Rolling blog. Another manic Monday (with apologies to The Bangles)…

07 Monday Mar 2022

Posted by in London, Photography, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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06:15

Here we go again with another ‘dolly mixture’ day which will see me traversing the country doing all sorts of rail-related things for several people – some of which I have to be secretive and circumspect about as they’re under an embargo. Even so, feel free to keep popping in through the day as this rolling blog unfolds. It’ll see me travel from Halifax to Nottingham, then on to London before ending up back in Nottingham again. Right now it’s coffee time…

07:45.

Time ran out for me this morning so there was no easy stroll to the station on this frosty morning. Instead Dee offered to give me a lift to ensure I made my train. Now I’m sat on the 07:19 from Halifax to Leeds. The train was quiet as far as Bradford but now its filled up with folks heading into Leeds. Most of those in my car are young people either off to work or college.

08:05.

Time to change trains in Leeds which is pretty busy. Here’s the scene after my 4-car service arrived. Admittedly, it’s more of a scrum than usual as the escalator’s out of action!

09:35.

I hadn’t long to wait for my Cross-Country connection South. A pair of Voyagers turned up on the 08:11 to Bristol Temple Meads which meant there was little difficulty in finding a seat so I managed to get some work done on the way to Chesterfield where I changed trains again. Funny how you don’t go to a place for ages then end up there two Mondays in a row! This time I never left the station as I was only there to transfer to a Northern service to Nottingham. This turned out to be worked by a 2-car Class 195 which was half-full. This service is an all stations stopper so it has plenty of short distance trade.

14:30.

Now, where was I? Oh yes – sorry, it’s been a really busy morning and it’s only now when I’m sat on a train from Nottingham to London for the next part of the days assignment (which I can’t talk about just yet) that I can catch my breath.

On arrival at Nottingham I just had enough time to grab a coffee before joining East Midlands Railway’s Community rail team and delegates for the community rail conference for a little side-trip before the start of the main event. EMR had very kindly laid on two different visits. One to Attenborough station to meet the local friends group and see the excellent work they’re doing, and a visit to the old signalbox at Lowdham station which has been relocated, restored and turned into a a museum. I tagged along with the latter group in order to get some pictures. Needless to say, we went by train, catching one of EMRs cascaded fleet of Class 170 DMUs. As and when they’re released by other operators these trains are gradually replacing all EMRs old BR built diesel fleet of Class 153s, 156s and 158s. They’re certainly a great improvement.

Lowdham’s a lovely station which has a superb old building on the Newark bound platform. Now the old Midland Railway signalbox takes pride of place next to it on the old loading dock. The box used to sit on the opposite side by the level crossing but this was far too near the operational to allow to to be preserved, hence it being moved. Here’s our group having the complexities of absolute block signalling and bell codes demonstrated and explained.

An older EMR Class 156 speeds through Lowdham. The signalbox used to be on the left hand side past the level crossing.

After our visit we headed back (by train again) to Nottingham in time to register for the conference then enjoy lunch. Sadly, I’ve had to shoot off just as things were starting, but I’ll be back this evening for the social side and have a full day there tomorrow.

Well, you don’t want a hard day at a conference on an empty stomach! Some of the EMR Community Rail team tuck in before the opening session.

I had enough time to dump stuff in my room have a bite to eat and get some pictures before hot-footing it back to the station to catch the London train. On the way I noticed that the Robin Hood line services to Worksop have gone rather upmarket!

Right new I’m speeding towards St Pancras on another of the EMR fleet that’s due to be replaced. This Class 222 (016 for those who care about such things) is looking a bit tatty but then it’s due to be phased out by the new Hitachi built bi-mode ‘Aurora’ Class 810 units which are due to begin entering service from next year.

15:00.

I’m less than half an hour out of London now and what a change in the weather! It’s wall to sunshine here in Bedfordshire. I’m beginning to think I might be a bit over-dressed for this jaunt as I’m in tweeds and a waterproof (which is going to get stuffed in the camera bag at this rate. Having made its last stop at Kettering the train’s very quiet. I’m in the composite coach D which is half 1st Class – half Standard. There’s only two of us in Standard and no-one in 1st. Unlike other routes the Midland Main Line doesn’t seem to be seeing passenger numbers bouncing back in the same way. I’ll be interested to see if my return train’s the same as that should be ‘peak’ time departures from London.

18:45.

