Bank holiday over it’s back to the grindstone, although I have to admit I’ve not been feeling that energised today. Perhaps it’s the weather, which has remained miserable. Summer was all too brief. It seems to have consisted of a few days whilst I was away on my rover – and that was it. Today’s best described as dismal. That mixture of low light and scattered showers where you really can’t plan much – especially in this part of the world where national forecasts fall foul of local conditions.
Still, I’ve managed to get some stuff done – including getting my daily exercise, household chores and writing a few words, plus preparing for tomorrows trip to the West Midlands, although that’s going to be an exercise in itself. I have to be East of Birmingham by 09:00, which is a bit of a stretch from Halifax. It means I’ll be on the first train of the day at 05:45. That should be fun…
As I’ve got to be up at sparrow-fart I’ll bid you adieu. Expect a rolling blog tomorrow and ‘behind the scenes’ pictures from a visit to an HS2 construction site, plus all the usual travails getting to and from anywhere on the national rail network. Never let it be said that I gloss over the realities.
In the meantime, here’s today’s picture. I won’t have chance to re-acquaint myself with this particular Tunnel Boring Machine (seen here in 2022) but I will be seeing what it’s up to – and how far it’s got.
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In true bank holiday style the weather here in West Yorkshire has been a bit crap. You’d think it was the spring bank, not August holiday – although to be fair, it’s not been as wet as the forecast predicted.
Not that it mattered much this morning as we had a lazy day here at Bigland towers, enjoying copious cups of coffee whilst we relaxed and decided what to do. There was no point in venturing far so we opted for a local stroll around woods and parks before picking up some food shopping. Supermarkets on a Sunday are quite bizarre. Because they shut at 4PM there’s always a frantic rush of people, as if they’ve not already had 6 days of the week to plan their shopping and someone’s suddenly declared Monday’s going to be the start of the Zombie apocalypse, so they need to stock up.
We picked up the few bits we needed, which was more as an excuse to get out than anything else. A quick pitstop was made at the Big 6, where the 72 pint barrel of Thornbridge Jaipur that went on last night had already been supped, only to be replaced with another ale with a kick. Roosters “Blame It On The Tetons” IPA which comes in at a healthy 6.3%! As befits a Sunday, the pub was busy, but not overly so, with a mix of regulars and people on holiday who’d heard of its attractions and ambience. Another of the changed beers on offer was this, with a delightfully daft name and pump clip.
Strolling home we took the long way round through Savile Park and Manor Heath park, where we were surprised to see a number of trees that had really suffered in the gales. One especially, which had almost been split asunder. It was part of a small group which provided shelter for a number of park benches. Thankfully, no-one was around at the time, otherwise there would have been casualties.
Now we’re back at home, relaxing and watching the grey skies close in across the valley. Whilst I’ve been pottering around catching up an a few bits Dawn’s been busy in the kitchen where she’s come up with this soul food. Home-made meat and potato pie with mushy peas and gravy. Ideal for weather like this…
Will we venture further afield tomorrow? That depends on the weather Gods…
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It’s been a funny old day here in West Yorkshire, mostly because the weather’s been anything but summery. Temperatures are low whilst overnight we had gales that have shredded the nearby trees, leaving roads, pavement and gardens littered with succulent (but dying) leaves and small branches. The winds have abated somewhat, but rain’s appeared on their coat-tails, making the day feel more like October than August. To be honest, apart from the first few days when I was touring the UK on my RAIL rover we’ve had a miserable summer – especially up here in the Pennines. Depending on which forecaster’s you listen to – things are meant to improve in September, but I’m not going to hold my breath especially as the next thing we have to look forward to is storm ‘Lillian’, which is due to batter much of this neck of the woods tomorrow.
Whilst the weather’s frustrating, I’ve plenty to keep me occupied working from home. Today’s been spent sorting out pictures for my website and magazines as well as writing for a living. Here’s a few links to new pictures, listed by gallery – either train company or subject.
As the weather’s meant to be crap from the early hours on Friday another day working from home is in prospect. I’ve thousands of words to write so there’s plenty to do, although I hope to get out in the evening to join friends at our local pub for the Friday quiz. I’ve not been able to make it for several weeks, so it would be great to enjoy fine beers and company.
