538e1648c43842b8a26b9f76b2dba380

#LEJOGbyBus

Sun, 04 Jan 2026 00:41:36 GMT

Follow the link below to download service information and stats from #LEJOGbyBus!

The route chosen and data used is based on services that ran in September 2025. There is no guarantee that all services listed will run every year.

In addition to the above stats. Geoff Marshall very kindly produced a map of the trip for me. You can see it below.

If you have enjoyed following along and would like to say thank you for me sharing the adventure, then please feel free to drop me a tip below. All tips are gratefully received and are put into the future trip pot.

Top 5 stations in Great Britain

Wed, 31 Dec 2025 17:47:37 GMT

What is my favourite station? Read on to find out!

Number 5: Dolau

Location: Dolau, Powys, Wales.

Coordinates: 52.29506782803438, -3.2631204760360926

Station managed by: Transport for Wales

Passenger usage (Apr 24 - Mar 25): 818

Dolau station is located on the Heart of Wales line. The first thing that comes to mind when you visit this station is CHARMING!

When I first visited this station it was during the Covid pandemic and some of the services was still operated as a Rail Replacement Bus. I arrived on a bus and had about a 40 minute wait for the train. The 40 minutes I had was not enough! But I made the most of it by just enjoying the station. The station hut has a lovely comfortable bench on while you have a read of the magazines that are available to read. After reading the magazines make sure you fill in the visitors book. If the weather is good, sit on one of the benches on the gravel platform and take in the views out across the fields and hills in the distance.

The second time I visited was during my 2024 charity walk across Wales. It was a much nicer day that day, but I still found myself sat in the shelter to get away from the sun! One day I will return I will sit on the platform and enjoy the views.

Number 4: Nethertown

Location: Nethertown, Cumbria, England

Coordinates: 54.456232348029204, -3.5657042152528615

Station managed by: Northern

Passenger usage (Apr 24 - Mar 25): 1,334

Nethertown station the jewel in the crown of the Cumbria Coast Line! Mile after mile of stunning sea views and country views out towards the lake district.

Nethertown station for quite a while was what I would of called my favourite station. But as time went on, I think that this might be more because I visited the station quite often. But even now, when I haven't visited it for a while, it still has to have a place in the top 5.

Obviously the best thing about the station is the location. Views from above and from the platform are both amazing. If based solely on views, Nethertown is without a doubt the best station in the UK for views! But there is more to a top station than views!

That said, Nethertown isn't just about the views. Its much more than that. Gravel platform, Harrington Hump and a disused platform make it a very cute station! But the best thing by about Nethertown is sitting in the shelter when the weather is rough, the tide is high and the waves are crashing up and over the platform. Its an amazing experience.

Number 3: Duncraig

Location: Duncraig Castle, Plockton, Highland

Coordinates: 57.33697871116294, -5.637002267398022

Station managed by: ScotRail

Passenger usage (Apr 24 - Mar 25): 354

Duncraig station located on the magnificent Kyle of Lochalsh line is a must visit station. Especially if you like octagonal waiting rooms or tremendous views! To my knowledge it is the only Octagonal building of any sort on the railway network which makes it very unique. The waiting room is also a very nice waiting room to spend some time and just chill .

When I visited the station I wasn't meant to be there... My plan was to alight at Plockton and then go for a walk around the town... Sadly for some reason, I didn't alight at Plockton so jumped off at Duncraig. My original plan was to only have a brief wait here. I could of walked to Plockton, but decided against that as that would of meant no time at either station to have a proper explore. I had a little explore around the station and then went and just sat on the bench on the platform reading a book occasionally looking up and smiling at the view! After a short while though, the midges became too annoying, so I sought shelter in the waiting room. A very peaceful and enjoyable visit to the station was had.

I have since revisited the station and made the walk from Duncraig to Plockton. It's a walk I recommend to everyone to do. Its just lovely!

Number 2: Llanaber

Location: Llanaber, Barmouth, Gwynedd, Wales

Coordinates: 52.74139708707567, -4.077179099773661

Station managed by: Transport for Wales

Passenger usage (Apr 24 - Mar 25): 3,844

Llanaber is located on the magnificent Cambrian Coast just north of Barmouth in Wales and is just fantastic! The first time I visited here I got the bus here and then just spent 30 minutes sat at the station admiring the magnificent views out to sea and down the coast. Stations like this are just brilliant!

The second time I visited Llanaber it was at the end of the day after I had been to Pwllheli and completed visiting Every Last Station in Wales. I actually got the train to Barmouth, went and got some food from the shop and then headed along the beach to Llanaber where I spent an hour eating and reading a book while watching the sun set out over the sea. It seemed the perfect place to celebrate completing visiting every station in Wales

The station is easy to walk to from Barmouth, you can walk almost all the way along the beach if you want. But if the tide is in then you are best off walking along the road. Its not such a bad road to walk along. It does have a footpath all the way and does also allow for some nice views out to sea.

When in Wales, visit Llanaber! Its the only way to truly appreciate the station!

Number 1: Causeland

Location: Causeland, Liskeard, Cornwall, England

Coordinates: 50.405697607075375, -4.466263698941572

Station managed by: Great Western Railway

Passenger usage (Apr 24 - Mar 25): 2,108

Down a country lane, tucked away amongst the trees, deep in the Looe Valley is the best station in Great Britain! Causeland! Now this might not be everyone idea of heaven. But for me it really is! I have been a few times, and on one occasion just went and sat in the shelter and just chilled, I even had a 20 minute nap in there! All I could hear when I awoke was the sound of birds in the trees! For me there is very few stations where you would be able to end up this relaxed!

The Looe Valley Line is full of quirks, from the manual junction at Coombe Jct to the request stops its a delight for all rail enthusiasts. But... You don't need to be an enthusiast to go to Causeland. Go and check it out. If you don't want to just stay there and chill out, then the station in either direction is a nice walk. Both along a quiet country lane and through woodlands. If I was to choose which way to walk I would suggest walking towards St Keyne Wishing Well Halt as that walk will take you past the actual Wishing Well. If you fancy a little more of a hike then maybe head up the village of St Keyne.

It is hard to explain what it is that makes this station the best in my opinion... But What I suggest is visit it, stay there for a bit, then you will appreciate it as much as I do!

Some special mentions that could quite easily of also been in my top 5:

Commondale - Esk Valley Line

Thornton Abbey - Barton Line

London Paddington - Great Western Mainline

Many Thanks for reading. Hope you have enjoyed the read.

Stuart

The Looe Valley Line

Fri, 09 May 2025 23:19:05 GMT

Lets take a trip down the spectacular Looe Valley Line! Possibly the best branch line in England!

The Looe Valley line literally has everything... Lovely stations, lovely views & manual junctions!

Starting at Liskeard on the quirky platform 3 tucked away across the station car park you will find a 2 carriage green class 150 waiting to set off down the hill! The station building on platform 3 will give you a slight taste of what is to come further down the line.

Photos of Liskeard

All photos © Every Last Station. Reuse only by permission.

The next station on the line is possibly the most well known of the intermediate stations, Coombe Junction Halt! One of only two stations in the UK with the word Halt in the station name. Now Coombe Junction Halt in my opinion is overrated. Most enthusiasts like the station due to the actual junction I think. The junction is a delight to watch, it's something straight out of the 19th century where the guard has to get off the train and manually switch the tracks. Bonkers that this still happens in 2025!

Coombe Junction Halt station has a nice hut and bench and very short platform. I have visited the station more than once, including during the great snow storms of March 2018! Coombe Junction Halt only sees two trains a day calling at the station. The rest of the services just reverse at the junction further down the line and don't go as far as the platform.

Photos of Coombe Junction Halt

All photos © Every Last Station. Reuse only by permission.

The next station down the line from Coombe Junction Halt is St Keyne Wishing Well Halt, yes the other station with Halt in the title. St Keyne Wishing Well Halt is possibly my favourite station name in the UK. It just rolls of the tongue with ease. A station that in many ways was my first experience of the Looe Valley Line. The first time I visited Cornwall for my Every last Station project was in March 2018 and was when the county got hit by a huge snow storm! I arrived into Liskeard where I was staying. The next morning it was announced by GWR no services would be operating in Cornwall. So that meant that no trains was running on the Looe Valley Line. So I decided to walk to a couple of stations on the Looe line as there was a chance to get some photos not many others will have.

Photos of St Keyne Wishing Well Halt

All photos © Every Last Station. Reuse only by permission.

Next up is my favourite station. Not just on the Looe Valley Line, but in the whole of the UK! Causeland for me is just brilliant! I mean absolutely brilliant. I love nothing more than sitting at the station and hearing nothing but birds and the wildlife. Many would ask why is it my favourite, and my answer is it's hard to explain. But go and visit it and you will then understand why! It might not be your favourite, but you will then understand why it is mine! The photos below don't do it justice, but please, when you visit the line, don't worry about Coombe Junction Halt, visit Causeland! Please, you won't regret it!

Photos of Causeland

All photos © Every Last Station. Reuse only by permission.

A short distance away is Sandplace. Another nice station. To be honest I have visited this station quite a bit, and every time I have visited it has been because I have been to Causeland and I have walked to the next one down the line as it is quite a nice walk. Sandplace is also served by buses that run between Looe and Liskeard. So if you are ticking off stations then this is handy. Although to be honest there is no need for this as it's achievable just by using trains and taking some walks. I'll be honest, I have nothing more to really say about Sandplace. It is pretty, but in my opinion it is quite meh. Maybe this is because it is the next station after Causeland!

Photos of Sandplace

All photos © Every Last Station. Reuse only by permission.

Last and by no means least on the line is Looe it self! The station itself is set on the edge of the East Looe River with views from the platform looking out over the river. The main thing about the station is that it gives you access to the amazing town of Looe. A beautiful town to explore. Some might recognise the town as it is currently the setting for the BBC drama Beyond Paradise. Although in the program it is called Shipton Abbot and is meant to be in Devon.

Photos of Looe

All photos © Every Last Station. Reuse only by permission.

If anyone wants to visit the line then might I suggest using the below plan. I think it allows the best to see what the stations have to offer and see some of the beautiful countryside as well as allowing some time to have a look around the beautiful town of Looe and grab some fish & chips or a good old pub lunch! The plan also allows for your accommodation to be located anywhere between Penzance & Exeter, you could even stay in Bristol as long as you don't mind a 0640 start and 2 and half hours on a voyager. My recommendation for accommodation is: Rail Holiday at St. Germans , The Tamar Belle at Bere Ferrers , Bay Lodge at Penzance .

Goes without saying to check GWR Journey Check before you set off on your trip!

I hope you have enjoyed this trip down the beautiful Looe Valley Line. If you have enjoyed this read and find any of it useful or inspiring please consider putting a tip in the virtual pot: ko-fi.com/everylaststation . All contributions go towards keeping this site alive.

Many thanks

Stuart

My day on the Talyllyn Railway

Sun, 20 Apr 2025 21:26:11 GMT

Saturday 12th April: Me and a couple of friends visited the Talyllyn Railway. Continue below to see how the day went.

The day started with myself meeting Rob and Jan at Machynlleth station before hoping into Robs car and driving to Tywyn. We decided to arrive in plenty of time as we knew there was a cafe at the station that had a reputation as been very good for a fry up. Given I love a good old fry up I was never going to turn down trying one of these out! I can confirm it was rather brilliant. A nice little surprise was that the fry up was under a tenner! We also got a free drink each as we chose to gift aid our ticket purchase for the trains that day.

After we had all devoured our breakfasts we went for a little wander around Tywyn Wharf station before then boarding a train and setting ourselves in for the journey to the other end of the line, Nant Gwernol! Along the way we got to grips with the line, what the other stations looked like from the train, and most importantly, what the footpaths alongside the railway looked like. Footpaths later in the day would turn out to be a bit of a problem.

We arrived at Nant Gwernol and found ourselves in what could of easily been deep in the amazon rain forest! The station setting was stunning! Surrounded by some beautiful Welsh woodlands. We took a few quick photos and set off on our way to walk to Abergynolwyn station. We only had 10 minutes slack so leaving the station and discovering the first part of the walk was a vicious up hill section. Short section, but incredibly steep. After we climbed this it was pretty easy going and only took us 20 minutes to complete the walk as apposed to the 35 minutes online maps suggested.

After arriving at Abergynolwyn station we had time to have a look around and visit the shop for a drink and snack (FYI, the donuts are very nice). After this we was about to board the service before it departs. As we boarded we was given a nice surprise, the kind guard upgraded us to first class and a trip in the saloon car. After a trip in first class I can confirm the £7 would be money well spent, and I will happily pay it next time!

After the enjoyment of the first class saloon we alighted at Rhydyronen where knowing we had a ton of time here I decided to take a short walk to check out the request halts near by before returning to the station and continuing on with the walk to Brynglas. Sadly shortly after visiting Tynllwyn Hen request stop we discovered the public footpaths was really badly signed to the point where it was not going to be possible to continue with the walk. So we returned to Tynllwyn Hen and boarded the next train there. Requesting a steam train to stop at a halt with no platform certainly was an experience.

After this we travelled in one of the open air carriages which gave a very nice breeze after all the walking we had done. Despite missing a station it wasn't the end of the world... We knew there was a station with a tea room coming up! Food was very much needed at this point.

After alighting the train at Dolgoch we headed down the path to where the Dolgoch tea rooms was. We enjoyed a rather lovely light lunch. After this we took a walk to the waterfalls. They was pretty beautiful! It is on my radar to explore the waterfall area more in the future!

After this we boarded the train back towards Tywyn. I alighted at Pendre which is where the engineering shed is for the Talyllyn Railway. There is no doubt plenty to see here. But sadly the weather was starting to turn and some drizzle was starting. So I took a few photos. The plan here was to then walk to Hendy and then back to Tywyn Wharf. But as Rob had his car I walked to Hendy and he then came and picked me up.

Now about the request stop halts. My original plan was to just visit them on foot and only count the timetables stops as proper board/alight rules. But it became clear as the day went on I was not going to be comfortable with this. As many know, I am very strict with the board/alight rules, and heritage railways will be no exception. So with that in mind there is already another trip planned in the diary to return to the Talyllyn Railway to visit the request stops and Brynglas.

After our day on the Talyllyn Railway we was in need of a proper meal, and what is better than a proper pub grub meal. So we went in search of this. With me & Jan both staying in Machynlleth we decided that stopping in the beautiful village of Aberdovey and immediately found the Dovey Inn which looked very inviting.

The food was very good and my mixed grill was cooked to perfection. We was just about to go and play a few games of pool, but as we about to go and play a few games a family got to the table first. So we decided to call it a day.

Thanks for reading. I look forward to returning to the Talyllyn Railway to complete the line.

Below are some further photos from the day.

All photos are © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission

Every Last Station on the Llangollen Railway

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 21:17:40 GMT

11th April 2025 - I visited every last station on the Llangollen Railway.

After hearing about the Steam Gala on the Llangollen Railway I simply had to see if I could make it work to visit.

The day started at the awful time of 0645 with a train from Liverpool Lime Street to Chester. I hopped off at Frogsham on the way in the hunt of a cap in the Morrisons next to the station. Annoyingly thought he supermarket had zero mens clothing. So hopped on the next train to try my luck in Chester. Result, I got a cap! Hopefully this one lasts longer than this trip. I have a habbit of loosing hats!

Aftert he great hat hunt I headed back to the station in order to catch the train down to Gobowen where I was meeting my good friend Rob. After the hellos we headed in car to Llangollen and started the great car parking space hunt which was followed by spending 10 minutes trying to work out how to pay for a car park ticket!

After all that we headed down to the station and went straight to the platform. Couple of photos taken followed by boarding the first train of the day which would take us the full length of the line to Corwen station. We spent 20 minutes at Corwen before heading back to Glyndyfrdwy station and went for a short walk and took some photos. It was at this point we realised that every service on the line was running late.

We boarded our third train and headed to Carrog where we alighted. Took some more photos and then went in search of a pub! The Grouse Inn to be precise. After a 5 minute walk we came across the pub and plonked ourselves in the beer garden with a drink and promply orders some grub! Was rather tasty!

After this we headed back to the station, had a look around, bought some gifts in the shop and then headed over to the next train. On the way we asked a member of staff/volunteer what was happening with the timetable and their words was "the timetable is a work of fiction" so from this point we played it by ear with trains. The next stop was Berwyn which is quite possibly the best station on the line! The setting with the river next to the station was super and you simply couldn't stand on the platform and not be impressed!

Given the timetable was completly out of the window we decided to just stay at the station and wait for the next train. This arrived and took us back to where we started: Llangollen.

The line is a thing of beauty. The scenery was breathtaking, and every member of staff/volunteer we spoke to was great. After a walk around Llangollen we headed for the car and then drove to Machynlleth where i am based for the next few nights.

Enjoy below some photos from today.

And until next time... Ta for now

Stations to visit: KILDALE

Sun, 28 Apr 2024 22:58:46 GMT

There is many hidden gems on the rail network around the UK that I feel need to be shared one of them... Kildale!

Kildale station is located on the very scenic Esk Valley Line that runs from Middlesborough to Whitby. From the June 2024 timetable change the station will see 8 trains per day, 4 in each direction! Although this is a limited service it does give you the opportunity to do some exploring of the area.

Some General Info

Coordinates: 54°28′40″N 1°04′05″W

Managed by: Northern

Opened: 1858

Preceding station: Battersby

Following station: Commondale

Annual passenger numbers

2018/19: 1,498

2019/20: 1,498

2020/21: 386 (COVID)

2021/22: 1,276

2022/23: 1,372

Things to do at Kildale

St Cuthbert's Church next to the station.

The church is located only a short walk away from the station. In fact you can see the church through the trees from the station platform. To get to the church leave the station up the track and then take a right and turn back on yourself. The church is rather lovely inside with some lovely stain glass windows.

Kildale to Battersby walk

This is a walk I did just by chance on a revisit to the station. Although the walk is along roads they are quiet roads. There is plenty of views across fields and looking out towards the hills. The walk can be done in about an hour to an hour and a half.

Route map link: CLICK HERE

Kildale to Great Ayton walk.

This is the walk I did the first time I visited the station. I had quite a bit of time thanks to the limited Sunday service. It was a lovely walk that took me over. Easby Moor. I Took a slight diversion to go and see Captain Cooks Monument.

Route map link: CLICK HERE

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

Afternoon walk with Bailey

Sat, 27 Jan 2024 21:29:20 GMT

Some photos from my afternoon walk today!