I’m back! And I can now reveal where I’ve been – but no pictures (yet). When I arrived in London I headed over to Paddington to join up with other print and social media friends and colleagues for a press trip on…Crossrail. Or, as it’s now officially known, the Elizabeth line. Our group was given a tour of the new Paddington station, which looks amazing. After being used to the Central line and other deep level tubes the sheer scale of the place takes some getting used to. The architecture’s a real eye-opener too. Afterwards we were taken on one of the test trains and whisked over to Liverpool St in a matter of minutes. On the way we were given the opportunity for a cab ride and chance to get pictures (you’ll get to see some soon – promise!). We had another tour of Liverpool St station and its warren of passages, escalators and even an inclined lift. Throughout the tour we were given a lot of freedom to take pictures and mooch around as well as being briefed on various facts and figures. Sadly, I couldn’t record a lot of them as I was wearing several different photographic hats but I can tell you one. The Elizabeth line has a grand total of 10,000 fire doors and that the design of some of these was problematic (and caused delays) due to the fact there was no standardisation. I can also say that the boss of High Speed 2 (Mark Thurston) worked on Crossrail in the early days and has ensured that HS2 does have standardised components like fire doors! We returned to Paddington on another test train which gave us all chance to get even more photos and enjoy another cab ride before bidding our farewells. In fact, our hosts were so accommodating and keen to show us around that the tour overran which meant that I made it back to St Pancras in time to catch the 18:05 back to Nottingham by the skin of my teeth. As I suspected, it’s a far busier train than earlier. There’s even folks in 1st Class, but then it’s only a 4-car 222/1 – one of the sets that were originally built for Hull Trains in 2005 but which transferred to East Midlands Trains back in 2009 in a deal that wasn’t without controversy in the First Group family.

6th March picture of the day…

06 Sunday Mar 2022

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It’s been a semi-relaxing weekend here at Bigland Towers, which has encompassed a variety of activities undertaken in a leisurely way. The fact the weather’s stayed dry has been a bonus as one does get sick of trudging through mud and being swaddled in waterproofs. It’s been nice to don clothing with a little more sartorial elegance and not look like you’re about to trek to the North Pole!

We’ve even managed to tick off a few jobs off the list too – but nowhere near as many as we planned because just living got in the way. Sometimes it’s good not to spend all your time trying to hit targets and tick things of lists and just ‘be’. Part of this was having an evening out at a restaurant which we’d never eaten at before. Not only that, it was at a part of Halifax we pass on a regular basis but have never explored (although we should). It’s called Dean Clough Mills. Once home to Crossley carpets this massive complex stretches for over half a mile, covering 22 acres and consists of 16 grade 2 listed Victorian mills. Saltaire has nothing on this place. It’s huge!

Our dinner date was at a place called Thai Corner, run by the same people who have a fantastic food stall in Halifax market where I’d occasionally pop in to buy one of their signature dishes as you rarely see it on Thai menu’s on the UK – Khao Soi. This is a Northern Thai specialty and it’s delicious. So, you can imagine our disappointment to find that it wasn’t on the menu at their new venture. Even so, we had a good night out, letting someone else take the culinary strain for a change.

Today was even more relaxed. We’d been virtuous and walked to/from Dean Clough yesterday (just under a 5 mile round trip) so didn’t feel bad about having a lie-in and pootling around for most of the day before wandering down into Sowerby Bridge for a drink. After all, it’s a busy week for the both of us next week and this is what weekends are made for.

Now we’re back at home preparing for the week ahead. Dee’s cooking and I’m packing for the next couple of days away as I’ve a night in Nottingham with some interesting side trips aside. So, I’ll leave you with the picture of the day which is a taster of another railway picture blog I’ll be writing when I have enough time. Here’s Wandsworth Common railway station on the 16th July 2001…

21 years ago trains on this route had been taken over by French company ‘Connex’ and this Victoria to Caterham bound Class 455 carries their livery. Connex won two franchises operating out of London, both South of the Thames. The former South-Eastern and Central divisions in third rail country. To say they made a pigs-ear of them would be an understatement! The trains got a new livery but that was all. They were dirty and vandalised and Connex got a hammering in the press. It’s a very different railway now and these old trains are scheduled to disappear by the end of the year. I still can’t believe I took this 21 years ago as in some ways it seems like yesterday…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

The end of the line. The BR built Class 365s.

