Tag Archives: writing

TRU update. Batley to Ravensthorpe.

12 Friday Dec 2025

Posted by in Food and drink, Musings, Photography, Rail Investment, Railways, Trans-Pennine Route Upgrade, TRU, West Yorkshire

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Yesterday (Thursday) the sun shone bright here in West Yorkshire, making a change from the dank and dismal weather which seems to be the norm nowadays. It spurred me on to get out and about for a few hours to look at some of the Trans-Pennine Route Upgrade work sites that I hadn’t visited this year, as well as some I’ve been popping into regularly. I was also driven by the fact Ravensthorpe station closes this weekend so that the site can be cleared for the new fast lines flyover. Here’s a selection of pictures from the day.

802204 speeds through Batley as 1K16, the 1103 Hull to Liverpool Lime Street, passing the platform extensions which are being added to both Up and Down line platforms at the North end.
Looking down on Batley station from Soothill Lane bridge. It’s hard to believe this was once a junction, with the GNR Chicken Heath branch running off to the left towards Ossett.
A 1915 OS map shows the station and goods yard.
The dingy Batley station subway is due to be replaced by a footbridge with lifts which is being constructed at the Southern end of the platforms. I’ll span the tracks between the two lamp posts on the right.
Meanwhile, at Ravensthorpe, hardcore is being laid between the two side walls of the flyover. This will be the location of the slewed lines to/from Healy Mills.
Foundations of the Northern wall of the flyover are almost complete.
A last view of Ravensthorpe station which closes this weekend. 150215 approaches with a service from Leeds to Bradford Interchange.
That’s progress! Here’s the new bridges over the Calder and Hebble navigation. Since I visited on the 25th November two of the Eastern side girders have been put into place.
A closer view of the two new girders. The pillar nearest the camera waits to receive its girder, which is already hooked up to the crane nearby.
Passing under the new girders.
The last train I’ll ever catch from the old Ravensthorpe station. 15020 calls on the 14.02 from Bradford to Leeds.

On the way back I stopped off at Brighouse to get a couple of pictures and to visit the renowned Blakeleys take-away and restaurant, which is famous for the quality of its fish and chips. It’s next door to another Brighouse institution, the Market Tavern. It seemed rude not to wash my food down with a pint, so I called in for a ‘swifty’. The beer was in great condition and the pub busy, but I couldn’t help noticing that the clientele were almost all pensioners (shit, that includes me now!). Admittedly, most younger people would still be at work, but I wonder what the place would look like at 16:00 in say, 10 years time? Times are changing, and so are demographics…

Back at the station I couldn’t resist getting a picture of this history board. I’ve mentioned the tale of the man who broke the bank of Monte Carlo before, but here’s the full story…

If you want to see more TRU construction pictures, you can find the complete gallery by following this link to my Zenfolio website.

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Cheers!

4th December picture of the day…

04 Thursday Dec 2025

Posted by in Musings, Photography, Railways, Travel, West Yorkshire

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What a difference a day makes! Yesterday I was out and about, enjoying autumn sunshine and the chance to explore. Today? It’s back to normal in the Calder valley with low cloud, rain and generally dank and miserable conditions. A good day for staying in the warm here at Bigland Towers in order to edit yesterdays pictures whilst planning new adventures.

You can find yesterdays pictures in these galleries on my Zenfolio website.

Northern trains

Signalboxes and signalling

Railway stations

UK travel photography

The local weather forecast isn’t looking good for the next few days and I’ve plenty of things to do here at home. So, whilst I *might* nip out early for a couple of hours tomorrow morning to look at some TRU work the rest of this weekend will be spent getting Bigland Towers ready for Xmas. Dawn’s got her own programme and day out arranged for tomorrow, which frees me up from cooking/teaboy duties, so I might as well make the most of it! Watch this space…

In the meantime, here’s today’s picture.

One thing I’ll be looking out for over the next couple of weeks is railway station Christmas trees. Forget this ridiculous far-right nonsense about Christmas being ‘cancelled’ – the railway has always celebrated on stations up and down the country – often with gusto! I won’t be back in London for a couple of weeks but one effort that’s always worth checking out is at St Pancras station. Here’s their 2015 tree.

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Cheers!

