Today we decided to blow a few cobwebs away and head out for a hike to a place we’ve never walked up before – Pendle Hill, over in Lancashire. We know the area reasonably well as we had a friend who lived in nearby Clitheroe who we used to visit, but we’d never ventured up the historic hill. As we’ve been looking to try walking somewhere different for a change we thought ‘why not’?
The area’s just over an hours drive from where we live in West Yorkshire, with some great scenery on the way – a mix of wooded valley and old industrial revolution heritage. Our first port of call was the village of Pendleton, which nestles at the foot of the hill. It’s a pretty, historic little village with a cracking pub called The Swan with Two Necks.
The Swan also has a large beer garden (and marquee) at the rear of the pub.A selection of Lancashire and Yorkshire beers of varying strengths including a stout – plus a cider.
The Swan has an excellent selection of real ales and good pub grub. It’s very popular with walkers and tourists visiting the area, so if you’re planning to eat booking is essential.
Having refreshed ourselves we drove back as far as the Nick of Pendle on the Clitheroe Rd where there’s parking adjacent to the path which will take you to the summit of the hill. This is a longer walk than most, but it doesn’t suffer from the steep gradients that the shorter routes do. It also offers some fantastic views en-route.
There’s a rather poignant memorial at the start of the path which is dedicated to two world war 2 airmen (one Australian, one American) who lost their lives when their planes crashed on the hill.
Here’s a few pictures from the walk.
Dawn posing for the camera as we began our walk to the summit. The view from the summit, looking over Black Moss Reservoirs with the towns of Nelson and Colne beyond. Walking back down to the Clitheroe road with Blackburn hidden behind the hills.
Now we’re relaxing at home, resting tired knees and associated muscles before another active day tomorrow – although one that will be very much home-based.
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/
It’s been another day of staring at computer screens for me as I continue my picture editing marathon ready for my next series of articles. I’ve also managed to clear the decks of some slightly older pictures to go out to another client – and add a few dozen images to my Zenfolio picture website. You can find which galleries have been updated by following this link. Mind you, the weather’s been pretty naff today, so being stuck indoors hasn’t been too much of a hardship. Whilst temperatures have been reasonable we’ve had grey skies and enough hours of rain to make you think twice about venturing anywhere. On the bright side – at least I haven’t had to water the garden.
This evening I’ve been catching up with the news of the aftermath of the riots. I’ve refrained from commenting on them so far as they happened whilst I was away and I had other things to talk about. I’ll admit to a personal interest. I grew up in Southport, where the horrible murder of the three children were used as the excuse the far-right had been waiting for to kick-off. I know the Hart St area well. I went to school nearby. I had an aunt who I’d stay with who lived on Hart St.
I share the opinion of others that this was a concerted effort to destabilise the new Government, only that hasn’t gone as planned. What we’ve seen since has been a Government of experienced adults who didn’t let things run away with them. Entirely the opposite, when you consider our current Prime Minister is a former Director of Public Prosecutions. Instead, the government moved quickly to ensure the police and courts had the resources to mete out swift justice to rioters and looters.
There’s another side to it too. The people who were intent on stirring up trouble, the Farage’s, the Tommy Robinsons and the right-wing journalists and ‘social influencers’ overplayed their hand and the backlash was swift. Revolted by what was happening, ordinary decent people came together to clear up the mess and protect their own communities from what was a tiny gang of racists who’d wildly overestimated how much support they had. They’d fallen for their own rhetoric and assumed that all those social media bots and trolls were actually real and would join them on the streets. You could see the bemusement in the faces of the handful of people who turned up in Brighton, Blackpool and elsewhere, only to find themselves vastly outnumbered. Now the prosecutions are well under way. There’s been nearly 500 arrests already and the first (tough) sentences are being handed out. 2-3 years, and there’s many more to come. What’s also been revealing is how many of those sentenced already have convictions for other offences. The Metropolitan police reckon it’s roughly 70%. These are no ordinary citizens, supposedly outraged at the senseless murder of three children, these are career criminals and racists, who’ve followed the call of Farage, Yaxley-Lennon and Co.