05 Saturday Mar 2022

Posted by in British Railways (BR), Class 365, Photography, Railways, The end of the line

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Here’s another in the series of picture blogs looking at the gradual demise of the old British Railways built train fleets. In this case it’s my favourite of the bunch, the Class 365 fleet which was retired (too early in my opinion) in 2021.

The 4 car, 100mph capable Class fleet were the last vehicles to be built at York works. 41 units were constructed at the Holgate Road factory between 1994-95. Part of the ‘Networker’ design (which produced the Class 165 and 465 diesel and electric fleets), these trains were produced for longer distance services. The first 16 originally went to work Network Southeast services out of Victoria before Connex took over what became the South-Eastern franchise. They stayed South of the river until 2004 when they moved to join their sisters working for West Anglia Great Northern (WAGN) out of Kings Cross. Units 365517-541 went straight to East Coast services, operating regional services from Kings Cross to Peterborough, Cambridge and Kings Lynn.

For many years they were the backbone of WAGN and later First Capital Connect express services. They were comfortable trains from a passenger perspective, despite the lack of air-conditioning (they had forced-air ventilation through hopper windows). They had 2+2 seating and tables plus bigger windows, which made them far superior to the earlier Class 317s they shared duties with.

The Class stayed on East Coast services until they were gradually retired from service from 2017 inwards, having been displaced by newer Class 387s. Many units went into store but a stock shortage in Scotland in 2018 (due to defects with the new Hitachi built Class 385 EMUs) saw 10 of the trains leased to Scotrail from April 2018 where they remained in service until March 2019, working services from Glasgow Queen St to Edinburgh Waverley. The final units were retired from Great Northern service on the 15th May 2021. Little fuss was made because of the Covid pandemic which was a shame as they’d served the railways well. After a period in storage most have gone for scrap which is an even greater shame. They were less than 30 years old and could have provided a useful fleet on newly electrified lines such as East West rail if only the Government hadn’t decided not to electrify the line and cut back other wiring plans. An earlier proposal to shift them to GWR services came to nothing as new Class 387s were ordered instead. Still, I’m fortunate to have lived on their route in North London and spent many years travelling on them and photographing them in service. Here’s a look back at their lives and times.

Please note, all pictures are my copyright.

On the 24th March 2002 class leader 365501 is pictured at London’s Victoria station in Connex livery.
Sporting the later Thameslink livery and carrying Great Northern branding 365502 is seen speeding towards Kings Cross through Oakleigh Park on the 27th March 2017.
365506 passes Denmark Hill on the 23rd November 2002 when the network was still suffering from the panicked rash of 20mph speed restrictions imposed after the terrible Hatfield 2000 rail crash caused by rail defects. To add to the problems a sister Class 365 had been involved in the Potters Bar crash only a few months before this picture.
WAGN operated 365510 wears a special advertising wrap extolling the tourist virtues of Cambridge and Ely at Kings Cross on the 22nd December 2005.
Towards the end of their careers 10 of the units were sent to Scotland for a year. Here’s 365513 at Glasgow Queen Street on the 30th July 2018.

The classic view of the old complex Kings Cross station throat with 365519 and 365514 passing, seen on the 14th April 2017.
Here’s a view of the new wheel lathe building at Hornsey on the 7th October 2013 when the building was being used to give 365515 a freshly painted white cab roof. I always thought The First Capital Connect dynamic blue livery and white cab roofs really suited these trains.
Seen at Hitchin on the 24th July 2006, 365516 still carries NSE livery but with the addition of First Capital Connect branding on the vehicle sides.
Rain, shine (or snow) the 365s maintained services on the East coast. On the 28th February 2018 365517 speeds through Harringay en-route to Kings Cross.
365521 was one of 10 sets sent to Scotland in 2018-19. It’s seen here at Glasgow Queen St with a service for Edinburgh on the 17th July 2018.
Set 365524 was chosen as the Guinea-pig to test a cab air-conditioning system, hence the odd box on the nose. It’s seen here at Harringay on the 30th October 2001. The tests led to the front end of the units being redesigned which left them with a smiley face, leading to their nickname ‘happy trains’.
A not so happy train. Here’s vehicle 65960 from set 365526 being lifted clear of the tracks days after the tragic Potters Bar crash which killed seven people. This was the leading car which had come to rest sideways across the tracks and jammed under the platform canopies you can see to the left. The date is the 14th May 2002.
The remaining vehicles from Potters Bar crash victim 365526 seen at Crewe works on the 10th September 2005. They never saw service again. Two ended up being used by the RAF for target practice at RAF Spadeadam in Cumbia whilst the other was stripped for spares before being scrapped.
On the 13th December 2016 set 365533 sits inside the new Siemens depot at Hornsey which was built on the site of the former Coronation sidings North of the original depot site.
The 365s rarely strayed from their established routes but on the 17th March 1997 365534 and 315803 are seen passing Stratford in East London whilst on their way from Hornsey depot to Ilford depot for attention.
On the 25th July 2018 a pair of 365s with 365537 trailing pass Bonnymuir in Scotland whilst working from Glasgow Queen St to Edinburgh Waverley.
Seven years earlier on the 27th August 2011 365537 was on more familiar territory. It’s seen here passing the old wooden signalbox at Watlington station on the line from Ely to Kings Lynn. The box carries the station’s former name – Magdalen Rd.
Wearing the attractive First Capital Connect livery the last of the class, 365541 pulls out of Kings Cross on the 28th June 2014.
The interior of one of the driving cars of 365505 shows why the units were such a pleasant environment for passengers. Spacious and comfortable with a far better ambience than the earlier Class 317s. Seen on the 3rd May 2013.