6th November picture of the day…

06 Thursday Nov 2025

Posted by in Calder Valley, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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Sorry for the lack of blogging recently, but it’s been a dull but busy week here at Bigland Towers. I’ve been going nowhere fast due to work commitments which have kept me tied to home. Now’s the time of year when I put my sorting hat on as one of the Community Rail Awards judges. There’s a huge amount of entries in the two categories in which I’m a member of the judging panel so it takes a lot of time to sift through them, giving our individual scores before we convene for the full judging panel.

Mind you, the weather’s been utter crap here in the Calder Valley. Most days I’ve not even been able to see the opposite side of the valley. Taking my daily stroll through the woods has been ‘fun’ too as some major branches have been brought down by the wind and rain, so you take your life in your hands. Fortunately, I’ve never been in the wrong place at the right time!

The evenings have been entertaining in a different way due to it being the week of Bonfire night, which has meant we’ve had fireworks going off every day so the place sounds like living in a suburb of Beirut or Damascus (only without the ricochets). Still, the valley’s looked very pretty with a fusillade of fireworks lighting up the sky each evening.

Now the week’s winding down. I was hoping to get out and about tomorrow but I fear I still have too much paperwork to do – and the weather’s not looking much better, even though it’s been incredibly mild for the time as year. That said, Dawn’s taking next week off as it’s our weeding anniversary and we’ve just booked a few nights away in Shropshire – so all’s not lost.

Hopefully, I’ll have time to catch up on some more blogging tomorrow, in the meantime, I’ll leave you with a taster of the weather here today. For much of the day we’ve been living just below cloud level…

The Wainhouse tower above the end of our road disappears into the clouds.

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Cheers!

21st October picture(s) of the day…

21 Tuesday Oct 2025

Posted by in Flora and Fauna, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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Another day that didn’t quite turn out to be as expected. The day’s plans were changed by two events which diverted my time. Firstly, I’ve been invited to be a judge in a photographic competition run by one of the UKs train operating companies. They contacted me at short notice, asking for a biography and a mugshot. Having sorted those out I then received a phone call from a magazine asking for potential pictures for their next cover. Searching through my archive for the subject matter and sending them links kept me busy for a while. Still, it should help my bank balance! As I sat at my computer I was enviously watching the sun breaking through the racing clouds to send rays of light scudding across the valley like searchlights hunting for a fugitive. The scene would have made for some great moody photographs. Sadly by the time I was free to pick up the camera the sun had lost its battle with the clouds which swamped the valley with more mist and rain. Bugger!

When I did manage to get out for a walk conditions were less than ideal as light levels were set to full dull, but – I did manage to find something of interest which gave me chance to exercise my 105mm micro lens. Here’s the results.

If anyone can ID these two types of mushroom, feel free to drop me a line.

I’m no mycologist, so I’ve no idea what types of mushrooms I’m looking at here (all I know it – don’t be daft enough to try and eat ’em). A single old tree stump in our local woods is home to several different types which attracted my attention.

As the rain worsened I retreated back to the cottage to dry out before preparing food for this evening. Poor Dawn had a dental appointment to fix her tooth where she lost a filling last week. Now the hole in her tooth’s fixed, but there’s an even bigger hole in her purse! Our dentists are excellent and have managed to save the tooth, but have recommended Dee gets it crowned to ensure there’s no further issues. Both filling and crown will set her back over £1000 in total. Even so, it could have been a lot worse (and more expensive) if the tooth couldn’t have been saved. After the fun and games with the car, it’s been an expensive month. Fingers crossed the rest of the year is more of a breeze…

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

15th October picture(s) of the day…

15 Wednesday Oct 2025

Posted by in Flag shaggers, Huddersfield, Photography, Picture of the day, Politics, Railways, Travel, TRU, West Yorkshire

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Another day that didn’t quite go to plan – although that was more for Dawn than me. Dee’s outbreak of the lurgi meant she had a restless night and felt crap this morning, so her dental appointment was the first thing to be cancelled. Then a phone call to Honda about the fun and games with the car meant they came and collected it within an hour, taking it away for diagnostic checks. So, with no car, no Dawn and me still with a dental appointment it meant I was bound for our dentists in Huddersfield by bus!

That was no big deal, I had plenty of time and managed to get in a long walk to a bus stop that was convenient for some railway shots whilst I waited. As chance would have it, one of the seasonal railhead treatment trains was due just before my bus. Hence this shot.

