Apologies for the lack of blogging but I’ve been kept busy at home playing nurse as well as wading through hundreds of pictures from my recent travels that require editing and captioning. Thankfully, Dawn, my patient – is on the mend, so I can put away the nurses uniform again. Besides, it clashed with the chef’s hat I’ve been wearing, which has been another of my duties. It’s not been too onerous as Dee’s been a good patient but I’ll be glad to see her up and about again. On the bright side, the jumper she’s been knitting has really come on!
Today I managed to finish the majority of the editing and get the pictures onto my Zenfolio website. There’s several hundred, which you can find in the following galleries.
Tomorrow, with Dawn on the mend and picture editing almost finished I can concentrate on other things which includes organising my next tranche of travels as well as some scribbling for a living. Sadly, the weather’s reverted to type here. We had a couple of days of sunshine but now the rain’s returned. We’ve had some very heavy showers today with more predicted, so I can’t see me getting out with the camera just yet. Never mind, some of the travel I have to arrange involves places with plenty of sun!
In the meantime I’ll leave you with a picture from Germany taken last week which shows it’s not just the UK that’s been wet! This was the view from the 17th floor of our hotel as a rainstorm crossed Dusseldorf.
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I’m having a quiet weekend here at Bigland Towers. Following all my travels earlier this week its lovely to be able to have the odd lie-in and not have to be constantly on the move. Plus, poor Dawn was struck down by the Lurgi whilst I was away so I’ve had to don my nurses uniform once more.
I’ve plenty to keep me occupied. I’ve 1000s of pictures to sift through and edit which is going to keep me busy for several days. Then there’s cooking, washing and all the other stuff needed to keep the place running whilst Dee recuperates. Oh, then there’s still keeping up walking over 12.5k steps a day.
Another thing that’s filled time is watching the latest political psychodrama involving Natalie Elphick, the Tory MP who’s defected to Labour. Many on the left and centre left are unhappy about this due to her history. But this is politics, and my view is that it’s been a clever move on Labour’s party due to the damage it’s doing to Sunak and the Tories. For every vote Labour *may* lose because of it, they’re likely to gain far more in swing seats which are the ones they need to win to form a Government. Mind you, watching the Tories losing it because of her defection is really rather delicious. By trying to smear her they’re proving how inept they are as these revelations and cover-ups happened when she was still a Tory MP!
This evening’s been spent cooking and listening to the thunderstorms that have arrived to put an end to the day after some glorious sunshine. Now it’s time to relax before another busy week. In the meantime, here’s a couple of pictures from the editing queue.
Siemens built RRX trains in the depot at Dortmund, seen during my press trip on Tuesday.Not your usual view of the London Underground. Here’s Oxford Circus on the Northbound Victoria line. Looking through the bridge beams at HS2’s Thame valley viaduct. Not a view many people will ever get to see…
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In contrast to the past couple of days which has been mostly about new trains, today’s visit is going to be about building bridges – HS2 style. I won’t say just where yet, but all will be revealed soon. But first I’ve got to to to where I’m going, which means a cross-London journey from here in Clapham then a trip along the Chiltern line…
07:42.
The weather’s so good this morning I was up and out early in order to bank some time (and pictures en-route). Here’s how the changing skyline of Clapham Junction looks.
08:40.
Having arrived at Victoria I took a trip on the tube line of the same name as far as Oxford Circus where I changed to the antique line – sorry – the Bakerloo line, which operates the oldest and most decrepit trains on the network.
Now I’m at Marylebone, waiting for my next train. The station’s celebrating its 125th birthday this year so is decked out with bunting as a consequence. Not that many in the constant ebb and flow of passengers seem to notice!
At least the trains aren’t 125 years old…
14:30.
Mind the gap! Sorry about that. I’ve only just left the HS2 Thame valley viaduct site. My tour of the structure was extensive so and I was so engrossed in taking pictures and writing notes there was no time to blog.