Most of these trains have already gone for scrap at Newport in South Wales, but at the time of writing several of the sets are languishing at Doncaster Belmont yard, although these are due to follow this month. Here’s the timetable for the first move on the 8th March. There’s speculation that set 365525 may be retained for departmental use but I’ve not seen any official confirmation.

Three vehicles are being preserved. The East Kent railway is taking two driving cars and a trailer from sets 524 and 540 which will be used as a restaurant, an exhibition area and a major events venue.

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

Next up (when I’ve got time) I’ll be having a look at the Southern Class 455 fleet (in both Connex and Southern guises) as this fleet is expected to be withdrawn by the end of 2022.

3rd March picture of the day…

03 Thursday Mar 2022

Posted by in Musings, Picture of the day, Railways, Sri Lanka, Travel

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Apologies for absence yesterday but I’ve been too busy earning a living and scribbling professionally as well as editing pictures to find the time to blog. Plus, there’s been nothing exciting going on at Bigland Towers worth relating. The month of March began in glorious fashion weather-wise but that was for one day only. Since then we’ve resumed the wet and misty conditions that dominated most of last month. I’ve still torn myself away from the computer to get my daily exercise but the amount’s the bare minimum this week.

That said, there’s a change on the horizon. After tomorrow I’ll be free to get out more and next week is looking very interesting indeed. On Monday-Tuesday I’m in Nottingham at the annual Community Rail Network conference. This is the first time it’s been held away from the internet since March 2020. We just managed to get away with that as a live event before Covid put the mockers on, so everybody’s really looking forward to being able to catch-up with each other in the flesh once more. I’d had the conference booked for some weeks. When I’d arranged it Dawn said to me “I’ve a funny feeling you’ll get some paid jobs come in at the same time”. Sure enough, her intuition was spot on. I’m now double (nay, triple) booked as I’ve now got a really exciting event to attend in London late Monday afternoon where I’ll be wearing two hats as well as my own, but it’s embargoed, so I can’t tell you what it is – for now. To add to the fun I was invited to another press event in the capital on Tuesday but I can’t juggle any more balls to fit that one in too. It’s times like this I really wish I could clone myself!

With all this going on I’m looking forward to a quiet weekend at home before the next round of railway ping-pong starts. Thankfully, I’ve had just enough time in between to put the last lot to bed and start with a clean sheet. That said, scanning old slides is hanging around there in the background. I’m hoping to be able to restart that soon but whilst the commissions are rolling in I’m happy to let it lie. They’ve waited this long so another few months isn’t going to hurt. Besides, there’s lots of what will soon to be history to report on whilst it’s still around…

Talking of history brings me on to the picture of the day. For this one I’ve dug into the archives. There aren’t many countries where you’ll find old British built railway engines in everyday service nowadays but Sri Lanka is one. Here’s one of the M7 Class diesel engines built by Brush, Loughborough and supplied to the country in 1981. Only 16 were built but they’re still plying their trade around the islands railways. This is No 809, seen at Colombo Fort station with a local passenger train on the 26th December 2003.

You can find many more pictures of Sri Lankan railways in this gallery, plus this more recent one from 2016.

