Well, the new week certainly dawned – and it wasn’t a bad one too! In fact the weather here in the Calder valley’s been far sunnier than expected, although someone seems to have forgotten it’s still August and dialed-down the temperature to an October setting! I can’t really complain as most of my day’s been spent staring at a computer screen in order to finish editing all last weeks pictures from my Cumbrian trip and get them on my Zenfolio website. You can find the full selection and which galleries they’ve been added to by clicking on the ‘recent’ button, here’s a shortcut that will take you straight to it!
I’ve another day planned where I’ll be chained to my desk again tomorrow, but as the weather’s meant to be wet I’m hardly going to complain. There’s no shortage of pictures to scan, paperwork to shuffle, blogs to write or trips to plan. Hopefully I’ll be out and about again by Thursday.
In the meantime, here’s the picture of the day, which I took last week. It’s of an unassuming house on the outskirts of Wylam on the Tyne valley. The Wylam waggonway (an early railway) ran past the front of the house, right where I was standing to take the picture.
What’s special is not the house but the person who was born there. On the 9th June 1781 a boy was born to Robert and Mabel Stephenson, they christened him George. George Stephenson became famous as the ‘father of the railways’ – not bad for a child born to illiterate parents who was unable to read and write himself until he was 18! Yet he became world famous as a civil and mechanical engineer. His son Robert (born on the 16th October 1803) followed in his footsteps and the father and son team helped railways conquer the world and the industrial revolution to change the face of Britain.
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A very short blog from me tonight. Life has a habit of getting in the way sometimes and all the things I had planned never happened. It’s the start of a new week tomorrow, so hopefully things will improve. I’ve certainly got enough things on the go to keep me occupied! One of the little projects I’m trying to get finished is editing all of last weeks pictures and uploading them to my Zenfolio website. The picture of the day is one in the queue.
When Hassard and I were in Cumbria earlier in the week the weather was hardly vintage photographic conditions. However, the weather has a remarkable knack of changing! Here’s the view from Parton when it did exactly that. We went from visibility of just a few hundred meters to this in an hour. Here’s the coast of Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland which magically appeared out of the gloom as we were stood on the station waiting for our train back to Carlisle.
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Back in February this year I was asked by RAIL magazine to write an article on the Platform 1 charity based at Huddersfield station. They do some fantastic work helping men who’re struggling. I’m reproducing the article on my blog as I think it’s important the work they do gets to as wider an audience as possible…
If you’ve ever travelled from Huddersfield to Manchester by train you may have noticed an old BR coach half-hidden by fencing just as you pull out of the station. Once home to the Association of Community Rail Partnerships (ACoRP, now Community Rail Network) the site has had a new occupant since 2018. It too is about community, but the services it offers are very, very different…
The compound is now the base for ‘Platform 1’ – a mental health and crisis charity that specializes in helping men. As the banner over the entrance to the yard proclaims it’s a place where men can ‘fix, grow, build or chill’. As anyone who’s ever had to engage with Mental Health services will know, it’s a ‘cinderella’ arm of the NHS, and men especially can find themselves unable to find the help and support they need, hence the importance of charities like ‘Platform 1’.
Having talked to the charity’s Project Manager Bob Morse on the phone a couple of times I arranged to visit the yard to see the work the group is doing and talk about how the Pandemic and Lockdown had affected them and the people they help.
Bob greeted me at the entrance to the site which is adjacent to the ‘Head of Steam’ pub. It’s very eerie to see the Grade 1 listed station so quiet nowadays. A station that has a footfall of 4.7m a year is reduced to a virtual ghost-town. Bumping elbows in greeting, he gave me a tour of the site which contains a ramshackle mixture of second-hand portacabins, a shipping container, raised vegetables beds and bicycles. Lots and lots of bicycles!
Bob Morse in the portakabin that serves as the main office.