Now the rabble-rousers are starting to get arrested too. The woman (Bernie Spofforth)* who started sharing the claim that the murderer was a Muslim ‘asylum seeker’ has been arrested. She won’t be the last – hence the frantic rowing back of the likes of those involved, including Yaxley Lennon (aka ‘Tommy Robinson’), Farage and some of the mainstream media. Suddenly, the Daily Mail, a newspaper that’s spent decades running scare stories about immigration – is praising the counter-demonstrators! The Editors of certain national newspapers shouldn’t be let off the hook here. They’ve spent decades fearmongering about immigration and asylum seekers, making the phrase ‘illegal immigrant’ commonplace. Their reach is far larger than a few people on Twitter, or Facebook. They’re just as complicit in this.
My hope is that the prosecutions for incitement and posting hate continue and they don’t stop with Spofforth. I’d like to see some more well-known names be charged and convicted too. Then (maybe) some of those poisonous voices in the mainstream media (as well as on social) media will learn that the old adage ‘fuck around, find out’ (FAFO) should never be forgotten.
Right now, it looks like the rioters teeth have been pulled. There may be one or two more ‘events’, but the arrests, prosecutions and convictions will continue – and continue to deter. A lot of people are going to be jumpy every time there’s an unexpected knock on their door for quite some time yet…
Anyway, away from all that, I’ll leave you with today’s picture, which relates to a rather important sporting event that’s going on right now. The Olympics. When I passed through Hertford last week I saw these knitted postbox covers in several locations across the town, made by locals to celebrate the medals being won by the UK team in Paris.
*Spofforth is no random member of the public who just shared something. She’s a long history of climate change denial and opposing Covid restrictions and has appeared on right-wing ‘talk’ TV channels espousing her views.
I’ve a small favour to ask… If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website – https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/
I can’t quite believe that this trip is over and all that remains for me to do now is get home. Last week was a heck of a time for all sorts of reasons that will become clear in my forthcoming RAIL articles, although readers of this blog will have several clues.
Right now, I’m kicking back in my hotel for a little while, letting the Scottish breakfast I’ve just consumed settle before I go out for a walk. I have a couple of hours before the train leaves and the weather isn’t as bad as predicted. We’ve certainly got low cloud and rain, but it comes in short bursts rather than the constant sheets I was expecting. In some ways it’s a shame I’ve got to head back so soon. Originally, I’d intended to hang around for another day, but the weather changed those plans. Besides I have a lot of writing and picture editing to do now.
I’ll be blogging on and off through my return. The 10:10 to Glasgow is the same 4-car set I arrived on yesterday so I should have no problem finding a table bay to set up the ‘mobile office’ and Scotrail’s onboard wifi has good coverage – even up here.
In the meantime, here’s how the view from my hotel window looks this morning.
08:30.
Bugger! I’d no sooner prepared to go out than the rain arrived! Now my view looks like this.
There’s one consolation. I wasn’t out walking when this little lot arrived. I’d have got soaked!
10:10.
We’re off – and with a lot more passengers that yesterday. The front of the train’s already around half-full. Several dozen came off the inbound 09:38 service, which has earned its keep. I never did get that walk, the rain never abated. In fact, it got worse. We had a torrential downpour just before we left which meant we have some very damp passengers.
It’s a shame about the weather as I’d like to have taken some pictures around Mallaig as I don’t have any. I’ve been trying to work out when I was last here. It’s so long ago that I don’t have any pictures as I didn’t have a decent camera. That makes is somewhere around 1987. I’ve always meant to come back but never found the time or the reason even though I come up this way once a year, but on that occasion my time’s not my own.
11:10.
We’ve just passed the ‘Jacobite’ at Gelnfinnan station, although I doubt I’ll get used to seeing a ‘Black 5’ steam loco hauling a mixed rake of Mk 2 and 4 coaches! Soon after we passed over the Glenfinnan viaduct, heavily featured in the ‘Harry Potter’ films. It’s become a mecca for the films fans. There must have been at least 100-150 people there in waterproofs and pac-a-macs to watch the steam train pass. Of course, for railway orientated people the viaduct is synonymous with another name, ‘Concrete Bob’ McAlpine.
11:17.
We’re now stopped at Loch Eil. The rain’s stopped and the suns doing its best to put in an appearance.