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

1st March picture of the day…

01 Tuesday Mar 2022

Posted by in Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, Travel, West Yorkshire

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The fact we’ve slipped over from February to March didn’t go unnoticed today – mainly due to the gorgeous – almost Spring like – sunshine we were bathed in today, along with mild temperatures. Of course, today would happen to be a day when I spent most of it stuck indoors! Thanks to my recent travels and having rejigged my plans as short notice to accommodate last minute commissions I’m behind on scribbling some articles so enjoying the sunshine’s had to take a backseat.

That said, it’s ben a productive day and I’ve got a lot done so missing the chance to top up my vitamin D levels was a worthwhile sacrifice. Now, if only I can have another day like this tomorrow I might have the end of the week free – just in time for the next band of rain. Damn! Ah, well – maybe working from home for the rest of the week will have some compensations. I’ve certainly enough articles that need words bashing together and there’s always slides to scan…

Despite the forecast, there’s a real feeling that spring is just around the corner. Our garden is springing to life with a mixture of snowdrops and daffodils (plus the odd Hyacinth) and I was amazed to see how much blossom was appearing across the West Midlands the other day. Add in the fact the days are getting longer and there’s a lot to look forward to especially as Covid is slowly fading away. Mind you, that seems partly because some people are simply ignoring the risks to pretend it’s somehow vanished overnight. It’s been overtaken by the awful news from the Ukraine and the madness unleashed by Putin. Noe people are more worried about thoughts of war and nuclear arsenals than they are of microbes. Still, I’ll be wearing my mask in public places for a while longer yet…

Right, enough of such thoughts. What’s today’s picture? To be honest, even I had no idea what it would be when I started typing earlier. But I’ve plumped for this, taken yesterday. In yesterday’s blog I mentioned how passengers are returning to the railway. Quiet scenes like this at Leeds station are fast becoming a thing of the past as folk return to old habits such as socializing and going out. You won’t see it looking this relaxed at the weekend…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

Rolling blog. Start the week…

28 Monday Feb 2022

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05:25.

Only I wish I wasn’t starting it this damned early! I’m already half way through my first cup of coffee as I prepare to head off to Chesterfield for the day. Still, it’s not all bad, when I opened the living room curtains this morning I could see that the garden and road outside are dry (which makes a pleasant change) so the walk to the station should be enjoyable and I don’t have to swathe myself in waterproofs. I’ll be blogging as and when throughout the day as it unfolds, so feel free to keep popping back to see what I get up to…

06:35.

My walk to the station was rather ghostly this morning as Halifax was deserted. I hardly saw another living soul until I arrived at the town centre. Even the dog-walkers seemed to be having a lie-in today. This changed on arrival at the station where a few dozen folk were waiting for simultaneous departures East and West. I boarded the 06:17 to Hull via Leeds worked by a 3-car Class 158 which had plenty of space available and didn’t fill up until we reached Bradford.

Where is everybody?

08:45.

My trip from Leeds to Chesterfield was uneventful. The Cross-Country Voyager I caught had plenty of spare seats so I had chance to do some work on the train. On a whim I decided to chane at Sheffield and catch the Northern service that was running behind us for the last leg. This turned out to be a 2-car Class 195 and it was rammed! Plenty of people disembarked at Sheffield but dozens joined it, making it rather cozy…

Right, i’m off to find a taxi – more later…

18:00.

Apologies for the long absence but it’s been a hectic day. The client had arranged for me to visit several of their construction projects. What I hadn’t realised was these were spread all over the Midlands! So I ended up spending the day being driven around to visit and photograph a diverse range of construction projects at Alfreton, Tipton, Stoke and a couple more back at Chesterfield. I’ll write about this in detail later when I’m on the train back to Leeds. Right now I’m wating for my connection in Sheffield so decided to get out of the cold and wet in the excellent Sheffield Tap on the station.

18:40.

So much for my cunning plan to blog at length from the train. I’d been waiting for Cross-Country’s 18:21 to Edinburgh to get me to Leeds. Not that I was the only one as dozens of folk lined the platform. Handily, my train was diagrammed to use 1B – right outside the pub! There was just one problem. We were treated to a single 4-car Voyager. It’s like the old days inside. I’m perched on the luggage rack as most seats are occupied and I can’t get near a power socket to plug-in my laptop.