This particular viaduct is 880 meters long. It’s a low lying structure that will carry HS2 over a flood-plain. I was here ladt year to see some of the first prefabricated concrete beams being installed. There’s been a lot of progress since.
One of two central piers in the viaduct. the poles and pile cap are far bigger as it from here the viaduct is tensioned and dynamic forces transferred. The 880m long viaduct can expand up to 450mm in each direction from these points.
Now, large sections of the viaduct are in place and progress is being made with installing the prefabricated concrete plants which form the bed of the deck. I’ll describe it in far more detail later.
15:15.
On my way back to London I couldn’t resist making a quick stop at Wendover, where the station is very close to some of the HS2 trace. Despite the claims of some residents HS2 construction doesn’t dominate the village as it’s on the opposite side of the noisy and busy A413. Since my last visit there’s been a number of changes. One road which is at the Northern portal of the ‘green’ tunnel’s been diverted over a new bridge spanning the trace. This bridge privides an excellent vantage point to follow construction of the route Northwards.
The bridgeThe view from the bridge.
A short walk away is a footpath and the infamous memorial woods that anti HS2 protesters like Mark Keir lied about, claiming it was dedicated to dead children (it wasn’t) and it was being torn-up up by HS2 and ‘desecrated’ (it wasn’t). I covered their disgraceful, lying campaign in this blog at the time. In fact, the wood’s in rude health. I popped in and took this shot.
Meanwhile, the footpath to the South just past the memorial wood affords this view which is looking down the valley to the viaducts that cross the A413 and also Wendover Dean. Notice how the scenic nature of the valley has been ‘destroyed’ by HS2. Oh, hang on – what are those metal pylons – and how long have they been there?
23:00.
Time to bring today’s blog to a close. The weather here in London’s been lovely. Eating alfresco has returned to the streets of Clapham and the place has been buzzing. It seemed a shame to waste the eveing so the pair of us nipped out for a couple of beers to enjoy the atmosphere, but now it’s time to prepare for tomorrow which includes another early start with the pair of us travelling North together as far as Derby. Watch this space…
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Another dull day in Düsseldorf – well, as far as the weather’s concerned, anyway! For me, it’s time for breakfast and a short stroll before we catch the coach to the Siemens test track at the former RAF base at Wildenrath, where we’re going to be treated ro a preview of the new Desiro for Egypt. After that, it’s time to head back to the UK, so I’ll be blogging as and when I can throughout the day…
12:15.
Having left the hotel at 0900 we arrived at Wildenrath just over an hour later. This was a flying visit, we didn’t enter the main site. Instead we went to the small station on the larger test track where the Desiro Egypt was waiting for us. This train is essentially a four-car Desiro HC (High Capacity) with double-deck centre cars. When you board you feel like you’ve stepped onto a normal DB train as the interior (including the seat mocquette) is identical. The only give-away are the multi-lingual signs in English and Arabic.
Here’s a couple of phone pics. I’ll add camera ones later.
94 Desiros are being built for Egypt, along with 41 high speed Velaros and 41 Vectron freight locomotives. The country is in the middle of a railway renaissance on both sids of the Nile (more about that later).
Right now we’re back on the coach, which is dropping people off at Düsseldorf station and airport.
15:30.
Having kicked my heels at yet another shopping centre with an airport attached – and with a confusing, labyrinthine layout due to new bits added – I’m about to board my flight back to Brexit Britain.
17:15 (UK time).
I’m back in Brexit Britain. Did I miss anything? My Eurowings flight was fine – apart from the obligatory screaming baby. I’d booked a window seat and was looking forward to admiring the scenery but the whole of Europe was covered in clouds. It was only when we crossed the channel that skies cleared. Flying in from Europe meant we followed the Thames estuary and crossed my old home in Crouch End, North London before doubling back across Berkshire to approach Heathrow from the West.