Our first stop was at a tiny two-roomed building that’s used for interviews with people who want to be able to talk privately about the problems they’re experiencing. As access to the site is by appointment only due to Covid it was virtually deserted except for staff and volunteers, as was the old coach where we sat for a (socially-distanced) coffee and chat. Lined with wood planking and fitted with a small kitchen it’s decorated with old hubcaps that have been decorated by a local artist who visits the project. The coach is ‘cozy’ but as the Mk1’s now on its 3rd incarnation it’s seen better days…
Bob explained that pre-pandemic they might see 30 men a day using the vehicle as a refuge where they could chat, read, play computer games, drink tea or just enjoy the company of other people “No-one who comes here is judged” Bob said, “This is neutral ground, they can leave their problems at the gate and be themselves whilst they’re here. There’s no expectations of them. You’d be surprised at the way guys from different backgrounds and educations mix and treat each other”.
The old railway carriage that was formerly the office of the Association of Community Rail Partnerships (ACoRP). Now renames Community Rail Network they occupy the old water tower at the opposite end of the station.
I asked how Covid had affected the charity. Bob told me “the need for our services has exploded as people’s isolation has grown. There’s a ticking time-bomb of mental-health issues out there that’s mostly hidden”. Previously, Bob had previously mentioned that they had 14 clients on ‘suicide watch’ (where volunteers make regular contact with the men involved). “There’s 15 right now, and we lost one last week”. It’s a horrific statistic but it’s clearly only the tip of the iceberg. As well as providing a safe space the charity offers counselling and help with what seem like simple things but to people under pressure they can appear mountainous. Bob elaborated, “we help a lot of people make and keep hospital or other appointments. Some clients aren’t computer-literate or don’t have phones. Others can’t understand why they have to wait so long to see someone and that an appointment doesn’t always mean they’ll get the help they need in the time they need it, which means they just give up. How do you explain to a man who can’t see past tomorrow that they’ll have to wait weeks to see someone?”
Covid has magnified the problem as many ‘contacts’ with social and health services aren’t in person but by phone which increases misunderstandings and feelings of isolation. Because of this, Bob and his team are spending more time reaching out to people who can’t just drop in anymore. This outreach work is a mix of phone calls, ‘Zoom’ and also home visits as well as looking out for the homeless, a phenomenon that’s grown in the austerity years.
The sheer variety of their work caused me to ask if they were seeing different types of people now? “Yes, we’re counselling more and more people who work in the Health Services, including women. We’re also getting more referrals from primary care networks, not just people coming in off the street” The charity’s recruiting new volunteers to cope with the demand and whilst they do get donations and assistance from local companies and the rail industry it’s clear they need more help, both financially and in kind – especially now due to Covid and their role in supporting the support workers – a role they never expected to have to fulfil.
Moving on, Bob introduced me to the 3 man team in one of the cabins which forms the cycle hub. Here, old bikes that have been donated to the charity are stripped for spares or rebuilt and sold. The sheds walls and shelves are a mass of tools and bike spares. Two bikes were in the course of being rebuilt. I chatted to a former cycle magazine editor who was busy repairing one machine. Like many volunteers he’d had his own mental health battles but used his skills and the charities support and facilities to aid his own recovery whilst also helping others. During our chat he explained that whilst they reuse as much as they can some parts like chains or gears have to be purchased which is getting harder and more expensive due to Covid, and Brexit. I also discovered the charity does bike servicing and contract repairs for companies. On another stand Shane was occupied repairing a kids bike. He told me that the bikes are resold for anything from £20-£200 depending on type and quality, which helps low-income families as well as the coffers of the charity. Kids bikes are a staple as they’re often discarded as children grow up and they’re rarely looked after, so there’s always a ready supply.
Shane repairing a bike in the workshop.
Having chatted to the guys I was impressed with the really positive easy-going atmosphere, it was great to see people who were obviously proud of what they were achieving, both for themselves and others.
Popping in next door to the main office (another old portacabin) I met more members of the team. Like most small charities everyone wears more than one hat. Justin, the Admin Officer also doubles as crisis support. He has a degree in games design and his love of gaming allows him to connect with people through those mediums which is especially useful with younger users of their services. Bridget, the Pastoral Support Lead was busy on the phone trying to help a client. An ex-teacher, she’s retrained as a counsellor to offer a range of help, from bereavement counselling to assisting people build up their confidence to tackle the problems that can overwhelm them. It’s a tough job.