Still, I have to laugh as I’ve just seen a couple of HS2 antis arguing on Twitter that we don’t need HS2 as only the rich use trains! You know that anyone trotting out that nonsense has probably never travelled on the railways at all.

We’re all rich, apparently…

20:40.

I’m back in the warm at home and looking forward to catching up on sleep after such an early start. It’s been a fascinating day that’s allowed me to see so many different things. The inside of a recycling centre near Alfreton (that was a bit ‘ripe’ – even in this weather). A galvanizing factory in Tipton (that was different), a couple of brand new offices and industrial units, a huge business near Stoke employing 280 staff manufacturing meals for M&S that bans anyone bringing in any glass or nuts and finally, the new extension to a huge garden centre – all of which gave me the opportunity to indulge my interest in architecture. Oh, the routes we took also allowed me to view a lot of HS2 construction work around the West Midlands and Birmingham – which is really coming on. Finally, we had a scenic drive back across country through Leek, the Peak District and Bakewell to Chesterfield. So, all in all not a bad day at all – especially as I was being paid to enjoy all this!

Now all I’ve got to do is sort out the pictures – but that’s going to have to wait. Tomorrow I’ve got some serious scribbling to do…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

27th February picture of the day…

27 Sunday Feb 2022

Posted by in Photography, Picture of the day, Rail Investment, Railways

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The hectic pace of last week hasn’t let up over the weekend. I may be based back at home but most of my time’s been spent working. I’ve a haul of hundreds of pictures to collate and edit from Friday which has been made more complicated than it needed to be by a battery choosing yesterday to expire.

My Nikons carry a tiny battery buried away inside the main battery compartment whose sole function is to keep the date/time function ticking over independent of the main (humongous) battery. They last for ages. In fact, this one’s lasted for 6 years despite the Nikon manual suggesting you replace them after 2 years. Maybe I should have listened – or at least carried a spare. Why? Because on my job on Friday this battery decided to finally give up the ghost. Not a problem you’d probably think as the camera won’t stop working. You’d be right. But…

What it does mean is that the EXIF data on every photo is exactly the same. They’re all taken at 00:00 on 1/1/2016 – which means trying to sort them our is a friggin nightmare as there’s absolutely no order to them when you download them from the camera. Collating pictures becomes a game of hide and seek! Still, it’s done now which is just as well.

Despite this added excitement (and extra hours) we’ve had a good weekend. Last night we went out for a meal with a couple of friends who’re stalwarts of the Mytholmroyd station friends group. We’ve known Sue and Geoff for many years now. Pre-Covid we’d regularly meet for drinks and food but the Pandemic put paid to all that – until last night when the four of us enjoyed a lovely meal and drinks at this bar and tapas place in Mytholmroyd. I’m not going to bore you with selfies and food pictures from the night. It’s not why we were there, this was just an evening with friends without pressures.

Today’s seen me with my nose pressed firmly against the grindstone, sorting out my clients pictures from Friday as I’m back on the rails again tomorrow carrying out part 2 of their current commission and calling in to Chesterfield to do so. Plus, I’ve a shedload of writing to do next week and deadlines to meet – deadlines made all the more tight by taking on this last-minute commission! Still, my bank balance will thank me…

So, expect a rolling (or maybe stumbling) blog tomorrow as I make my way from Halifax to Chesterfield and back. In the meantime here’s the picture of the day which is from my expedition trackside on the Haywards Heath blockade which is coming to an end this weekend. The main compound was in the carpark at Haywards Heath station but the worksite was further South in a deep cutting. The only way to get there was to walk through the 249 yard long Haywards Heath tunnel – which is rather wet due to water ingress but at least the juice rail was isolated. Mind you, we weren’t the only occupants of the tunnel as this engineers train took up one road. Not exactly a place you normally get to wander around, is it?

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

Rolling blog. ‘Hi ho, hi ho’…

25 Friday Feb 2022

Posted by in London, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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06:30.

Dawn’s just breaking here in Clapham and I’m preparing to head to the station and off to work somewhere I’ve not been for a while. The weather’s looking a lot better than it was back in Yorkshire which is good. Hopefully I won’t be freezing my nuts off as is often the case on jobs like this. We’ll see. But first it’s time to boost my system with some caffeine. I’ll blog throughout the day and post pictures when I’m able. Catch you later…

07:23.

Having bod adieu to my friend, stolled down to the Junction and picked up a caffeine top-up I’m now on a Southern service to Three Bridges. This time of morning Clapham station felt like the old days with the number of people coming and going – including dozens of schoolkids.