12:15.
The train’s left Fort William bound for Glasgow. I’d guess 80% full. I’m now sharing my table with a young Swedish Couple who’re in the UK for a couple of weeks to go walking and attend the world sci-fi convention in Glasgow.
The rain’s eased again now, which is a shame in some ways. Beautiful as Scotland is, there’s something special about seeing the mountains in heavy rain as little streams become torrents, rivulets spring up everywhere and the rivers turn into raging peaty-white water. Fantastic to watch.
14:00.
Our train has now left Crianlarich as a 6-car. The 2 car train from Oban has been joined on to the back. The operation took longer as both trains were late, but at least the delay gave the nicotine addicts and vapers time to indulge. The weather’s not improved any, in fact it’s got worse, with constant (if light) rain and heavy, low cloud obscuring most of the views.
18:30.
Sorry for the gap but I’m struggling with wifi on my current train.
I arrived in Glasgow 15 mins late and had just enough time for a quick pint with an old friend and retired railwayman who gave me some background to some of the things I’ve experienced during my travels.
Now I’m on Avanti’s 17:30 to Euston – a trip that isn’t going well. We’re currently crawling along at 40mph just North of Lockerbie due to an emergency speed restriction, which I can only assume is down to the poor weather. The Pendo’s poorly too. Coach C (the buffet car) has knackered air conditioning so no passengers are allowed to sit in it. The buffet staff are taking short shifts to avoid them melting.
19:55.
Ho hum, we’ll shortly be arriving into Lancaster some 18 minutes late due to an emergency speed restriction North of Lockerbie that caused us to crawl along at 45mph for several miles. I’m assuming this was due to flooding as the weather on the way South has proved to be awful thanks to heavy rain. The dark skies and lack of light have made the day feel more like a winter at dusk rather than 19:00 on an August evening.
Fortunately (depending which way you look at it) I had a 45 minute fester between trains at Preston, so the delay’s merely cut that wasted time down.
20:50.
Re-arrange the words ‘bunny, a, happy, not’.
I stepped off my late-running Pendolino at Preston and looked for the platform my Halifax bound train would be leaving from – only to find that it had been cancelled at short notice. Now what to do? I’d looked at other options via Wigan and Warrington that would have got me home at almost the same time, but they were dependent on the Glasgow train being on time – and that was leaving as I looked. I quick scan of my options via various websites left me with no option. I’ve got to catch the 21:11 to Manchester Victoria, pray it’s not late – and connect 7 minutes later with the Leeds service. finally getting home at 22:37. Deep joy. A quick phone call to Dawn outlining the situation means my lovely, understanding other half will still be there at the station to pick me up.
I’m a staunch defender of the railways – as regular readers know. But I won’t defend the indefensible and from an ordinary passengers perspective this lack of service, punctuality and reliability simply isn’t good enough.
Sadly, I have no great confidence in the new Labour Government to fix the problems as I don’t think they really understand them. To them, ownership is what matters, but ownership isn’t the problem.
Let’s see what happens next. Meanwhile, have another old Metro-Cammell DMU. Only this time not in Scotland!
21:20.
I’m on the move again, just not on the route I wanted. I’m ensconced on a very quiet Northern Class 195 on a Barrow-in-Furness to Manchester Victoria diagram. It only stops at Chorley and Bolton so I’m optimistic I’ll make my connection.
I must admit that Preston station surprised me somewhat. I arrived well before 21:00 yet most of the stations food outlets seemed to have shut shop. The (hideously expensive) bar was closed, as were most of the coffee shops. So, really the facilities for passengers weren’t great at all. OK – you could argue being saved from being chinged for overpriced food and drink is no bad thing, but if you’ve not had the perspicacity to bring your own (or you don’t know how the railways work) what are your options? I can see why Tesco’s have recently opened an ‘Express’ outlet just across the road.
2240.
