23 January 2010 - Update Tickets have arrived today with a letter of confirmation the tour will not be doing the curve at Lichfield but will be going round Sutton Park, Birmingham.
Friday 29th January 2010
It was a bit of a mad rush home from work on the Friday evening, pick up number one son and a large bag of sandwiches then down to the station for the train, just in the nick of time. The weather had turned cold again and it was just below freezing but clear.
The journey down to Feltham was largely uneventful. On arrival it was time to seek out the Travelodge. Having never before set foot in Feltham some research had been carried out in the Internet. According to Travelodge’s map on the internet this was located on the opposite side of the roundabout outside the station.
We left the station to discover no roundabout but spot the sign on the top of the hotel. Eventually we navigate out way through the concrete jungle and the cider drinking native species (the teenager) and stumble on the entrance to the hotel, next to Asda, in a completely different position than shown on the map. A similar problem occurred at the Crewe Travelodge last year.
The room we are given is quite spacious. We then discover why this hotel has a large abundance of £19 rooms. If it were to be described by an estate agent it would be “Within easy access of transport links for the international travelling executive”, in English “at the end of the Heathrow runway”
We turn in on arrival because of the early start in the morning. Rather than count sheep I count the arriving and departing planes. The nights sleep can only be described as restless, but you can’t complain for £19 for the room.
Saturday 30th January 2010
We wake at 6 a.m. ready for a full day. It is light early or so I though but it is the lights of Heathrow. The weather was still below freezing but the sky is very clear and a full moon.
It has been nearly 7 years since my last full day railtour and nearer 15 since I was doing this on a regular basis, at least one a month. That’s what meeting the girl of your dreams and having 3 kids does, spend the money faster than your employer gives it to you, so you have nothing left to spend on train tickets. There is however an upside. With number one son getting quite a keen interest in trains it would not be fair to not take him out to explore the railway network and sample different routes and traction. That’s what I keep telling Mrs Track Basher, really it’s just an excuse for me to get back out travelling the network again and get some new track and he can tag along.
I am not having a midlife crisis, honest!
We navigate our way back through the concrete jungle to the station and survey the revenants of the Friday night being cleared away. Arrive at the station and straight onto a train to Staines. Number one son looks around and wanders up and down the empty train in search of the best seat to sit in. He is instructed to sit down we are only on this train for 7 minutes, it doesn’t matter where we sit for that length of time.
We end up with 40 minutes at Staines. The coffee shop is small and perfectly formed and does a selection of coffees which are fresh ground. A selection of different coloured bobble hats have taken residence in the confined space of the café. Just for the avoidance of doubt I also have a bobble hat. The refreshments at stations may have gone up market but the clientele who frequent this type of train are as familiar now as they were years ago. This is a place I am used to. It is all coming back to me now.
Normally when I have travelled on tours in the past there is normally a reasonable group of us and we have a good crack all day long. Today was going to be a little more different as there will only be the two of us and I did not know anyone else on the train.
The train arrives with a nice shiny Royal Train engine and a rag bag collection of Mark I and II coaches, which are not the Royal Train carriages.
We join the train and discover we are in the rear carriage which appears to be so far back it is stopped in the previous station up the line. We eventually reach our seats which are in the rear coach. Number one son is not impressed as he has to go backwards. I point out this will only be for the way there, he can face the way the train is travelling on the way back. He is still not impressed.  |
One of the few photo opportunites 67006 at Stafford on the outward journey. |
It is good to see that in the intervening 15 years these are the same carriages being used and that virtually nothing has been spent on them. The Mark I carriages still have the same seat covers from when they were overhauled by InterCity in Derby in the early 90s and the MII carriages have Network South East seat covers. I though some of the service trains were looking tired but these are so tired they look like they went to sleep some time ago, particularly in the toilets. In my opinion it is time for the owners to spend some money to spruce them up a bit. Typical railway, spend the money below the floor not above it. Make sure the wheels go round and it stops but don’t worry about the bit where the passenger sits. The passenger compartments are OK and at least you can open the window to allow the noise from the engine in, if required. Not that a Class 67 does much of that sort of thing.
It is still dark leaving Staines. The first light of day arrives as head east back towards Feltham and has positively dawned after the 40 minutes stood between Kew and Acton because of a points failure at Willesden Jn. The backlog of trains clears and we are allowed to proceed forward briefly onto the North London Line before leaving it for the normally freight only line to the Midland Mainline at Cricklewood. We are informed that we should not lean out of the window at any time, however we should not lean out even more on this route as it has limited clearances.  |
| 67026 at Stafford on the return journey. |
It has been many years since I have been across this route and it is good to see that some semaphore signalling is still alive and well in London. It appears this area of London has also had a dusting of snow overnight. You can already see the news headlines heavy “Snow causes travel chaos and brings London to a stand”. This is not heavy snow, the previous trip to Scotland was heavy snow with 18” in places.
The train trundles through North West London and eventually finds it’s way to the Midland Mainline. We are now 40 minutes late. The train is warm, and moving.
We make further stops as we head north and more very cold looking bobble hats join the train.
I head for a trip down to the buffet car and notice the clientele on the train. The train is virtually exclusively populated with grey haired men. In the time I have been away from this activity it appears that same passengers are still travelling. They have aged with the coaching stock. There was probably less than a handful of people of the train less than 40 (me included). Number one son was probably the youngest passenger by some 30 years!
The day is a cold winter’s day with not a cloud in the sky and bright sunshine. The train is getting quite hot and layers are having to be removed and even windows opened to allow more than “Draught free ventilation”, in January.