Passport control.and baggage reclaim were a doddle. I was through in no time. Now, havng negotiated the subterranean arteries of the airport I’m on a Lizzie line service into the city.
22:50.
Time to bring this blog to a close. I’m staying with an old friend in Clapham yet again. In fact, I’ve not been able to avoid people. As I passed through Waterloo earlier I paused to get a couple of shots like this.
As I turned around to look elsewhere the driver of 5913 leaned out of his cab and said ‘alright you miserable bugger, not going to say hello then?’ Said driver proved to be the inimitable ‘Driver Potter’ of VEP preservation fame. I’ve known Steve for more years then either of us care to remember so it was a pleasant surprise to be greeted by familiar abuse! I used Steve’s train to get to Clapham. As he neither broke it nor derailed on the way I count that as a win!
The lesser spotted Potter in its natural environment…
Hassard and I have had a quiet night here in Clapham as both of us have been returning from different destinations, he from Glasgow and me from Germany. Plus, tomorrow’s another busy day. I’m up early again as I’ll be looking at more High-Speed 2 construction work tomorrow, so expect another rolling blog. Until then – goodnight!
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I reaisted the temptation to stay up and play with the Lego in my room (see yesterday’s blog) and had a good night’s sleep instead. The hotel’s very quiet and the curtains thick so I wasn’t disturbed. Now I’m making the most of the day with an early start. Here’s the view from the 16th floor restaurant where I’m enjoying breakfast. As you can see, it’s dull and overcast here. The view’s not bad tho!
Having had my caffeine fix I’ve time for a little wander before the bus picks us all up from the hotel.
08:25.
My stroll took me around the area you see in the picture above. A network of abandoned rail underpasses that lead to the area where I’m staying lead me to the concusion that my hotel and all the adjacent new buildings surrounding it are built on the site of an old railway yard. I’ll add some camera pictures later. I also came across this bit of history.
Right now I’m waiting in the rather eclectic hotel lobby…
09:55.
Our bus trio has taken us to Dortmund, where the weather’s far better. I find the difference in architecture interesting. Dortmund seems to have a real mix of old and new – and great pride in its football team! Their banner can be found all over the city. We’ve stopped outside the Hauptbahnhof to pick up more of the group. Across the road from the staion is the football club fanshop.
11:10.
We’re off! Today’s event is being held in one of the most modern train depots in Germay whic was built by Siemens for the new Rhine-Ruhr Express (RRX) fleet – and others…
An ICE 3 set on No 1 road, which is equipped with jacks for lifting a complete train for bogie swaps.
17:00 (German time).
An interesting day.The Dortmund chapter’s now over and the whole crew (Journo’s and Siemens staff) are being bussed back to Düsseldorf before this evening’s group meal. I’ve lots to blog about later, such as the 150 million euro Siemens are making in the Dortmund depot, building a new 400m long building to service ICE trains. After the lunch we were given guided tours of the existing facility which dates from the introduction of the RRX Desiro’s in 2018. The depot building is far more solid than the UK style ‘tin shed’ construction. It’s also fully digital. There’s no paperwork here. The site also has its own 3D printer (one of 40 used by Siemens) which can print otherwise obsolete parts for trains. Despite the modern depot, automation and work practices there were a couple of surprises. One was the underfloor wheel lathe. It’s a single-axle machine supplied by Spanish company TALGO rather than German manufacturers. Apparently, wheel lathes are less common in Germany than they are in the UK, but then DB doesn’t have quite the same problem with wheel-flats caused by leaf fall. The other was the absence of a bogie drop. Instead, one road is equipped with jacks which can lift an entire train.
18:40.
We’re back at the hotel and enjoying a short break and chance to freshen up before the meal, so I’ve taken the time to download a few camera pictures. More will follow later.
A pair of RRX Desiros inside the shed. Inside the automated train washing plant. RRX sets are cycled through here every 10 days, when they receive a full nose and and body wash. The water is then washed and reused. Literally washing the washing water!
19:45.
