After all the travelling I’ve been doing recently, it’s time for a break. I’m currently catching my breath here in Southport. Well, sort of – I’ve a long list of things I need to do, but most of my current travels involve walking as I try and catch up on my fitness programme and the outdoor gym exercises that I’ve missed whilst I’ve been away. It’s strange to think, but slogging around HS2 sites in full PPE with a camera pack on my back isn’t as physically hard as the stuff I’ve been doing here on the coast.
Arriving back in the North after a few days in London is a bit of a shock in some ways. There really is a North-South divide, which is best illustrated in human demographics. London’s full of younger, fitter people. The North, not so much. Southport especially so due to the ageing population up here. There’s a social and economic time-bomb ticking and it’s something a lot of people don’t want to talk about. Especially the far-right who think sending ‘forrins’ back (to God knows where) will suddenly make the UK better off. Until the day they realise there’s no foreign nurses left to wipe their arses in their retirement home – if they’re lucky to find one that’s still open…
Now I’ve a busy week ahead as I juggle work with exercise and administration for the future. However, today was a case of having a much needed lie-in before pounding the pavements in order to get some distance under my belt. I’ve still managed to get some work done despite my wanderings. I’ve started editing this weeks pictures in order to get some out for a potential magazine cover. Admittedly, there’s a shedload of others to sort out, but that’s a job for tomorrow.
Now, having surpassed my 25,000 steps I’m relaxing at my sister’s whilst going through more pictures and a list of jobs for the next few days. In the meantime, here’s a few pictures from my travels – and today.
A taste of a blog to come. Here’s one of the HS2 construction sites I visited this week. The Turweston viaduct over the floodplain surrounding the Great Ouse river. Electrostars at Clapham Junction with the new London city skyline behind.Southport history and architecture.
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My time here in London’s come to an end. It’s been a lovely break. Staying with a dear friend whilst having the opportunity to visit HS2 construction sites and just enjoy being back in a city that I loved living in. The trip’s not entirely over yet. I’m booked on a train out of Euston later this afternoon so I’ve still some time to explore, but right now I’m helping out by waiting in for a parcel whilst Hassard’s off at an event. As soon as said parcel arrives I’ll be off on my travels again.
I did manage to nip out earlier to grab some shots at Clapham Junction. It feels very strange nowadays, the old Class 455s which dominated suburban services when I first moved here (they were new then!) have all disappeared. Now the South-West Railways ‘Arterio’ Class 701s have taken their place whilst Southern services have gained a variety of ‘Electrostar’ type units transferred in from GWR and GTR, which adds some livery variation at least.
A Waterloo bound Arterio wends its way through the maze of tracks outside Clapham Junction station.An Alstom built ‘Juniper’, Class 458/4 calls at Clapham Junction. The skyline is constantly changing here. You can see a crane building the lift tower of yet another high-rise block in the background.
14:00.
Hassard’s son Dante has arrived to take up parcel duties, so I’m off to meander across the city. In some ways the timing couldn’t have been better as a magazine’s contacted me about a cover picture – of London’s railways! Right, back to Clapham Junction is is then. The sun’s shining and conditions are ideal for what they want…
17:09.
For the second time in a week services out of Euston are stuffed! I made sure I arrived early, only to find the concourse crammed with people. Apparently, two seperate incidents have caused chaos. Avanti have cancelled several services and my 16:46 to Crewe didn’t leave until 17:09, which completely screws my connection to Liverpool Lime St. This might turn out to be a long day!
Euston how you don’t want to see it…
18:45.
We’ve just left Lichfield 30 mins late. To add to the fun the young lady Conductor has announced that the delay means we’ll be terminating at Stafford, not Crewe. Hopefully, I’ll be able to pick up a Liverpool bound service from there. It’s a shame, as the jourbey fom Euston’s been pretty good. I managed to secure one side of a table bay on this new Class 730. The train wasn’t too packed either. The only negative was that 2 out of the 3 toilets were out of order.
19:20.
The trip doesn’t get any better! Like far too many stations nowadays, lifts at Stafford were out of order. That wouldn’t normally inconvenience me but I’m dragging a suitcase today. Everyone scrambled over the footbridge from platform 1 to 5 only to find the next Liverpool bound service was actually an hour late and terminating at Crewe! Apparently, there’s another just a few minutes behind this 4-car Class 350, but I decided to catch it to Crewe – just in case!
I’m starting to look forward to a weekend without travel…
It’s a shame. The evening’s lovely and the countryside sublime as so many crops look to be on the cusp of being harvested. It’s just the journey that’s been fragmented and not as relaxing as I’d wanted. Plus, I’ve not been able to grab any pictures because of the melee.
