Yet another day where my timetable’s gone out of the window and I find myself having to rejig things. My original plan was to move on from Cardiff straight away today but cancellations and a 2 hour late arrival mean I’ve unfinished business, so it’s another earlier than planned start, with some stuff being cut from my schedule to fit in the key trips. Note to self – stop arranging trips on lines that only have a two-hourly frequency!
Right, it’s time to pack, make my way to Cardiif Central and head off up the valleys (again). See you soon…
09:10.
I teyraced yesterday’s steps to stop off at Taffs Well. It’s changed a bit since my last visit. It’s gained a new depot full of tram-trains for a start!
The Class 150s soldier on. For now…
16:00.
I’m back – having moved a faor few miles since this morning! Having detoured up the Valleys once more I returned to Cardiff and (after a photo session) caught a train to Bristol Temple Meads. I have to say that – despite its history and heritage, it’s my least favorite city gateway station. The facilities are primitive and in short supply. York has a cracking bar, shops and cafes. Temple Meads has a pasty shop in the subway, a couple of WH Smiths, a pair of expensive cafe/shops – and that’s about it. It’s not a destination station, or somewhere you hang around, you get out as quickly as you can. Yes, I know the long restoration of the roof doesn’t help, but even where that’s finished there’s nothing to drag you there for – other than to catch a train. The only hope I can see is the new entrance into the development that’s taking place on the old Royal Mail site next door.
Moving on I cut right across country down to Weymouth on a GWR byway via Trowbridge, Westbury, Castle Cary and Yeovil. This is the first time I’ve done the line during a Rover. Now I’ve just left Bournemouth on my way to London.
23:30.
Time to call it a day. It’s certainly been an adventure – especially due to the torrentisl rain I faced when I got closer to London. More details tomorrow.
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/
A later start today but I’m on my way, having left Halifax on Northern’s 08:50 to Huddersfield. We’ve another hot, sunny day predicted so I’m dressed accordingly whilst carrying a variety of spare clothing for my tour of England, Scotland and Wales. Oh, and midge spray – just in case, although the West Higland weather is predicted to be wet!
Feel free to keep popping in to see where and what I get up to…
The first train of many…
15:15.
I’m back. Sorry for the delay but I’ve been moving between trains and busy with the camera.
I made it to Manchester Piccadilly with 5 mins to spare before my next connection – a packed Pendolino which took me to Stoke where I joined a blissfully quiet Cross-Country Voyager as far as Birmingham New St. The city (and station was hot and muggy but I wasn’t hanging around. Instead I had chance to sample two new train fleets. An Alstom Class 730 took me to Bromsgrove where I cahnged onto a 4-car, CAF built Class 196 to Worcester. A short visit to Shrub Hill station ensued as it has a fascinating history and retains one of the finest collections of GWR semaphore signals left on the UK mainline.
I was lucky to find this temporary exhibition in the cafe annexe which showcased a photographic history of the railways (and staff who worked) around Worcester.
Right now I’m on a GWR Class 800 crossing the Cotswolds en-route to Didcot.
16:50.
And it was all going so well…
I got to Didcot only to find the Cardiff train was cancelled. Not just the Cardiff one either, Cheltenhams too. It seems that when things go majorly pear-shaped on the Great Western Main Line near London these are the services sacrificed. It’s like the East Coast with trains to Leeds.
Now I’m basking in the hottest weather and intense sun while I wait for a train to Swindon and a connection to Cardiff. Yes, I know there’s other ways I could have done it but I’l trying to show what ‘Joe public’ relies on. Anyway, as well as the sunshine i’ve red kites and Chinnooks flying overhead to keep me entertained.
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/
Time to wipe the sleep from my eyes and prepare for day 2. This time I’m heading deep into the East – via Sheffield, so that I can pick up a very limited and rather special service to the coast. It’s a train I’ve been trying to catch for 20 years, but as it only used to run on Saturdays, that was impossible to plan. Feel free to pop back later and see what it is…
08:15.