As the train heads north time is recovered an as we pass the new station at East Midlands Parkway with virtually all the lost time recovered. By the time the train has reached to extended stop at Stafford we are on time again. The photo stop brings home the reality of how cold it actually is and not taking the coat for the photograph turns out to be a mistake.
This train is booked to pass through the freight yards at Basford Hall (Crewe) there atmosphere on the train is reaching fever pitch as the “Green Team” (Freightliner) have many of their traction stabled in the yards which are not normally visible from a passing passenger trains. With this train going through the freight yard they can be seen in all their glory. There are nearly a number of trouser explosions as one of the new General Electric Class 70s is spotted amongst the group of assembled engines. The hunters seek out their pray and number is captured and carefully stored in many notebooks before being converted into a carefully ruled line in the Platform 5 combined volume or similar book.
There is further excitement round the corner when the train anticipates what the “Blue Team” (DRS) have lined up as entertainment. It transpires they have a treat as an engine for the “Grey Team” (Fastline) is in residence. This is just too much excitement for one day. Best go and get another cup of tea and have a lie down.
Progress is slow towards Shrewsbury as we follow the service train. There are a number of photographers out at Shrewsbury who have to quickly reposition their equipment as we pass behind the wall and not through the platform as they have been expecting.
We head down the new freight branch to Donnington. I like a nice trip down a freight only branch. The faces of the local residents pressed up against the window of the surrounding houses, who are not used to seeing a passenger train go by. This route is no exception. It does however seem with the condition of the rails the railtours that have visited the terminal have been more frequent that the freight trains. I do wonder what traffic this line was built for.
We have 45 minutes scheduled here and somehow manage to use all that and more and manage to leave late. It is back to Wellington and forward again to Stafford via the Oxley Chord. Number one son is excited to discover he is finally going forward leaving Donnington but is sadly disappointed when he discovers this is only briefly and is going backwards again from Wellington.
It is off the train again at Stafford for shots of the same locos in the same location. I then discovered that a friend I have not seen for the best part of 10 years has been on the train since Stafford and is now leaving it to go home. We briefly catch up, trade insults about looking older and the loss of hair and look forward to meeting again in another 10 years.
His track bashing skills make me look like a part timer, he has completed virtually all the possible bits of the network including freight lines. I still have to complete all the passenger lines. He had only come to do the new line to Donnington.
Darkness falls as the train heads back through Cannock towards Birmingham. The usual efficient speedy progress as we arrive and depart through New St. With stops at Lawley St, and before entering the tunnels and an early arrival becomes a late departure. The signaller does his best to allow us to recover this lost few minutes by putting us behind the all stations stopper to Reddish and we follow from station to station with a further loss of time before we turn left at Lifford.
There is further on train excitement as the clientele seek out a further fix of “Green Team” General Electric action at Lawley St Freightliner terminal. They are to be sadly disappointed as the cupboard is bare and no Class 70s.
It appears the train can just not keep to the timings and the further we go the more time is lost. It appears this train has been timed like an HST. The driver has a good go but time keeps slipping away and by the time St Albans is reached we are over 30 minutes late.
Progress across London is much better in this direction and we are only 20 minutes late by the time we leave the train at Staines.
We only have 20 minutes wait for the train back to Feltham. We get back to the room and off to sleep with the sound of aviation jet engines to send us to sleep, again. My thought move to it might have been worth spending that extra £10 a night at Premier Inn!
Sunday 31st January 2010
This has been a much better night’s sleep, more than likely tired out from the long day on the Saturday. All this travelling, eating and drinking tea is hard work. I wake at 6 a.m. Number one son is still sleeping so I watch breakfast news and leave him to sleep. He wakes at 7:30 so we decide to head out for a top quality slap up breakfast but can’t find one so have to go the McDonalds next to the statio  |
| 460006 passes through Clapham Jn |
n, as it is the only place open.
A plastic pot of porridge and “big breakfast” muffin later we head out to the station for an unplanned extended spotting trip to that Mecca that is Clapham Jn. Number one son has never been there before. I have spoken of this place that used to be a world of Mk I slam door electric units approaching from every direction. This has now been replaced by air conditioned, sliding door stock approaching from every direction.
Sunday morning is quite with only 3 trains at a time arriving. After an hour he has a pages of numbers scribbled down. Thought: it will keep him quite for ages checking those off on the train home from Paddington. An hour well spent.
We are heading north up the West London line trough Kensington Olympia. In the 80s this route had very few trains with rush hour only provided by Class 33 locos and push pull 4TC sets. The route now has a number of new stations and has at least 2 trains per hour. It is good to see new services being introduced and people using them.
The next part of our journey is to St Albans Abbey. The closure notices are posted at Watford Jn as it is planned to convert this line to tram operation. This is the reason for the visit to allow number o  |
| 321415 at the end of the line St Albans Abbey |
ne son to travel over it before it closes.
The train is very quite which is somewhat surprising as London Midland don’t appear to want to ask anyone to pay. Passengers come and go but the conductor does not.
We now have to walk between the stations in St Albans. I have not done this for many years and had forgotten how far it was. Further and up hill. Number one son begins to protest and is not at all impressed about this walk. He is then informed the walk will do him good and stop complaining and if he wants to go on the High Speed to Dover he will have to get a move on.
After 25 minutes we arrive at St Albans City and walk straight onto an earlier train than planned southbound First Capital Connect train. A quick check of the timetable and this has gained us a whole 4” because of the additional stops this train makes.
We arrive at the superbly restored St Pancras for the second time in 6 month except this time at the underground platforms. After the visit in summer 2009 we now know our way round the maze of underpasses to reach the different sets of platforms. Time to select lunch from the selection of fine foods on offer. We end up with M&S sandwiches.
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| 395015+395003 at St Pancras |