A pair of Colas Class 66s top and tail the RHTT over Dryclough Junction. This train began its journey in Grimsby and ended it in York after going around the houses to reverse at Halifax. The spray from the powerful water jets mounted on the rear wagon is evident.

My dental appointment was a breeze. I’m not one of these people who’s frightened of visiting dentists, so it’s not a stressful experience at all. The dentist gave me a clean bill of health and the hygienist confirmed his view after giving me a clean, so that’s me done for another 6 months!

As I was close to the centre of Huddersfield I decided my walk to take in a detour to the station to see how the place looks now it’s reopened after the month-long blockade. The answer is – very different!

150007sits in the extended Sheffield bay platform whilst a TPE 185 calls at the widened and extended Westbound platform. The Northern side of the station has vanished. Both platforms and tracks have disappeared with the area becoming a building site.

Catching the bus back we passed through Elland, where the ‘flag-shaggers’ have been busy. Most lamp posts on the main road have had flags cable tied to them. Let’s face it, nothing says ‘patriotism’ more than cheap Chinese-made Union or England flags draped like limp rags around the place. Still, it’s a good indicator of places to avoid. Elland’s always been a shithole with a reputation as a place where the far-right hang out. The flags merely confirm it. I’m sure they’ll do wonders for house prices…

Back in Halifax (where flag-shagging is very much a minority sport) I strolled home, finding Dawn feeling better. Her car had been returned, complete with new rear offside wheel sensor as the old one had failed, causing all the problems. Fortunately, the £280 cost was covered by the extended warranty Dee had been smart enough to take out. Sadly, the fun and games weren’t over! No sooner had we eaten supper than poor Dawn had a large filling drop out! Today of all days!

Looks like the dentists haven’t seen the back of us yet…

Tomorrow I plan to spend the day working from home. Hopefully there’ll be no more excitement and I’ll be able to catch up on blogging and picture editing. Watch this space…

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

27th September picture of the day…

27 Saturday Sep 2025

Posted by in Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, Transport for Wales (TfW), Wales

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It’s the weekend, but there’s no rest for the wicked. Well maybe just a little bit as I could have a lie-in this morning! The rest was short-lived as (after the past couple of days work) I’ve an even bigger queue of pictures to edit, so much of the day’s been dedicated to doing just that.

I did tear myself away from my computer long enough to get my daily steps in, first by a trip to do some shopping (and a swift pint in my local) before returning home to collect Dawn so the pair of us could get out to stretch our legs and enjoy the local woodlands now the autumn’s hear – although the vast carpet of fallen acorns does make it fell like you’re walking on marbles sometimes, especially on slopes.

Now we’re having a quiet night at home. We’ve eaten home-made chicken curry from the freezer so no elaborate cooking was required, which has allowed us to relax. Now, whilst Dee’s watching ‘strictly’ on TV I’m back to editing pictures. Not exactly the ‘rock and roll’ lifestyle, but it works for us!

Today’s picture? It’s from my trip to South Wales. The evening light’s been spectacular, as this shot shows as the evening sunlight glints off the side of one of Stadler’s new Class 756s, throwing into stark relief the outline of the engine compartment compared to the rest of the train.

I’ll be adding more pictures to different galleries on my Zenfolio website 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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Ready, steady…

04 Thursday Sep 2025

Posted by in Photography, Portugal, Travel, West Yorkshire

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Today’s been a tying up of loose ends sort of day here at Bigland Towers, as tomorrow the pair of us head off for a much-needed break in Portugal. Dawn’s been busy sorting out stuff for her employer, Community Rail Network, whilst I’ve been busy editing pictures, getting others out to clients and chasing paperwork and potential jobs. To be honest, it’s not been a bad day to be stuck at home as the weather’s still deteriorating and there’s a distinct autumn chill beginning to creep in – which I’ll be happy to leave behind for warmer climes. It’s a much nicer 29 degrees in Faro tomorrow!