The day’s dawned with nary a cloud in the sky which should make for some good pictures if it stays this way.

Our first stop is East Croydon which is rising into the sky at an ever faster rate. The station’s become hemmed in by high-rise residential blocks whilst the sky is full of tower cranes building more.

08:15.

Part 2 of my journey. I’m on a rail replacement bus from Three Bridges to Haywards Heath. This is a massive operation with covered walkways, marquees and a car park full of buses.

We’re even given drinks tokens!

Of course, the problem now is traffic. We got out of Three Bridges onto the A264 and now we’re stuck in a queue of traffic at a roundabout over the M23. Ho hum…

11:15.

First site visit done. Embankment stabilisation work South of Haywards Heath.

18:45

Well, that was a long but fascinating day and it went far better than I feared that it might. All the early wrinkles were ironed out and it was a joy to be trackside again being part of the amazing work that goes on during railway blockades. Plus, I can add another railway tunnel to add to the list of ones I’ve (legitimately) walked through. I’ll add some pictures later. After the work on the blockade one of my clients staff drove me around various sites across Sussex and Kent to get pictures of work they’d carried out previously – from embankment stabilization to platform extensions. We covered a lot of ground.

It was interesting in another ways in that I got to explore a lot of the area I knew by rail by road, which gave a very different perspective. I was surprised to find some villages in the affluent South that were actually looking pretty down at heel as shops and pubs had closed. Not what I remember from my time down here at all.

Our last job was recording platform extension work at Littlehaven, which was very handy as the station is served by Thameslink, so when we’d finished it was easy for me to head back North without having to cross London on the tube. Instead I had a direct train across the Thames to St Pancras. I have to admit to a fair bit of nostalgia as I took that trip. I have so many happy memories of that part of the world that some were obviously going to come to mind. What did surprise me was how busy stations like Three Bridges and East Croydon have become again. Life’s returning to the railways.

The trip across London via Thameslink is always a delight as it showcases the city’s skyline before plunging underground to deposit me at St Pancras Thameslink. My, I remember visiting this when it was just an enormous concrete box buried underground! As soon as I arrived I made a beeline for Kings Cross next door, my timekeeping was such that I just made LNER’s 17.33 to Harrogate via Leeds. When we pulled out of Kings Cross it was just like the old days. The train is absolutely rammed and I’m sharing a vestibule with a young lad from Skipton (Ryan) and his dog, ‘Trixie’.

20:00.

Despite the fact my LNER train was packed and I was stuck in a vestibule I really enjoyed the journey. Why? Because it was a return to the old days when strangers struck up conversations on trains. It’s something Covid put the mockers on that’s now returning – and it’s brilliant!

Right now I’m on my last leg. Being fleet of foot I had just enough time at Leeds to make an earlier train back to Halifax. I’m now on a service to Blackpool North – another busy train.

Rolling blog. All change…

24 Thursday Feb 2022

Posted by in London, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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16:30.

Yesterday I talked about the frustrations of freelance life and the way things can change at the drop of a hat. Well, it’s happened again today, only this time in a very positive way!

My plan was to work from home staying in the warm and ignoring the sleet and snow showers outside. I was content researching/writing my next article on HS2 and finishing off some other bits and pieces. Then the phone rang…

A client who I’d discussed some work with just wondered (as much as they knew what fantastically short notice it was) if I was free to work on a line blockade they were involved in South of London tomorrow? Oh, and was I free on Monday for another job too? Crikey!

A few frantic phone calls later I’m now sat on a train from Halifax heading to London via Leeds. I managed to sort out staying with a friend as you really don’t want a four hour journey starting at silly o’ clock before you go working trackside – especially in the land of the 3rd rail. Accidentally standing on something that contains 750v DC can ruin your whole day – although the juice should be turned off in a blockade as no services will be running in that section we may end up at other sites too.

Digging out my PPE and packing my overnight bag Dawn gave me a lift to the station and that was it – I was off to a very different say to the one planned…

I’ll update you on my progress when I get to Leeds.

17:30.

I’m now speeding my way to London aboard LNER’s 17:15 service from Leeds. The amount of passengers passing through the station at Yorkshire’s premier city left me in little doubt that the railways are throwing off the constraints of Covid as people return for commuter and leisure travel. This was the busiest I’ve seen the station all year.