I set of on a walk with my sisters dog and headed for the disused canal from Kendal. I followed along disused canal to the village of Natland. I then swapped the disused canal for the river. After following the riverside path, I came across a footbridge that I had planned to use, annoyingly it was closed! Annoyingly I was planning to use this footbridge, due to this there was a lenghty diversion. Thankfully the diversion wasn't a total waste of time, I was able to walk through the beautiful Sizergh Castle and then head back up to my original route plan and headed to Helsington church and view point.

After spending a little time chatting with my Dad (who's ashs was scattered there) me and Bailey then headed up to Scout Scar before setting of back down towards Kendal. Upon reaching the River Kent I decided that my feet was still feeling good and I headed back along the river to Hawes Bridge. I then headed up into the village of Natland and then up to Oxenholme where my walk came to an end!

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

The Northumberland Line

Sun, 21 Jan 2024 12:28:10 GMT

A much needed new line for Northumberland!

The Northumberland Line is currently under construction and will connect towns in South-East Northumberland with Newcastle City Centre and on to the wider rail network! This will bring a much needed boost to everyone in the region! Journeys from Ashington to Newcastle will take about 35 minutes which is considerably less time than the bus. That said the buses in the area will play an important part into the future success of the Northumberland line.

Back in 1872 a line was opened running from Newcastle all the way to Newbiggin-by-the-Sea via Ashington and Bedlington. The line would see both passenger and freight services for over 90 years before the Beeching Axe swung down on to the line in 1963. All the stations on the line closed and passenger services withdrawn. All that remained was freight running to and from Lynemouth Power Station!

It wasn't until 2010 when Northumberland County Council started to show an interest in the reopening of the line! The initial studies explored the possibility of the terminus at Woodhorn, as we all know now. Sadly it appears to of never been planned to extend the line all the way through to Newbiggin which to me seems slightly bonkers!

Between January 2021 & January 2022 planning applications for the construction of the new stations. Construction work for the new stations began in Spring 2022. Each station is at various stages, with talks not all stations might open at the same time!

THE NEW STATIONS!

Images of Ashington station under construction

Ashington - Planned opening Summer 2024

Ashington is a town with a population of over 28,000, the opening of the station will enable all of these to reach Newcastle city centre with in 35 minutes which is half the time it currently takes on the bus. It is also the same time it takes to drive, but that is subject to no traffic!

Ashington is going to be the terminus station on the line. The new station is been built just to the south of the original station. The new platform allows direct access from the car park to the station. There will also be access to the Wansbeck Square via a path behind the former platform with a lift connecting the square and the platform.

The station platform will include a waiting shelter and benches. There will also be cycle racks at the station too. The car park that is currently in the location is to be extended to accommodate the expected extra vehicles that will use the station. The Car Park is going to include Blue Badge spaces and EV charge points. The station surrounding will include wildlife friendly landscaping.

The station at Ashington is been designed in such a way it can easily be adapted for when/if the line gets extended in the future to Woodhorn and Newbiggin.

Check out the planning application here. The station plans are particularly interesting viewing.

Bedlington

Bedlington station will provide the 16,000+ residents of Bedlington with fast direct services into Newcastle and beyond on to the rail network. Bedlington station will have two platforms. These will be connected via the level crossing rather than a footbridge. Residents to the west of the station will need to make sure they allow time for the barriers coming down or else they risk missing their train. The original station platform will not be used, but instead a new platform will be built immediately north. The lines project team are still working with Network Rail to work out what the future of old station building is. Hopefully this building can be saved, restored and used by local businesses. Maybe a station café!

There will be more car parking built adjoining the station to the north to meet the expected demand. This will include Blue Badge Spaces and EV spaces. There will be boundary fences to protect the station, there will also be wildlife friendly landscaping.

As part of the new station build the level crossings at either end of the station have both been upgraded to allow signalling upgrades to allow frequent passenger services.

Check out the planning application here. The station plans are particularly interesting viewing.

Blyth Bebside

Blyth Bebside station will be located on the outskirts of the coastal town of Blyth. The town has a population of just under 40,000 residents who will be able to make use of this station, but also the next station down the line, depending where they live in the town.

Blyth Bebside station is not going to be the easiest to reach on foot from the town centre. Thankfully there are frequent buses from the town to within 5 minutes walk of the station. Residents on the local housing estates will benefit from new footpaths giving them quick access to the station. One of these will be in the form of a new footbridge over the A189.

This station will have two platforms with a footbridge (with lifts) connecting the two platforms. There will be a brand new built car park to accommodate passengers driving to the station.

Sadly I have no photos of the works here due to the lack of access to get photos. If you have any I can use please email me at every.last.station@gmail.com

Check out the planning application here. The station plans are particularly interesting viewing.

Newsham - Planned opening Summer 2024

Newsham station is probably the station that is going to require the most work... A new track layout, closure of a level crossing, installation of a accessible footbridge, and the construction of a new road over the railway.

Newsham station will be a double platform station with an accessible footbridge connecting them. There will also be car parks on both sides of the station with blue badge spaces and EV charge points.

The road layout will be changed. The current A1061 will be diverted over the railway just to the south of the new station. The current level crossing will be closed. The road currently leading to the level crossing will be retained and used as access to the car parks. Alongside the new road layout there will be shared footways and cycleways constructed.

Check out the planning application here. The station plans are particularly interesting viewing.

Seaton Delaval - Planned opening Summer 2024

With a population of around 8,000 the residents of Seaton Delaval are about to get a new station that will connect them directly with Newcastle City Centre.

The station that is getting built is a single platform station that will have a waiting shelter and a couple of benches. To be honest when it's a single platform station that is all it really needs.

There is going to be a generous sized car park, which if you look through the planning application you will see there have been objections to its size, and to be honest, I'd be inclined to agree. It does seem rather on the large size. Especially considering it is only a 10 minute drive to Cramlington. Most people to the west of Seaton Delaval will surely drive to Cramlington.

Check out the planning application here. The station plans are particularly interesting viewing.

Northumberland Park

Northumberland Park will be a separate station to the current Tyne & Wear metro. But it will allow for interchanges between national rail and Tyne & Wear Metro.

The national rail station will be a single platform station with passenger access from Algernon Road. There will be a lift that will connect road level with platform level. The platform will have a couple of benches and a shelter.

There will be no car park built for this station as it is believed the multi story car park attached to the Metro Station will be adequate.

Check out the planning application here. The station plans are particularly interesting viewing.

Any future expansions likely?

In short, no... Well not planned or announced anyway. The only hint that anything could be planned for the future is that Ashington station has been built in a way that would allow for the line to continue on to Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.

In my opinion the reopening of the Northumberland Line gives great opportunities for future rail improvements in the area. The first of these would be to extend the line to Newbinnin-by-the-Sea. To be quite honest I can't understand why this wasn't in the plan at the start. It's would of required 3 extra miles of track. Two miles of this is already in place as part of the freight line to the power station! There is a clear run into Newbiggin-by-the-Sea along the former route to within 10 minutes walk of the seafront. The Northumberland line running all the way to Newbiggin-by-the-Sea could really turn the town into a tourist hotspot!

Another way of making the most of the line would be by making use of the junction at Bedlington and having services that run from Newcastle to Morpeth via Bedlington. This would be reasonably easy to achieve (Subject to capacity limitations). There is currently an hourly service between Carlisle and Morpeth which runs via Newcastle. This could run via Bedlington and back down the East Coast Main Line from Morpeth. Alternate this clockwise and anti clockwise giving passengers from Northumberland Park to Bedlington an 2 hourly service to & from Morpeth, not to mention an alternative way of connecting with services on the East Coast Main Line to Alnmouth, Berwick-upon-Tweed and on to Scotland.

There is also the option of doing a circular route via Ashington and rebuilding the line that used to branch off at a junction just north of Ashington. This would require quite a bit more work, but would benefit the people of Pegswood as it would potentially allow a regular passenger service there instead of just the 3 trains a day it currently gets.

The two above suggestions in my opinion are ways to give the line the best possible out come. Not everyone in the area will want to just go to Newcastle. Morpeth is a respectable sized town and should not be ignored with the development of the Northumberland Line.

Even with out the above thoughts there is lots to be excited about when it comes to the railways in the North East. Communities getting connected to the national rail network for the first time since the 60s.

What we really need to happen now is for the Tyne & Wear Metro to become part of the national rail network! But that's a whole separate blog for a later date!

For now though, Thanks for reading!!!

Stuart

Walking the Great Western Railway - Day 4

Wed, 06 Sep 2023 18:20:00 GMT

Day 4: Twyford to Midgham

This walk was a tail of two halves! The day started with walking through Reading suburbs and then through the city centre. Things mid morning took a positive turn as we headed to the The Kennet and Avon Canal which I then followed for the remaineder of the day. Only hopping away from the canal to go on to station platforms. A very enjoyable walk, even in the scorching heat!

Stations visted today was: Reading, Reading West, Theale, Aldermaston & ended the day at Midgham. By walking between Aldermaston and Midgham I actually have managed to get a station ahead on my plan which can only be a good thing as I head down to the more difficult reagions of Somerset & Devon next week.

Until tomorrow :)

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

Walking the Great Western Mainline gallery - Day 3

Mon, 04 Sep 2023 22:39:15 GMT

Day 3: Slough to Twyford

Todays walk was a little bit of a tough one, mainly due to the excessive heat which is only going to get worse as the week goes on. Thinking there will be some early starts coming up to try and miss the worst of the heat!

Today was a mixture of roads and walks across fields. Discovered there is some beautiful countryside between Maidenhead and Twyford. I strongly encourage you to take this walk!

Stations visited today: Burnham, Taplow, Maidenhead and ended at Twyford.

Was great to have Nick Badley along with me today. Make sure to check out and subscribe to his YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/@NickBadley .

After the walk myself and Nick headed to Windsor where we met up with Coastway Will and had a Nandos dinner where the unlimited refils was very much used again and again!

Until tomorrow :)

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

Walking the Great Western Mainline gallery - Day 2

Sun, 03 Sep 2023 21:46:08 GMT

Day 2: Southall to Slough

Todays walk saw me starting at Southall and heading straight to The Grand Union Canal. We followed this for most of the walk today. Stations called at today was: Hayes & Harlington, West Drayton, Iver, Langley before finishing the walk at Slough.

Was great to have pals Jack and Dave with me today. Laughed for the most part, especially when we got the wrong place for the London/Buckinghamshire borders. That video on twitter got filmed twice lol.

Massive thank you to everyone supporting the event via donations to either/both:

Donate to Samaritans: https://justgiving.com/page/greatwesternwalk

Support me with the challenge: https://www.gofundme.com/f/GreatWesternWalk

My photos from today are below. Daves photos from today can be found here on his Flickr photostream: https://flic.kr/ps/3ppCTV

Until tomorrow :)

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

Walking the Great Western Mainline gallery - Day 1

Sat, 02 Sep 2023 20:01:02 GMT

Day 1: London Paddington to Southall

The first day of the walk from London Paddington to Southall saw me call at Acton Mainline, Ealing Broadway, West Ealing & Hanwell. On the way we saw unexpected viaducts, fancy McDonalds, pretty gardens & nice market squares.

Today I was joined by a couple of friends who can be found online at the following places, Please do check their accounts out.

Jack All Station: twitter.com/JackAllStations

Midland London: youtube.com/@MidlandLondon

Below is a selection of photos from today.

The above is a mixture of photos from myself, Jack & MidlandLondon.

Reuse only by permission.

Gallery: Weekend Walking around Windermere & Oxenholme

Sun, 20 Aug 2023 22:04:25 GMT

This weekend I was dog sitting near to Oxenholme station. So I took the opportunity to have a walk around the area and take some photos.

Walk around Windermere:

To the north of Oxenholme station:

To the south of Oxenholme station near the village of Natland:

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

Carlisle Photo Collection

Sat, 12 Aug 2023 21:17:56 GMT

A collection of photos from Carlisle!

All photos © Every Last Station.

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New Station: Thanet Parkway

Thu, 03 Aug 2023 15:20:23 GMT

Kent's first new station in 15 years opens to the public!

On 31st July at just before 5am Thanet Parkway became Britain's newest station in Great Britain (at the time) and is the first station to open in Kent since Ebbsfleet International opening in 2007.

As you approach the station you are greeted with what looks like a lovely and well designed station. The car park complete with 293 spaces which includes 16 spaces for Blue Badge holders and a number of charge points for electric vehicle charging. BUT, here is the stations first of several oversights: none of the vehicle charge points are in one of the 16 Blue Badge spaces and the charging bays don't have enough space for those with limited mobility to get in and out of their cars.

As we approach the station from the car park the actual station looks rather impressive. The brick work along with the stylish mettle mesh on the stair case and lift shaft really makes it look the part. There is also some raised flower beds which add to the overall positive experience of the station .

Thank you to @SimOnTrains on twitter for use of daytime photo

Sadly this is pretty much where the positives for this station run out... As you arrive on the platform you are met with quite possibly the most dull pair of platforms that have ever been built in Britain! The narrow platforms are made to feel all that much smaller by the soundproof walls that are almost as tall as the platform is wide. The tactile paving is welcome, but the additional paving slabs down the middle will hinder wheelchair & mobility scooter users due to its closeness to the tactile paving.

Earlier today (3/8/23) I had a conversation with @LordOrk who is a Equality & Disability Rights Campaigner and this is what he had to say about Thanet Parkway and it's poor accessability: "Regrettably, NR have again cut costs by treating PRM compliance as a target rather than a minimum standard. D isappointing disabled people have been treated as an afterthought at this new station and will suffer the consequences. For example, it is outrageous a new station has no accessible or changing places toilets, no EV chargers in the blue badge bays, platforms are narrow so wheelchair users and scooter users have reduced turning circles for boarding and their legal right to TUAG has been eroded at this unstaffed station"

The station platforms in total have 10 shelters (2 double up as platform entrance areas). This is good news, but sadly none of the shelters have benches in, there is just perch rails which to be quite frank, are completely useless! There is also no toilet facilities at the station which is a massive oversight. It's not like there isn't space for them!

The station will be served by the Margate to London St Pancras SouthEastern Highspeed services that are run using the class 395 Javelin units. This will be strengthened by additional peak time calls on the London Cannon Street & London Charing Cross services. The last service of the day, the 0051 arrival is to drop passengers off only and as such won't be advertised at the station as a departure. Sadly if you want to catch a train from here to Dover at off peak you are out of luck, which again is a massive over sight! Passengers want options, and by mostly only stopping London services here they have removed such options.

From the station you will be able to travel to:

Ramsgate (5 minutes travel time)
Broadstairs (11 minutes travel time)
Margate (16 minutes travel time)
Canterbury West (15 minutes travel time)
Ashford International (31 minutes travel time)
London St Pancras (70 minutes travel time)

It is rather sad that a new station has got so much wrong, from the initial design right down to the schedule of calling services at the station there has been errors made with this station. This is a station that has been designed to meet the minimum legal requirements, it has done very little to exceed this.

People that are saying it is "fully accessible" are saying that because it meets the design MINIMUM requirements. For example, minimum requirements allow for one wheelchair to be on the platform at a time. If two wheelchairs was to try passing on the platform it would force one of the wheelchairs to the wrong side of the yellow line. How that is not even thought about in the minimum requirements blows my mind!

To sum up: Thanet Parkway is a station that on paper delivers everything perfectly. In the real world it delivers nearly everything poorly. Going forward, the minimum requirements for new stations MUST be more passenger focused and less cost focused. They must also be discussed with people who live everyday with limited mobility.

Thanks for reading.

Until next time.

All photos (Unless stated) are © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission

Scarborough to Whitby Disused Railway Walk

Sat, 22 Jul 2023 22:54:12 GMT

A disused railway line walk... Although it shouldn't be disused!

Back in May 2023 I headed over the the East Coast of Yorkshire to undertake a walk that had been on my to do list for quite a while. I was really pleased to find a gap in my diary which allowed me enough time needed. The walk in question is from Whitby to Scarborough along the former track bed that up until 1965 carried passengers to the various stations on the line!

Below are various photos I took while walking the route.

All photos © Every Last Station.

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Inverness Airport Britains newest station!

Thu, 02 Feb 2023 19:14:55 GMT

Nearly 10 years after Conon Bridge opened... The Highlands now has another brand new station!

1330, Thursday 2nd February will go down in public transport fot the Scottish Highlands. Inverness Airport became the newest station to open in the Highlands since Conon Bridge opened almost 10 years ago to the day (8/2/2013).

From tomorrow (3/2/23) the station will see 33 services per day (Mon - Fri) calling at the station taking passengers from the Airport station to the City Centre in just 10 minutes! With the very first passenger service arriving at 0505 from Inverness. Today I was lucky to attend the station as part of the opening ceremony which was carried out by Scotland’s Transport Minister Jenny Gilruth.

The airport is a short 12 minute walk from the station to the Airport terminal, alternativly there are local stagecoach bus services which will be calling at the station freuquently throughout the day.

The station will not only benefit airport users & staff, but it will also support the local villages and communities around the station giving them better transport links to the Highlands and beyond into Aberdeenshire. Before the station was built it was only a single track, the doubling of the line at the station has now created a new passing loop which going forward will allow for even more services to run in the area.

Below is a gallery of photos from my visit today. I will return tomorror morning to officially visit the station on a full passenger service.

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

Every Last NYMR Station

Sun, 09 Oct 2022 23:55:14 GMT

Gallery showing my photos from Every Last Station on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway

The North Yorkshire Moors Railway is a now heritage railway that runs between Pickering, Grosmont and selected services continuing through to Whitby. The heritage line has always been high on the to do list due to my growing up seeing the line on Heartbeat, The Royal and Goathland station featuring in the Harry Potter movies.

A little history...

The line first opened in 1836 when it was known as the Whitby & Pickering Railways. It wasn't until 1845 though until the first permanent stations we're built along with other structures along the line. These remain in situ today! This work was carried out by the York and North Midland Railway after they acquired the line. They were also responsible for the opening of the line south of Pickering which directly connected the line to York and beyond!

In March 1965 the line through Pickering to Whitby fell victim to the infamous Beaching Axe. The last passenger train ran on 6th March 1965. Freight however lasted just about over a year until July 1966. Thankfully though, for all of us, this was not the end for the line... In many ways, it was only the beginning!

In 1973, after the purchase of the line from British Railways and the permissions to operate, the line saw the return of passenger services began. These ran under the name known today, The North Yorkshire Moors Railway. To start with these services only ran between Pickering and Grosmont due to the NYMR not been a licenced company to operate on Network Rail Lines. This changed in 2007 when services we're able to run the full length from Pickering to Whitby. Daily services between Pickering & Whitby increased in 2014 when Platform 2 at Whitby was reopened.

The Stations...