We didn’t stay long as space was at a premium and we didn’t want to interrupt so Bob showed me around the rest of the site. On a snowy February morning the garden wasn’t exactly looking at its best, but the raised vegetable beds clearly provide a great place for some gardening therapy and the outdoor space, sheltered as it is by a tall retaining wall holding up St Georges St makes an ideal area to get away from it all – even if you are right next to the station. Whilst we were there Bob pointed out the spot that will soon be graced by the presence of a donated ‘Pacer’ car. Friends of the charity had entered them in the competition to win one of the Porterbrook donated trains and they were one of the winning bids. Craning the coach onto its final resting place is going to be quite a challenge due to the cramped nature of the site (and that retaining wall) so Bob promised to invite me back to see it being installed when Covid restrictions permit – hopefully in the summer. The Pacer will provide a welcome addition to the indoor space available and also be quite a talking point as these vehicles spent much of their working life in the area.
My brief visit gave me a valuable insight into how much this charity is doing and the challenges it faces whilst doing it – especially at the height of a pandemic which is storing up problems for the future. Isolation is a problem even for those of us who’re well-connected. Try and imagine what it’s like for a single man living on his own who’s been cut off from the last vestiges of social contact and interaction that he may have had, with no idea whether (or when) these things may return. Charities like ‘Platform 1’ quite literally provide a life-line and deserve all the support that we can give them.
Oh, the old Pacer did eventually arrive (on the second attempt). Here it is in situ!
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 need all the help that we can get. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
After two days on the road I’ve hardly moved more than a quarter of a mile today as I’ve been busy trying to edit the pictures from my travels as well as sort out all the mundane stuff life throws at you. Despite that, the day’s flown. One thing I have enjoyed has been spending some time in the kitchen, cooking up a Thai Green curry. Admittedly, I ate Asian food in Carlisle but it’s a cuisine I never tire of so the chance to cook my own is never missed.
I’ve another day at home tomorrow before heading back to my old home town (Southport) for a sad event. I blogged about the death of an old friend (Mike Smith) back this time last year. On Sunday, a few of us are going to get together to scatter his ashes in a local park. He was always a short, skinny bugger so I can’t imagine there’s going to be much to scatter, but there you go. No doubt I’ll do a rolling blog of the day and my thoughts. What will be strange for me is that one of the people who’ll be there is an old school friend whom I’ve not seen since the late 1980s after he and I had a ‘parting of the ways’ in India back in 1986. Another long story….
Still, funny old world isn’t eh?
Today’s picture of the day has nothing to do with any of this, it’s from my trip to the Cumbrian coast with another old friend from a slightly different vintage. I mentioned Parton on the Cumbrian coast. Here’s on of the pictures I was after, even if the light wasn’t as good as I’d liked. The railway hugs the coast here. So much so it’s in constant danger of slipping into the sea and has done so on several occasions. It’s the classic conundrum that faces the railways in the age of global warming. The Victorian engineers though this was a good (cheap) way of driving a railway though this part of the world. Those decisions are coming back to haunt us now…
Still, spot the train in this image of the beach at Parton.
Hopefully I’ll have the rest of the several hundred pictures I took added to my Zenfolio website in the next few days. If not – I’m sure there’s other stuff I’ll be able to find to bore you with!
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 need all the help that we can get. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
I know yesterday’s blog fizzled out. That was mainly due to being out in the wind and rain on the Cumbrian coast with an old friend which left me no time to finish it. But I will wind it up later today when I have more time.
Right now I’m on my way from Carlisle to Hexham after spending a pleasant night in the city with Hassard. The two of us having chance to catch up with a beer and a meal. I’m heading for Hexham in order to find a quiet space for an hour or two to take part in a dreaded ‘Zoom call’. This one’s part of the judging process for the 2021 Community Rail Awards, so I suppose it’s rather appropriate that I join in from a station that’s won awards in the past! Once that’s done – and if the weather plays ball – I’ll be visiting some lovely photographic locations along the Tyne Valley line. Pop back later to see what I get up to…
13:30.