Having left Halifax on Grand Central’s 07:12 to London I detrained at Buddleia Central – sorry – Wakefield Kirkgate, where I changed for a train to Sheffield. Now I’ve the mobile office set up on a busy 2-car Class 195 that’s forming the 07:56.
I’ve a while to kill at Sheffield as there’s not many options that would allow me to explore and get back in time for my next train, which is central to my plans.
19:00.
Sorry, that’s been a crap rolling blog. Today’s been difficult as I’ve been on a succession of absolutely rammed train with little time in between. The good thing is I achieved my two main aims. One was to traverse the Brigg line between Gainsborough and Barnetby for the first time in over 30 years – and the other was to include a trip on the Barton-on-Humber branch.
It’s amazing how many people you can fit in a 2-car train when needs must. Families from Sheffield arrive at Cleethorpes.
The day’s been hot and sticky due to the weather, which hasn’t helped. Then I was hit by a series of delays and cancellations on the way back which has meant I’ve not been able to include all the routes I’d intended without getting back late tonight. Instead, I’ve cur the trip short in order to get back at a sensible time as I need to pack for tomorrow and the next several days. I won’t be back home for another week now.
Luxury on the Barton-On-Humber branch! Air-conditioned Class 170s are a far cry from the single-car class 153s that used to operate the route. Here’s 170271 calling at Grimsby Town earlier today.
22:50.
I’ve had a busy evening completely rejigging tomorrow’s timetable and routes to take into account the past two days disappointments. I’ve also given myself a slightly later start. Wednesday will see me making my way to Cardiff via a rather curious route.
See you in the morning…
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’s the start of my bi-annual odyssey around the UK’s railways for RAIL magazine. I’ll be blogging (sporadically) throughout the day as I cover 15 trains and two countries on day 1. Right now I’m on my way to Manchester on the first of what will be around 80 trains in 7 days. I’ve picked a good week. The weather’s predicted to be some of the hottest of the year, it’s the holidays and train services are being cut in some areas – so there should be lots to write about!
150003? Not a train I’d expected to see at Halifax on the start of my trip.
0845.
The day’s turning into a fun one already. I was only on my 2nd train when we had a last-minute set swap at Manchester as the train I was due to catch was taken out of service with a faulty gearbox. Quick work by Northen staff saw an inbound 4-car set split and the rear Class 150 used as a replacement, returning the way it came with minimal delay – and from the same platform too!
Right now I’m on my way to Wigan aboard yet another old Class 150…
14:49.
Where’s the time gone? Since I was last able to post and update I’ve covered quite a few miles – mostly standing on trains which is why there’s been no updates! After leaving Manchester I sampled battery trains on Merseyrail, then old London Underground stock on the Welsh borders before heading along the North Wales coast on absolutely packed Transport for Wales trains as far as Llandudno Junction where the plan to get to Llandudno fell apart due to late running and the fact the train on the way back was one I *really* wanted to catch as it was a chance to sample one of Avanti West Coast’s new Class 805s. I can’t say that was a great success, for reasons you’ll be able to read about in RAIL magazine.
Hell old District line friend..
Now I’m heading back from Chester to Liverpool via TfW’s direct service via Runcorn. And I have a seat – and a table, and wifi…
18:00.
There’s an old military adage that no plan survives first contact with the enemy. I could say the same thing about my Rover plans! On arrival at Manchester Piccadilly everything went majorly tits up. I’d planned to catch a TPE service to Sheffield in order to make my way back to Halifax via the Penistone line and Huddersfield. The railway had other plans. Well, to be fair – it wasn’t the railways fault. A tree had come down on the Manchester Airport line at Gatley. This was fouling the overhead wires, so only diesel trains could run. No problem you think – except for the fact Manchester Airport is a terminal station and all the platforms were occupied by trapped electric trains! So, everything going to the airport was cancelled, causing a massive backlog on the Oxford Rd corridor as Network rail did its best to get trains out of the way. The station staff were excellent, both in the way they kept passengers informed and dealt with their problems as no-one wants to be delayed on the way to an airport.