Pickering:

We start the journey at Pickering which is now the terminus station on the line. The station has been restored to its 1937 state thanks to some help from the Heritage Lottery fund. The station houses a ticket office and a fantastic little tearoom that does some great sandwiches and cakes (confirmed by me!) In early 2011 the NYMR fitted a replacement roof to the station. This replaced the roof that British Rail removed in 1952 due to corrosion.

Levisham:

A small country station that is between Newton-on-Rawcliffe and the village the station is named after, Levisham. A now fully renovated lovely station that serves some lovely walking locations. Infact, I did the walk with Charlie (A NYMR Volunteer) from Levisham to the next station down the line...

Newton Dale Halt:

This is a lovely little rural halt that is in the middle of the woods. Charlie and I had a nice walk along the access track through Cropton Forest to the station. The station has benches and picnic tables to sit back and relax at while awaiting your train. Should it be raining there is also a decent sized shelter. Newton Dale Halt is the only request stop on the line. Returning here is on my list of things to do next year... I mean who doesn't want to request a steam train to stop?!?! Sadly, the day I visited was during a heatwave and there was a steam ban in place across the country.

Goathland:

Or maybe you might know it as Aidensfield or Hogsmeade? Yes, this station is the station where they filmed Heartbeat, Harry Potter, All Creatures Great & Small amongst others. A lovely station that has great looking Tea Room which is located in a recently refurbished goods carriage. The station is in a great location allowing easy access to the lovely village where you could go for a pint at the Aidensfield Arms (actually called The Goathland) or if you would rather there is several walks up on to the moors where you could walk to the next station along the line (on my list of things to do!)

Grosmont:

This is where the North Yorkshire Moors Railway joins to the Esk Valley line which is part of the national rail network with services operated by Northern. The station is a rather lovely station with a deceiving looking manual level crossing (It's actually automatic controlled by the signal box). The village appears to be lovely and is somewhere I will definitely be returning too when I do the walk from Goathland over the moors. I might even look to stay at one of the several B&B's that are in the village.

Whitby:

The end of the Esk Valley Line and also the end of the North Yorkshire Moor Railways. The station to be honest compared to the rest of the stations on the NYMR is not all that impressive. That said, to be honest it might be amazing, every time I visit it is always so busy I have never been able to have a proper look around to take it in! What I do know is Whitby is an amazing place to visit, and I highly recommend you do!

My final thoughts

My final thoughts of the line are that it's quite possibly one of my favourite Heritage Line in Britain, alongside the West Somerset Railway. Every station on the line is a delight and every view in between the stations just leaves you staring out of the window in awe of the scenery.

If you want to visit this wonderful heritage line (WHICH I ENCOURAGE YOU TO DO!) then I recommend you visit www.nymr.co.uk where you can see much more information. Although this season is coming to an end for normal services. There is still some Santa Specials should you want to take the kids and family on a unique Christmas trip! If the Santa specials are not for you, take a look at the page and start planning your own trip for next year!

I will leave you with some more photos from the scenery between the stations on the line.

Thank you for reading and I hope your inspired to visit the NYMR yourself at some point :)

All photos © Every Last Station.

Reuse only by permission.

The Leven Viaduct Collection

Sun, 17 Apr 2022 12:18:31 GMT

During the pandemic we was all forced to explore what was on our doorsteps! Thankfully living on the edge of the lake district I had plenty of countryside that could be explored. Amazingly prior to the pandemic I had never walked down to this viaduct before... Which is embarrassing given it is only 40 minutes from my front door!

Since lockdown 1 I have made it my go to place locally. As of that I have many photos of various trains passing over. Below are some of my favourite photos from the viaduct.

Should you wish to visit the viaduct yourself then please scroll to the bottom of the page for directions for both car & foot from the station.

Directions

Before planning a visit I would advise keeping an eye on Ulverston Tide Times and making sure your not there at high tide. Although high tide does give good photos, if you don't know the area it's not advised been near the viaduct. In addition to this at low tide I would advise you not to stand on the sand. It is part of Morecambe Bay and it is known for it's sinking sands.

Should you wish to visit the viaduct yourself then please see the below options. (click on route for Google Maps link.) All walks shown start at Ulverston station.

All photos © Every Last Station.

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A photographic journey along the Heart of Wales line

Wed, 09 Mar 2022 23:26:01 GMT

Here is a brief photographic look at the beautiful Heart of Wales line!

Bynea

Llangennech

Pontarddulais

Pantyffynnon

Ammanford

Llandybi

Ffairfach

Walk between Ffarifach & Llandeilo

Llandeilo

Llangadog

The village of Llangadog

Llanwrda

Some old railway stuff in Llanwrda village

Llandovery

Around Llandovery (including a castle)

Cynghordy

Cynghordy Viaduct

Sugar Loaf

Llanwrtyd

Llangammarch (Station & Village in the evening)

Garth

Cilmeri

Builth Road

Llandrindod

Pen-y-Bont

Dolau

Llanbister Road

Llangynllo

Knucklas

Knucklas Viaduct

Knighton

Knighton Village

Bucknell

Hopton Heath

Broome

All photos © Every Last Station.

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Dolau Photo Collection!

Wed, 02 Mar 2022 22:33:05 GMT

Dolau is definitely a station that will feature in my top 10 come the end of the challenge... Here are a load of photo's that I took while at the station on 2/3/22

Johnston to Pembroke Dock

Sun, 27 Feb 2022 20:19:17 GMT

Some photos from my walk between Johnston and Pembroke Dock via Neyland.

Today (27/2/22) I took the train from my hotel at Llanelli to Johnston. After alighting the train I set off on a walk I have been looking forward to doing in the past. Sadly last time I was here both the weather and time restraints were against me.

The walk along the former track bed was lovely and I can only imagine how enjoyable it would of been to travel along the line onboard a train. Another highlight of the walk was walking across the bridges between Neyland and Pembroke Dock. If you are afraid of heights, I would advise against the walk, especially on a windy day like today!

Story of a photo...

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 19:48:44 GMT

The Forth Rail Bridge at sunset

Every now and then I take a photo that some planning and effort goes into... These photos usually turn out to be some of my favourites. Over the next few blogs I will be sharing the stories behind some of my favourite photos.

I always knew the Forth Rail Bridge was going to be a spectacular thing to see! Friends had told me, I' d see other people post photos of it on social media, ultimately I knew taking a bad photo of this beautiful piece of architecture would be almost impossible. That said, one thing I can't predict is the weather on the day I'm in the area.

On this day in particular I was visiting stations on 2 of the 4 routes between Glasgow and Edinburgh and was staying in Glasgow for these couple of nights, for the sole reason of a strike day happening and I wanted to do the Glasgow Subway on the strike day. I had finished my day and arrived at Haymarket where I was going to head back to Glasgow. At this point I started to see the sky getting a tint of orange in it which made me think we was in for an amazing sunset that day!

I therefore decided to board a Scotrail class 170 and head to Dalmeny. After taking some photos from around the station I then decided to head down to the waters edge. The walk down through the woodlands and coming out at the waters edge was rather nice.

After climbing down to the beach area, I walked along taking many photos. I decided that the best location for the main photo would be near the pier, so along the beach I went.

In places it wasn't that easy to walk along the beach, I'd recommend to anyone wishing to visit the area to just follow the lane, it's there for a reason, don't be stupid like me and think the beach be the better option!

After reaching the pier I ended up discovering that there was no way of getting from the beach up on to the actual pier annoyingly, I can only guess the photo from further down the pier would have been amazing, I will 100% be returning to test this theory out!

So, I was stuck on the beach, but made the best of the situation by getting several photos, including the one to the left (or above on some mobile devices). After getting these photos I then headed back along the beach, thankfully not all the way, I was able to climb over a fence onto the lane.

Walking along the path led me to the main photo... Now, unlike most of my favourite photos, this one wasn't planned, and only one photo taken. Although there is two editions, the one at the top of this page and the one below - The difference in the two is one has a filter added, and one doesn't. I like both for their own reasons, the filtered photo just puts emphasis on the colours in the leaves and the sunset.

There are two things I really like about this photo; first up is the person taking their own photo. With them stood there it adds some real depth and perspective to the photo. The second thing is the fact the photo pretty much has its own natural frame, all the greenery frames the bridge amazingly! I hope everyone likes this photo as much as I do!

Below is a gallery of some other photos that I took while visiting the Forth Bridge.

Story of a photo...

Thu, 11 Nov 2021 23:02:59 GMT

195111 on the Leven Viaduct

Every now and then I take a photo that some planning and effort goes into... These photos usually turn out to be some of my favourites. Over the next few blogs I will be sharing the stories behind some of my favourite photos.

How I got my Northern 195111 on the Leven Viaduct photo

As someone who has always enjoyed travelling and seeing all the different parts of the country, I can tell you, it is easy to miss what is on your doorstep, and even if you know what is on your doorstep, you can quite often end up taking it for granted! That is most definitely the case for me... If there has been anything good to come out of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is that I have been forced to explore all that is on my doorstep.

As the country was dealing with the lockdown, I spent the first few months stuck at home, furloughed from work, and spending my days wondering when/if this lockdown would end. As time went on, I decided it was time to take my daily exercise a little further away. A 45 minute walk from my house is the Leven estuary. Having never previously visited here I decided it would be a good place to explore and see what sort of photos I could get at the viaduct.

The first time I went down to the viaduct I went onto the north side of the viaduct for some photos, these photos turned out pretty good, but I quickly decided shots from the other side would be better. Not wearing the correct footwear to be climbing over the rocks, I decided to leave it for another day.

A few days later, Northern unveiled their new livery, the NHS train, Key workers supporting Key workers. I dropped Northern a DM and they told me that the unit would be operating an empty coaching stock movement between Barrow-in-Furness and Liverpool. This seemed like the perfect opportunity to head back down to the viaduct for some more photos. I ended up spending about 4 hours there taking photo's!

The whole area is splendid for taking photos of trains crossing the viaduct, it has now become my go to place locally for taking scenic photos. The rock pools, the Leven estuary, the big sky always make the photos look splendid, even when I put zero effort into a photo, which believe it or not, most of my photos are effortless, just point and snap!

As the tide came in I realised I wouldn't be able to stay down by the water edge, with 195111 having not yet passed I decided to head up to where the old signal box used to be. This is where I got my photo from, a few dummy shots of 156s and I was all set, had my location and angle all set for the photo.

Now to get one great photo, I usually take many shots that lead to the one that I share. Below is a gallery of photos that led to the one, I originally shared!

Hey, You alright pal?

Fri, 29 Oct 2021 00:00:21 GMT

On this day (31st October) in 2018 I was visiting St James Park, a station in the suburbs of Exeter.

I was visiting the station as part of one of my first major trips of the challenge. A trip that had seen me visit most of Cornwall and a decent amount of Devon, but on my 2nd to last day of the trip, things took a sad turn.

I was stood on the southbound platform awaiting for my train which would take me to Newcourt. While I was waiting for the train I noticed a gent on the opposite platform. After a short while this chap jumped down onto the tracks and walked across the lines and jumped up onto the platform I was stood on. He then approached me and asked if I had a lighter on me for his cigarette. I replied with a no, and that was all that was said.

I remember thinking 'he really shouldn't be crossing the tracks' but he then stood back near the fence and I assumed he was Ok and was waiting for a train. My train to Newcourt approached and I boarded and was on my way. A short wait at Newcourt before heading to Exeter St Davids when I boarded a train for Feniton. The journey to Feniton went without issue. At Feniton I hopped on a bus and headed to Whimple where I had intended to board a train to Pinhoe.

Sadly at Whimple, I noticed the departure screens were showing "Delayed" and then shortly later changing to "Cancelled". A quick look on my phone and I learnt that my train had been terminated at Honiton. At this point my heart sank, I learnt that the delay and following cancellation was due to a fatality at St James Park... I knew immediately who it was, my heart was in pieces!

I managed to find a bus service which took me back into Exeter. I decided to head back to St James Park and speak to the British Transport Police. My suspicions were confirmed, the person that had been hit was indeed the gentleman I had seen and very briefly exchange words with. I was one of the last people to speak to this gentleman.

I gave a statement to the BTP officer and then went for a long walk around Exeter before heading to my hotel. The questions I asked myself that evening are the same questions I have asked myself over a hundred time since. The questions are along the lines of

Could I have done more
Should I of reported him to the police for trespass
Should I of asked him if he was ok
Would he still be alive if I had done any of the above

These questions haunt me all the time, every time I see a tweet about another fatality on the railways. The answer I always come back to myself is "Yh, but I wasn't to know, but now I do know, I must do everything I can do to help prevent this happening again"

So what do I do differently now:

I report any trespass sightings to the BTP. Not to get anyone in trouble, but more to get them the help they might need, be that life saving help, or education on the dangers of taking shortcuts across the tracks.
Say hi to other people, acknowledge people and say things like "alright" or "how yo u doing". Many ignore me, but those short sentences might be all that is needed to make them feel wanted, make them change their way of thinking.

I've not written this blog in looking for sympathy, or for attention. I have chose this year to write this short blog as mental health issue calls to charities like Samaritans are higher than ever. Mental health affects people in different ways, it does different things to you, it can make you think there is no way out...

You might not know who you are talking too, but by just saying a word or two, you might help someone more than you could imagine.

To the gentleman who asked for a lighter, I'm sorry I didn't have a lighter, I'm sorry I didn't ask how you was.

RIP fella.

If anyone can spare a few quid, please consider donating it to the Samaritans.

This can simply be done by visiting the below link:

Donate to Samaritans | Donations | Samaritans Charity Donations

Top 5 stations in Scotland

Thu, 25 Mar 2021 08:17:06 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

Well after 7 other Top 5 countdowns it's time for the final one, and for this one we head north of the border... When I was planning this in my head all I could think about was how this countdown will look very different in 6 months time, maybe even impossible to do, time will tell!

5. Wemyss Bay

Station: Wemyss Bay

Line: Inverclyde Line

Managed By: Scotrail

Ok, cards on the table... I have said a few times this is one of my most over rated stations on the network. But blooming hell it's still beautiful and rightfully deserves its place in this top 5.

I remember visiting Wemyss Bay on a very rushed and very unplanned trip! It was when at the last minute they announced that IBM would be mothballed. So the next weekend I booked a hotel and headed north. After visiting the branch line to Largs I then hopped on a bus which took me to Wemyss Bay.

I remember wondering around the station and thinking about how beautiful it was, but truth be told, for me it's just missing something. Don't ask me what, I genuinely couldn't tell you.

4. Garelochhead

Station: Garelochhead

Line: West Highland Line

Managed By: Scotrail

This is your stereo typical West Highland Station. Gravel platform with a station building in the centre. Stations in this style always look amazing. I am pretty confident that in the future I will need to do a West Higland Line top 5...

This was part of a day which was very much unplanned, I literally only decided to visit the Glasgow area 2 days previous. After visiting here and taking many photos I headed down to the village for a walkabout around the village and sat and chilled by the lake .

After all this I took the bus to Helensburgh. What a lovely bus route it was along the shores of the loch. This was unexpected and sometimes the unexpected things are the best!

3. Arrochar & Tarbet

Station: Arrochar & Tarbet

Line: West Highland Line

Managed By: Scotrail

Let me set the p icture for you... I was boarding the 0530ish train from Glasgow Queen Street, I'd had only 5 hours sleep, I slept most of the journey from Glasgow Queen Street, I arrived at Arrochar & Tarbet, I stepped out into what felt like the middle of the woods rather than at a station... I simply stood on the platform and looked around trying to wake up and take in where I was.

After I had woke up, I found the station setting was even better. I took a lovely walk through the village and to the edge of Loch Lomand where the views just left me speechless. I just stood on the edge of the loch gulping in all the beauty!

After this I headed back to the station where I was in time to catch a glimpse of the Caledonian Sleeper heading to Fort William.

2. Crianlarich

Station: Crianlarich

Line: West Highland Line

Managed By: Scotrail

The train to Crianlarich from Helensburgh Upper was possibly the busiest trains I had been on since the start of the pandemic. Full of walkers all heading to the Scottish Highlands for walking. When I alighted at Crianlarich I knew I only had a matter of minutes before heading back down towards Glasgow. So I spent my few minutes running around trying to take as many photos as possible! Sadly I have lost some of the photos I took there! They just weren't on my phone when I got back to the hotel :(.

Happily though it gives me a great reason to revisit, which should be quite easy given it is the junction station for the Oban line. I mean, the scenery is breathtaking, the station is lovely. The trains are a plenty (in rural station terms anyway). I look forward to returning here!

1. Barrhill

Station: Barrhill

Line: Glasgow South Western Line

Managed By: Scotrail

Ah Barrhill, to date my favourite station in Scotland. I was chatting about this with my mate Jack ( @JackAllStation ) and he asked me why Barrhill beats Crianlarich. It was a good question. The answer was simple though, Crianlarich was bustling with people, Barrhill was just me and the network rail staff who dealt with the token exchange. I do love my peace and quiet.

I had spent the week before Barrhill working in Dumfries, after I had finished work on the Friday I headed on the bus to Stranraer where I would be working for the night. After dropping my stuff of at the delightful guest house I was staying at I headed to the station to visit Barrhill, ticking this off today would save me plenty of time the next day.

I alighted not really knowing what to expect, I hadn't google mapped this station or anything. I alighted to find a token exchange happening by a network rail member of staff (he was wearing shorts in March!) Once the train departed I had a nice conversation with said staff and he explained how rural the station was and what was nearby, other than the small village, not very much. But as you might of discovered from my previous blogs, these are the type of stations I love, the ones where it is just me, a platform, and nothing else. Barrhill is all that :)

Top 5 stations in Wales

Thu, 18 Mar 2021 00:14:12 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

It's time to head to the land that they call Wales, although this top 5 should probably be called 'Top 5 in North Wales' as I have been to only three stations in South Wales... Anyway, on with the countdown.

5. Conwy

Station: Conwy

Line: North Wales Coast Line

Managed By: Transport For Wales

A station within a castle, I mean for that alone meant it had to be included in my top 5! If you think the station is in a lovely setting, take a walk around the local area and your in for a shock. Even more beauty!

I first visited this station when on a planned trip to visit the North Wales Coast Line and Anglesey. I even stayed in Conwy. I quite often try to stay in places that interest me, it allows me time to visit the area. I stayed at the YHA accommodation which was only a 15 minute walk from the station, all be it all uphill.

Sadly this station is very poorly served due to Covid restrictions, only 2 carriage trains can stop here. Which makes me wonder, would it be possible to lengthen the platforms here? or even relocate to allow for longer trains to call here. Such a tourist destination surly justifies it???