19:55.
Said melee continued at Crewe when a trainload of people headed off in different directions in order to find out where to go next. Myself and several others ended up on a late-running Avanti Class 807 heading for Liverpool. Dispatch staff had checked that ticket acceptance was in place – so pile on! As this one only stops at Runcorn and Liverpool South Parkway I’m making up a little bit of time.
Despite the problems I’ve really enjoyed my trip over the West Coast Main Line. It’s part of my blood. I’ve travelled on it since I was a teenager. I’ve worked on it and it’s kept me linked with family and friends through good times and bad. I’ve never had the same relationship with its East Coast rival.
21:10.
Having arrived in Liverpool courtesy of Avanti instead of West Midlands trains I took a quick break (time for a pint) before catching a train to Southport. The contrast between London and the North is quite stark in my mind. London’s so much younger than the North, and I mean the people, not the history. It’s horrendously expensive compared to when I lived there but there’s still a real buzz and youthful feeling – a million miles away from Halifax – or Southport.
One thing that amused me is the way the political right-wing try to paint London as a hellhole led by a Muslim Mayor. It’s world’s apart from the truth, as is some Northerner’s ideas that Londoners are stand-offish. Both are so far from the truth they’re laughable to anyone who’s ever lived or spent much time in London.
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I’m here in South London, preparing to start the day. First up (after coffee, of course) is a trip across the capital to Willesden Junction where I’ll be meeting up with an old friend and colleague, Andy Roden of Modern Railways. We’re off for a visit to the HS2 station construction site at Old Oak Common. I’ll blog more about that later, but you’ll be able to read the full details of the visit in a forthcoming edition of Modern Railways.
But first, I have to get there…
09:18
And getting there has proved to be fun! Having arrived at Clapham Junction I’d intended to get the Overground direct to Willesden Jn, only to be greeted by PA announcements telling me the service has been suspended for some unknown reason.
So, plan B it is. I’ve caught a train to Waterloo where I’ll jump on the Bakerloo line. I was hoping to avoid the tube on a warm day like this but hey ho…
On the bright side, my train to Warerloo is a Class 458, which are in their final weeks of service.
09:40.
At Waterloo I had a surreal experience. A young nember of security staff spotted me taking a picture of the 458 and accosted me from the opposite platform, telling me my mirrorless camera was ‘too big’ and that I needed permission to take pictures so needed to sign in. I explained I was only there for a minute as I was catching another train, her her next line was that I could only take a picture with my phone! I politely but firmly declined, took my pictures and walked away…
Well, that’s a new one!
I’m now rattling and screeching my way to Willesden. Well, not me personally, but the ancient underground train I’m on is! We discussed these trains at the Siemens lunch yesterday. Soares are impossible to come by, so a machining shop has been established at Stonebridge Park depot to make any metal parts needed. If the part takes weeks to make, the train remains out of service until it has been.
15:15.
I’m back! Our visit to the HS2 site at Old Oak Common was a really full tour. Not only dis we descend into the HS2 station box to see how progress on constructing the 6 platform station is progressing, we also visited the Western approaches to the new station on the Great Western Main Line (GWML) where tracklaying has already taken place. Here’s a couple of shots.
Myself and Andy Roden pose for a picture on platforms 5-6 of the new HS2 station. We worked out that the last time we worked together on a similar project was HS1 at St Pancras way back in 2004!Looking towards Paddington from the new tracks being laid for the GWML station. The tower cranes in the background will be involved in constructing the roof for the interchange station. The new track on the Right will be part of the slewing of the existing GWML in order to create room for platforms 1-2 of the new station.
18:00.
Watching England play in the world cup in a pub in London with two Scousers and an Irishman…
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I’m off on a journey I’ve not done for ages but once did almost weekly, taking Grand Central’s service from Halifax to London. GC started running this route in the same year that I moved from London to Halifax – 2010. It was a godsend in those days as it allowed me to commute to the capital for work.
A lot’s changed in 17 years. Nowadays I’m semi-retired so the pressures aren’t the same. The railways have changed too. I’ve just traversed the section of line from Mirfield to Wakefied which is being rebuilt as part of the Trans-Pennine route upgrade. The recent blockade’s seen a lot of progress with civils work and the appearence of overhead electric masts.