There’s another welcome if noisy return. Trans-Pennine Express have allowed their Class 68 loco fleet to spread their wings again. They put in regular appearances in Leeds as they cross the Pennines.

My London train isn’t exactly quiet either. We’ve just left Wakefield where dozens disembarked after using the train as a fast commuter service. It’s still busy so I’ll be curious how many disembark at Doncaster and points South.

As we left ‘Wakey’ we crossed over the River Calder where the adjacent floodplains are awash with water, bearing testament to just how much rain we’ve had these past couple of weeks. It’s a sobering sight, especially as we still had sleet and snow higher up the river in the valley these past 24 hours.

18:00.

Our stop at Doncaster was as I suspected, loads of people detrained but with a fair few joining. Even so – the wifi is noticeably faster now! Another welcome development is the fact it’s still not yet dark despite some of the heavy cloud handing around. The days are getting noticeably longer which is a welcome sign that (despite the weather conditions) we’re actually beginning to leave winter behind.

As I write this we’re calling at Retford where more people are leaving us only this time they’ve not been replaced by a new influx. I’ll have to have a walk-though the train later just to gauge what the loadings are like.

18:10.

And walk through I did. I count 168 in Standard Class (I’ve no idea how many in 1st). Not a bad loading.

23:00.

Well, that was a fun day! I’m currently lying on a bed at my friend’s house with a grandstand view of Clapham Junction station. The journey across London took me from Kings Cross, along the Victoria line tube to the route’s namesake. It was interesting to see how many people think that Covid isn’t an issue anymore so there’s no reason to wear a mask.

At Victoria with its nice new colour passenger information screens (when did that happen, I was only here a month or so ago!) I caught a Southern Class 455 working to Epsom Downs as far as the Junction – which was remarkably quiet by the time I arrived, but then it was after 20:00.

As the pair of us are working tomorrow we’ve spent the evening indoors chatting, eating and watching the tragedy in the Ukraine unfold on the TV and social media. This must be the first war broadcast on Smartphones by people in the right place at the wrong time. I’m having to hold my spleen firmly in place, otherwise I’d be tempted to vent it in all its rainbow colours about Russia, Oligarchs and the way they’ve bought the collection of nare-do wells who call themselves our Government. What an increasingly difficult world most ordinary people are forced to live in nowadays as power is concentrated in the hands of the few who laugh at the needs and concerns of the many.

Anyway, enough for now. Tomorrow is another day and it’s going to be a busy and complicated one. I’lll blog about the day when I can…

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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/

Thank you!

23rd February picture of the day…

23 Wednesday Feb 2022

Posted by in India, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, Travel

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Today’s been another quiet on here at Bigland Towers. The pair of us have been slaving away over hot computers – with varying degrees of success. Freelance life can be frustrating sometimes when you put a lot of effort into sorting out a potential commission only for the client to change their mind at the last moment and can the project. Such is life, sadly and why you always try to have several irons in the fire. At least I can concentrate on other stuff now. Hopefully the project will morph into a bigger job in the next few months.

Apart from that, the day’s not gone badly. I’ve caught up on paperwork and picture editing, continued writing my next articles and even found time this evening to update a blog on the old Class 317 trains as well as be active enough to get all my exercise routines ticked off (and more). Dawn’s been out with friends this evening which meant I didn’t have to cook so pleased myself with a concoction made from few bits from cupboard and fridge and concentrated on working instead, which gives me a clear run at a few other projects tomorrow as well as continuing keyboard bashing. Tomorrow evening I’ll be more traditional and find (and follow) a recipe rather than freestyle for one!

Hopefully the weather will continue to improve and by next week I’ll have space to resume my travels at some point. As always, things on the railways don’t stand still and a lot of changes are afoot. Plus, as the Covid emergency protocols wind down, many train services are being reinstated, which will make movement both easier and more pleasant.

So, on to the picture of the day, which is another in the series of old slides from India taken in 1995. They’re still in my inbox waiting to be edited so won’t be appearing on my Zenfolio website for a while, but here’s a taster. Yesterday’s was of one of the Portuguese Christian churches in Old Goa, today’s is from the Hindu religion and features the Shri Shanta Durga temple in Kavalem, Ponda district, North Goa. It was built between 1730-36.

I’ve a favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this blog, 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 to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site – and right now (because of Covid), us freelances appreciate all the help that we can get to aid us in bouncing back from lockdowns. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Thank you!