4. Bodorgan

Station: Bodorgan

Line: North Wales Coast Line

Managed By: Transport for Wales

Like old stations signs? like old station buildings? like barrow crossings? like remote stations? Then this is the station for you. This station was a complete surprise to me. Having done very little research on this line before travelling I really didn't know what to expect.

I remember the day well. My previous two stations included a walk between Ty Croes & Rhosneigr which took me much longer than I had expected. This meant I missed the train I was meant to be boarding at Rhosneigr. So I had to head north again to Holyhead and then back down to Bodorgan. I was rather fed up by the time I alighted at Bodorgan. That mood soon changed when I had a look about the station. It was lovely. It was everything I like about rural stations.

Then to just make the station visit totally complete, the sunset was absolutely terrific! Memorable is an understatement!

3. Pont-y-Pant

Station: Pont-y-Pant

Line: Conwy Valley Line

Managed By: Transport for Wales

The Conwy Valley Line is in a league of its own when it comes to branch lines in Great Britain. In a top 10, 6-10 could easily all be stations from this line. It's a credit to the rest of North Wales that this is the only station on the line to make the top 5.

This was a lovely day, after visiting both the stations in Llanrwst I then boarded a bus that would take me down towards Pont-y-Pant. The bus drops off about a 15 minute walk from the station. Down a narrow country lane this was just beautiful, with the river flowing to the right it really was very tranquil and relaxing.

When I arrived at the station I decided to just sit on one of the lovely benches and read a book while enjoying the sounds of the Conwy Valley.

2. Tygwyn

Station: Tygwyn

Line: Cambrian Coast Line

Managed By: Transport For Wales

Some stations wow you with beauty, some stations amaze you with their location, some stations impress you by their facilities and some simply just leave you jaw dropping amazed... Tygwyn ticks every single box on this list!

Visiting this station was definitely a highlight for me, I boarded at Abererch and immediately put my request in for Tygwyn. The guard was less than impressed, me requesting Tygwyn meant that he now had a request for every single request stop on the line. I guess for guards on the Cambrian Coast its the same as when guards have to stop at every request stop on the Cumbrian Coast.

After I had eaten my lunch in the shelter I headed to the road end to catch the bus to my next station, coincidentally that was the next station in this countdown...

1. Llanaber

Station: Llanaber

Line: Cambrian Coast Line

Managed By: Transport for Wales

It's Just perfection. Simple perfection, When you think of places to go where you cannot be disturbed for hours on end you really need to add Llanaber to the very top of the list. Crashing waves, birds singing, wind howling, trains few and far between. It is simply heaven on earth.

After visiting Tygwyn I took the short walk down the lane and caught a bus which was destined for Barmouth. I wouldn't be going all the way to Barmouth, or I wasn't meant to I should say. Despite me ringing the bell for the nearest bus stop to Llanaber station the driver decided to have a death moment and drove straight past. Despite me getting up and going to the front of the bus the driver would not stop until the next stop, on the outskirts of Barmouth. Meaning a hefty walk back up the hill.

Having done very little research on this line I was not prepared for the beauty that was to meet me at the end of the footpath to the station. At this point I was cursing the bus driver as my hour fester I had at Llanaber now had been cut to only 25 minutes. Nevertheless, I enjoyed every minute of it. I will be back again, just try and stop me!

Top 5 stations in the North West

Fri, 12 Mar 2021 17:15:48 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

It's time for my final Top 5 countdown in England, the North West region. Regular followers of me on social media will probably already know which station is number 1, but you might find some surprises for 5-2...

5. Ince & Elton

Station: Ince & Elton

Line: Ellesmere Port – Helsby

County: Cheshire

Managed By: Northern

Ah Ince & Elton, a station I visited on a whim! I remember waking up on a Saturday morning and thinking 'nothing to do today, lets head out on the trains'. So I did. I decided to have an awkward station day, this included Heysham Port, INCE & ELTON and Stanlow & Thornton.

After visiting Heysham Port I headed south to Helsby. There I caught a bus to the village of Elton where I had loads of time to explore the delightful little Cheshire village! After getting some food I headed to the station where I found a station that felt like it was hidden in another world, it's hard to explain, but I'll try... When I was stood on the platform, sandwich in one hand, drink in the other, I couldn't help but feel like I was in the middle of no where. I wasn't, but that was how it felt. And for that reason, Ince & Elton kicks off my top 5 in the North West.

4. Entwistle

Station: Entwistle

Line: Ribble Valley Line

County: Lancashire

Managed By: Northern

Like Ince & Elton, this was another station where I first visited on a whim... I had been at a training course with work in Darwen. This finished earlier than planned. So I headed off to visit some stations. Obviously Darwen was the first of these stations, I then went off to visit Entwistle. I only had about 20 minutes there, so I decided to just take a little walk about out of the station.

I quickly realised that there was much more to visit here, so it's high on the list of places to return to, in fact the first week we come out of lock down I will be heading there to take a much longer walk. A lovely station that is well worth going out of your way to visit.

3. Settle

Station: Settle

Line: Settle & Carlisle Railway

County: North Yorkshire

Managed By: Northern

A station I have visited many times. When ever I visit the Settle & Carlisle line I usually alight the Bentham Line at Giggleswick and take the short walk to Settle.

A magnificent station building, a magnificent footbridge, all set in a magnificent village, that is surrounded by some magnificent scenery. There is nothing to not like about this station. Unfortunately for me the north west is a really tough area to select a top 5 stations for. In any other region, Settle would probably get the number one spot... But this is the North West, the land of beautiful stations!

Should you be lucky enough to visit Settle this summer, you might be lucky enough to catch a HST courtesy of @CharterRail . Check it out, you won't regret it.

2. Dent

Station: Dent

Line: Settle & Carlisle Railway

County: Cumbria

Managed By: Northern

Yep, we are back on the Settle & Carlisle Line for the highest station in England. Needless to say it's in a very remote setting. The village of Dent itself being just short of 5 miles away, meaning most of the people who use this station use it for walking, as have I a few times.

A lovely station building with some of the most breathtaking backdrops you will ever see! It makes the perfect starting point for a lovely walk over the moors to Ribblehead. The walk takes in several viaducts, walking over the Blea Moor, before dropping down to the Ribblehead viaduct.

I always advise walking from Dent, the hill the other way is rather challenging!

1. Nethertown

Station: Nethertown

Line: Cumbrian Coast Line

County: Cumbria

Managed By: Northern

As my regular followers will already know, I really adore this station! Nethertown is not only my favourite station in the North West, it's my favourite station in Great Britain...

I often head to Nethertown to escape from everyday stresses. Something I tend to keep under my cap is I suffer from a mild form of Autism, Asperger’s Syndrome. Over the years I have learnt how to cope with it ultimately, not letting it get in the way of my life and stop me doing a job I love doing. One of the ways I deal with my Asperger’s Syndrome is by every now and then going and having some escape time, some time to work everything out in my head. Nethertown ticks every box in achieving this.

Nethertown is a perfect station to visit if you love coastal walking. A walk I recommend is walking down on to the beach and following the coast along to St Bees, the same can be done the other direction to Braystones. My personal preference is to walk towards St Bees. There are more trains at St Bees than there is at Braystones. Also, St Bees has a couple of pubs that you can pass time in while waiting for a train to take you home again.

One bit of advice I would give you is if you don't want to annoy the driver of the train, don't board at Braystones and alight at Nethertown. I have it on good authority that is a driver’s worst nightmare.

Top 5 stations in the North East

Sat, 27 Feb 2021 22:26:25 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

It's time to head Northwards, and to the North East:

5. Acklington

Station: Acklington

Line: East Coast Main Line (Newcastle to Chathill)

County: Northumberland

Managed By: Northern

When I compiled my top 5 list for the North East I had a massive decision to make, which station would make it into 5th place... It was basically between Acklington and Chathill. The only thing that swayed my decision was that Acklington was that bit quieter than Chathill!

I remember this well, it was my 5th station after the first lockdown. I alighted here and spent about 5 minutes taking photos and then took a walk through the village. If you think the station in lovely and quaint, then head into the village which is equally quaint! The village welcome sign even had an old rail carriage underneath it!

Safe to say, one day I will return to this part of the world, might even treat the other half to a weekend away!

4. Poppleton

Station: Poppleton

Line: The Harrogate Line

County: North Yorkshire

Managed By: Northern

Poppleton is a station that is included in my top 5 due to the amazing station house, but not only the house, but the way the glass waiting room on the Eastbound platform has been designed, a really lovely modern addition that most certainly does not look out of place.

I visited the station during a last minute trip, I literally had no plan for this trip. It was a case of blag it and see what happened. I had 50 minutes here, so I looked on Google Maps and headed in the direction of a local McDonalds for some dinner. I took the food back to the station and ate it while enjoying the surroundings of the station. The village of Poppleton looks a delight and will be getting a revisit at some point, possibly when I'm in the York area.

3. Kildale

Station: Kildale

Line: Esk Valley Line

County: North Yorkshire

Managed By: Northern

Any of the stations on the Esk Valley Line could of featured in my top 5 if I was being completely honest. But obviously I couldn't select all the stations on one line, so I had to be really picky, Kildale made the cut!

I visited this station on a Sunday morning, alighting at the station I spent 10-15 minutes taking photos and admiring the surroundings! After this I took a walk the Captain Cook's Monument and the RAF Officers Memorial. A lovely walk and one I would encourage people to do if they are in the area! The views from the monument are spectacular! I know this is a walk I will be doing again, just at a much more relaxing pace.

2. Bempton

Station: Bempton

Line: Yorkshire Coast Line

County: East Riding of Yorkshire

Managed By: Northern

I almost chose to miss my planned train to have a longer look around the area near this station. But due to Boris announcing he was going to be making a significant announcement that evening I decided to get back to my hotel to listen to what he had to say... As it turned out, it was another stay at home announcement sadly :(.

Bempton station is a very basic single platform station, but wow, what a single platform station it is! The now private station house is lovely, the only negative thing is the fact the level crossing is now an automated system (Yes, I know progress has to happen). But believe me, everything else about the station makes up for the automated crossing!

1. Commondale

Station: Commondale

Line: Esk Valley Line

County: North Yorkshire

Managed By: Northern

It's that line again, that line that could of had the whole line in the top 5! Commondale was a station I alighted at and literally just stood there thinking 'how on earth is this station not talked about more!'

I have some really vivid memories from this station, the amazingly cute waiting room, the stunning surroundings, the amazing fact that the entrance to this station is across a flipping field! Because having a road to access a station is so last year, all stations should be accessed across a field!

After alighting at Commondale I then took a walk across the fields to Castleton Moor. The walk was memorable due to a rather annoyed Llama, I think it had an issue with me walking through it's field, it had no hesitation in letting me know it was annoyed! Other than that moment the walk was beautiful!

Top 5 stations in the West Midlands

Sun, 21 Feb 2021 00:39:20 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

It's time to move on to the West Midlands... To clarify, the West Midlands incorporates the counties of Staffordshire, Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcstershire, Warwickshire and the County of West Midlands itself. With that in mind... Here we go:

5. Albrighton

Station: Albrighton

Line: Wolverhampton to Shrewsbury Line

County: Shropshire

Managed By: West Midlands Railway

Now this station might surprise a few people. but for me it definitely deserves it's place in this list. This was a line I knew very little about. I immediately took a liking to the station buildings, to the platform canopies. There is just something about them that had me captivated.

Albrighton station is on the edge of the village. To one side of the station you have views over what looks like a nice village (I will be returning for a walk about) and to the other side of the station you have views across the Shropshire countryside.

A station I will definitely look forward to returning to in the future.

4. Danzey

Station: Danzey

Line: The Shakespeare Line

County: Warwickshire

Managed By: West Midlands Railway

I remember visiting Danzey well, it was my second station of the day after a night in Birmingham! I had a rather bad nights sleep in Birmingham Moor St Travelodge so I decided to have an hours kip at this station... As it turned out I only got myself 30 minutes of shut eye, I spent the rest of the time taking dozens of photos.

The area surrounding the station is nothing but green fields with a beautiful village a short walk away. Stations like this have a special feeling to them, a sense of isolation and a place to relax.

As you might of realised, I love a good remote station!

3. Worcester Shrub Hill

Station: Worcester Shrub Hill

Line: Cotswold Line

County: Worcestershire

Managed By: West Midlands Trains

Above I mention that "I love a good remote station"... Well, Worcester Shrub Hill is one of only a few exceptions... I love the exterior building, the old school signals, the canopy's, the waiting rooms, the coffee shop, the ticket hall... I think that is all of it!

This is a station I have visited many times before, it has never failed to bring a smile to my face, even when I was there in the snow storm of March 2018!

Unfortunately, as much as I admire this station, I have never really had long enough there to take many photos. Next time I'm in the area, I will be making plenty of time for a decent collection of photos.

2. Colwall

Station: Colwall

Line: Cotswold Line

County: Herefordshire

Managed By: West Midlands Railway

A station I visited on a very hot summers day, when I alighted my West Midlands Train the first thing on my mind was does this village have a shop that sells ice cold drinks and also have a ice cream freezer. Luckily the village did have a a shop. A very nice shop actually!

Sadly I didn't have enough time to take a proper look around the rest of the village, It's on my list of stations to revisit!

I honestly couldn't tell you why it's in my top 5, but when I think about the West Midlands this is one of the first stations that comes into my head. This is most probably because when I think of this station I think about how lovely it was and how much I smiled during my time there.

1. Great Malvern

Station: Great Malvern

Line: Cotswold Line

County: Worcestershire

Managed By: West Midlands Railways

My favourite station in the West Midlands is one that I visited very early on in the challenge. I remember the day pretty well. It was after a day visiting some friends in Stratford-upon-Avon. I then got the bus to Evesham where I boarded a HST to Great Malvern.

When I got there it was dark. but I felt the dark added something to the beauty of the station buildings. I have since returned in the day time and it was equally beautiful. It's full of heritage and history. Even the subway between the platforms is lovely.

I am sure I will be back here in the future, to have a look around the town and local area.

My Top 5 stations in the East Midlands

Wed, 10 Feb 2021 21:58:11 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

So we've done the South West, and the South East. It's now time to head a little north and focus on the East Midlands...

5. Market Rasen

Station: Market Rasen

Line: Newark to Grimsby Line

County: Lincolnshire

Managed By: East Midlands Railway

This is a station that took me a couple attempts, with a pretty poor service (which matches most of Lincolnshire to be fair) it made visiting here quite challenging.

On the final day of Lincolnshire I decided to visit this station. It would be my final station in Lincolnshire. I was extremely pleased I had saved this to last as it was absolutely beautiful. Although it was clearly a station that had been much more important and better served and connected in years gone by.

I'm baffled this station doesn't have a better service. I have been told that this is planned to happen in the future, I keep my fingers and toes crossed and look forward to returning in the future!

4. Elton & Orston

Station: Elton & Orston

Line: The Poacher Line

County: Nottinghamshire

Managed By: East Midlands Railway

After a day of cancellations and delays I was over the moon to reach Elton & Orston. Before I arrived, I was thinking this would be perfect so I could have an hour sitting and chilling while waiting for the train. After arriving I did very little sitting and chilling. I spent the hour taking dozens and dozens of photos!

The peaceful station, the oddly lovely stone shelters, the wind in the trees really sorted out what had been a stressful afternoon!

I recommend to anyone who visits the station to use the bus from Bingham to Orston. The drive through the Nottinghamshire countryside is beautiful. If you're lucky enough like I was, you'll get a driver who will tell you about the villages and points of interest on the route!

3. Kirton Lindsey

Station: Kirton Lindsey

Line: The Brigg Line

County: Lincolnshire

Managed By: Northern

A station I wasn't expecting to be anything special turned out to be incredibly special. Earlier in the day I visited Brigg, which I was expecting to be a really nice station due to the mass of people saying things like "Brigg is lovely, you'll love Brigg" As it happened I didn't love Brigg, I found the station rather functional, which is funny as it has a very non functional service.

So, on a little downer, I headed off to a couple more stations before heading back through Brigg to Kirton Lindsey. I alighted and was met by a lovely station building. A long platform with an interesting looking tunnel in the distance. A walk around the village showed me the village was equally lovely. I agree with the #VisitBrigg... But I might add, #VisitKirtonLindsey while your at it!

2. Havenhouse

Station: Havenhouse

Line: The Poacher Line

County: Lincolnshire

Managed By: East Midlands Railway

Havenhouse was stunning! I visited in the early evening and it was dark, it was cold... But the darkness and the clear cold sky made my heart really warm! I loved it. Part of me really wants to return to the station in daylight, but another part of me doesn't. I don't want to lose the warm feeling that the station gave me when I visited on a cold winters evening...

I visited here after a cold hour at Thorpe Culvert where the light in the waiting room wasn't working, after Havenhouse I took the walk by torchlight to the main road to catch a bus to Skegness where I then headed to Sleaford where I spent the night in possibly the worst Travelodge I've ever stayed at. But thankfully my mind was full of the starry sky at Havenhouse.

1. Thornton Abbey

Station: Thornton Abbey

Line: Barton Line

County: Lincolnshire

Managed By: Northern

Thornton Abbey needs zero introductions. I could just type 'WOW' 100 times and it still wouldn't cover my love for this station!

When I visited this station I had alighted at Ulceby and took the walk down narrow country lanes, saw lots of fields, a disused station and even an Abbey... The I arrived at the station via a walk across a field and through a small gate.

I remember standing there, open mouthed and thinking 'Yep, this is definitely one of my favourite stations... It might even give Nethertown a run for it's money as my overall favourite station!

My Top 5 stations in the South East

Sun, 07 Feb 2021 10:59:10 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

After the delights of my South West top 5, it's time to head along the south coast and take a look at my South East Top 5 stations!

5. Christs Hospital

Station: Christs Hospital

Line: Arun Valley Line

County: West Sussex

Managed By: Southern

This was one of those stations that turned out to be a pleasant surprise. In more ways than one. Christs Hospital was one of those stations where the trains pass each other, which means regardless of direction you visit the station from, you're going to have an hour wait. As it was, due to some earlier disruption a service had this added as an additional stop for another passenger. I took full advantage of this, which meant I was able to get an hour ahead of my plan.

As it turned out, I wish I had had an hour at the station to explore the local area. It was like a disused station and a real station all in one. It is on my list of places to revisit to explore at a much more leisurely pace.

4. Shoreham (Kent)

Station: Shoreham (Kent)

Line: Blackfriers to Sevenoaks

County: Kent

Managed By: Southeastern

Shoreham was a station that alone isn't all that special, but it definitely makes the top 5 for me due to the lovely area around the station. The station buildings could be made to look magnificent again, unfortunately the station buildings have been allowed to become a little worse for wear.