Now we’ve swung off onto the route to Doncaster via ‘Pontycarlo’ (as Pontefract is often known). A line once thriving with coal traffic that’s a shadow of its former self. Knottingly depot’s a great example of this. Once it was an important base for freight locos that boasted a modern 2-storey office building and shed that housed a fleet of locos. The office building’s been demolished, many staff ‘let go’ and the tracks see more weeds than locos.
Unfortunately, the wifi on this GC Class 221 isn’t working, so I’m reduced to blogging via my Smartphone which is a bit of a bugger. Never mind…
09:20.
I’m speeding through the Cambridgeshire countryside on a train that’s been packed since Doncaster. A bright side is that the passenger who booked the airline seat next to mine from Mirfield to Lobdon was a ‘no show’.
The fields North of Peterborough are full of cereal crops that like ripe for harvesting. The golden glow of wheat spreads for miles around. Very different to the grasslands of the Pennines.
17:00.
Well, that was fun! This year’s Siemens press lunch was held in Wood Lane in West London at a venue called the Broadcaster, which is right outside the old BBC television centre where many programmes from my childhood were made (including ‘Blue Peter’). These events are an informal chance to chat with Senior leaders of Siemens over lunch. We always cover a wide range of subjects. Today, that was widened to include the performance of the German football team in the World Cup match last night!
Heading back in to Central London I stopped off at Euston station which is not having a happy time due to cattle on the West Coast Main Line near Lichfield earlier. You couldn’t moo-ve on the concourse!
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Having recovered from the exertions of ‘3 peaks by rail’ and caught up on my sleep, I’ve been spending the past couple of days editing the 1000s of pictures from the three days to get them out to the Railway Children asap so that they’re available for publicity purposes. Some have already bee used in a short video on Facebook. With that job done I’ve been concentrating on what happens next. In my case, that’s heading down to London tomorrow as I’ll be based in the capital for the next few days for a series of events.
Tomorrow I’m attending the Siemens press lunch before heading off to update library shots of the capital’s railways. On Wednesday I’ll be visiting one of the main HS2 railways construction sites in West London, whilst Thursday will see me visiting several other HS2 sites, this time in Northants. They’re of special interest as this will be the first time a press trip has visited them. After that I’ll be heading back to Southport for a while as I have a couple of articles to write as well as attend to family matters.
So, with all this going on, expect several rolling blogs to appear, starting tomorrow.
In the meantime, here’s a few pictures from the madness of the 3 peaks…
It’s 04:00 on Friday morning and 57311 waits to pick up walkers returning from their climb up Snowdon at Bangor. Our special train was double-headed on ‘lil Ratty’ Our lead loco, ‘Whillan Beck’ on the turntable at Dalegarth. Climbing Scafell on the Friday when the conditions were brutal. Our fabulous on-board team pose for a picture on the return from Scotland. They’re a mix of new and long-standing volunteers. Journey’s end for me this year. 45118 stands at Preston.
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A factor in Scotland is that our extra Peak (45118) has weight restrictions over certain bridges on the line to Fort William.
512Meanwhile, there’s nothing to do but sip coffee and enjoy the rugged scenery as it rolls by whilst trying to pick out deer in the gloom.
Right now the operations and safety teams are discussions on options…
We’ve woken up in Scotland to very different weather we gad on Scafell. There’s low grey cloud snd half-light as we head along the West Higland line some 90 minutes late. A delay that was mainly caused by signalling issues at Sellafield which caused our late departure from Ravenglass.
10:25.
Sorry for the gap but we’ve been busy getting walkers up Ben – and now down again! The first five have crossed the finish line, an incredible effort.
The medals…
13:29.
We’ve done it! By delaying the train leaving Fort William and with Global Challenge being super efficient at logging people onto the mountain many people made it to the summit, which really lifted spirits. Not only that but we had no-one turning back with injuries, and no-one missed the train back. In the past, late teams have had to be taken to Crianlarich by road to catch up with the train.
Now the walkers can relax. The onboard cre have been busy. The train’s been cleaned, food’s being prepared and the bar will soon be open. My job’s not over yet. Having taken photos of teams at the finish line I still have pictures to get onboard before we get to Glasgow where I can start to relax.
20:10.
And relax! We’re now South of Carlisle and my job’s done. Well, until it’s time to start editing the pictures! But for now I’m enjoying the view from my seat after saying goodbye to friends who’ve already left en-route. Next stop is Preston, where I bail out.
The weather South of the border is a real contrast to Scotland. I’m told it’s chucking it down in Inverness right now. Here in Cumbria/Lancashire the weather’s both sunny and humid. The atmosphere in the train’s wound down as crowds thin out and tiredness and/or imbibement catch up with the remaining travellers.