Finally, my TPE service was freed from the jam and is now running roughly 30 mins late, which buggers up my connections at Sheffield. I may have to resort to plan B if I want to get home at a sensible time…
22:30.
Plan B it was. I missed my Penistone line connection at Sheffield so opted for the direct route to Leeds on a Cross-Country service, then a local train via Bradford to Halifax. It wasn’t what I’d planned, but I have another busy day tomorrow and will rejig my plans in the light of today’s events. The main this is that I’m now home, having showered and been fed (Dawn very kindly had food ready for when I got in).
Now to reset the alarm and prepare for day 2. This time I’ll be heading East…
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/
We’re about to depart Bigland Towers for a weekend in Cambridgeshire, driving down to Peterborough which we’ll be using as tonight’s base. But first, we’ve got to get there – and have a barbecue to attend. Let’s see how the trip goes. Updates and pictures to follow…
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/
Stop sniggering at the back! Yes, I know the name Penistone always attracts giggles from those who enjoy innuendo, but the Penistone line between Huddersfield and Barnsley is a very scenic railway. Today I’m off exploring in order to get some lineside shots. The weather’s not exactly wall to wall sunshine, but I should be able to play with the shadows and light if the weather plays ball.
Right now I’m sat at Huddersfield, getting a few pictures after catching the local service from Halifax. Sadly, the timing off the two services couldn’t be worse. We were scheduled to arrive at 10:12 – at exactly the same time the Sheffield train departs! Still, it gives me time to get some other shots. Here’s a few,
Moody skies over Halifax and the sun battles with the clouds whilst 195109 leaves with a service to Manchester Victoria.150211 is one of the units working today’s Bradford Interchange – Huddersfield shuttles.Due to having to label and catalogue every piece in order to aid rebuilding, progress on demolishing the tea rooms at Huddersfield was slow. Now work has stepped up a pace.
15:00.
Time for an update.
As I suspected, I’ve been playing hide ank seek with the sun. That and the fact I was an hour later than hoped so its position was getting quite acute to the viaduct I wanted to shoot trains on. In the end I managed a decent shot but know there’s others to be had earlier in the day and when clouds are in a minority.Having explored Penistone I moved back up the line to Denby Dale, where the cloud was even thicker! I did manage one decent shot as a train traversed the viaduct but it’s going to need tweaking. The bright side is that I’m putting today down to an exploring day. I’ve not been to Denby Dale for years. This trip’s given me chance to explore local footpaths and work out positions for some great scenic shots when the weather’s right. Oh, and I’ve already got 18,000 steps under my belt!
The first of its type. Class 150 number 150001 crosses the viaduct at Penisone with a service to Sheffield. The same unit cross the Denby Dale viaduct. Oh, for a bit of sunshine. The good news is that I’m now au-fait with the footpaths in the area (including the one in the foreground).
16:45.
I’m now kicking my heels back in Huddersfield. The train from Denby Dale was 20 minutes late, not that it mattered as my onward connection to Halifax was cancelled!
Better late than never! 150005 working 2B58, the 14:35 Sheffield to Huddersfield arrives at Denby Dale 22 minutes late. The service left Sheffield 11 down and lost more time en-route.
Now I’ve over an hour to wait, so I’ve retreated to the ‘Kings Head’ on the station for a beer and a chance to update this blog. In passing I saw that staff from the Trans-Pennine Route Upgrade (TRU) had set up an information stall on platform 1. As well as useful information leaflets they’d a range of freebies, from pens to jelly-babies. I snaffled a pen…
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/
All good things come to an end and that’s what’s happened today with our Dorset holiday. It’s been a fabulous couple of weeks despite the mixed weather. So much so that I’ve not blogged as often as I’d planned as I’ve been too busy exploring and spending time with the family. Fromm my perspective it’s been a great opportunity to revisit some places and discover new ones due as I’ve not had to rely on public transport for a change. That said, public transport (well, buses anyway) seem to be very good down here. I wish I could say the same about the trains but their punctuality and reliability has been poor.