Time for a beer on the 17th floor restaurant and chance to admire the view before dinner.
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After a very sociable weekend which included a wedding on Saturday and a long family lunch on Sunday (hence no blogs) I’m on my travels again – this time heading from Halifax to Düsseldorf in Germany as part of a Siemens press trip. Over the next few days the company will be showcasing some of its rail products as a preview of what will be on offer at the vast Innotrans rail trade fair in Berlin in September.
Right now I’m on Northern’s 10:54 from Halifax, the first leg of the trip. Today may be a bank holiday but it’s business as usual in Germany. I’m heading to Leeds, then forward to London as I’m booked on a flight from Heathrow later this afternoon as Siemens have made travel arrangements and hotel bookings. Weatherwise it’s a good day for travelling, although I’ve no idea how busy the trains are going to be. Feel free to pop back to see how the trip goes…
11:45.
Phew! Leeds was busy. There’s lots of people milling around who aren’t regular travellers so have no idea where they’re going. Add into the mix that many of them are staring at their phones rather than looking were they’re going, making getting around an obstacle course. I made my connection to London with 15 minutes to spare. The 11:45 is packed, not helped by the fact the next London-bound service has been cancelled so we’re carrying some of the 12:15’s passengers too. I’m glad I opted for this one and added some padding to my timetable, otherwise things could have been a little fraught!
13:15.
I’ve just looked up from my laptop and realised we’re already at Peterborough. I’ve been busy all the way down editing wedding pictures so the time’s flown. I’m not talking about formal wedding photographs but candids. All the stuff that’s much more fun to shoot – like this.
Apparently, we’ve been running ahead of time all the way here but congestion in the station area’s turned that into a four minute deficit. We’re now fast to London so have chance to make some of that up.
13:35.
We’re now dashing towards London under skies that are looking very ominous. The sunshine’s been crowded out by a bank of thunderous looking, leaden skies moving in for the East. This could get interesting. I knew Yorkshire was due for a thunder and lightning show this evening but it looks like the South may be in for the same…
14:45.
As suspected, it’s a gray and wet day in the capital. Still, my trip across the centre was seamless. I literally walked off the train at Kings Cross onto a Circle line underground train for the short hop to Paddington. Now I’m on a far busier ‘Lizzie line’ service to Heathrow.
16:35
I’d forgotten just how much I have a love/hate relationship with airports. They’re gateways to some amazing parts of the orld that you just can’t get to any other way. But so many of them are just expensive shopping centres that just happen to have aircraft attached. The days when flying had a cachet are long gone. I’ve mentioned this before, but as soon as one of the biggest aircraft makers calls itself ‘Airbus’ you know those days of exclusively and luxury are long gone.
The shopping centre known as Heathrow terminal 2…
Of course, it’s very convenient that you’re told to turn up several hours before you depart so that you can be corralled in said shopping centre. Imagine if railway stations tried to get away with that? Sure, security is an issue – but. When was the last major incident involving people boarding an aircraft? Nowadays you’re more likely to suffer from problems caused by drunks.
21:45 (22:45 German time).
I’m nor relaxing in my hotel (more about which shortly) after a reasonable trip here with ‘Air Baltic’ whom I’ve never flown with before. The plane looked very new but of the no-frills variety. Don’t expect TV screens or anywhere to charge stuff but hey ho. That said Heathrow T2 isn’t exactly full of sockets either, so if you’re reliant on gizmos – make sure you’re carrying a battery pack. I’d booked a window seat on for the trip but there wasn’t much to see. The whole of Europe was covered in cloud and things were no better in Dusseldorf. We arrived late due to congestion at Heathrow but it wasn’t a problem. I breezed through passport control and baggage reclaim so I was soon on the way into the city.
Our group is booked into the 25hours hotel which is a modern, but quirky hotel. I’ve never had Lego to play with in a hotel room before!