Judging done! I must admit, a waiting room on a railway station’s the most unusual place I’ve joined the from team so far. Technical difficulties meant I had to use my phone, not the laptop but as I had all my notes with me it wasn’t an issue. It was the constant PA interruptions by ‘Digital Doris’ making station announcements that was the worst bit. Still, the team of myself, CRN’s Hazel Bonner and Nik Schofield plus ex-Today’s Railways UK magazine Paul Abell whittled down an excellent selection of pictures showing the past year in the life of community rail volunteers down to just 10. These will be displayed on CRN’s website next week to sllow a vote on the winner.
Job done, I couldn’t resist the station bar on platform 2 to celebrate. The bar hadn’t been opened the last time I was here back in 2018 but it’s a welcome addition. Serving teas coffees, sandwiches and cakes, it also sells 3 very local draught real ales.
21:00.
Really? Is that the time? I’m on the final leg home from Preston to Halifax now. I’d hoped to blog from the Tyne valley but I kept finding myself in reception blackspots which I found surprising as I’m on the O2 network which is normally very good.
Needless to say, I’ve had a busy day. I’ve managed to visit stations I’d never been to before as well as a few familiar locations. I didn’t get all the pictures I wanted but that’s hardly surprising as the route is rich in photo opportunities. I’m not complaining as the weather was far better than predicted. I’ll edit the pictures tomorrow and add a few to the blog. I was hoping to do that earlier but I succumbed to window gazing as I don’t get chance to appreciate this neck of the woods as often as I should. The line (and its train service) is very much in two parts. The nexus is Hexham. The service East from the town along the Tyne valley’s more intensive with a mix of hourly stoppers and semi-fasts. West of Hexham its hourly with a reduced stopping pattern leaving some locations of trains every two hours. Hardly ideal, but how much traffic do they generate outside the peaks? We’ll never know unless the service improves…
That aside, the line West of Hexham’s much more rugged. It doesn’t stick to the river so it wends and winds its way across the country – and Hadrian’s wall. I’ve not been to the Wall since I was on a school trip when I’d just turned into a teenager. I keep promising to come back. Last year Dawn and I had booked accomodation in Hexham that woukd have allowed exactly that but the lockdown 2 put the mockers on that
My day’s travels are having a later start than normal as I’m currently waiting for a check-up at the Royal Calderdale hospital’s Dematology department. After forty-odd years of backpacking and beach-bumming around the world in exotic, sunny places you’ll find more moles on me than on the average golf course! So far, all have proved to be benign but recently a new one’s appeared on my cheek below my left eye. My GP reckons is OK but has sent me to get it checked out by experts – just in case. Once this is done I’ll be on my way, heading North. Of course, the problem with hospitals (especially ‘cos of Covid) is that you’ve no idea how long things will take. I’m not a great fan of hanging around hospitals (after all, they’re full of sick people!) but I really can’t complain about the Royal Calderdale. Whenever I’ve been here in the past the staff have been excellent.
It’s my first visit since the pandemic broke and it’s odd to see the place quieter than usual and waiting areas stripped to the bare minimum to enable social distancing. This is a big hospital with a large catchment area so it’s normally buzzing.
11:40.
Everything’s A-OK. The Dermatology nurse who examined me was a chippy and cheerful Yorkshire lass. After quizzing whsre I was going with such a large bag she waxed lyrical about a trip she’d taken along the Settle-Carlisle railway with her husband! In examining me she told me what I had under my eye was a seborrhoeic keratoses (a name that doesn’t exactly trip off the tongue!) and the good news? They’re harmless!
As my visit was mercifully short I managed to catch an earlier train. I’m now on a busy 3-car Class 195 working the 11:32 Halifax – Blackpool North. Leisure travel’s returned with a vengance. I was nearly mown down by a fleet of women with prams who were leaving the train to head the ths towns ‘Eureka’ childrens museum. Even with them disembarking the train remains busy.
12:30.
We’ve just left Blackburn and the train’s packed. We’ve lots of families aboard who’re on their way to Blackpool for a holiday. I feel rather sorry for them as the weather’s not looking very promising over the next few days, but then that’s why budget holidays to Spain became so popular!
14:30.