Right now I’m on a train heading to Waterloo as I’m making my own way back whilst the family go by car. Much as I’d have liked to have travelled together all my extra kit (and me) would have made Dawn’s Honda Civic rather ‘cosy’ and I preferred to let her folks have more room. There is a bonus for me – I can work on the train and edit pictures en-route.
The whole family have come away with some very positive impressions of Dorset. People have been very friendly and helpful, plus, the towns and villages are noticeably cleaner and better kept than back in West Yorkshire. As I walked to Wareham station this morning I passed several community volunteers litter picking On the downside, it’s much more expensive in Dorset, but money isn’t everything. Oh, they still love fish and chips in Dorset! Whilst many ‘chippies’ in Yorkshire have closed in recent years, they proliferate down here. When I first moved to West Yorkshire in 2010 Sowerby Bridge boasted 5 chip shops, now there’s just one left. Conversely (as I mentioned in a previous blog) it’s harder to find decent fishmongers down here than it is in land-locked West Yorkshire. Go figure!
Whilst the standard of living down in Dorset is good (you should see how many expensive yachts and floating gin-palaces are moored up around the harbours of Poole and Weymouth) there’s still issues. The railways suffere from vandalism (see my journey here) and antisocial behaviour. Unlike Northern, SWR have a recorded announcement about how violence towards staff won’t be tolerated, which is rather depressing.
12:00.
We’ve reached Bournemouth, where the 5-car Class 444 I’m travelling on has coupled to the rear of another classmate in order to form a 10 car service to Waterloo. The opposite happens with trains heading to Weymouth, which split here. Of all the old railway regions, this splitting/joining of trains en-route is still an everyday occurrence on the old ‘Southern’ whereas it’s a rarity on most other regions.
14:15.
I’ve eschewed the delights of crossing the capital to take a slightly more roundabout way home. Having changed at Southampton Central I’m now on a Cross-Country service to Manchester via Reading and Birmingham. I’ll take me longer than the ‘direct’ route via London but it allows me to travel on routes I don’t frequent as much, such as the one I’m traversing now, which is the line from Basingstoke to Reading. This service consists of a pair of four-car Class 220s and there’s been no problem in finding a seat. A lot were reserved from Southampton but never occupied. I had toyed with the idea of stopping off at Eastleigh en-route but as that railway town was being rained on as I approached I decided to keep going. Besides, the others are already way up the country, having recently passed the Brackley HS2 construction site in Northamptonshire!
One thing I’ve noticed on these railway travels are the amounts of cuttings and embankments Network Rail has installed remote monitoring sensors on in order to detect and predict movements. Most of these structures were built 150 or more years ago, in the days when soil engineering was unheard of. Now, with age and the advent of climate change they’re increasingly at risk.
14:50.
We’ve left Oxford, en-route to Banbury after a pootle at less than high-speed along the Great Western Main Line to Didcot. Seeing the half-completed electrification scheme along the line to Oxford made me think. It would be an easy win for the new Government to show its environmental credentials by finishing this project that was cancelled by ‘failing Grayling’, the Tory Transport Minister of the time. Much of piling work was done and the plans still exist, it wouldn’t take much to dust them off. Then we could get rid of the ridiculous situation where electric trains run from Paddington to Didcot, where passengers transfer to a DMU shuttle to get the last few miles to Oxford.
15:45.
Having arrived at (and departed) Coventry we’re on our way to Birmingham, and this is where Intercity trains on this busy local corridor fall down. Due to a lack of capacity services like this become rammed with people moving between to two conurbations. We become a local train between the two, which isn’t ideal for either set of passengers, although you can see why locals prefer the faster train between the two.
16:45.
Interestingly, the majority of people who boarded my coach in Coventry (Afro-Caribbean families on a day out) were travelling to Wolverhampton, not Birmingham. Having left Wolves the train’s pretty empty! This part of the trip raises my hackles because until the disastrous premiership of Rishi Sunak, I was looking forward to this route and these cramped Voyagers being replaced by a new high-speed railway (HS2). Now, a 90 minute journey between tow of our biggest cities is baked in for decades – unless the new Labour Government has the bravery and the common-sense to resurrect the project.