I really wasn’t kidding about the Lego. Some of the books scattered around the room a worth a look too…
There’s a rooftop bar on the 17th floor which would give great views if the weather wasn’t so crap, but such is life. Instead, I’m relaxing in the room and catching up with a bit of work in preparation for the next couple of days which will be packed with interesting things to see/do.
A rainy night in Düsseldorf as a pair of trams stop outside the D-Wehrhahn S-Bahn station on Grafenberger Allee, just around the corner from my hotel. Public transport in German cities puts the UK to shame.
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As the weather’s picked up and we’re being treated to some blue sky today I’ve journeyed back to Manchester to pick up where I left off yesterday by exploring the rail lines to the East of the city in order to get shots of some of the trains, but also the stations they serve as community rail volunteers are very active in this area. They’re doing some great stuff, both with gardening and artwork. So, here we go – on the train from Piccadilly to Marple…
14:00.
Phew! Back again. I’ve been doing a lot of walking and exploring since my last update. Getting to Marple was the easy part. But, as the line’s closed beyond New Mills services are restricted and I really wanted to get a shot of the return train working ‘bang road’ – a railway term I’ll explain later.
Having an hour to kill gave me time to explore and take pictures around Marple. Did you know that the place is famous because of the writer Agatha Christie? She visited snd decided to name one of her most famous fictional Detectives after the town. The station contains history boards which tell all about it the connection – and more. I’ll add pictures later.
14:45.
Right now I’m back at Piccadilly, basking in the sun (yep, sun, In Manchester!) after heading back from Rose Holl Marple via a stop at Romily – another station with some fascinating and informative history boards. Some are railway related – others not.
Did you know this about sign language? No, neither did I…Here’s something a little more railway related fom Romily…
18:45.
Back again! I’ve been busy. After leaving Romily I headed back to Piccadilly in glorious weather. The sun was shining and temperatures were in their mid teens for the first time this year. It actually felt like spring for a change. I took a break at Picc in order to grab a bite to eat, get a few pictures and spend 30 minutes doing my best basking lizard impression at a platform end. Suitably rejuvenated I headed abck down the Buxton line, changing trains at Hazel Grove before arriving back at New Mills Newtown. Unlike yesterday I disn’t cross between stations. Instead I headed back to Woodsmoor in order to get pictures of the station artwork. Realising I’d 30 mins to wait for a train but the next station was only 25 mins walk I elected to explore and walked between the two through the leafy backstreets that make up these affluent suburbs.
When I got back to the city it was rush-hour and a good time to think about heading home. I wore out some more shoe leather walking from Picc to Vic where I was in time to catch the 18:21 to Leeds. Right now I’ve got my feet up, relaxing before the last leg from Halifax to home.
22:30.
I’m home and editing a few pictures which give more of a flavour of today. Here they are.
One of the history boards at Marple station explains all about Agatha Christies links with Marple, the North and also railways…195125 arrives at Marple, working ‘bang road’ from Mills Hill Central.A lovely bit of whimsy from the friends of Rose Hill Marple station.
I’ve lots more pictures to edit, so that’s tomorrow’s working from home sorted out…
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/
Today should have been a rolling blog sort of day, but to be honest, my heart wasn’t really in it. So, although I’ve been on my travels this afternoon after working from home this morning, I gave myself the afternoon off. Instead of blogging, I simply enjoyed getting out and about – even though the weather did a volte face. Recently, we’ve had wet morning and lovely afternoons/evenings. Only – as I was travelling – the weather Gods pulled a fast one on me and reversed that!
Not that it mattered too much. I’d headed over to the South-East side Manchester to check out some locations for future pictures. This took me out on the Buxton line as far as New Mills Newtown where I walked across the village to New Mills Central to head back along the route via Romily. It was just as well I wasn’t planning to head further into Derbyshire as the line From New Mills towards Chinley and on to Sheffield has been closed for several days due to track defects. This means trains from Manchester are terminating at New Mills Central, then running ‘bang road’ (wrong line) back to Marple where there’s a crossover that allows them to access the correct running line.
