfully I managed to grab a seat in the former first-class area of the leading unit) with the run to Rugby passing without incident.

At Rugby I changed to platform 1 to await the next Birmingham service (the 07:23 from Euston) for the short run to Coventry with 350408 & 350108 (with the gangway doors locked out of use).  After popping outside the station at Coventry to buy supplies for lunch from the Sainsburys it was onto winner 805008 on the next Birmingham Avanti service (I had seen this 805 at Euston but couldn’t ID it, nor was it showing on RTT so it was a bit of a shot in the dark).  This 805 (with the extra loud announcements which echoed) took me to Birmingham New Street where I changed to 196109 for the run to Wolverhampton to meet up with my good friend Jan who was joining me on today’s walk.

66756 at Coventry Station

Next up was a quiet 350263 on a Liverpool service to Penkridge where the walk began (I was toying between walking from Penkridge to Great Haywood for the bus to Stafford or train to Stafford to do the bus leg first, deciding to walk north to keep the sun behind us). The first section was via the centre of Penkridge towards the canal on Cannock Road, heading north via the village before running close to the M6 as the canal soon turned rural.  The next mile or so was spent close to the M6 so it wasn't the quietest but me & Jan had a good little catch-up as the canal headed underneath the M6 and headed away from the motorway (the traffic noise was still there but a lot quieter).  The canal skirted round the side of Acton Trussell dropping down via some locks with the towpath being quite variable in terms of quality & overgrowth, a few parts was like a jungle.

We reached the Wildwood area of Stafford with some lovely views on the western side (nature reserve) before the countryside turned more urban skirting around Weeping Cross, going underneath the WCML and passing the formal junction with the short Sow Navigation (which linked this canal to the centre of Stafford, something which is being restored on a slightly different route).  The Stafford urban area soon gave way to countryside once more with the canal running close to the railway towards the Milford area where it turned away from the railway to head north crossing the Sow heading towards the Tixall area.  The canal ended at Great Haywood junction after crossing the River Trent, making a junction with the Trent & Mersey canal with the walk ending a couple of minutes later with a bus stop outside the farm shop.  Thankfully the towpath in the latter section of the canal did improve with no jungle to push through.

Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal between Stafford & Great Haywood

It was a short wait before the next Chaserider bus working a route 828 linking Lichfield with Stafford (bus 65).  We rode this bus to the terminus at Stafford’s Gaol Square having a gentle stroll to the railway station (with Jan pointing out various bits because he used to live in Stafford).  At Stafford it was strangely onto platform 1 for the next Birmingham service formed of 350242 (being surprised at being able to grab a seat in the former 1st class area).  We took this to Wolverhampton where I said my farewell to Jan, and a hope to see him again in September time as I headed back to the station jumping on 196103 to Birmingham New Street, which instead of heading into platform 4C crossed right across to terminate at the far end of platform 12 (I believe it formed a Great Malvern service, rather than a Shrewsbury service).

I had time for a short 730 hunt, heading across to platform 8 to board a Lichfield Trent Valley service formed of winners 730009 & 730003 to take me to Four Oaks which thankfully is just over ten miles (and enjoys 4tph), the rearmost door didn’t open (even though it was all accommodated on the platform) and had a short wait before winners 730036 & 730004 rolled in on a Four Oaks terminator to take me back towards Birmingham New Street, having a short stroll to board winner 805011 on an Avanti London service to take me to Coventry (even featured a ticket check which is rare for Avanti!)

730036 at Four Oaks Station

At Coventry for the second time of the day I popped out to the Sainsburys Local to grab food (for dinner) before returning to the station with a busy 350259 & 350243 on a London service, where after noticing it gave a connection to a service from Crewe, I decided to bail at Rugby for another spin of the Desiro Wheel of Fortune.  350253 rolled in with 350372 on the rear, with the 350/3 being lightly loaded (another service where the gangway doors were locked out of use (the guard hiding away from the passengers)).  Unusually this service called at Berkhamsted, Hemel Hempstead (both on the fast line platforms) & Watford Junction (with a large crowd waiting to board the train).