The frustration continues (as does the swearing under my breath). My ‘fast’ train worked swimmingly until we got to Bolton, after which it began to crawl. I can only assume that it was trapped behind a stopping service. The delay minutes continued to mount as we got closer to Manchester. To add insult to injury this train was due in on platform 6 whilst my connection was due to depart from platform 1 – the opposite side of the station. I had seven minutes to make the connection, so of course my train was seven minutes late. I waved it goodbye from the footbridge between the platforms. Now I’m on the one behind it, the 22:29 to Leeds which gets into Sowerby bridge at 23:08, an hour and 20 minutes after I should have been home. Poor Dawn’s been on standby to pick me up most of the evening.
I can’t say I’m sad to be seeing the back of trains for a few days…
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 last official day of my RAIL rover as I finish the trip in Mallaig this afternoon. Of course, that’s not the end of my travels – I’ve got to get home to West Yorkshire tomorrow, but that’s another story.
Right now I’m sipping coffee and preparing to leave my hotel here in Anniesland before heading back into the city for a last spin on some of the Glasgow rail network before catching the train to the Highlands. The fantastic weather we’ve been having has deserted me for this last couple of days. There’s low cloud and the treat of more rain here in Glasgow, whilst the forecast for Mallaig is wet, wet, wet. At least it’ll keep the midges at bay…
All blog as I can with a final update this evening.
11:45.
Best laid plans pt 56932…
Despite having checked with the National Rail Enquiries and Rail Times Trains websites just a few days ago, today I find that my train to Malliag isn’t running. In fact, there’s only one through train from Glasgow today, and that isn’t until 18:20!
After muttering some curses whilst checking various websites and timtables I found that there is (or should be) a 14:29 from Crianlarich to Mallaig, which is a return working of an earlier train. I’m assuming this is running as it’s crewed by Fort Bill staff.
But how to get to Crianlarich? I got a train as far as Dumbarton where I hoped to get a coach. This was a punt as the operators website told me they were all full. I walked the mile out to the bypass and hoped for the best. Bang on time at 11:04 the No 377 pulled up – and it had free seats! So, I’m now skirting the bonny banks of Loch Lomond by road rather than rail.
Let’s just hope that 14:29 isn’t cancelled at the last moment eh?
13:10.
Things are looking up. I’ve made it to Crianlarich, the rain’s stopped, the sun’s poking through – and the train’s running. The inbound service is due at 1342. The only downer is that the tea room on the station has closed down. Apparently, in the current climate the business simply wasn’t viable. However, the local post office/shop survives, so I’ve been able to buy supplies.
Made it! The train to Mallaig arrived at Crianlarich early. The reason for the problem was all too obvious. This was to do with the staff dispute over rest day working. Normally, trains change crews here. A Fort William crew work the service from the North to/from Crianlarich, whilst a Glasgow based crew work it to/from the South. They swap over trains here as this is normally where they pass. There’s a mess room on the station so crews can have their PNBs (personal needs breaks). The Fort William crews were still working so – so was the train.
Only there were no passengers. A couple of dozen came down from Fort William with the train, but only five of us went North. I had the rear car to myself whilst the front set was completely empty all the way to Fort William.
Normally (especially in August) you’d expect these trains to be standing room only. It was quite surreal.
Loch Treig on the way from Corrour.
Still, it got me to where I needed to be and it was a fabulous journey, despite the deteriorating weather. You’ll be able to read the full story in RAL magazine later this year. Now I’m kicking back in Mallaig, which is hardly ‘sin city’ – just a small town with a working harbour. Like just about everywhere it’s been hit by Covid and the recession. One of the three pubs has closed, as have some shops. I had a little wander when I first arrived as the rain eased for a short while. There’s really not a lot going on here, but that’s fine by me. I’m happy to have a quiet night in the hotel, having just gorged myself on fish and chips in the hotel restaurant, my first proper meal since I left home on Wednesday.
Journey’s end. Our train sits on the rain at Mallaig. Here’s part of the view from my bedroom window in the West Highland hotel. Worth the journey?
Tomorrow I’ll be making the long trek back to West Yorkshire, this could be fun as there’s a yellow weather warning for heavy rain…
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/
Nearly there! I’d have been quite happy to stay here in my suite at the station hotel here in Newcastle but I’ve a lot more miles to cover and a border to cross yet. Right now it’s time to get packing before my first train of the day, which will carry me to Edinburgh. The rain we had last night has disappeared and the weather promises to be good heading up the East coast, but as usual, the West side of Scotland looks more mixed.