Having deposited me at New Mills Newtown a pair of Class 150s continue their journey to Buxton. As you can see, spring has very much sprung here in Derbyshire. All change! A pair of Class 156s from Manchester wait time at New Mills Central before running ‘bang road’ back to Marple.Haven’t I seen you somewhere before? One of the former West Midlands Class 323s that are being cascaded to Northern is seen at Manchester Piccadilly before working a service to Crewe.
Maybe I’ll have better luck with the weather next time…
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The pair of us decided to take a trip into Manchester this afternoon for a spot of clothes shopping and a bite to eat. Personally, I’m not a great internet shopper when it comes to clothes. I much prefer to be able to touch and feel things first, examine the quality and try things on for size whilst also checking for defects. In recent years I’ve found sizes don’t seem to conform to reality and the same measurements can vary considerably depending on who’s making something.
We took the train over to Manchester from Sowerby Bridge. The 3-car set was busy but after stopping at Rochdale it was packed – a portent of what was to come as Manchester city centre was heaving! Neither of us had expected it to be as busy as it was – or as noisy. In Market St various buskers with portable amplifiers competed for attention with the ‘God Squad’. Both Christians and Moslems had stalls pitching their own brand of salvation in the hope of signing up a few more folks to their respective faiths. Add in delivery cyclists whizzing through the milling crowds and you really had to keep your wits about you. Oh, and the occasional shoplifter doing a runner and bulldozing people whilst being chased by shop security guards! This was the human zoo in all its diverse glory!
After a couple of hours the pair of agreed to call it a day. The place was just too busy. Instead we adjourned to the Old Wellington pub in Wellington Square for a drink whilst and kill some time before the table we’d booked in a nearby restaurant became free. Sadly, sitting outside the ‘Wellie’ led to suffering another aural assault as someone nearby had set up a PA which was playing repetitive ‘boom boom’ music that might be fine in a dance club but is hardly conducive to enjoying a quiet drink. So, rather than stay for a second we adjourned to the Victoria Tap in the nearby railway station. They had music in there to, but it had lyrics, a tune, was melodic – and didn’t make your ears bleed or your table vibrate. They also had decent drinks at decent prices. Oh, and some lovely old black and white pictures of the station back in BR days, like this.
Soon it was time to eat so we headed over to the old Corn Exchange building and the restaurant we’d booked ‘Mowgli’ which bills itself as Indian street food. That’s a slight exaggeration as some of the dishes it serves you certainly wouldn’t find as street food in India. That quibble aside, the food is really very good. The restaurant’s spread over two floors and is clearly very popular. Dawn tells me the creator (an Indian woman from Ormskirk called Nisha Katona) has been a guest on some TV cooking programmes. I’d no idea, I just liked the sound of the place.
Served Tapas style, we ordered several different dishes, starting off with chat bombs – crispy balls stuffed with spicy yoghurt and chickpeas. Our waiter advised us to pop a whole one in our mouths as biting into then could cause a messy explosion! Our main courses consisted of the house chicken, which is cooked in coconut milk, Keralan style. The spicy house lamb, slow cooked and spicy and the Goan fish curry with Tamarind and Ginger. All the dishes were served in classic stainless-steel tiffin tins. As an accompaniment we ordered rice and roti.
On the left is the Goan Fish. Centre is the Lamb, with the chicken on the Right.
We don’t often eat Indian food when we go out as it’s something I cook a lot of at home. This was a worthy exception to that rule. All four dishes were delicious, each had its own unique blend of spices, flavours and textures. It’s worlds apart from the bog-standard dishes you’ll get in your average high street Indian restaurant. India has some fantastic regional cuisine that rarely makes its way onto ‘normal’ Indian (in reality, actually Bangladeshi) restaurant menus.