The village of Shoreham is absolutely delightful. To be honest, it felt so out of place, the village felt like it belonged in rural Devon. On the day I visited here I was travelling about with my mate Dave. While we was walking into the village to find a shop, we decided that we would change our plan to allow longer in the village.

3. Normans Bay

Station: Normans Bay

Line: East Coastway Line

County: East Sussex

Managed By: Southern

The East Coastway Line is one that I knew very little about, to be fair, anything south of London I was unfamiliar of. All I did know was what Google Maps showed me. When I alighted I was amazed by the breeze blowing in from the sea.

Now normally first thing I do when I alight a train is try and get a photo of the train departing. On this occasion though all I had on my mind was 'must visit the beach'. So that's what I did. I love the coastline here in Britain, so any station close to the coast is always going to result in me wanting to visit the beach.

2. Wye

Station: Wye

Line: Ashford to Ramsgate Line

County: Kent

Managed By: Sotheastern

Wye is a flippin amazing station, it has it all. A footbridge, a manual level crossing, a lovely station building. Everything anyone could want from a remote station.

The first thing that amazed me at this station was the spectacular manual level crossing. I've not been for a while, so I really hope the manual level crossing is still in use. The station building is a lovely traditional stone bricked station building.

Just when you think you have found all the beauty that there was, then there was even more, all be it in the form of the remains of an old signal box.

1. Doleham

Station: Doleham

Line: Marshlink Line

County: East Sussex

Managed By: Southern

A very awkward station for me to visit it was. But WOW was it worth it. This station required me waking up at 0430 to get the first train out of Folkestone West to Ashford Int before heading on the Southern service to Doleham. One of only 2 trains to call at the station at the time of my visit.

When I alighted, I was met to a magnificent sunset which would accompany me for a beautiful walk through some country lanes to Three Oaks. As most of my followers know, my favourite type of stations tend to be the ones of a remote variety. This definitely ticks that box! Now there is a slightly more usable service at the station I would urge anyone who is in the area to pay the station a visit and take a walk to Three Oaks. There is even a pub near Three Oaks station to re hydrate after the walk ;-)

My Top 5 stations in the South West

Mon, 01 Feb 2021 20:47:07 GMT

When ever I do a Q&A on Twitter one of the questions I always get is "Which is your favourite station so far?" It is very tough to choose a top 10 nationwide... So I have decided to split it up into a collection of Top 5's...

First up we have my Top 5 stations in the South West.

5. Chapelton

Station: Chapelton

Line: Tarka Line

County: Devon

Managed By: GWR

I have great memories from my visit to Chapelton. After alighting at Umberleigh, rather than taking the walk along the dodgy A377 I decided to take a longer walk, and I was extremely pleased that I did. The longer walk took me through the picture postcard village of Atherington.

The single platform is just delightful, in every way possible! The beautiful shelter, the beautiful flowers, and a great sense of isolation.

If all the delights of the platform are not enough, across the track there is an even more beautiful disused platform with an original looking station sign!

4. Chetnole

Station: Chetnole

Line: Heart of Wessex Line

County: Dorset

Managed By: GWR

It was a wet and cold morning. I was going to have an hour at the least used station in Dorset. My original plan was to take a walk to the local village for a look around. As the weather was getting worse I decided to stop at the station and read a book. The station was set in a lovely location, although it's not the nicest on the eye, its got an amazing feel to it.

While I sat in the shelter reading a book I decided to set my camera up and film a little video I named Shelter Cam... This can be seen here .

The good news on this day was the weather improved after I departed from Chetnole and the rest of the day was beautiful.

3. Corfe Castle

Station: Corfe Castle

Line: Swanage Railway

County: Dorset

Managed By: Swanage Railway

Although it is currently not served by a National Rail service, or is there any plans for it to do so again anytime in the near future, it definitely makes it into my top 5. Everything about the station had me lost for words. Then you step out of the station and there is a magnificent castle!

On the day I visited the station I spent the morning visiting the stations between Southampton and Brockenhurst before heading on a bus to the castle. I deliberately allowed an extra couple of hours to fit a visit to the castle in. I then headed to the station where I met up with @JackAllStations . Although we didn't know it at the time, this was to be the very last service operated by SWR to Corfe Castle... Heres to the future and the Swanage Railway operating shuttles themselves!

2. Causeland

Station: Causeland

Line: Looe Valley Line

County: Cornwall

Managed By: GWR

It doesn't get much more quaint than this... Absolutely everything about this station is quaint, beautiful, lovely, amazing, delightful and peaceful...

If you want to take a trip back in time make a visit to this amazing piece of railway heaven! It's like being back in the 60's. Obviously there is just one difference, instead of a steam train you get a 150 instead.

Take a walk between the next station on the line (Sandplace) and Causeland. It is an absolutely lovely walk, high hedged country lanes, it was like been in a famous five story, I even had a picnic in my rucksack!

1. Coombe Junction Halt

Station: Coombe Junction Halt

Line: Looe Valley Line

County: Cornwall

Managed By: GWR

When you think it couldn't get anymore quaint than Causeland, you then arrive further down the line at Coombe Junction Halt. An absolute gem of a station on the outskirts of Liskeard.

Hidden away on a footpath amongst the trees is this tiny platform, and when I mean tiny, I mean not even long enough for one carriage!

I have visited the station on three occasions, the first of which was most definitely not on a train, due to the Beast from the East arriving into Cornwall the one weekend I visited! But I was not disappointed, the snow made for some real beautiful photos. My next two visits were both in beautiful sunshine, a stark contrast to my first visit in the snow.

A Look back at my A-Z countdown

Sat, 30 Jan 2021 16:21:08 GMT

Between Tuesday 5th January and Saturday 30th January I have been running through the A-Z of all things stations and railways on my social media channels... Here is a look back at the countdown.

A is for Azuma at Alnmouth

B is for Brigg

C is for Congleton

D is for Dumfries

E is for Entwistle

F is for Future Stations

G is for Great Western Railway

H is for Hovercraft

I is for IBM

J is for Johnstone

K is for Kent

L is for Lancaster

M is for Merseyrail

N is for Nethertown

O is for Okehampton

P is for Pacers

Q is for Quaint

R is for Railway Tracks

S is for Settle

T is for Transport for Wales

U is for Uttoxeter

V is for Viaduct

W is for #WindowWednesday

X is for XC (CrossCountry)

Y is for York

Z is for ZZ Stop Signs

The North Lakes Line... How is this not a thing yet?

Thu, 21 Jan 2021 21:58:54 GMT

" Here we are buried - shut out from the world, as it were - 15 hours from a morning paper while other people know at an instant what happens at the other end of the kingdom " a Keswick resident said back in 1857... And here we are, in 2021 and Keswick again, has no rail connection to the rest of the country!

History:

The line originally opened to passengers on 2nd January 1865. Although mineral traffic had been running 26th October 1864. The line when it opened connected with the WCML just south of Penrith and West towards Keswick. The line then went onto Cockermouth and onto Workington.

The line was originally opened as a single track line, despite the advise from LNWR to double track it. One contemporary critic, was reported to say that the engineering of the line, and the purchase of land made no provision for future doubling: consequently the line was "really a miserable affair, anything but a first-class line as it was originally boasted to be. Everything connected with it has been sacrificed to cheapness, which in this undertaking, as everyone must see, has been unquestionably carried too far. The line is single, the bridges are single; everything appertaining or belonging to it is single, and, strange to say, land has been taken up for a single line only." That said, between 1892 and 1901 some parts of the line were double tracked to allow for the absolute block working.

When the line between Keswick & Penrith was open the main stations on the line were Threlkeld, Troutbeck, Penruddock & Blencow. At different times there was also halts at Briery Siding (for workmen) and at Highgate (for school children).

In April 1966 the line west of Keswick was closed as recommended in the infamous Beeching report. The line between Keswick and Penrith survived for a few years longer with the last train running on Saturday 4th March. Parts of the line did stay in use until 19th June 1972 for lime freight workings.

So why does it need reopening?:

There is an estimated 15.8 million visitors to the Lake District every year. With 15.8 million visitors, the Lake Districts roads are struggling to cope. Especially the A66 between the M6 at Penrith and Keswick, the gateway to the North Lakes.

Imagine if there was a way of of relieving some of the traffic on the roads!

Imagine if there was a way of relieving parking issues in the town centre of Keswick!

Well there is a way, by the rail line reopening between Penrith and Keswick! This line would allow for more people to use Public Transport when visiting the Lake District. Also with the introduction of a park and ride station just off the A66 within 5 minutes of J40 on the M6, this would allow people to conveniently park and take what I think would be a 15 minute train journey into the heart of Keswick.

There is also the prospect of services from Keswick going straight through to Carlisle. This would allow for students living in the North Lakes area to have easier access to colleges and University. There is currently a bus service that runs from Keswick to Carlisle, but this takes a whopping 1 hour 20 minutes. The train would be able to do this journey in roughly 42 minutes. Likewise the current bus service Keswick to Penrith takes 47 minutes. The train to Penrith would take roughly 25 minutes.

By reopening this line the whole public transport in the Lake District could benefit. Below is ways public transport could benefit from the Keswick to Penrith line reopening:

Main bus routes from Keswick to the Lake District could be rerouted through the town to serve right outside the station meaning for easy passenger connections to Seatoller, Buttermere, Honister, Lake Ullswater, Grasmere, Ambleside, Bowness, Windermere, Cockermouth & Workington.
Further Bus services could be added to take passengers to more places, eg: Coniston (Currently only served by bus from Windermere/Kendal and an infrequent service to Ulverston).
The current 599 open top bus service that runs from Bowness to Grasmere could be extended to run from Windermere station to Keswick Station to allow for circular day trips to be made. Promoting this could encourage more day trips to the Lake District using public transport.

How the line could look:

Penrith:

Interestingly, the station in many ways is already set up for services to Keswick. There is the remains of what used to be a bay platform which I assume was used for the Keswick line before closure.

With work and extending the bay platform, this could be used for shuttle services from Penrith to Keswick. In addition to this there is already a little used platform that would require minimal work to put into frequent use. This platform would allow for through services to and from Carlisle.

Heading out of Penrith, the line for Keswick would run adjoined to the WCML before just after crossing the M6 the line bears right and heads West.

North Lakes Parkway:

This would form a park and ride station on the line. A location just 5 minutes from J40 of the M6 which will mean that it is easily accessible for people travelling to the North Lakes. Locating the station at the end of the dual carriageway part of the A66 will mean traffic flow will cope easier than further down the road where it is single carriageway.

A substantial sized free car park with EV charge points will encourage people to use the trains rather than the single carriage A roads which begin shortly after the station.

The location of the station could also be used as a handy crossing point on the line meaning that at peak times and during the high tourist season additional services could be operated.

Keswick:

The station platform remains attached to the hotel that is currently on the site. Although the site will only allow for limited parking this should not be a direct issue given it's close proximity to the town centre.

A single platform would be sufficient, but a double platform would make running a more frequent service easier.

What services could look like:

An hourly service could operate between Penrith and Keswick. Given the line between Penrith and the junction will be a separate line to the WCML. This eases the need to fit it into the busy working timetable the WCML creates.

At peak times services could operate between Carlisle and Keswick operating as 'fast services', (ie, not calling at North Lakes Parkway). These services added to the Penrith to Keswick services could give the line a peak time service every 30 minutes between Penrith and Keswick.

With a passing loop installed at the parkway station, this gives the option for additional services in the summer.

In an ideal world, the line would be electrified to allow for greener energy trains to be used on the line. If this was not possible then it could be possible for some Vivarail units to be used on the line between Penrith and Keswick. These could be the battery/battery hybrid variety that would help drive the use of green energy usage on the line.

Services between Carlisle and Keswick could operating using current units that are operated in and about Carlisle, 156s, 158s and could even use 195s when they start operating in the Carlisle area.

Beyond Keswick:

The line to the west, towards Cockermouth and Workington, is almost certainly not an option. This is mainly due to the lack of route options since the A66 now uses the old routing of the former line. But also, I am not sure there is much demand for a service between Keswick and Workington.

But going the other way... As Gareth Dennis discusses in his twitter thread to the right/below, a new line could be built connecting the WCML at Penrith and with the ECML at Darlington. This would allow for Transpennine services to run from Scarborough to Keswick via Barnard Castle.

These services would give a much needed fast connection between the West and East.

See the below Image showing the route Gareth proposed.

Now I have written my thoughts about the Keswick line, I bid you farewell...

Until next time

Stuart

Side Note: I am no railway engineer, I am in no way an expert in railway reopenings or proposals. All the above is just me putting my thoughts to paper.

My 2020 in review

Tue, 05 Jan 2021 22:42:45 GMT

What a wild ride that was!!!

In many ways 2020 has been a year to forget, for obvious reasons. But in many other ways it's a year I'll look back on with great happiness. Below, take a journey through the year with me, when I will look at the up's and downs of this year for me.

January

January is typically a month where I don't go on any overnight trips. I tend to stay local and just go on a few day trips. As you know, December is an expensive month, especially with two children.

January for me started as normal. A trip to Nethertown happened on the 4th January. I deliberately got the early morning train out of Ulverston so I could see sunrise happen over the station. As my regular followers on social media will know, Nethertown is my favourite station in Great Britain.

A new year trip to Nethertown to walk the beach along to St Bees is a trip I look forward to, it gives me a chance to review what happened the previous year in my head, and to think about what the new year might entail. I would never of guessed that this year would lead to this.

Later in the month I took a day trip to Manchester and Cheshire to meet up with some friends and to visit some new stations.

First up in the morning I met up with my good mate Paul ( @Trainstationsuk ). We started the day in Manchester revisiting the new joint least used station in Great Britain, Denton. After this we headed to Manchester Airport where we met up with another good mate, Dave ( @KiteWithRoseton ). After visiting a few stations on the line between the Airport and Piccadilly, myself and Paul headed to deepest darkest Cheshire to visit Whitchurch, Wrenbury & Nantwich on the Crewe to Shrewsbury line.

Once back at Crewe one final meet up happened, Jack ( @JackAllStation ) who joined myself and Paul for a McDonalds. Can't go wrong with a Maccies. After this I headed to my final station of the day, Alsager where I said fairwell to my mates and headed home.

February

February started with my first proper trip away. It was also exciting as it was to a place I have never visited before. I was making my first trip to Lincolnshire. Visiting the Poacher Line to Skegness made me realise how flat and rural Lincolnshire was. I also realised very quickly that I had not allowed anywhere near enough time to visit every station in Lincolnshire. Day one ended very nice though, a visit to the lovely Havenhouse. Although it was dark when I visited I think it added something to the atmosphere at the station. It's on the list of places to return to. Except next time I will visit it in daylight.

On the second day I visited stations on the line between Gainsborough and New Clee, where the highlight of the day for me was visiting the lovely little town of Brigg with it's rather poorly served station. The town centre though was lovely. A message to the senior managers at Northern; please serve the station of Brigg better!

On the third day of the trip things took a bad turn. Storm Dennis arrived into Lincolnshire with heavy rain, and very strong winds. I remember heading for breakfast as Wetherspoons in Gainsborough and watching shop front fascias getting pulled off by the wind. It was scary.

Anyway, I headed out on the trains (Rather daftly in hindsight), I made it to Lincoln and then onto Collingham. When I arrived at Collingham is where the day got interesting. After a walk around the village I headed back to the station and found part of the level crossing equipment had blown on to the track. Seeing the train approaching I waved my arms to warn the driver who stopped in time and hopped down to remove the obstruction. On returning to Lincoln I decided to head back to the hotel as the weather had no sign of getting any better.

The next day I headed home as the weather was still pretty bad.

Later in February I took a trip down to Worcester for a very special reason. To visit the newly opened Worcestershire Parkway. On the way down to Worcester I ticked off the stations between Wolverhampton and Shrewsbury along with the stations between Shrewsbury and Hereford.

On the Sunday I boarded the first train that would be calling at Worcestershire Parkway. It was even better because it was possibly my favourite train, a GWR IET. The station was to become the least used station in Worcestershire, but only because it had only opened a month before the end of the 2019-2020 period for figures.

I then took a jolly down the Cotswold line to Oxford and back up to Birmingham via Banbury to complete a relaxing day on the trains. After this I spent the evening catching up with a very good friend who travelled up to Somerset for a meal and to catch up in general.

March

At the very start of March I discovered my love for the lovely Class 230 units that operate on the Marston Vale line between Bletchley and Bedford. They are beautiful units. Amazing that they used to operate on the London Underground. These units have been amazingly refurbished by Viva Rail.

My day on these didn't exactly go to plan unfortunately due to a level crossing malfunction. This meant I had to hop on board the rail replacement bus that was operating between Ridgmont and Bedford. I decided to change my plans in the afternoon and got the stations on the WCML between Northampton and Watford Junction.

I had hoped to take a walk from Cheddington station to the scene of the Great Train Robbery in 1963, unfortunately it was absolutely hammering it down so I decided to shelter at the station.

This was one of those days where I would quite happily not bothered, it was wet, cold and the stations were all quite uninspiring.

After not really enjoying myself on the WCML the next day I decided to head to a completely new area for me. The South Coast...

I headed down to Brighton ticking a few stations off on the way down. I fully enjoyed my time on the south coast where I ticked off all stations between Brighton and Seaford and across to Polegate. I would have gone further to the east, but no trains were operating between Polegate and Eastbourne.

I've got to say, my preconception of south of London was that it basically went from London straight to Brighton. After this trip I realised that I couldn't of been more wrong! There was glorious rolling fields of green. There was lovely little villages. This is why I'm doing this travel, to visit not just Every Last Station, but every last part of this beautiful country!

A week after I got back from down on the South Coast, a long planned weekend with some good mates was about to happen. Jack, Paul & Jan were all set to visit Ulverston where we all went for a walk around the local area and then headed out for a meal in the evening.

The next day we headed on an adventure to visit the disused viaduct at Lowgill. The one that can be seen from the WCML between Penrith and Oxenholme. We started by taking a Saturday only bus to Sedbergh where we was meant to walk along part of the Dales Way. Unfortunately the weather had been so bad that the path had become impassable. So we decided to walk along the lanes instead.

When we arrived at the viaduct it was magnificent, even more beautiful up close and personal so to speak. The grey clouds in the sky really added to the atmosphere of the great big arches. If you ever get the chance to visit this viaduct up close then I strongly recommend you do.

After visiting the viaduct we headed into the village of Sedbergh to get some lunch before heading to Dent station and back around to Lancaster via Settle and Giggleswick. A great and memorable weekend was had.