I’m now on the final leg to Carlisle after changing trains at Preston and Lancaster. All the services I’ve used today have been busy. It’s true that Preston station was quieter than I’d usually expect this time of year, but then there’s rather a dearth of foreign tourists – for obvious reasons! From Preston I caught a TPE Class 397 working a Manchester Airport – Edinburgh service, which was well loaded. If it had been on one of the old 3-car Class 185s used on the route it would have been rammed. I’ve not travelled on a 397 on the WCML before so I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the ride at linespeed – especially as I was stood over a bogie on the trailing vehicle!
I had half an hour at Lancaster, long enough to grab a couple of pictures, notice that all the station’s catering outlets had reopened (bar the WH Smiths by the ticket office) and have a quick word with an old friend who was on dispatch duty before catching Avanti West Coast’s 13:55 Northwards. Station announcements warned that it would be busy and advised those on flexible tickets to get a later train. 390104 rolled in to do the honours and it was indeed busy. I was lucky, a family of four were detraining so I managed to blag their table which is where I’m sat typing this. Having flown through a gloomy Lune Gorge we’ve hit mist and rain at Shap summit, so I’ve no idea what to expect in Carlisle…
15:15.
In fact, the weather in Carlisle is changeable, but OK. The sun put in an appearence for this beastie anyway. Rail Charter Services green HST working the 15:09 to Skipton via the Settle and Carlise line.
Epilogue!
After meeting up with Hassard at Carlisle the lair of us headed off to territory he’s never explored before – the Cumbrian Coast line as far as Whitehaven. We’d planned to walk along an old tramway from there to Parton but the rain lashed our train as it made its way to the coast, so we dicided to be flexible. The 2-car 156 we were on was really busy with a mix of locals on their way home from work and tourists. Two young couples opposite were heading to Whitehaven with their bikes to begin the popular coast to coast cycle route.
Fortunately for us (and the cyclists) the weather broke en-route. As we headed South the rain headed North so our plan came together after all. The old tramway runs parallel to and above the railway, giving excellent views of line, rocky beaches and out to sea. The route’s tarmac’d as it’s part of the national cycle network, so it’s an easy walk.
Not a bad day here in Bigland Towers even if I didn’t get through 3/4 of the things I’d hoped to – as is often the case as life just seems to keep getting in the way! At least the weather’s improved, which lifts the mood. I managed to tear Dawn away from her computer at lunchtime and the two of us had an amble through the local woods which was lovely. The recent rains have encouraged a real growth spurt in some plants so it looks like we’ll be having a bumper crop of Blackberries this year. The only downside is the brambles are throwing out so many tendrils they’re making some of the woodland walks awkward to navigate – especially if you’re wearing shorts! If the brambles don’t get you, the Nettles will!
Back at home I’ve been ploughing through various work projects and organising the diary which (thankfully) is looking a lot fuller than this time last year. Admittedly, there’s no plans for getting abroad right now, but I’ll be ‘on tour’ in the UK again for the next couple of days, so expect a rolling blog or two. Tomorrow I make my way to Carlisle to meet up with an old friend from London who’s on a business trip to the area. Having company on one of these jaunts will be fun as Covid’s meant I’ve normally been flying solo. We’ll be taking a photographic trip down the Cumbrian coast. I’m I’m hoping the weather Gods will smile upon us. I’ve not had the opportunity to visit the area for a couple of years so I’m looking forward to it. I’ll be making my way back to Yorkshire on Thursday and I’ve a couple of places I could do to visit to get shots for a client so I’ll be watching the weather forecast and hoping it performs to expectations. But hey, this is Britain after all, I could end up with floods or blizzards!
Whilst I’ve been slaving away back in the office I discovered a stash of old slides from my 1991-92 world trip that I’d never got around to cataloguing as the emulsion on some of them had been attacked by fungus before I could post them back to the UK. Now, with the wonders of modern technology – and a lot of patience in Photoshop, most of them can be restored, so here’s the picture of the day…
I took this shot in the old loco shed at the Amberawa Railway museum in Java, Indonesia on the 11th July 1992.