I took this service to London Euston where it took 10 minutes to leave the platform due to the barriers being in operation with another service arriving just before this one which had a short turnaround (so large crowds both sides of the ticket barriers).  I headed to the underground taking the first southbound Northern line service (formed of 51629 & 51628) to Waterloo, where I headed towards the 21:20 service which tonight was formed of 159108 & 158883 as I took my seat in the front coach for the trip to Grateley.  A busy day trip to Staffordshire making a small start with the Staffordshire & Worcestershire canal, although I have no idea what sections I will do with the section from Stourport towards Wolverhampton, although I suspect Kidderminster might feature with a splitting point.  A job for next year I reckon.

Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal with old plane

18th August – Test Valley Rambler

After two long days on the rails, I decided on a shorter trip with mum to Southampton (as she wanted to visit the Lego store), giving me an excuse to ride the Test Valley Rambler bus route which has been introduced this summer linking Andover with Romsey via various tourist places within the Test Valley.  I think it’s something the local council has spent money on getting running (although I do recall before Covid there used to be a similar Summer Sunday run service by Stagecoach between Andover & Stockbridge, connecting with a free community bus to Romsey).

As the first departure from Andover wasn’t until the 10:45 it gave us time for a more leisurely start and even breakfast in the local Spoons before heading to Andover bus station before Bluestar’s 2720 rolled in with a reasonable load (15 passengers alighting).  The bus departed Andover with 14 passengers (including myself & mum) heading via the railway station (running on the diversional route due to gas main works).

Bluestar in Andover on the Test Valley Rambler

After the railway station the bus headed out of Andover via Weyhill Road for a short section of running along the A303 to serve the Hawk Conservancy (which due to the road layout is only served on Romsey bound journeys).  The bus ran via Amport picking up 2 more passengers outside Grateley railway station (a bus enthusiast from Basingstoke plus another passenger) before going via the Wallops to serve the Museum of Army Flying.  I will give full credit to the bus driver in navigating those narrow roads, hard enough in a car.  One of the passengers whom boarded at Grateley alighted from the bus outside Danebury Hill Fort with the bus continuing to Stockbridge when an idiotic car driver decided to pull out in front of the bus causing a collision with the bus striking the front wing of the Volvo SUV.

All the paperwork was filled in by the bus driver and thankfully 30 minutes later the bus continued towards Romsey having lost 4 passengers in Stockbridge & gained one more.  After doing a turn round the roundabout to head back via the town centre the bus headed towards Houghton to serve the Houghton Lodge Gardens before Horsebridge (for the Test Way) & Mottisfont Abbey with no custom.  After Mottisfont the bus dropped off 3 passengers outside the railway station in Romsey (picking up an extra 2 passengers) and ran towards the bus station where I would say 3 passengers remained on board (excluding the 2 picked up at the railway station).  With the delay with the incident in Stockbridge my planned next move on the Southampton bus was ditched (as it would be a long wait due to heavy congestion on that route).  I guess in hindsight we should have walked to the railway station for the next 158 to Southampton but instead jumped on the next route 66 service to Winchester (with Stagecoach's 36435), making an easy connection to 444004 & 444013 on a Weymouth service to take us to Southampton where the shopping trip began.

Bluestar in Southampton

After visiting all the places, we wanted to visit in the city centre, we headed back towards the station to board 444043 & 444010 on a service from Poole, aiming for a seat near the rear knowing it was likely to be quieter due to being off the platform at many of the stations between Bournemouth & Southampton, getting rewarded with a private coach (where the front coaches looked busy).  These 444s took us to Basingstoke where we had 20-odd minutes to fester before 159002, 159017 & 159101 rolled in on an Exeter service running nonstop to Andover, walking to the town centre car park where I had parked earlier in the day and headed to Spoons again for dinner (for the lack of a better idea).

An interesting day with that new tourist bus, other than the incident in Stockbridge (which frankly is a nightmare for car parking considering how popular it has become in recent years).  Very odd seeing a Southampton Bluestar bus in Andover.  Anyhow thanks for reading, more photos can be found on my Flickr, next weekend sees a return to Crewe with a day in Liverpool fitting in a disused railway walk depending what the weather ends up doing (I was going to do the Rufford Branch of the Leeds & Liverpool canal but it seems the towpath is currently closed between two of the bridges so that can go back onto the list to do at a future date.  Have a good day and I will leave you with an unexpected voyager :)

Random Voyager Ahoy!