17:25.
I’m on the final approach to Manchester from Stockport and Manchester is living up to its reputation for rain. It’s grim up North! Now for the walk from Picc to Vic..
Meanwhile, the others are already back in West Yorkshire and half way from the M1 to Huddersfield…
22:15.
Home again! I got back to Sowerby Bridge just before 19:00. Dawn was waiting to pick me up from the station after depositing her folks at their home in Huddersfield. Now it’s time to relax after the long journey – we can finish unpacking tomorrow. In the meantime, here’s a small selection of pictures from the past couple of days.
Stop! Thief! As bold as brass, this cheeky seagull strolled into the cafe at Weymouth station, grabbed a packet of crisps off a stand and legged it without paying!With the earthworks of Maiden Castle in the foreground, 444039 works 1W23, the 11:35 London Waterloo to Weymouth. What’s the point of ‘Gatwick Express’ anymore? Here’s one of their branded units way off piste at Southampton earlier today, before working a service to – Brighton…Southwestern railway were in the football spirit today, with this massage displayed on many of their station displays…
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/
What a difference a decent night’s sleep and a shower makes! After two nights sleeping on the floor of a train having a bed was luxury. Mind you, when I first arrived at my hotel in Preston I thought I might end up sleeping rough. The place I was staying was a family business and unstaffed. There was a keysafe outside the front doo – but no key in it! A phone call to the number I’d been given by my hosts soon put that right. It turned out that another apologetic guest travelling as part of a group thought they’d been left two keys.
Now I’m on the move again. I didn’t hang around in Preston, instead I caught Avanti’s 10:01Pendolino to Euston. Despite it being a Sunday morning it’s a busy train. Thankfully, as it starts from Preston I’ve managed to blag a table seat and set up the mobile office. Not that I’m planning to do much work. I’m still suffering from a sleep deficit so relaxing and catching up with the world is more the order of the day and I suspect this train’s going to get busy. We’ve just pulled out of Wigan where confusion reins as people can’t find their reserved seats. This may not be the relaxing journey I’d hoped for…
Still, I’m on my way to a holiday, joining Dawn and her parents down in Wareham, Dorset – so my batteries will get recharged eventually!
14:45.
As expected, the Pendolino was packed by the time we left the North-West. There was no point in me trying to do any work so I dozed most of the way instead. It being a Sunday the timings weren’texactly sparkling either. We arrived at Euston just a few minutes before 13:00, having sat for ages at Rugby and Milton Keynes.
I’ve now travelled across busy London to Waterloo. The capital’s weather certainly better than ‘oop North’ as there’s sunshine and a hike of several degrees in temperature. I’m in no rush to get to Wareham, so I might stop off en-route. Right now I’m on the 14:35 to Weymouth, waiting departure form Waterloo…
18:25.
It’s turned into one of those days! The train from London was packed all the way to Southampton central, which is where things went belly up. My train onwards to Wareham was cancelled due to a previous service hitting a bike which had been thrown onto the line at Christchurch near Bournemouth. Chaos ensued as services through Southampton rapidly fell apart with knock-on cancellations following. Nothing was running between Southampton and Bournemouth, with staff being unable to say when services would resume. Some passengers were getting stroppy and one young woman member of staff fled to her office in tears.
22:30.
Well, I *did* make it to Wareham in the end, but it was by taxi, not train.
I ended up being stuck at Southampton for a few hours as SouthWestern Railway effectively gave up on trying to run trains West of the city. Every time one arrived from London with the idea of it heading West it was cancelled by SWR control. Even the station staff were getting fed up of it. Thankfully, Cross-Country were made of sterner stuff and kept their Bournemouth bound trains running. I managed to get aboard a packed 18:50 which was standing room only. On arrival at Bournemouth I found SWR were running trains back to London but nothing was going West. After quizzing a couple of different members of staff myself and three other passengers were loaded into a taxi which took me to Wareham and them to Weymouth. Not the railway’s finest hour at all.