The weekend’s going to see the pair of us busy around Bigland Towers on various projects both domestic and DIY – although if the weather does pick up we may be able to enjoy a stroll somewhere, sometime. Then there’s the bank holiday…
The week after’s going to see me back on my work travels. I’ve another HS2 press visit arranged, this time to a location I’ve not visited before. More on that when it happens. Plus, I’ve several days work in the Manchester area to fit in – weather permitting.
In the meantime, I’ll leave you with today’s picture, which is from my local. We don’t just enjoy regional Yorkshire ales up here.
One of the delights of my local (The Big 6) is the ever-changing real ales. There’s always something different to try, often from breweries you’ve never encountered before. Right now there’s two from the Three Acre brewery which is based in Uckfield, Sussex.
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Today we decided to blow a few cobwebs away and head out for a hike to a place we’ve never walked up before – Pendle Hill, over in Lancashire. We know the area reasonably well as we had a friend who lived in nearby Clitheroe who we used to visit, but we’d never ventured up the historic hill. As we’ve been looking to try walking somewhere different for a change we thought ‘why not’?
The area’s just over an hours drive from where we live in West Yorkshire, with some great scenery on the way – a mix of wooded valley and old industrial revolution heritage. Our first port of call was the village of Pendleton, which nestles at the foot of the hill. It’s a pretty, historic little village with a cracking pub called The Swan with Two Necks.
The Swan also has a large beer garden (and marquee) at the rear of the pub.A selection of Lancashire and Yorkshire beers of varying strengths including a stout – plus a cider.
The Swan has an excellent selection of real ales and good pub grub. It’s very popular with walkers and tourists visiting the area, so if you’re planning to eat booking is essential.
Having refreshed ourselves we drove back as far as the Nick of Pendle on the Clitheroe Rd where there’s parking adjacent to the path which will take you to the summit of the hill. This is a longer walk than most, but it doesn’t suffer from the steep gradients that the shorter routes do. It also offers some fantastic views en-route.
There’s a rather poignant memorial at the start of the path which is dedicated to two world war 2 airmen (one Australian, one American) who lost their lives when their planes crashed on the hill.
Here’s a few pictures from the walk.
Dawn posing for the camera as we began our walk to the summit. The view from the summit, looking over Black Moss Reservoirs with the towns of Nelson and Colne beyond. Walking back down to the Clitheroe road with Blackburn hidden behind the hills.
Now we’re relaxing at home, resting tired knees and associated muscles before another active day tomorrow – although one that will be very much home-based.
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We’ve had another busy day here at Bigland Towers. One that’s involved looking at the future as well as the present. The ‘here and now’ has involved the pair of us getting an early morning walk in to eat up the miles and try to stay dry as the weather here in the Calder valley’s been changeable to say the least. Whilst the weather’s been hot and humid down South we’ve had very different conditions around here. When the rain arrived it was initially fitful and desultory, hardly worth putting up umbrellas for. That changed just before we arrived back home, leaving us glad we’d taken time to get out when we did.
The rest of the day’s seen us both staring at screens as we caught up with work. My plans changed as yesterday I had enquiries about two commissions, one of which was booked very quickly. Now I’ve a several days work around Manchester to fit into my schedule in short order. It’s weather dependent, which could make things interesting. Another job remains in the pipeline…
One more task was sorting out picture captions for my next RAIL magazine feature. I was sent a PDF of the finished piece to add captions to the article on the new HS2 Thame viaduct which will be appearing in issue 1017 which will hit the news-stands on September 4th. Now all I have to do is finish four more large articles over the next fortnight or so – as well as fitting in another HS2 site visit next week – and the Manchester commissions!
Meanwhile, here’s today’s picture, which illustrates how the weather’s been here in’t valley. This was the view from our bedroom window late this afternoon.
Looking down over Sowerby Bridge as storm clouds approach over the valley.
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Another busy day here in West Yorkshire, even if it doesn’t quite feel like summer. The weather’s been mixed here and whilst some parts of the UK have seen the hottest days of the year we’ve not been one of them. Instead the weathers been cloudy, muggy and with showers hardly worth their name. No matter, as I’ve had plenty to keep me occupied. All my RAIL rover pictures are edited, my records are up to date and I’ve office shelves clear that haven’t seen the light of day for a very long time.