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
Day 2 is underway. The onboard crew and myself managed to grab a few hours sleep bedded down on the train at Holyhead before we returned to Bangor by 04:00 to pick up the teams. For once, they were waiting for us rather than the other way around. Everyone was able to summit, although I’m told conditions at the top were very windy. That said, there was a fantastic lightning display to be seen.
Now everyone’s aboard as we retrace our route to Chester. The walkers are getting some shut-eye whilst the onboard team start to prepare breakfast.
Argue amongst yourselves. Teacakes, rolls, baps or barms? Breakfast being prepared in one end of the car whilst a sandwich making marathon is going on at the other.
05:45.
As usual, things never go to plan. As the train is being ‘top and tailed’ the idea was that after leaving Holyhead the Class 57 on the year of the train would be leading to Ravenglass, saving the need to run round. Only I’m told it’s overheated. So, at Llandudno Jn we stopped in order to let 45118 run round to the front of the train and take over. The 57 remains inside to provide hotel power for the coaches.
Meanwhile, the interior of the train’s littered with sleeping bodies as the teams grab a few hours of rest before Ravenglass. But not the onboard crew. There’s mad activity in the catering cars. Breakfast’s being prepped and a sandwich making marathon’s going on. Trollies are being loaded with fruit and energy bars for walkers to pick up when we detrain
06:55.
We’ve just left Preston where we loaded extra supplies. Now the tired trekkers are being woken up and asked to clear the aisles they’ve bedded down in so that the breakfast trollies can get through.
09:00.
We’ve made it to Ravenglass where we’re boarding our second special train. This time ‘lil Ratty’ to take us up to Dalegarth ready for the walk across the hills to begin the climb up Scafell.
14:30.
Wow! That was brutal! Whilst the teams walked cross country to get to the start of the climb up Scafell I got a lift with Global Challenge (our event safety team) so that I could climb up Scafell before the teams arrived in order to be in position by the river crossing before they got there. I began my ascent at 10am, with a heavy camera bag on my back. I must be mad. I’m meant to be retired but I’m still doing daft stuff like this. The weather on Scafell meant it was like walking uphill in an oven! Less than a dozen people passed me. By the time others arrived the order had already gone out via radio for teams to turn back due to the heat. Only one person got within 1km of the summit – it was just too dangerous. Here’s how it looked from my perch.
Gorgeous views, but a picture can’t convey just how bloody hot it was!
Now the teams and staff are relaxing in Wasdale before mini buses and coaches ferry us back to Ravenglass. Naturally people are disappointed not to have made it to the summit of Scafell, but safety comes first.
The adventure begins! Despite the weather I had a decent night’s sleep last night, which is just as well as that’s a commodity that’s going to be in very short supply for the next few days.
Having packed all my kit – including stuff to cope with all the vageries of the British weather I’m on my first train of the day. As many services have been cancelled across the network I’m giving myself plenty of time to get to Crewe. Dawn’s been a star and given me a lift down to Sowerby Bridge station in time to catch Northern’s 10:20 to Manchester Victoria, so I’ve not started the day off hot and sweaty!
This train’s pretty empty. It looks like many folk have heeded to call not to travel. The few who have are dressed for the weather with shorts being de rigueur!
158843 has carried me across the Pennines to Manchester Victoria.
12:00.
I can breathe easy now. I’ve made it as far as Manchester, a city baking in the sun. A condition which is ruining its reptation! There’s no shortage of trains from here to Crewe so I can take time to get a few pictures here before heading off again for the final leg to Crewe where I don’t need to be until later this afternoon as when registration starts. The train itself doesn’t leave for Bangor until this evening.
13:05.
Nothing’s stopping me now! Having hung around in Manchester to enjoy the sun, do a bit of work* and get some pictures I’m now aboard a vintage Class 323 to Crewe. This is one of the former West Midlands units transferred to Northern, who’re now the sole operator of these 1990s built trains.
My chariot awaits…
Now I’ll be in Crewe before temperatures reach their zenith. The information screens at Piccadilly bore witness to the cull of train services that have already taken place due to the weather. Some already planned, others not.
On the bright side (ish). I’m on an old train with opening windows and no air-conditioning, so there’s nothing to break down!
16:45.
The teams from all corners of the country are gathering at Crewe. It’s great to see so many old friends and familuar faces amongst them.
*the work I was doing means thay you’ll be able to read about the 3 Peaks challenge in a future edition of RAIL magazine.
19:30.