Thank you, Cross-Country, at least you ran trains to Bournemouth this afternoon. Here’s 221124 after depositing me, ready to leave on its return trip to Manchester Piccadilly.
Still, I’m here now and the holiday can begin…
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/
Ugh! After a few hours sleeping on the floor or cushions of the coaches as we headed into Scotland the train’s awake and the onboard volunteers are already serving breakfast. The train’s running 45 minutes late right now and we’re being greeted by the sight of dawn breaking over the Scottish highlands around Tulloch.
We’ll be leaving the comfort of the train by 05:15. Right now, everyone’s preparing themselves physically and mentally for what’s to come. Coaches are clouded in mist – a heady mix of deodorant and midge spray! The midge warning for base camp is at maximum level. There’s expected to be clouds of the little buggers so the first thing I check is to ensure I’ve packed my midge net and spray in the camera bag.
This is the bit of the trip that drags for me. Once walkers are ascending Ben Nevis there’s little for me to do until they return and I start getting the team pictures. So, I’ll probably be stretching my legs with a walk from the base camp into Fort William where I can sit and update this blog whilst editing pictures and sipping coffee in the local McDonalds – which is one of the only places open at that God-forsaken time!
Here are the first pictures from today…
The scene on the train last night aswalkers bedded down for a precious few hours sleep…Smiles as we leave the train at Fort William to board the coaches which will take us Ben Nevis.Being checked in before beginning the ascent of Ben Nevis.
07:20.
Well, everyone’s on the mountain. The last few began the climb to the summit at 05:40. Base camp and the finish line are all set up, all there is to do now is wait for the teams to return. No doubt there’ll be a few stragglers who are unable to complete the challenge due to injury or exhaustion. A handful haven’t climbed today for those reasons (and the fact safety’s paramount, so we wouldn’t let them risk themselves). Instead they’re talking short walks around basecamp whilst waiting for their team members to return.
As anticipated, I walked back into Fort William just in time for McDonalds to open, which is where I’m sat typing this. The weather here is a mixture of sunshine and showers, so I’m happy to kill some time in the dry. I’ll be heading back to camp in time to get shots of the walkers as they cross the finish line. We expect the first between 8:30-09:00. We have one team member who’s doing the 3 peaks as part of his army training. He’s been first up and down both Snowdon and Scafell and I expect him to complete his hat-trick!
14:30.
I’m back!
We’ve been reunited with the train and are currently South of Corrour. The team managed to get everybody off the mountain in good time and the train left Fort William spot on time at 13:05. Now the walkers can relax and get stuck into the food and drink on offer. Lunch is a fabulous chili with baked potato and the bar is open. I can’t let my hair down in quite the same way as I’m still on photographic duty, but here’s a few from earlier.
Returnees from Ben Nevis are piped across the finish line by Alex, a young bagpiper from Mallaig. Some of the Ops and Railway Children team responsible for ensuring everything runs smoothly are seen with Alex, the piper. Say ‘celery’ (a train catering in-joke, honest). This is the brilliant team who’re taking care of people on board on our return to Crewe. Seen at Fort William, just before we departed.
The money’s still coming in, but at the moment it looks like the event has raised £200,000 plus for the Railway Children to further the work it does.
16:00.
Time for a break. I’ve been busy taking pictures onboard, escorting the team who’re raffling off prizes of whisky, the headboard off the train – or the headboard of the narrow-gauge steam train we used yesterday. The walkers have been incredibly generous and we’ve raised even more money for the Railway Children. Here’s another selection of pictures of life aboard the train
Vast quantities of chili being prepared in the kitchen, ready to feed walkers and crew alike.We have professional sports physio’s aboard, ready to massage tired limbs back into life. Some of the prizes available in the raffle, ably sold by volunteers…
20:10.
After a long, painful crawl through Glasgow where we averaged around 15mph we’re now on the West Coast Main Line heading for Carlisle. This year the train’s quite subdued. Last year we had people doing a conga up and down the train. It’s a reflection of how the same event changes every year depending on people and circumstances. Some of the walkers coaches are full of sleeping people, others not – as people (despite the tiredness) party. In our staff coach it’s the same mixture depending on levels of exertion, adrenaline and age.