I was staying in nearby Yogyakarta in Central Java and was determined to fit in a visit, even though it meant catching a packed local bus to get there as the operational railway between the two towns had closed back in the 1970s. It was well worth the trip as the museum houses a fascinating collection of old Indonesian steam locomotives of all shapes and sizes, including a few British built examples. This one was (and is) still operational. B2503 was built by Esslingen of Germany (Works number 3244 of 1902). It’s a rack and adhesion type of engine, which means that on the steep gradients around Amberawa the locomotive gripped a rack rail between the two conventional rails, pulling itself and its train along on the rack via a powered cog-wheel rather than relying on simple adhesion. This 0-4-2 wheel arrangement tank locomotive looks small, but it weighs in at 31 tons! Sadly, on the day I visited, none of the engines were in steam. Nowadays the museum’s and its locomotives are a lot better kept so I’m determined to get back there again once the present pandemic has subsided. I really enjoyed travelling in Java, both then and during my last visit in 2017. It’s a beautiful island rich in history and with some great food too. Oh, and the odd railway gem like this!
I’ll eventually get around to restoring all these old pictures when time permits. Maybe that’s a job for those long dark winter nights. Right now there’s too many contemporary shots on my list to keep me occupied.
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 need all the help that we can get. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
Whilst the HS2 Chiltern Tunnel Boring Machines continue their relentless progress North 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and the contractors building the new railway continue to recruit more staff and expand work-sites up and down the route, the rump of the protest campaign against HS2 retreats more and more into the world of fantasy. It’s a bit like the historical occupant of a certain Berlin bunker moving around imaginary army divisions on a map. Reality isn’t allowed to intrude into their echo-chamber.
The latest example of this is the fact that Chris Packhams Parliamentary petition (which got stuck on a paltry 155,000 signatures) has been scheduled to be debated by the Petitions Committee on September 13th. Extinction Rebellion/HS2Rebellion have a grandiosely titled ‘Parliamentary Liaison Team’ (aka ‘one man and his dog’). Led by one Sebastian Sandys, a London based XR member. Now, you’d think that a good start for such a person would be to actually understand how Parliament works. But oh, no – this is the anti HS2 campaign! Here’s Sandy’s latest post on one of the campaign Facebook pages.
“Support repeal”? Really? This is an option? There’s going to be a debate in the chamber of the Commons at the end of which there will be a vote on whether to repeal the HS2 Hybrid Bill(s)?
No, it’s complete cobblers. It’s a fantasy, nothing more and it’s only going to end in tears as those opposed to HS2 are being led down the garden path by these ridiculous claims.
How so? Well, let’s have a look at the Petitioning Ctte itself and it’s rules and regulations. Here the ‘how petitions work’ page on their website, which says the following:
“7. At 100,000 signatures your petition on the UK Government and Parliament site will be considered for a debate in Parliament.”
All well and good, Packhams petition passed that hurdle. The vote’s on, isn’t it? MPs will soon be flooding in to the Commons to debate and repeal. Well, no – there’s more…
“Petitions can disagree with the Government and can ask for it to change its policies. Petitions can be critical of the UK Government or Parliament.”
Yeah, yeah – get on with it – and?
As usual, the devil’s in the detail – and the details can be found on this page entitled ‘actions on petitions’ which says…
“”The Committee can schedule debates on petitions in Westminster Hall on Mondays from 4.30pm (for up to 3 hours). Petition debates are general debates about the issues raised by the petition. This means that the debates cannot directly change the law or result in a vote to implement the request of the petition. If your petition is debated, it means that MPs can discuss your petition, ask questions about the Government’s position on the issue, or press the Government to take action. A Government Minister takes part in the debate and answers the points raised.”
Wait? What? The debate’s in Westminster Hall? That’s not the floor of the house of Commons! and what’s this about the debate can’t ‘change the law’ (the HS2 Hybrid bills are law) or result in a vote? There’s no vote?
No. HS2 antis have been completely conned. Here’s how Packham’s petition was worded.
Put simply, it was an impossible ask because (as usual) Packham hadn’t done his homework and understood what these petitions can and can’t do. So, on the 13th September there will be a nice little talking shop in Westminster Hall that will be attended by a handful of MPs enjoying tea and biscuits, debating HS2 for a few hours, and at the end of – absolutely nothing will have changed!