I’ll blog (when I can) throughout the day….
Local services around Newcastle are mostly in the hands of these old Class 156s, built by Metro-Cammell in Birmingham between 1987-89. Nowadays the 114 strong fleet is divided between Northern and Scotrail.
09:36.
We’ve just crossed the Royal border bridge and are about to enter Scotland. This is always a magical journey.
11:00.
My stay in Edinburgh was brief. I’m about to head off to take in a new line that’s only reopened this year, the branch to Levenmouth. But not on one of these!
Hitachi built these Class 385s for Scotrail, the only company that operates them. They’re good trains but their introduction was ‘troubled’
23:30.
Well, what can I say? It’s been a busy day on busy trains where I’ve not always had the space to move, never mind blog. So, I’ll end the day with a few pictures from my travels now I’m tucked up in my hotel in Glasgow.
The furthest North I got today was Dundee, where I spent an hour by the banks of the Tay thinking about the past and taking pictures like this.After dropping my bags off at my hotel it was time to head back into the city centre and indulge in a ‘shoogle’ on the new trains on the Glasgow Subway aka – the ‘clockwork orange’…Another day, another class of train. Here’s the Alstom ‘Juniper’ which took me back from Partick to Anniesland.
Tomorrow is the official end of my trip. I’ll be taking a train from Glasgow all the way to Mallaig. Hopefully, I’ll be able to blog en-route. But for now – goodnight.
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/
Sorry for the lack of blogs but I’ve both been busy and had the muse desert me. That’s not to imply there’s been nothing to write about – far from it, but I’ve struggled with the time and the inclination as there’s simply not enough hours in the day to do all the things that I want to achieve. Still, I’m back now and a new week begins tomorrow.
Thursday and Friday saw me back on the rails as the weather picked up. After our fortnight in Dorset I was keen to catch up with progress on some of the local rail improvements, so on Thursday afternoon I decided to go West and check on how electrification of the line from Lostock Junction (near Bolton) to Wigan was progressing. The answer is – very well. Much of the route has had masts installed although there are gaps, the biggest being from Crow Nest Junction to Hindley and also East of Westhoughton. Since my last visit in April many of the masts have had the horizontal beams and top ties added along with the registration bracket, as you can see in this picture from Hindley.
A pair of Northern Class 156s head for Wigan just West of Hindley station.
Hindley station garden’s recovering well considering its had mast bases sunk in prominent parts. The station friends have wasted no time in making temporary use of these surfaces…
Something else that’s getting renewed at Hindley is the life-expired signalling which dates from the early 1970s when the West Coast Main Line was electrified.
Rusty, much?
Friday saw me explore closer to home with a trip from Huddersfield to Leeds and back to Mirfield to have a look at Trans-Pennine Route upgrade (TRU) work. This was made harder by the fact trains were either replaced by buses, or diverted. One place I popped into was Wakefield Kirkgate, which is now on the Trans-Pennine route map. The only problem is that it’s now rendered hopeless for photography by the addition of a fence running along the tracks between the platforms. Well, that’s when you can see it as it’s mostly hidden by Buddleia!
The Wakefield Kirkgate linear garden…
The direct route between Huddersfield and Leeds via Dewsbury was closed with services replaced by buses, but I managed this shot from a diverted train on the line to Healy Mills. The bridge in the background carries the existing line over the River Calder. This whole section is going to be replaced with a new formation (and bridge) which will run in the foreground, roughly where the pile driver is in this image.
Here’s Mirfield, where the new (extended) station platforms are really starting to take shape.
Having got a train to Mirfield the only way to get back to Halifax was on a rail replacement bus. Friday was the last day of the current blockade and not a great one to end on. Traffic through Mirfield was horrendous and my bus was almost an hour late.
Nope, not this one. After waiting 40 mins we’d built hour hopes up. Instead, it was another 20 mins before a less fancy vehicle turned up.
Tomorrow a new week begins which will see me working from home. I’ve another RAIL magazine article to finish writing and lots of other stuff to prepare for later in the week – as well as plan my round Britain trip for RAIL (which I’ve had to postpone for a couple of weeks due to other pressures). Still, never a dull moment, eh?
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 