23:55.
I’m typing this last update from my hotel room in Preston. Do I have some stories to tell – just getting into my room was a saga, but not in any bad way. Right now I’m too knackered to do anything more than fall into a comfortable bed – which feels like a luxury after the past few days. I’ll explain and expound more tomorrow.
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/
Having spent the morning completing household chores and giving the gardens a good soaking before I go it’s now time to begin my journey over to Crewe to join the rest of the Railway Children volunteers and prepare for the arrival of this years teams and the train that will be our home until Saturday night. The weather here in the Calder valley’s bright and sunny, but I’ve packed for all eventualities.
But first, I’ve got to get to Crewe. I wonder which way I’ll go? I’m not going to be walking far as I have a rather large kitbag with me as well as a fully-stocked camera bag. So, let’s see. Next stop, Halifax station…
12:30.
Dawn very kindly gave me a lift to the station which saved mucking around with taxis. I managed to make Northern’s 11:16 to Chester which was ‘fun’ as a stock shortage meant that it was formed of a single 2-car Class 195, so it was full and standing when it arrived. I ended up standing all the way to Manchester as there was no way I was going to get a seat.
By the time we left Rochdale it resembled a sardine-can but after leaving Manchester it was only around 20% full, so now I’ve time to blag a table, plug in the mobile office and relax for a while. Unfortunately, we’ve lost the good weather now. The further West we go the gloomier the skies are.
14:15.
I’m now in Chester. Yes, I know it’s a little bit of a detour but I was still working on the train at Warrington and decided to stay on to finish what I was doing. Plus, there’s method in my madness. I can catch a direct train to Crewe from here and hopefully sample of of Avanti’s new Class 805s in the process. Mind you, it’s all a bit shambolic here. One Holyhead train was 72 minutes late. Diagrammed to leave from platform 3, announcements were made it would leave from platform 4, so passengers and luggage traipsed over the footbridge to the new platform – only to have to traipse back at the last moment when the signaller decided it could leave from its original platform anyway! Here’s a few shots;
Schrödinger’s 13:25, simultaneously cancelled and on time…
Chester is the Southern outpost of the Merseyrail 3rd rail network. 197005 sits on platform 3 whilst passengers on the island wait for their next service.
10:05.
The adventure’s about to begin…
We’re on the way! Our train left on time at 19:14, we’re now on our way to Chester and the North Wales coast before a layover at Llandudno Junction, where we let a service train pass. We’ve 42 teams aboard comprising 190 people, from companies like Siemens, train operators like Avanti and SouthEastern, engineering companies like Volker Rail and others such as HD2 and RSSB.
For the railway enthusiasts amongst my readers we have 47593 on the front and 57311 on the rear of the train.
23:55.
It’s almost time for me to go, but here’s how things have gone so far. As we hugged the North Wales coast the walkers were treated to a hot meal prepared in the kitchen cars that’s part of the train. Here’s the staff busy serving the walkers with the first course of a two course meal (the second course was cheesecake, which was divine). As you can imagine, it’s a military style operation to serve hot food to so many people in such a short time – and on a moving train! Some of the servers were ‘newbies’ to 3 Peaks , which is a challenge in itself.
We dropped off the walkers at Bangor at 21:26. Eve though they’d already been fed and watered they were provided with plenty of snacks to keep ’em going overnight.
Snack anyone?
Just as soon as they were all off the train the empty (well, empty of walkers) train continued to Holyhead where the onboard crew had the train cleared of rubbish and vehicles tanked. Meanwhile, the kitchen staff prepared a second meal, this time for the onboard crew. Now it’s time to get our heads down for a few hours before we’re up at silly o’clock to head back and pick up the walkers. Before our train departs Bangor for Ravenglass at 04:37 on Friday…
The train at Holyhead earlier. A short break before a very busy day tomorrow.
Right, see you in a few hours…
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 