Sandys *should* know this. So, either he doesn’t know so is accidentally leading people up the garden path, or he does know this and is deliberately leading people up the garden path! Either way, there’s going to be a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth from HS2 protesters who’ve been misled into thinking there’s going to be a vote to repeal the HS2 Hybrid Bills on the 13th. All those people who’ve been persuaded to write to their MPs have wasted their time, but no change there then.
Did anyone seriously think any Government (of any political persuasion) would set up a system where laws passed by Parliament as part of Government policy could be repealed by a bunch of back-bench MPs in a Committee room on the back of the results of an e-petition? Talk about away with the fairies!
Order some popcorn, because I suspect there’s going to be some interesting comments posted on the various anti HS2 groups Facebook pages when folks realise the false hopes they’ve been fed by the likes of Sandys, XR and Hs2rebellion have been dashed – yet again…
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There’s not much of a blog from me today, mainly because of the fact there’s been little of note happening today, just much of a muchness. I’ve plenty of things I could write about but there’s no time left in the day to do it! It’s time to switch off for the evening after a long day working on pictures, paperwork and plans…
Today’s picture is from the latest batch of old slide scans from the USA. I took this shot in Yosemite National Park in Northern California on the 29th October 1990. Our little band had booked a cabin for a couple of nights so that we could go walking in the park. On the first morning I spotted this shot as the rising sun was filtered by the pine trees around the camp and the wood-smoke from camp fires added an extra filtering effect. Magic!
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 need all the help that we can get. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
Boy, did it rain last night! The noise of it hitting the roof woke me up in the early hours of this morning. Thankfully, with it being Sunday neither of us had anywhere we needed to be so having a lie-in seemed like the best idea. Eventually I rose but had no intention of venturing out at first. Coffee and picture editing felt like the best option, but eventually the wind and rain subsided enough that I thought ‘sod it’. Besides, I’ve a full set of waterproofs and actually I rather like these wild conditions. Besides, I wasn’t going to venture out with the full camera kit, so what the hell…
I ended up getting in a really good walk that took in the the heights above and then the valley floor below. Here’s a small selection of pictures to illustrate my perambulations…
Once the rain had cleared we had these rare patches of perfect weather. Here’s the Rochdale canal in central Sowerby Bridge, just before the wharf which is out of sight behind the trees to the left. A Squadron of the local peripatetic Geese are enjoying themselves here, in between a constant stream of narrowboats returning at the end of their hire period. Some have been gone for a fortnight, one group I talked to had hired a boat for the first time – just for the weekend and only gone as far as Hebden Bridge, but thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Here’s the river Calder about half a mile East from the last picture. The river’s high because of the torrential rain, but nothing like flood levels. I’ve added an arrow to the left to show you how high it got a couple of years ago. That was scary! The road behind the building was completely flooded and you worried about the strength of the bridge I’m stood on to take this picture. Continuing my walk along the Calder and Hebble Navigation (as the canal East of Sowerby Bridge is called). I passed this lovely little canalside garden and motorboat. I always chuckle when I pass here as the boat takes me back to my childhood and a kids programme called ‘Tales of the Riverbank’. It used models but real animals. The ‘star’ was ‘Hammy the Hamster’ who’d often go sailing off on a similar boat, or have ‘adventures’ in all sorts of strange things like Jeeps or hot air balloons. You’d never be allowed to make a programme like that nowadays because of the stress the poor animals must have been put through! God knows how many ‘Hammy’s’ they went through making it! Even so, I can still hear the theme tune and the dulcet tones of Johnny Morris in my head every time I walk past. After my stroll along the canal I headed back uphill and towards home. You know the tower you saw on the horizon in the first picture? That’s just to the right of me in this shot and almost on the same level. The arrow shows you where I’d walked from in the previous pictures of the valley floor. At this point the sun’s buggered-off again and the next set of rain’s rolling in over Sowerby Bridge. Still, it was a good day…
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 need all the help that we can get. Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
Paul Bigland 