We’re on our way! We’ve already had fun as a short notice loco change has meant our train in now being hauled by a Class 45 ‘Peak’ locomotive 451118. Now the 3 peaks has become the 4 peaks!
Ready to leave Crewe.
23:00.
Sorry for the gap. We’ve had a few technical issues with tge train’s power supply which has meant I had to take time off to power up my laptop and phone.
We left Crewe on time but ran into problems on the North Wales Coast whilst the volunteers were serving the walkers a cooked dinner followed by cheesecake. A failed train ahead meant we had to work ‘bang road’ (wrong line) between Mostyn and Rhyl, so any hope of a spirited run to Llandudno Junction were dashed. Even so we were only a few minutes late into Bangor where the teams departed by bus to get to Snowdon. I stayed on the train with other volunteers who were busy cleaning the train and also preparing food so that everyone could eat when the train arrived at Holyhead. It may have been an ’empty’ train but it was still a hive of activity!
Now we have a little time to relax before we bed down for a few hours sleep. We’re due back in Bangor around 0400 tomorrow to pick up the weary walkers. Let’s see what happens. But for now, good night!
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
It’s the end of a baking hot day here in the Calder valley with another one in prospect tomorrow – although I won’t be around to see too much of it.
These past couple of days have seen me transition from Southport to Halifax once more, although this time by car, not train as on Monday night Dawn joined me at the coast so that we could both attend my sister in law Bev’s funeral on Tuesday morning. Funerals are never exactly joyful events, but Bev’s last wishes were for something short, sweet and colourful. So, no dark suits or dresses, instead, we were invited to dress for the summer – which was just as well as the weather was scorching! Bev got the funeral she wanted (with one minor deviation as her daughter Hayley read one of the poems that made up the service) and people left feeling uplifted rather than sad.
After a short family gathering for tea and cake Dawn and I drove back. Sadly the journey dragged out due to the weather, traffic jams and idiots on the roads, so we arrived too late to get a train back into Manchester to attend a leaving do. Just as well perhaps, as some other friends struggled to get back due to trains being cancelled.
Now, after a day at home where there was no let-up from the hot weather, I’m preparing to head off again, this time to volunteer on one of the hardest and maddest events in the rail calendar, the annual ‘3 Peaks by rail‘ charity event which raises money for the Railway Children. I’ve been volunteering since 2017, although I was forced to miss the event last year. Now I’m back, so expect a series of blogs from the event as we traverse the rail network to get teams to Snowdon, Scafell and Ben Nevis and back. As if the mountains themselves aren’t enough of a challenge for the teams, this year the rail logistics team and volunteers have to cope with problems with closed rail routes and extreme heat. There’s never a dull moment and each year presents different problems to be overcome.
Here’s a selection of pictures and behind the scenes look at the 2017 adventure.
I’ll see you tomorrow with the first of the rolling blogs…
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
I’d hoped my first blog of a new week would have been about something more positive, but I’ve just watched Sir Keir Starmer announce his resignation as PM and leader of the Labour party. A decent man has been hounded out of office by the media and betrayed by the disloyalty and the personal political ambitions of those in his own party.
Some things never change. It seems the Labour party has steadfastly refused to learn the lessons of the Tory years of endless political psychodramas. The political stability many have been yearning for following those times has been ripped apart again. Now we’ll have a Labour leadership race – with Andy Burnham looking the almost certain winner.
I’ve no real love for Burnham. Having watched his career over the years I’ve come to the conclusion he’s a political Janus. Now personal ambitions have unseated a serving Labour Prime Minister. Now, I’d be happy to be wrong about Burnham. I hope he makes a good Labour PM, but those in his party who think ditching Starmer will stop the onslaught of negativity from the right-wing media are naive fools. The media has gained another scalp and will be even more emboldened. Far too many of them want to see Farage in No10 so aren’t going to stop. Now will the Elon Musks of this world. They all have far too much power nowadays. Gone are the times when the rich spent their money on improving the welfare of their fellow citizens. Now they buy newspapers, set up TV ‘news’ channels which are little more than propaganda outlets, or rig social media to highlight and pump out far-right views – and or politicians seem unable and/or unwilling to do a damned thing about it.
Now, all we can do is sit back and watched the media circus as they salivate over the leadership contest, something they’ve been so keen to make happen.
This is not a good era for democracy.
Ironically, I passed this reminder of better times yesterday. Southport infirmary was built with money donated by the wealthy owner of Hartley’s jam. Then, the wealthy campaigned for and helped build a better future for the fellow citizens. Now the obscene wealth held by just a handful of people is used to undermine not only their own citizens, but everyone.
Paul Bigland 