The weeding out process has uncovered some stuff I’d forgotten I had and pictures I don’t even remember taking! I found an old 4Gb CF card (remember when they were the bee’s knees?) and had a look to see what was on it. Pictures from a rededication of a war memorial at a railway depot taken in 2008, that’s what! I don’t even recollect taking them, so now I’m going to have to do a bit of digging when I’ve time and find out where I took them. I suspect I was commissioned by one of the freight companies, but I’ll need to check.
Another old picture I found wasn’t taken by me as I’m in it. It’s the picture of the day. I suspect it was taken in 2007 during a group trip to Germany, but I’ll need to check my records. It shows a group of us hamming it up at one of the old Berlin Wall watchtowers. The picture was taken by my late good friend Major John Poyntz, who passed it on to me. God, we had fun on those trips! There’s a few well-known railway faces in there too from railway preservation centres in Carnforth, Birmingham and Barrow Hill, plus a member of Her Majesty’s Railway Inspectorate – and me! It’s not the best picture in the world. Der John was still using a simple film camera, print film and getting his shots developed at Boots (so the back of the picture tells me). It wasn’t long after this that I gave him one of my old DSLRs as I’d upgraded. He was eternally grateful but he never took to SLRs. They took up too much room in his Bergen!
Happy days. Who knows what else I’ll find as I clear the decks?
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It’s been a long day here in West Yorkshire as I clear the decks of various things and prepare for a busy time ahead. I’ve had another office clearout, with lots of stuff going off for recycling as ‘not wanted on voyage’. The amount of stuff one accumulates in a lifetime is sometimes surprising. Things that ‘will come in useful one day’ – only never do. Plus, all those books and magazines that you’ll get around to rereading ‘one day’. Now they’re off to either charity shop or recycling…
Beside the clearout and researching some future plans I’ve also been editing the pictures from my RAIL rover, ready to use as an aide-memoir and background to writing the articles themselves. Whilst doing this I came across a pair of photographs that show just how much the railways and the environment around them have changed since I started doing these rovers, 20 years ago. The pictures are from Raynes Park in the West London suburbs, on the London and South Western main line. I’d not ben back there for sometime but I always remember it as having good views into London as the railway’s on an embankment at that point. Here’s the first picture, taken on the 3rd April 2005.
The picture was taken from the station footbridge. Here’s a shot I took from the same footbridge on the 1st August.
The signal gantries give it away as the same location, but that’s all. London has now disappeared behind dense woodland growing along the embankments either side of the line, plus a new housing development.
I feel old…
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It’s been another day of staring at computer screens for me as I continue my picture editing marathon ready for my next series of articles. I’ve also managed to clear the decks of some slightly older pictures to go out to another client – and add a few dozen images to my Zenfolio picture website. You can find which galleries have been updated by following this link. Mind you, the weather’s been pretty naff today, so being stuck indoors hasn’t been too much of a hardship. Whilst temperatures have been reasonable we’ve had grey skies and enough hours of rain to make you think twice about venturing anywhere. On the bright side – at least I haven’t had to water the garden.
This evening I’ve been catching up with the news of the aftermath of the riots. I’ve refrained from commenting on them so far as they happened whilst I was away and I had other things to talk about. I’ll admit to a personal interest. I grew up in Southport, where the horrible murder of the three children were used as the excuse the far-right had been waiting for to kick-off. I know the Hart St area well. I went to school nearby. I had an aunt who I’d stay with who lived on Hart St.
I share the opinion of others that this was a concerted effort to destabilise the new Government, only that hasn’t gone as planned. What we’ve seen since has been a Government of experienced adults who didn’t let things run away with them. Entirely the opposite, when you consider our current Prime Minister is a former Director of Public Prosecutions. Instead, the government moved quickly to ensure the police and courts had the resources to mete out swift justice to rioters and looters.