My food was washed down with sparkling water whilst Dee enjoyed a coke with hers. The bill wasn’t cheap. With a tip included in plus a £1 donation to the charity of their choice it came to £55 for the pair of us. But as a treat it was worth it. Besides, I’d half expected to have shelled out on a new suit but only bought chinos, so I felt I was ahead!
Suitably stuffed we made our way back to the station for a last drink before heading home on the 18:21 – which was absolutely rammed. It’s good to see so many people out and about again, it’s good for the railways, it’s good for Manchester and it’s good for the wider economy.
Now we’re back at home, enjoying the peace and quiet after a busy day – with more to come as we’ve work to do around the house. We’re not eating out on Sunday. Instead we’ve acquired some stewing beef from our local butcher. This is going into the slow cooker along with a selection of veg – and some red wine – to be transformed into a stew that can cook whilst we work. See you tomorrow…
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I’ve had a leisurely morning at home sorting out some paperwork and chores so there’s been no early start today, much as that would have been tempting in order to make the most of the improving weather. But now I’m on the move again, heading from Halifax to Leeds before taking a trip down the East Coast Main line to London.
Leg one was far less glamorous. I took a trip on this old thing which is working the Huddersfield to Bradford Interchange shuttle.
All aboard…
Now I’m on something a little more modern in the shape of a CAF built Class 195. It’s running slightly late but no big deal as I wasn’t planning to get to Leeds before 12:00 anyway.
12:45.
Getting to Leeds was in fits and starts dues to my train being delayed by late running services (often a problem at Leeds, a station with too many trains and no spare capacity) however, it didn’t stop me making the Harrogate-Kings Cross service, whose departure was also delayed for the same reason! We’re now speeding South towards Doncaster. I expect the few minutes we’ve lost should be made up along the way, unless something dramatic happens on the ECML. This trains a 9-Car ‘Azuma’ and reasonably quiet, so I’ve been able to colonise a table bay in order to set up the mobile office and start the task of editing all the past few days pictures…
13:45.
Time’s flying! I’ve had my head buried in my laptop as I edit pictures and declutter my email inbox. I’m now signed up to several press events that’ll see me rather busy at the beginning of May. These include a press trip to Germany and some more HS2 visits (watch this space). The picture editing’s gone well too. So much so that I’ve ony just noticed how the fields of rape along the railway have burst into bloom. The countryside’s dotted with yellow, marking the change of seasons. It’s ages since I’ve been able to get out to photograph at the lineside this time of year. Will I find time in 2024? I hope so, but blue skies remain elusive. There’s the odd patch here South of Peterborough but hardly wall to wall.
14:05.
I was right about making up time. Say what you like about the ‘Azuma’ trains but they can’t half shift. Our 2 minute late departure from Leeds has morphed into passing Hitchin 2 minutes early! Shame the weather’s not been as scintillating as we seem to be heading into a mass of clouds…
17:15.
S’cuse the gap but it’s been a hectic few hours. I didn’t hang around for more than a few minutes at Kings Cross. only long enough to grab a couple of pictures before making my way across to Waterloo via Thameslink and London Bridge, thence SoutheEastern to Waterloo East. The reason for my haste was that the ‘celebrity’ BR blue liveried Class 455 was in traffic and due to pay a visit on the country end of a service. Here it is.
Shiny! Well, the paint job is. The train underneath it is a different matter!
I didn’t stay for a ride, instead I caught an earlier service to Clapham Junction so that I had a second bite of the photographic cherry.
Frustratingly, the sun remained hidden behind clouds until the last few minutes before I had to leave. What a difference a bit of sunshine makes.
Now I’m heading to Farnham on a packed 17:02 off the Junction. Today’s obviously not the day people are working from home!
20:20.
And relax!
I’m now at Platt mansions in Tilford and it’s time to relax with Dawn for the evening. Tomorrow we drive back to Yorkshire so there’s no trains for me – although there may just be chance to take a look at an HS2 worksite on the way back. We’ll see…
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 