After spending the week working at Dumfries, I headed to Glasgow for a weekend. The trip started in Stranraer before heading into Glasgow for just a couple of days visiting the urban stations around the city.

The best station of the weekend was visiting Barrhill on the Stranraer line. A station where the manual token exchange happens before the line to Stranraer turns into a single track line.

I can remember the final station of the trip very well. Sadly it is where I heard the announcement that non essential travel was no longer allowed due to the dreaded Covid-19 pandemic that had taken it's hold on the country.

April

Ah April... The month where the closest I got to a train was watching them going over the Leven VIaduct near Ulverston. The month where I got hit down by Covid. Getting over Covid was a struggle, Then once I got over Covid I then had to deal with the mental side of having my whole life turned upside down. I lost my travel, I wasn't working, I wasn't able to visit my two daughters. It was possibly the lowest I have ever been.

Coming out of that period was a long process. I spent it by making many trips down to the Leven Viaduct where I would just sit and watch the trains pass over the viaduct, longing to be travelling on one of them.

April is a month I would rather forget about. So moving on...

May

Mid May... I got to travel again on a train! It was incredible, in fact it was amazing! I was travelling to visit my two daughters. The fact I was travelling to visit my daughters made the journey an even better experience.

Train travel during this period of time was very weird, but I felt incredibly privileged to be able to travel on the trains. Even if it was just between Ulverston & Millom. The fact I was travelling anywhere was enough to lift my spirits, it made me happy again.

With my spirits lifted again I started planning trips that might take place when restrictions were lifted. I planned a trip that would allow me to visit every remaining station in Wales in the space of 15 days. It would of been one hell of a trip. As it was this trip never happened, I've still got £250 tied up in hotels that I keep changing the dates of. At least I know how long to allow for Wales in the future!

But ultimately, even with the positive things that happened in May, It was still a long month hoping to be allowed to go on adventures again...

June

June was pretty much the same as May, but with one added thing. I broke the rules! I took an non essential journey. Well non essential according to Boris! Very essential to me. After the previous couple of months of struggling through I decided that on my Dads birthday I was going to go to Kendal on the bus and head up to Brigsteer to where my dads ashes are.

After visiting my Dad I headed back into Kendal. With Stagecoach still running a very limited service it was quicker to head from Kendal to Windermere on the train and get the bus back to Ulverston from there. Travelling on the train from Kendal to Windermere was my first experience of people not taking COVID serious. Loads of teenagers with cases of beer, non wearing masks all heading to the Lakes for an afternoon in the sun. I'd worried my reason for travelling wasn't essential, I suddenly realised out of everyone on that train I properly had the best reason out of everyone to be travelling that day!

July

Travel is back!!!

On the 7th July a tweet appeared from Northern in reply to a passenger asking about leisure travel. The tweet read: "Non-essential travel is allowed, we do advise only travelling by rail if it is your only option, in line with the Government guidance. If you do have to travel you must wear a face covering on the train (unless a medical condition prevents you) and try to avoid busy periods". Well that was it, I headed straight to Booking.com and booked a hotel in Berwick-Upon-Tweed for 2 days later... I was back on the trains and was definitely not wasting anytime, travel was a plenty in July.

My first trip since the end of March saw me travel to Northumberland and I then spent the next few days working my way south to York. The first day of my trip was off the back of a morning working in Carlisle when I headed off towards Newcastle. On the way over I ticked off the stations between Hexham and Newcastle. After this I headed north ticking off the remaining stations I needed on the famous Chathill service. With these stations ticked off I boarded a XC voyager at Morpeth to take me towards my hotel for the night which was in Berwick-upon-Tweed.

My first hotel in over 3 months, I treated myself to somewhere a little nicer than the usual chains I use. I spent the night at the Kings Arms right in the centre of the town. It was lovely place to stay, Travel was back, and I couldn't of been happier!

The next day I headed south and ticking off the remaining stations in the Newcastle area and down towards Sunderland. Sunderland was by far the lowest point of this trip, for two reasons: firstly it is definitely in my top 5 of stations I won't be returning too. Secondly, As I stepped out of the station in search of a drink a Seagull decided it would welcome me by letting one drop on me! Thankfully it landed on my shoulder, it just meant I was spending the rest of the day not wearing my jumper.

After the poop of Sunderland I headed down the line to the newest station in England (at the time) Horden. Horden had opened during the lockdown with no fanfare and very discreetly to avoid enthusiasts travelling during lockdown to visit the station. I have mixed feelings about this station and will cover this in the future.

After departing Horden I was now heading to the Whitby line to visit my final two stations of the day, and also my final stations between Middlesborough and Whitby.

I travelled on to Commondale where I then took the walk to Castleton Moor. During this walk I had another encounter with an animal, this time it was more of a land animal that was the issue. As I entered a field that the public footpath runs through I notice that a Llama (Yes it really was a Llama) only decided to hiss and run at me. Needless to say I hot footed it out of the field and looked into finding an alternative route.

After a night at Middlesborough Travelodge it was time to head home, via a visit to Barnard Castle because I needed my eyes testing after seeing the Llama.

The following week I decided to take a jolly around the country... Taking in a day in London catching up with a good friend. I then headed to Somerset where I visited both family and friends for the weekend.

Travelling around London for a day really made me want to return soon. So I decided to plan one in for the next month.

When visiting Somerset I took a trip to Wellington, the home of what is increasingly looking like a future station. It was really nice to just travel around again. It's not just the challenge I had missed during lockdown. But also the freedom the railways give you to escape!

And just when you think July couldn't get any better I went walking around the Dent station area with the only intention of getting some photos of the Staycation Express that was operating. The photo I took at Arten Gill Viaduct ended up being printed on the front page of the Yorkshire Post and was even printed in the Sunday Telegraph as part of articles about the Staycation Express. Seeing my photo printed in these papers was one of the proudest moments since starting the challenge.

To say thanks for the use of the photo the company behind the Staycation Express were allowing me a day to travel on their service. This was a fantastic day, loved every minute of it.

It was a fantastic way to end the month!

August

As we arrived into another month I took a trip down to the capital to tick of as much of London as I could. London for me is not an area I really enjoy, it's a part of the challenge I kind of just want to get completed as quick as possible. I am aware there will be some nice areas in London, but London in general is just a place I have never wanted to visit. I am yet to visit anywhere in London to change my mind on this to be honest.

During my time in London I met up with my mate Dave ( @KiteWithRoseton ). We headed down to Kent where we visited several stations in the Sevenoaks area. Had a fantastic day. The standout memory was visiting the vilage of Shoreham, what a beautiful village it was.

After visiting London I decided to take the EMR HST to Leeds before spending a few days visiting stations in the Leeds & Harrogate area. While staying in Leeds I got to catch up with my mate Paul for the first time since lockdown. After this it was time to head home via Skipton to visit my Nan. While in London I had heard the bad news that my Nan had been diagnosed with Dementia. Although my Nan is very stubborn and rarely lets anything get the better of her.

To end the month I decided to take a trip to Scotland to visit the suburban stations around Glasgow. On one of the mornings I thought it would be fun to take a trip on the West Highland Line as far as Crianlarich. I am so pleased that I did this, what beautiful scenery it was!

After a morning of beautiful stations next to lochs it was a startling contrast in the afternoon to be visiting stations in suburban Glasgow. But that said I managed to tick off a substantial amount of stations.

It was lovely to visit Scotland when I did, It's made me really excited to get back north of the border later in 2021. Far North line is pencilled in after moving the dates from last Junes cancelled trip.

September

September started with a mega trip. It entailed with one day in London, including ticking off the beautiful London Kings Cross. I then spent the afternoon visiting stations in Southeast London, in particular stations between Lewisham/Deptford/Lee and Northfleet. As I have previously said about London, it is an area I am keen to finish.

After a lovely night staying at a hotel near Victoria station I rather enjoyed visiting stations between Ladywell and Hayes. Yes, I did say enjoyed! Most of the stations on this line didn't really feel like they was in London. It was a rather surreal moment. It did make me think that there could be more to enjoy in London... I am planning 4 days in London in March time, I shall be interested to see if there are any more stations that sway my mind.

After a couple of days I headed into Essex, which was my first time venturing into Essex. After seeing a few episodes of The Only Way Is Essex I had a preconception of how Essex would be. It was actually the complete opposite. It was a lovely place with some lovely beaches and some nice countryside.

I have very strong memories of visiting all the stations on the Southminster line. Both for good and bad reasons. The good reasons was stations like Battlesbridge and Burnham-on-Crouch. I found these stations to be rather nice. After then I visited North Fambridge, which might of been rather nice had it not started to go dark. With the disappearance of the sun, the cold came and took it's place and I, the idiot on this occasion, had chose to only wear a tshirt and shorts. It made for a very long and painful hour.

After visiting the delights of Essex it was time to head north for a few days in Lincolnshire. To finish what I started in Febuary. I started my trip to Lincolnshire by completing the Poacher Line between Grantham and Skegness which basically meant ticking off the stations Hubberts Bridge and Swineshead. After doing this I headed Spalding before then heading towards Lincoln.

Lincolnshire for me is a beautiful county, all be it a little to flat, but still beautiful. The main problem is the public transport network. It is extremely poor. I imagine living in the area must be an absolute nightmare if you don't drive.

I ended my visit to Lincolnshire at Market Rasen, I was then ready to head to Nottinghamshire

I was now ready to spend a couple of days ticking of stations around Nottinghamshire. A county that is new to me, never properly visited before. I've still no idea if I like Nottinghamshire or not to be honest. I am pleased I still have the Newark Castle line to visit, hopefully this will help me make my mind up.

I did cut my trip to Nottinghamshire short by a day as by this point I was pretty exhausted after a few early starts and a few late finishes. At this point I had to remind myself the challenge is meant to be fun. Hence the heading home a day earlier than planned.

I did have another trip planned a week later, I decided to cancel this, I needed to spend some time at home, some down time. So that's what I did. It turned out to be a good idea, the recharge helped.

For the rest of September I pretty much spent my time just chilling with family and friends. On one very sunny Saturday my mate Dave (who I met in London the previous month) came to visit Cumbria for a day on the Cumbria Coastline.

We headed up to Parton before heading to Nethertown and then St Bees. It was just a lovely leisurely day travelling and enjoying the scenery.

For the best part of the month I spent time with my two daughters. Took them for a walk around Kendal castle and also took them to visit my Nan in Skipton.

October

October is home to a trip I have been looking forward to since the start of the challenge. It was my trip to the Isle of Wight.

But first I had to get to there, and me being me didn't go direct (Is there even a direct route from Ulverston to the Isle of Wight?) I went via Bedford, in order to finish the Marston Vale line now that it was back up and running.

After a night in Bedford I headed straight into London for a day of station ticking south of the river in the Twickenham & Shepperton area. A highlight of this day was when I took a lovely walk between Barnes Bridge & Mortlake along side The Thames, well until the path was impassable due to flooding. The views were really beautiful!

After a day in London it was time to head to the south coast. As I still needed lots south of London at the time I decided to head to the south coast using the route via Liphook, ticking off all the stations on the way.

A station that stands out from that day was Rowlands Castle. A beautiful station building, but the village was rather beautiful. The village shop felt rather quaint. After Rowlands Castle I had an hour at Liphook where I had hoped to find a fish & chip shop. This was not to be, so it was off to the Sainsburys for a Bacon and Ketchup sandwich, the best sandwich there is!

My hotel for the night was close to Hedge End station. I had booked this during the first lockdown as it was a bargain I could not miss. A MacDonald hotel for under £65 including breakfast was a fab price.

It was time to head to the Isle of Wight! I can tell you now I was proper excited. I had even planned to go over on the Hovercraft, the only commercial passenger hovercraft left operating in the world!

After travelling to Portsmouth & Southsea I hopped on a bus which would take me straight to the Hovercraft landing at Southsea. Sadly I got the impression that passengers with rail tickets were a little inconvenience. Or rather they would rather fill the hovercraft with people who booked full price tickets through their website.

Anyway, I was onboard, although to be honest the crossing was far less exciting than I had expected. That said, I wasn't sure what to expect!

The first thing I did when I arrived on the Island was head to the station, and noticed the next train was calling at Smallbrook Junction. This was fantastic news as this is a station that only usually sees trains that connect with services on the Isle of Wight steam railway. For some reason on this day every service was calling at the station. I was extremely grateful.

After a short wait at Smallbrook Junction I headed back to Ryde St Johns where I headed for my hotel to drop my bag off before heading back to the trains. After a trip to Pier Head I headed towards Brading where I was meeting up with my good mate Jack who was on the island for the same reason as me. We decided to take a walk from Brading to the coastal town of Bembridge and go in search of some fish and chips. After this we hopped on the bus down to Sandown where Jack headed for his hotel and I headed back to my hotel in Ryde.

My second day on the island didn't get off to the best start. I headed to the Ryde Esplanade to get a train down to Shanklin only to discover the trains were not running due to both units failing that morning.

As a result it was to the buses and a trip to visit a disused railway and visit the needles. After this I headed back towards Newport and had a look at Carisbrooke Castle. This was followed by a run down to Ventnor on the south coast.

The next morning there was still no trains so I headed back to the mainland knowing I would be returning to the Isle of Wight at some point. I suppose it's a perfect excuse to test out the new units from Viva Rail which are been introduced around March 2021.

After my jolly on the Isle of Wight I spent the next couple of days visiting stations in the West Sussex area. Before I started this challenge I had this preconception that London ended and Brighton immediately began. What I definitely didn't expect was for there to be beautiful scenery and some even more beautiful stations. A line that shows this at it's best in my opinion is the line from Dorking to Arundel. Upon departing every station on this line I was chomping at the bit to see what the next station would look like!

After completing West Sussex I headed over to the east side, East Sussex. Not much to say other than It was very similar to West Sussex. Although visiting Hastings was a highlight for me, For many years I believed Hastings was a place made up by my primary school teachers in history... I'm pleased to say at the age of 35 I have learnt this is not the case ;-)

After my time in East Sussex I headed to Kent, which is a trip I have been looking forward to. Kent is a county that has completely taken me by surprise, it's beautiful. A county I will definitively be returning to after this challenge, I guess it does help that it is home to the Javelin.

As it was on this trip, I found myself completing every station in Kent. My final station in Kent was Charing. I honestly can't wait to visit Kent again, it might happen before the end of the challenge.

After completing Kent it was time to head home to the north.

I ended October with a trip to Yorkshire, All of Yorkshire. During this trip I was planning on doing the stations on the very awkward line between Knottingley and Goole. After a day of visiting stations on the line between Hull and Selby I boarded a bus that was taking me to Hensall. While on the way I learned that the only afternoon train was cancelled. It led to a quick re plan for my week. I've got to say, Northern customer services were amazing. A quick call to them, and they arranged a taxi to pick me up and take me to my hotel.

The next day went much better, it kind of became known as the awkward station day. Starting on the Goole to Knottingly line, then taking a sneaky trip into South Yorkshire to complete that county. After that I went to get Pontefract Baghill, Church Fenton & Ulleskelf before heading to Selby to try and get the last two stations on the Goole to Knottingly line again. Happy to say this was a success.

November

After a few days in Goole I headed towards the East Riding of Yorkshire Coastline. This was a line that I found very pleasant. Several wonderful stations, some single platform delights and some decent train sheds. Sadly they tend to symbolise the stations used to be much busier and required much more services and longer trains.

Arriving at Bridlington felt like a massive milestone, it was my final station that is managed by Northern. All 480 of them! To celebrate I headed to Wetherspoons for a breakfast, and admittedly a bottle of Birra Moretti was consumed with my breakfast. Since I had 2 hours to kill I took a lovely walk along the sea front. I thought it was a rather beautiful sea side town. Much nicer than some others I have travelled too.

Next up after Bridlington was my final two stations of the trip. Seamer was up next where I swapped over to TPE which would take me to Scarborough. If Bridlington felt like a massive milestone then Scarborough was about to smash it out of the water. In visiting Scarborough I had now completed every station in the north of England. The most north station in England was Retford.

I am not going to lie, I sat on the longest railway bench in the world and had a moment to myself where a few tears were shed. Given everything that has happened in 2020 I did have moments where I wondered if I would ever get this far in the challenge.

I spent the rest of the day looking around Scarborough and enjoying some down time.

While at my hotel that evening I watched the Doris press conference when they announced that they were placing the country back into lockdown on November 5th. I was meant to be heading to Inverness the next day for a week. Obviously this was not going to happen now.

I decided to extend my stay at Scarborough and enjoy some time travelling around the local area before heading home. I revisited Whitby and took a walk up to the abbey on the hill before heading on the train to Saltburn.

It was lovely to have some leisure time before the country went into lockdown. I am sure it made things easier for me to cope with lockdown.

I spent the most part of the rest of November just relaxing locally. The only real stand out thing was walking between Ulverston and Kirkby-in-Furness before catching the train to visit my two daughters.

Other than that I spent my time just watching box set after box set and movie franchise after movie franchise. I also did more housework than any person has ever done before.

December

After lockdown I had a choice to make, it was either head to London for a few days of station ticking. Or head off on a jolly to Cornwall to enjoy some beautiful IETs and beautiful coastline.

Obviously I opted for Cornwall. This was purely an enjoyment trip. It was also a make the most of time whilst I could. With the government quite literally moving the goal posts every other day I wanted to enjoy a leisurely break when I could.

I travelled down to Birmingham using Avanti and then switched to CrossCountry which was horrific as it was a horrid voyager for 2 hours. Honestly these are by far the worst long distance units in the country. I was over the moon to arrive at Taunton where I swapped on to a fantastic IET. The journey from here to Penzance was lovely.

The next day I headed first to Mousehole for a look around the harbour there and was completely taken aback to see people swimming in the harbour in the rain and the December cold air.

After this I then took a trip to visit the beautiful St Ives and had a proper good look around including popping upto St Nicholas Chapel. After a look around St Ives I hopped on the train to Carbis Bay to get a photo that I have wanted to get for quite a while.

After getting this photo it was onwards to Truro where I swapped train for bus and headed for the North Coast where I would be spending the night.

After a fantastic night at The Port William, Trebarwith Strand, my first port of call for the day was to visit Boscastle a little further up the coast. A place infamous for the floods in 2004 where parts of the village were simply washed away into the sea, including the restaurant where I had my really delicious breakfast.

After Boscastle I headed into Wadebridge before I headed to Port Issac, aka Portwenn from Doc Martin. An absolutely stunning fishing village that really takes your breath away. Places like this can only be found in Cornwall!

After this I headed on a long bus journey that would take me to Liskeard where my hotel was for the night.