There’s another side to it too. The people who were intent on stirring up trouble, the Farage’s, the Tommy Robinsons and the right-wing journalists and ‘social influencers’ overplayed their hand and the backlash was swift. Revolted by what was happening, ordinary decent people came together to clear up the mess and protect their own communities from what was a tiny gang of racists who’d wildly overestimated how much support they had. They’d fallen for their own rhetoric and assumed that all those social media bots and trolls were actually real and would join them on the streets. You could see the bemusement in the faces of the handful of people who turned up in Brighton, Blackpool and elsewhere, only to find themselves vastly outnumbered. Now the prosecutions are well under way. There’s been nearly 500 arrests already and the first (tough) sentences are being handed out. 2-3 years, and there’s many more to come. What’s also been revealing is how many of those sentenced already have convictions for other offences. The Metropolitan police reckon it’s roughly 70%. These are no ordinary citizens, supposedly outraged at the senseless murder of three children, these are career criminals and racists, who’ve followed the call of Farage, Yaxley-Lennon and Co.
Now the rabble-rousers are starting to get arrested too. The woman (Bernie Spofforth)* who started sharing the claim that the murderer was a Muslim ‘asylum seeker’ has been arrested. She won’t be the last – hence the frantic rowing back of the likes of those involved, including Yaxley Lennon (aka ‘Tommy Robinson’), Farage and some of the mainstream media. Suddenly, the Daily Mail, a newspaper that’s spent decades running scare stories about immigration – is praising the counter-demonstrators! The Editors of certain national newspapers shouldn’t be let off the hook here. They’ve spent decades fearmongering about immigration and asylum seekers, making the phrase ‘illegal immigrant’ commonplace. Their reach is far larger than a few people on Twitter, or Facebook. They’re just as complicit in this.
My hope is that the prosecutions for incitement and posting hate continue and they don’t stop with Spofforth. I’d like to see some more well-known names be charged and convicted too. Then (maybe) some of those poisonous voices in the mainstream media (as well as on social) media will learn that the old adage ‘fuck around, find out’ (FAFO) should never be forgotten.
Right now, it looks like the rioters teeth have been pulled. There may be one or two more ‘events’, but the arrests, prosecutions and convictions will continue – and continue to deter. A lot of people are going to be jumpy every time there’s an unexpected knock on their door for quite some time yet…
Anyway, away from all that, I’ll leave you with today’s picture, which relates to a rather important sporting event that’s going on right now. The Olympics. When I passed through Hertford last week I saw these knitted postbox covers in several locations across the town, made by locals to celebrate the medals being won by the UK team in Paris.
*Spofforth is no random member of the public who just shared something. She’s a long history of climate change denial and opposing Covid restrictions and has appeared on right-wing ‘talk’ TV channels espousing her views.
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/
Home sweet home! After all my travels it’s been lovely to kick back at home and not have to rush around after trains, worry about making connections or walk miles up and down railway stations – I kid you not, I covered over 77 miles on foot last week, nearly all of it carrying a camera bag!
Today’s been spent at home, catching up on some sleep and recharging my batteries. I’ve not switched off completely as I’ve too many pictures to edit and notes and spreadsheets to catch up on, but that’s all been done from a sedentary position. I’m back to fasting too, having spent the past week living on sandwiches or other food to go. Now I can have food that’s hot – and spicy, just not a lot of it.
I doubt I’ll be doing much travelling for the rest of this week as I’ve got several articles to write and need to get them done as soon as possible to clear the decks for other work. Watch this space…
Meanwhile, here’s today’s picture, which come from my travels.
A study in front ends at Glasgow Central, where a trio of Hitachi built Class 385s sit between turns.
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/
The pair of us have had a busy Friday here at Bigland Towers. It’s not that we’ve been anywhere – although we will be over the weekend. It’s more a case of clearing the decks so that we can. I’ve been busy type-swiping – finishing another article for RAIL magazine – only this one’s full of history, facts and figures, which involves a lot of research and fact-checking. That’s not always easy, although it is time-consuming.
Whilst I’ve been doing that upstairs, Dawn’s been equally busy downstairs – until it was time for her to break off from her day job to indulge in a spot of baking, creating some delicious foods to take away with us tomorrow to a friends soiree down in Cambridgeshire. Right now the kitchen’s full of the smell of Bakewell tart and lemon drizzle cake!
As I’ve mentioned, tomorrow we’ll be heading off to Cambridgeshire, with an overnight stay in an old haunt – Peterborough. No doubt I’ll have some time to blog about our adventures, but in the meantime I’ll leave you with today’s picture. Shame it’s not ‘scratch and sniff’!
Dawn’s delicious lemon drizzle cake. Still cooling…
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/
Paul Bigland 