We’re in no panic to pack as we don’t fly from Leeds/Bradford until tomorrow evening, which gives us a relaxed morning. I should even have time for some blogging! But right now it’s time to enjoy our last evening here in the UK for a while. I’ll leave you with a picture from our last trip to Portugal, which we may get to reprise. Lisbon’s old trams are a delight to both travel on and watch pass by for entertainment value – especially as many people would ‘tram-surf’, like these three young women…

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

22nd August picture of the day…

22 Friday Aug 2025

Posted by in Flora and Fauna, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel, West Yorkshire

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Here we are at the end of another working week with the August bank holiday looming. It’s been an odd week here at Bigland Towers, the classic curate’s egg. I’ve enjoyed getting out and about to see the latest High Speed 2 railway construction milestone in Birmingham (a full blog and pictures to follow shortly). The weather’s been rather indifferent and the nights are certainly drawing in, heralding next month’s change of season. I’d have liked to have got out more but there’s been a lot to do at home, partly because Dawn’s had a tough week so I’ve been on hand to offer tea and sympathy. Oh, and breakfast lunch and dinner as required!

On the bright side, I’ve also booked a fortnight in Portugal for the pair of us, starting in the first week of September. This will see us exploring the Algarve, Lisbon, Porto and the Douro valley, travelling by train. We’re both really excited about the trip, we just need to bottom out a few details – like where we’re actually going to stay! That will be one of the tasks this weekend as we’re not planning to go far over the bank holiday – although there will be some walking involved – somewhere.

Right now it’s time to sign off and relax. I’ll leave you with today’s picture, which is one I’ve been meaning to use for a few days. I have a 105mm micro lens which really doesn’t see much use nowadays (I’m hoping to put that right in Portugal), but I couldn’t resist digging it out when I saw this opportunity last week.

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

Here again, gone again..

07 Thursday Aug 2025

Posted by in Greece, Musings, Photography, Travel

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I’m sorry my blogging has become so erratic recently. It’s due to a combination of factors but not having anything to talk about/spleen vent isn’t one of them! This week’s been one of trying to adjust to a new routine. Dawn (who’d been off for a while) returned to work on Monday. I’ve made it my priority to help her to ease back into the routine so my time has been spent at home, acting as ‘house husband’ – providing sustenance and support as needed. In the meantime, I’ve been trying to get back to work myself and re-establish a routine that allows me to juggle exercise with productivity. It’s not always been easy – especially when the weather decides you’re not part of its plan. We didn’t suffer too much from the latest storm, but it certainly announced its presence, stripping leaves and branches off surrounding trees whilst dumping a fair bit of water in its wake. Can we have the cloud-free skies and baking weather back, please?

On the positive side, staying at home has allowed me to plan a few adventures – starting next week when I’ll be back on the rails. I’ve also had final details of a couple of really enjoyable commissions in Swindon and Llanelli which I’m looking forward to as I can dovetail them with other work. Then there’s plotting some more foreign expeditions…

In the meantime, I’m determined to ensure the rest of the week is a mixture of productivity and fun (so I’m not going to talk about politics – just yet) whilst enjoying the weekend. There’s a local event called CraggFest happening, which sound like an ideal bit of escapism. Expect a report and pictures.

Right now I’ll leave you with a picture that’s unconnected with what I’ve been talking about, but it’s from a country that may feature on our itinerary later this year. Greece. After all, what could be more Greek than cats – and old doors?

Cat burglar caught in the act? Lakka, Paxos. Ionian Islands. September 2000.

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312

30th July picture of the day…

30 Wednesday Jul 2025

Posted by in Food and drink, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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I’m slowly getting my mojo back. Today’s been a good day where I’ve felt I’ve actually achieved a few things and have lots to look forward to. Admittedly, not everything on my list was ticked off, but many of the major things were. That’s the problem with a long list! I’m reminded of an old boss from the days when I worked in Housing in East London. He used to say ‘if it’s an urgent file, leave it on my chair’. Within 6 months he had a second chair, one for him and one for the ‘urgent’ files! I’m not that bad (just don’t ask about my email inbox).

Having been busy at home all day I did manage to get out for a stroll this afternoon. All the shit and hassle recently has meant I’ve been lax at this – which has had an impact on how I feel. This week I’ve been determined to up the ante and hit as many targets as possible. Having picked up some shopping and nipped into my local pub for a ‘swifty’ my walk home took me past a superb crop of Blackberries which I couldn’t resist returning to pick. I’ve never known such a bumper crop this early in the season – especially as we’ve had such a dry year.

Tomorrow I’ll be up early to head down to Derby via Sheffield. Expect a rolling blog with lots of pictures – including previews of the biggest event that’s been organised to celebrate Railway 200.

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/

Or – you can now buy me a coffee! https://ko-fi.com/paulbigland68312