The next day I had originally planned to get up at the crack of dawn and head to Polperro for a walk along the coast to Looe. I woke at 4:30am and it was absolutely hammering it down. I decided the best course of action was going back to bed and having another 3 hours sleep.

When I did wake up I headed to Liskeard station to head east. Today was a day to catch up with my mate Dave again. We headed to Dawlish where we took a walk along the sea wall. Before we took the walk we made sure we had got some grub and got some pictures of the impressive Wave Walker.

After the walk I headed to Plymouth ready for the next morning.

The next morning I headed up the Gunnislake line with one thing in my head. A photo of the magnificent Calstock viaduct. After getting the photo I was after I headed for a walk following the river and up around the old tin mines. The countryside was magnificent.

After taking this walk I headed back into the village where I was on the hunt for a shop. A shop I failed to find, but I did find a deli that had a board out front advertising bacon rolls. Asked for a bacon roll and can of pop which I was really looking forward to and was hoping for an outstanding bacon roll. What I was met with was a hot dog roll with far to much butter and two tiny pieces of bacon that were so well cooked they snapped more like cardboard!

After binning half of the terrible bacon roll I headed back down to Plymouth and then headed to Exeter.

For the final day of the trip I had intended to go up the Tarka line to Barnstaple and on wards to Lynton & Lynmouth on the North Devon coast.

As it was I decided to head back down to Cornwall to visit Polperro which I bailed on earlier in the trip due to the weather. This time the weather was simply stunning. Blue skies as far as the eye could see.

The journey down was lovely, time flew by. Before I knew it I was arriving into Liskeard and heading to the bus stop to Polperro. It was a stark reminder of the times given that on the bus I was the only person on board for the entire journey.

Arriving at the top of the village I walked down to the harbour and then took a little walk west along the coast path. The views were amazing, arriving back at the harbour I decided to sit by the harbour wall for a short while.

After this it was time to head home, via visiting family on the way north. Although I didn't know it at the time, this was to be my last trip of 2020.

After my trip to Devon & Cornwall I just spent the rest of the month at home relaxing with family. The only day trip I went on was when I headed up to Keswick to take a walk along the only railway line towards Penrith. This is a line I have been looking into as how it firstly closed amazes me, but what amazes me more is how it's not been reopened yet, or even short listed to reopen. This is something I will be looking into more over the coming weeks.

Whilst in that area I also took a trip on the open top bus along side Derwentwater and did some walking around the area. All in all it was a lovely day out, one I will be repeating after lockdown.

2021...

I had 2021 all planned out until the end of June, this was until the country started 2021 in a national lockdown. Who knows when I will be back out on the railways.

I have a couple of trips which are paid for that were paid for at the start of last year and had to be postponed. The first of these is the Far North Line at the end of March, but that all rests in the hands of Nicola and Doris.

Other than these couple of trips it is safe to say that I have a very empty diary. There is however lots of plans in my head, with some making it as far as rough plans for when we get the go ahead to travel again. For now I will spend the time exploring what is on my door step.

All that remains now is for myself, my partner, and my two daughters to wish everyone the best of luck for 2021...

We will come through this pandemic, we will come out of this pandemic as better people. Stay Strong, Stay Safe!

REWIND: #FAREWELLHST125

Sun, 17 May 2020 23:12:00 GMT

The date was Saturday 18th May 2019. The location was Paddington station. The occasion was to say farewell to one of histories greatest trains!

The HST to many is the ultimate train. It was the ultimate travel experience, the ultimate way of getting from A-B. For one last time it would be departing from Paddington station. For one final time it would be running the tracks of the Great Western Railway. As the final four trains lined up on platforms 1-4 crowds were gathering to say their own farewell.

Below I relive the day, sharing tweets, videos & photos from the day. Enjoy taking a trip down memory lane... Or maybe Great Western Lane is more apt. Enjoy

The evening started by arriving at Paddington, just after the arrival of the first HST into platform 1, This was the service that had arrived from Bristol TM. The crowds were already building and you could sense all sorts of mixed emotions in the air.

I spent a little bit of time at the top of the platform getting a few photos and taking in the atmosphere. I can't ever recall an atmosphere like this at a station. It is a mixture of excitement and sadness. As I walked to the bottom of the platforms it was starting to dawn on me how important the HST is to so many people.

I arrived down to the bottom of the station just in time to see the 2nd HST arriving with the service from Great Malvern, Live video here :

The excitement continued to grow as the train arrived.

During the day I had been chatting to several people on Twitter. While stood at the end of the platform photographing the HSTs I was lucky enough to meet a couple of the people I'd been chatting to. Unfortunately I managed to get a little confused with who I was talking to. Easily done for me, peoples names go out of my head far too easily.

Always great meeting followers, but if I forget your name, don't be offended, I just have a crap memory.

A short while later the 3rd train arrived, this was the service from Swansea. This would later form the very last HST departure from Paddington.

I had originally planned to arrive into London on this train. But I changed my plan to include visiting stations in Kent. It was nearly time, 3 out of the 4 trains had now arrived.

I was at this point trying to decide if I should stay where I was or head back down the platform to get a picture of the final train arriving from there. As it was. I chose to stay where I was.

A short while later, all four trains were at the respective platforms.

After I had taken all the photos at the end of the platform that I wanted to take I headed to join the queue of fellow excited enthusiasts all waiting to board the final train.

While waiting to board people were all chatting about there memories of the HST over the years. It was nearly time to board the final train. It got me thinking about my memories of them. Having lived in Evesham for a few years I travelled on the Cotswold line a few times.

After a short wait we were taken up the ramp and over the footbridge to the waiting HST on platform 4.

After finding my carriage it was time to find my seat. It was nice to see that every seat had a little memento on it for all passengers.

Later on in the journey they came round and gave some others that said " Last day of HST operation on the Great Western Railway" I now have both of the window labels in a frame along with the one from the night riviera that I got a few months earlier,

There was a shop on the train selling additional products to buy. Due to the reports of queues that were quite long I ended up giving this a miss. The window labels and my photos were good enough souvenirs.

The crowds upon departure were incredible. I mean I knew before this trip how much the HSTs meant to people. But this trip was showing me how much they really meant to so many people.

As some one who at the time would not call himself a train enthusiast, more a travel enthusiast, I was more interested in the travel and what service you got onboard. On this journey I saw why people loved the HST,

On this trip I myself turned from not just been a travel enthusiast to a little bit of a train enthusiast too. The power of the HST I suppose.

We set off out of Paddington and raced along towards our first call of the journey. On the journey we would be calling at: Reading, Didcot Parkway, Swindon, Chippenham, Bath Spa, Bristol, Weston-Super-Mare, Taunton (where I would alight) then it went on to Tiverton Parkway and finishing at Exeter St Davids.

The first stop on the journey was Reading. When at Reading the train totally emptied so every one could run out and get photo's. I didn't - Something i really regret when I look back at the day. thankfully there is Twitter and YouTube so I can look back at everyone else's day.

The same pattern happened at all the stations on the route. I did wonder if anyone would get left behind at one of the stations... I know I shouldn't laugh, but it would of been a little bit funny. I did opo out at Bristol Temple Meads and Weston-Super-Mare.

During the journey there was some special announcements by several different people, including GWR Deputy MD Matthew Golton, NR Chairman ⁦Sir Peter Hendy and the one and only Sir Kenneth Grange.

Along the journey I got to meet several people. After having a brief catch up at Paddington I had a proper catch up with @125_RailwayInfo (If you don't follow Cameron and his team please do, they a great bunch of knowledgeable and friendly people). At Bath I also got to catch up with @DsTrains who I first met when I visited Pilning staion. Always good to have a chat and catch up with Dan.

A massive highlight of the trip for me was getting to shake hands with the great gent that is Sir Kenneth Henry Grange. The gentleman was responsible interior layout and exterior styling of the nose cone of British Rail's HST.

Having travelled in the drivers cab between Bath Spa and Bristol he was making his way back down through the train. He was stopping on his way to shake peoples hands and saying hello to people. A proper gent he was.

After leaving Bristol Temple Meads the train headed to Weston-Super-Mare. At Weston-Super-Mare is where Dan alighted and we had about a 10 minute wait. I went and had a stroll on the platform while talking to the GWR platform staff.

Between Weston-Super-Mare and Taunton I had half the carriage to myself which allowed me time to reflect on the evening. The journey had flown by, far quicker than previous journeys on that route.

We arrived at Taunton where I was allowed the treat of going in the drivers cab. Going in the drivers cab was a proper treat and ended the journey in the most memorable fashion.

After the HST departed from Taunton it headed down into Devon.

The next stop on the journey was Tiverton Parkway and then it was onto it's final stop, Exeter St Davids where a huge crowd welcomed and then watched the final HST to operate on the Great Western Railway.

I think anyone that travelled on final HST will agree that GWR put on a great finale. I know that for me it is an evening that will stick with me forever.

A year has now passed since proper HST services finished running on the Great Western Railway. The IET's have now been running since 16 October 2017. They have now had their time to settle in. I personally quite like them. I know they don't have the comfort of the HST, but they have grown on me, to a point where I would actually struggle to choose between a HST or an IET now... Controversial I know...

And with that bomb shell... I will say my farewells.

Until my next blog.

Many Thanks for reading

Stuart :)

Have your very own Every Last Station Adventure

Mon, 27 Apr 2020 22:50:54 GMT

Have a day out on the Conwy Valley Line in North Wales. Planned to detail by me :)

Plan Information

I originally visited the Conwy Valley on the 8th September 2018. It really is a beautiful line. Starting at Llandudno Junction and running the full length of the valley all the way down to Blaenau Ffestiniog. Here I have decided to plan a day out on the Conwy Valley which everyone can do. I have included things to do at each station, including walks to outstanding view points, all times of trains (including service code) & bus times.

Plan is based on Saturday 29th August rail workings. Although it would work on any Saturday subject to maintenance. Always check Transport for Wales website before heading out for any adventure. That way you avoid the disappointment of no trains.

This is a plan for a 1 day trip, but with the adventure starting at Betws-y-Coed it is advised to stay the night before in accommodation in Betws-y-Coed. It is possible to stay near Llandudno Junction or Llanrwst. But doing this would require you getting the 0530 from Llandudno Juntion (0548 Llanrwst). Booking.com is showing accommodation options varying from £40 upwards. When the day ends there is an option of an extra night at Machynlleth or Aberystwyth.

Ticketing Information

For the one day:

North Wales Rover 2 Zone:

Adult: £14.10

Child: £9.00

Railcards: Not allowed

For the two days:

North Wales Rover 3 Zone:

Adult: £24.00

Child: £15.30

Railcards: Not allowed

If you're planning on spending more days travelling on the trains or buses other than the Saturday, it might be beneficial buying the below tickets:

Explore North & Mid Wales Pass

adult: £69.00

adult 16-17 saver: £34.50

child: £34.50

railcards: £45.55 (16-26/SEN/DIS/2T)

* Ticketing issue all from http://www.railrover.org/

* All above tickets are valid on buses on the Conwy Valley.

Station 1: Betws-y-Coed

Arrive: Anytime Previous day

Depart: 0650 (2D11)

We start the days trip at Betws-y-Coed. Having arrived the day before plenty of time would have been allowed for a good look around the village. I can personally recommend both the buffet coach at the station and the chip shop by Pont-y-Pair Bridge in the village centre. Also the Spar shop sells very good steak pies and flapjack.

It's an early start I'm afraid for the 0650 train towards Llandudno Junction. So not too many beers I'm afraid the night before in one of the many bars in Betws-y-Coed.

When on the platform have a look at the marvellous station roof and the amazing footbridge.

Station 2: Tal-y-Cafn

Arrive: 0709 (2D11)

Depart: 0736 (2D12)

When arriving into Tal-y-Cafn make sure to be looking out of the window to see if you can spot the manual signal person. (They usually dressed in bright orange with a big green flag). Once you have alighted, keep a lookout for the same person to operate the manual level crossing.

There is just under half hour before the next train, luckily that is enough time to take this quick recommended walk . Make sure you arrive back at the station in time to say a friendly hello to the crossing staff and watch them carry out the closing of the crossing.

A beautiful disused platform which looks beautiful thanks to the local community. Disused, but very well loved.

Station 3: Roman Bridge (Request Stop)

Arrive: 0813 (2D12)

Depart: 0856 (2D13)

We arrive at Roman Bridge, a remote station with some very nice scenery about the area. There is just over 45 minutes here so it's worth taking a little stroll down the lane. Click here to see a suggested stroll you can do in between your trains. Make sure you don't walk to far down the lane though, otherwise it will be a bit of a run back along the lane to the station.

Should you not wish to take a walk, or the weather is against you, there is a very decent shelter at the station where a good book helps kill the time.

Station 4: Dolgarrog (Request Stop)

Arrive: 0928 (2D13)

Depart: Walk

Next up on the trip we have Dolgarrog which has been closed for quite a while due to flood damage in March 2019. The station has since had a new platform built.

From Dolgarrog we are about to take on a moderate walk of about 5.5 miles. If you would rather not take on this walk, you can kill some time around the station while waiting for the 1049 train and head to Llanrwst where there are cafes and shops for you to relax in.

Should you wish to take on the walk click here for details.

Station 5: Llanrwst

Arrive: Walk

Depart: 1213 (2D15)

After the walk I suggest a little walk into the town and source some ice cream and something refreshing to drink. Depending how much time you have before the train, there might be time to pop into one of the cafes in the town.

When you are boarding at the station make sure you board where the guard is. You are on this train for only a couple of minutes and the next station is a request stop. You want to make sure the guard knows you wish to alight at the next stop.

Station 6: North Llanrwst (Request Stop)

Arrive: 1214 (2D15)

Depart: 1243 (X19 bus from Salisbury Terrace bus stop)

When you board the train at Llanrwst it is not in the slightest worth taking a seat. You are quite literally only on the train for 1 minute.

North Llanrwst was the first station in the town. You will be able to tell this by the original building structure and the signs of the original low platforms.

When leaving the station for the bus I suggest taking a little detour to look at the Gower Footbridge. Detour to the footbridge can be found here.

Bus Journey: Salisbury Terrace to Plas Mountain Centre

The bus journey is included in the cost of your ranger ticket. The journey take you back through Llanrwst and through Betws-y-Coed.

The bus stop that you get off at is pretty much in the middle of no where. It is definitely worth mentioning to the driver where you intend to get off the bus at. Walk to Pont-y-Pant guide here

Station 7: Pont-y-Pant (Request Stop)

Arrive: 1305 (X19 bus from bus stop down the lane)

Depart: 1406 (2D16)

Time does permit for a walk further down the lane if you wish to kill the time, it is possible to walk this lane all the way to the next station. But to comply to my challenge rules boarding at Pont-y-Pant is required. If not up for the walk, sit back and enjoy the peace and quiet this station provides you.

Pont-Y-Pant is a station that features in my Top 10 ( Which can be seen here ) Spend 5 minutes stood on the platform and you will be able to tell instantly why this is in the top 10.

Station 8: Dolwyddelan (Request Stop)

Arrive: 1409 (2D16)

Depart: 1511 (2D17)

As with Llanrwst, when you board at Pont-y-Pant make sure you notify the guard you wish to alight at Dolwyddelan. You are only on this train for three minutes, so it's important to do this as soon as you board.

There is loads of history at Dolwyddelan which can be seen here .

With just an hour at Dolwyddelan we have time to take a stroll around the village. See this guide for a little stroll around the village which also includes time for a coffee from the Spar shop (that when I visited sold the most amazing cakes ever!) or if you'd rather, there is a pub where a pint, or two could be consumed.

Station 9: Glan Conwy (Request Stop)

Arrive: 1552 (2D17)

Depart: 1636 (2D18)

Glan Conwy station sits right on the bank of the River Conwy. You can even see Conwy Castle in the distance from the platform. With 44 minutes at this station it would be easy to just spend the whole time at the station enjoying the scenery.

If sitting at the station is not for you, a very short walk away is a pub or a village shop. There is also a church you could take a walk around. For me though, it's sitting at the station, chilling and taking in the scenery.

Station 10: Blaenau Ffestiniog

Arrive: 1738 (2D18)

Depart: 1739 (2D19) or Bus to Porthmadog (3B)

Our final station of the day. Depending on what option you have taken for this trip you either have 1 minute here (or how ever long it takes the train staff to change ends). Or you have 52 minutes to have a look around the old historic mining town.

Also the home of the Ffestiniog railway. Unfortunately the timetables don't seem to line up and the Ffestiniog railway train departs 10 minutes before the Transport for Wales service arrives which seems rather daft. Had the timings been right I would of recommended a trip on the heritage line to Porthmadog instead of using the bus.

Trip ending at Blaenau Ffestiniog.

After the beautiful journey back in the early evening sun you'll arrive at Llandudno Junction where your day comes to an end. From here you can pick up a train back towards Birmingham, Manchester and many others.

Continuing your journey to Machynlleth or Aberystwyth

After a walk around Blaenau Ffestiniog you need to head back to the bus stop next to the station where you want to be catching the 3B bus to Porthmadog.

After arriving into Porthmadog head to the station ready to catch the 2056 train to Machynlleth where you can either plan to spend the night or head to Aberystwyth on the 2303 where there is more accommodation options.

Disclaimer: I i n no way hold responsibility for cancellations on trains or buses. Before heading out on any train adventures it is worth checking with National Rail Enquires to check their is no planned maintenance.

Virtual trip on the Settle & Carlisle line

Sat, 11 Apr 2020 19:30:25 GMT

It's back... Another Virtual trip out on the trains!

Giggleswick

Settle

Appleby

Horton-In-Ribblesdale

Armathwaite

Langwathby

Lazonby & Kirkoswald

Garsdale

Kirkby Stephen

Hellifield

Gargrave

Dent

Walk from Dent to Ribblehead

Ribblehead

Long Preston

Adventure Rewind: Lowgill Viaduct

Tue, 07 Apr 2020 16:40:14 GMT

A look back at when Jan, Jack & Paul visited my patch for a magnificent adventure.

The date was Friday 6th March 2020, the location was Ulverston. The plan was simple, to have a great laugh with some good mates!

Below is a recap of what happened during that great weekend.

The Friday - Exploring Ulverston:

The first of the guys to arrive was Paul. As every lads weekend starts it was off to the pub, so off we went to the The Piel Castle Inn while we waited for Jan & Jack to arrive on later trains.

One thing I pride myself on is being quite good a pool. As Paul found out I tend to trick people into thinking they gonna win, then I get one chance and clear the table. I think the final score was 3-0 to me :).

After that arse whipping game of pool we headed back to the station to meet Jan & Jack. This is where we discovered Jack had been a cheeky little buggar and was already in Ulverston, he had got an earlier train and gone through to Dalton and then back to Ulverston.

So with Jan met off the train and now off to his accommodation for the night it was time to go and get Paul checked into his accommodation and go and locate Jack.

We then all met up again in the centre of Ulverston to head for a walk.

When ever I have friends visiting Ulverston the first place I always take them is up to the Sir John Barrow Monument, known locally as Hoad, or the pepper pot (look closely).

We headed up hoad hill the easy way, incidentally the easy way is the longest way. As we got into our stride we made mincemeat of the hill and was looking at spectacular views of the lake district.

As we got nearer to the top of the hill we started to see the views out towards Morecambe Bay. We even spotted a couple of trains, including one of Jacks favourite units, a 156 heading over the Leven's viaduct ;-)

While sat on the bench taking in the view over Ulverston Jan clocked the canal and started asking me questions. I hung my head in shame as I admitted my knowledge of the canal was very poor. Other than the fact it is the shortest canal in Britain I know very little else about it.

After this we headed on down the hill, this time we just took the direct route, straight down from the monument to the bottom of the hill following what can be best described as rabbit tracks.

After we got down from the Sir John Barrow Monument we headed for the canal.

Deciding we had enough time we chose to take a walk as far down as the old rolling bridge which as Jan says in his tweet is a listed structure and used to be part of the Furness Railway. The tracks used to continue to the Priory that is located near to the village of Bardsea. In later times they were only used as far as the Glaxo Smith Kline site.

After this we walked over the rolling bridge (there is a foot bridge incorporated) and headed back into Ulverston where we had a table booked at The Stan Laurel Inn.

We enjoyed a marvellous meal and drinks while we talked about our various travels around the country. It was a great way to end a fantastic afternoon.

The Saturday - The Great Lowgill Adventure:

We started the day with a trip with Stagecoach to Windermere from Ulverston. On a Saturday only, it requires a change at Newby Bridge onto an Optare. Slightly annoying this is as I was hoping we could of had a double decker which would of allowed us to get some splendid views over Lake Windermere.

As you can see from Paul's tweet this was still achieved. We headed along from Newby Bridge hugging the lake all the way to Bowness before we headed in land and up towards the station.

One of my favourite days out is to go to Windermere and use a lakes day ranger. Travel on the boats, buses and trains as much as you wish. A great value ticket. That will be for another trip.

Timings allowed for us to make a quick dash down into Windermere village centre to locate the Greggs for the all important Sausage & Bacon buns/baps/barms/butty/roll (delete as appropriate).

After stocking up with breakfast we headed back to the station where we found a luxurious 195 waiting to take us to Oxenholme. This 195 wasn't going to be our final piece of luxury travel today..

Travelling on a limited stop service it felt like we arrived into Oxenholme in no time, in fact we was 2 minutes early. The acceleration & braking on these 195s is incredible.

We then headed down to the bus top and awaited our bus to take us to Sedbergh. The S1 Saturday only service takes you from the Morrisons at Kendal to Dent station.

We arrived at the start of our walk. But there was however one little problem. The path we had intended to take was blocked by a huge amount of mud on the path. Even a pig would think twice about going through it.

So we headed off to find an alternative path. Thankfully 100 meters up the road there was another path that would still get us to our destination. So through the gate and along the river bank we went. As we walked through the woods we came across a rope swing, as Jack was the youngest we decided he should test the swing. I think it's safe to say he didn't trust it to much.

After working our way through the wooded area by the river we came out onto the fields which we walked across admiring the fact that all we could hear was the sound of the river and the sound of birds singing. It really was a tranquil area.

After crossing the fields we ended up at a tiny country lane. Turning right we headed along the lane and came across the first viaduct of the day. Now I knew about this one but kept it a secret from the others. A bonus viaduct. Thanks to Paul Whitewick on Twitter we now know this is the Lune Viaduct.

After pausing for some photos of the viaduct we continued along the lane. We passed a delightful little chapel which I tried to have a look in. As the world is in the 21st century this was now locked :(. It makes me sad when chapels have to be kept locked. They used to be places for safety, a place to go and feel safe. What type of world do we live in when places that are meant to be safe havens have to be now kept locked.

Now whenever walking in a group one always opens their mouth and says something they shouldn't. On this occasion it was Paul. He decided to point out that not one single car had passed us since we started the walk. Needless to say from that point on we saw several cars. One almost instantly after he finished cursing us.

Well we made it. We got to Lowgill Viaduct. Wow, was the walk worth it! The walk was beautiful enough. But the scenery around Lowgill viaduct was amazing. As you can see from Jan's tweets, we was all happy to make it.

The viaduct used to carry the Ingleton branch line over it. The line housed 3 separate viaducts, the two we seen on this walk and then the one at Ingleton, which I plan to visit in the future.

Of interest the Ingleton branch line wasn't closed for passenger services by Dr Beeching. Passenger services ended in the mid 50's. With the line fully closed in the 60's. I recommend giving a video by Paul Whitewick a watch on his YouTube channel . It's a good one!

Back to the day we visited, we made an attempt to gain access to take a walk on the viaduct. Unfortunately we was unable to seek permission. Instead I went below the viaduct to the stream and managed to get a photo of a bridge, under the viaduct. Unfortunately in taking the photo I ended up taking a swim in the stream. Thankfully the others were out of sight so did not see this happening. Saved me some embarrassment that did.

As we headed away down the hill from the viaduct we passed a beautiful stream and then set off across the river and back up the other side of the valley.

As we walked up the other side of the valley we clocked a train heading north on the WCML. But from the location we were now in it looked very much like the Avanti pendolino was actaully heading over the Lowgill Viaduct.

I actually put this picture on twitter and many people were actually caught out by this questioning what was the pendo doing there.

The following day I posted another tweet explaining the picture.

After a few unique photos were taken we continued our walk. Unfortunately the weather decided to take a turn for the worst. First the torrential rain arrived, followed by the wind. but we fought on, through the wind and rain.

This part of the walk was up hill for a majority of the walk. As we was walking up the hill I couldn't help but keep looking further up the hill, beyond the road. After having a chat with the other guys myself and Jack decided to take the leap and head further up the hill using a public bridleway. While myself and Jack headed further up hill Paul and Jan headed down into Sedbergh as Paul had to get an earlier bus due to family commitments.

As me and Jack took the detour we was pleased we had. The views were absolutely amazing. The Western Dales are definitely somewhere I will be revisiting. Definitely an under appreciated part of the North in my opinion.

After walking as far as we dared up the moor land we headed back down and into the village of Sedbergh where we met back up with Paul & Jan.

Unfortunately once we got back to Sedbergh we had to say farewell to Paul who had to get back home to a prearranged family commitment.

In the picture you can see Paul waiting to board the Western Dales Bus S1 that would take him to Oxenholme station. This is a service that allows access to some of the really remote areas of the Western Dales, operated by volunteer drivers it is an excellent service which can make the countryside accessible to all. Check out what services they operate on there website (please note they are not operating any services during the Covid-19 outbreak).

After we had waved out goodbyes to Paul we headed for a quick look around the town. Heading straight for the traditional sweet shop in the village centre was top of my list before trying to locate somewhere for dinner. It ended up being a Spar meal deal.

Armed with supplies from the sweet shop and the Spar shop we then went on a disused station hunt.

Jan had the coordinates and off we went searching for what was Sedbergh station. We learned pretty quickly that it was not exactly in the village centre. In fact it was a fair walk. We also learnt that for anyone living in the village of Dent they would probably of lived nearer to Sedbergh station than they would of to Dent station.

As you can see we found the disused station. Now a holiday cottage. There is even the remains of the platform in the garden.

After the success of finding the station we headed back towards the village centre to get the bus to Dent station.

After a delightful bus journey we arrived at Dent station. England's highest station. I love Dent station, so much in fact I featured it in my end of 2019 top 10 .

At 1,150 ft (350 m) it allows for some absolutely stunning views. We all made opportunity of the views and got some splendid photos looking down the valley.

A station I have visited several times in the past. I once walked from here to Ribblehead , the long way round. I also have a plan to walk from Dent to Kettlewell (then bus to Skipton). That will be a future adventure. Likely when this challenge is over.

We waited for the train to arrive and when it did there was sheer happiness amongst the three of us, it was a fully refurbished 158 (158797). You honestly can't beat a fully refurbished Northern 158, I personally think they are better than a 195.

Anyway we boarded and headed to Hellifield.

After a delightful run over the Settle & Carlisle line we have now arrived at Hellifield where there is the beautiful station building. For me this is where the beauty of the Settle & Carlisle line starts. Between here and Appleby is simply beautiful.

We had a quick 5 min connection here for the train to Lancaster. We struck lucky again and got ourselves another refurbished 158!!! Couldn't believe it to be honest!

As the 158 departs that brings to an end our day out. Overall it was an amazing day with some great mates! This is definitely something we will be doing again.

If you don't already be sure to give the guys a follow at there twitter accounts: Jan , Jack & Paul .

Transport Used:

Ulverston to Windermere - Stagecoach X6/6 bus. Cost: £5.20 per person
Windermere to Oxenholme - Northern train. Cost: £6.40 per person (£4.25 with railcard)
Oxenholme to Bridge End (Just outside Sedberge) - Western Dales Bus S1. Cost: £3.50 per person
Sedbergh to Dent - Western Dales Bus S1. Cost £4 per person.
Dent to Ulverston - Northern train with change at Hellifield & Carnforth. Cost: £28.90 per person (£19.10 with railcard)
Total: £48 per person (£36.05 with railcard).

The Walking Route:

Starting the walk on the A684 at the bus stop Bridge End we headed through the gate by the bridge (this part is not shown on the map). Follow the footpath through the woods then across the fields to you rejoin the road as shown on map.
Follow road for just under 3 miles where you will then of arrived at the Lowgill viaduct.
Turn right and walk through the arch of the viaduct. Follow this road for just over a mile until you come to a cross road.
At the cross roads follow the lane for 2 miles. If you wish to take the slight diversion as me and Jack did turn right here up the public bridleway (located in circle on map).
After either taking the detour, or if not taking the detour follow the road for just over a mile until you come to The Dalesman Country Inn in Sedbergh.
Turn right and follow the road for just under 1 mile. Follow road until you reach Westby House, Self Catering Accommodation (the location of Sedbergh disused station).

Many thanks for taking the time to read about my adventure to Lowgill viaduct.

Until next time, STAY HOME, STAY SAFE!

Stuart

Virtual tour of Cornish branch lines

Sat, 04 Apr 2020 20:16:12 GMT

A recap of my virtual tour of Cornwall...

London Euston

London Paddington

The Night Riviera Sleeper

Penzance

Lelant

Lelant Saltings

Carbis Bay

St Ives

St Erth

Truro

Falmouth Town

Penmere

Falmouth Dock

Perranwell

Penryn

Lostwithiel

Hayle

Redruth

Camborne

Coombe Junction Halt

St Keyne Wishing Well Halt

Sandplace

Causeland

Looe

Liskeard

Plymouth

Gunnislake

Calstock

Bere Ferrers

Thank you...

DISCLAIMER:

This was a virtual trip. At no point this weekend have I been on a train. I have been sat at my desk at home.

STAY HOME, STAY SAFE!

#WindowWednesday

Wed, 11 Mar 2020 22:36:40 GMT

The story behind my favourite #WindowWednesday photo's.

Window Wednesday – A weekly feature that I do on my twitter page. When I’m out travelling on the trains, I travel through some of the most beautiful scenery that Britain has to offer. I felt that for this week’s Window Wednesday I would share some of my personal favourites to date.

The 'Ouch' my head hurts edition:

Photo taken during my commute to work. It was taken on a May bank holiday Monday. It’s a safe bet that the gentleman in the photo had drank a bit too much alcohol the night before. Scenes like this are quite frequent on the West Coast Mainline on a Sunday morning or as in this case, a Bank Holiday Monday morning.

Photo Location: Between Oxenholme & Penrith, just as we were heading down from Shap summit.

Date Taken: Monday 27th May 2019

The new to old process:

On a day trip to York with @JackAllStations we noticed there was an Azuma in the station that was getting readied for it’s next service. After asking the onboard staff we were allowed to take a walk through the train we headed down and had a look, neither of us had been on an Azuma before so was nice to see what it was about. While testing the leg room I noticed this awesome chance for a Window Photo.

Photo Location: York station.

Date Taken: Saturday 1st February 2020

Two Little Monkeys Adventure:

A journey I do very often is from Ulverston to Millom. My two daughters live in Millom. On the occasion in the photo I was travelling with them back to Ulverston where we were off to watch the Greatest Showman Sing-a-long New Years Eve party at the Roxy Cinema.

My two girls love travelling on train with me, as nearly every journey starts with a visit to Tesco for some snacks on the journey. Don't worry, I've got them well trained, they always use the bins.

Photo Location: Between Green Road and Millom on the Cumbrian Coastline.

Date Taken: Saturday 31st December 2019

Pilning's Great Escape

A chance meeting with Gareth ( @ManvsTrain ) & Dan ( @DsTrains ). I was on the way back from visiting Honeybourne station I got a message from Dan asking if I was about Worcester. As it happened I was heading back into Worcester at that very moment. On my arrival into Worcester Shrub Hill i met up with Dan & Gareth who were also heading on the same train as me.

Was great to catch up with them, and one to never turn down a chance of a unique window photo. Amazed to see a East Midlands Railways 153 in the West Midlands Railways yard they decided to get some snaps... Little did they know I was taking a snap of my own.

Photo Location: Tunnel Junction near Worcester Shrub Hill

Date Taken: Saturday 2nd November 2019

A Drivers Eye View - GWR Style

The GWR HST Farewell trip from London Paddington to Taunton. What an evening. Met Sir Kenneth Grange on the journey, collected some souvenirs to remember the evening by. It was a fitting end to HST services on London to Southwest services.

The fantastic evening was rounded off with a chance to stand in the front cab and chat to the staff. Although not my best taken window photo, it is without doubt my most memorable one.

Photo Location: Taunton Station

Date Taken: Saturday 18th May 2019

The New Station.

So with the December 2019 timetable change we saw the opening of two new stations (it should of been 3, but we all know how Worcestershire Parkway went) Anyway, i decided I was going to visit all the new stations in one day. Starting bright and early at Warrington West I then headed north to Scotland and to Robroyston.

Photo Location: Robroyston Station

Date Taken: Sunday 15th December 2019

The Disused Viaduct

A route I do often for work. A journey I never ever get bored off. The scenery is amazing. This viaduct is possibly one of the best parts of the journey. Lowgill Viaduct was the start of the Ingleton Branch Line. I have recently visited the viaduct and will be sharing more information in a blog about it.

Photo Location: Lowgill Viaduct.

Date Taken: Thursday 2nd January 2020

The photo bombing friends

Had arranged a day trip to Cheshire with my good mate Paul ( @Trainstationsuk ). We started our day in Manchester on the Denton & Reddish south ghost train. We then knew that our other good mate Dave ( @KiteWithRoseton ) was heading to Manchester Airport through Piccadilly. So we decided to join him.

This photo is high on the list of favourites. Because it's with good friends, all laughing and enjoying our travels.

Photo Location: Near Manchester Airport.

Date Taken: Saturday 18th January 2020

Harbour Sunset

This was a photo that I knew I was going to be able to get before I boarded the train. Having just completed the walk from Lymington Town to Lymington Pier I saw this view from the road. Boarding the train I looked for the perfect location. This was an area I have never been to before, I was very surprised at how beautiful it was.

Photo Location: Lymington Harbour

Date Taken: Friday 6th January 2019

Doesn't always go to plan

You'll have to trust me when I say that behind those trees is a fantastic sunset...

Not all photo's go to plan. Actually more often than not they don't go to plan. I normally take anywhere from 10 photos per journey. Usually only one makes the cut for Twitter. My other half first saw this and all she said "was that's the most concentration I've ever seen in your face"... Cheers for that lol.

Some more window shots...

BACK TO THE 70'S

Fri, 14 Feb 2020 17:50:25 GMT

A Collection of photos taken back in the 70's. Featuring steam and early diesel units.

A friend of mine was having a clear out at home and came across some photo slides that her Dad took of trains on the Furness Line. With my friend not having a big interest in the railways she knew exactly where to send the slides... Straight to me.

So with permission here I am sharing the photo's for everyone to see. Some crackers in here!

Enjoy!

New stations on RTT!!!

Wed, 12 Feb 2020 20:48:29 GMT

A few 2020 station openings have started to appear on Real Time Trains!

Horden (Horden Peterlee)

Bow Street

Kintore

Something to keep in mind is that all the above is subject to change. It's interesting to see though that these new stations are starting to appear on Real Time Trains. Planners are starting to plan which means someone, somewhere is optimistic!

To read more about new stations due to open in 2020 and beyond take a look at my previous blog here: https://www.everylaststation.co.uk/proposed-stations-to-open-in-2020

Anyway, thanks for taking the time to read this quick blog.

Catch ya all soon with another blog.

Stu

OMG - It was a draw!

Mon, 03 Feb 2020 18:30:14 GMT

Yep, it was a tie, unbelievable ain't it? Here is a look at the TWO new least used stations in Britain, along with some others that interested me.

The date was Tuesday 14th January 2020. I was sat at Lancaster station on my way to work, sat on the ORR (Office of Rail & Road) website hitting the refresh key every few seconds until they released the new figures. Up on loading I quickly saw that Denton was at the top of the pile for least used stations... Did a post on Twitter only to the realise that it was in fact a draw! A blooming draw! The millions of train tickets sold a year and the two least used stations were tied! So I quickly deleted my first tweet and posted a new tweet.

While I continued my journey to work, I decided to try and sneak away a little earlier than planned and head to Stanlow & Thornton to mark the occasion. Looking at Real Time Trains you could see why it was the least used station. I boarded the train at Warrington Bank Quay and headed all the way to Stanlow & Thornton. The train getting more and more empty, by the time we reached Stanlow & Thornton there was no more than a handful of people on board the train. They all remained on board to Ellesmere Port. On the return journey there was even less people on board the train, and to make it even more frustrating I was unable to purchase a ticket as the guard had no machine! (Don't worry, I got some tickets when I changed trains at Lancaster).

Stanlow & Thornton

The joint least used station in Britain. To be honest I had a good little laugh to myself when I found out that Stanlow & Thornton was the least used station. I work in the Petroleum Industry and spend much time talking with tanker drivers who are based at Stanlow Oil Refinery. I suppose it's a rare occasion when my railway hobby gets a connection with my job!

I first visited Stanlow & Thornton back in June 2019 as part of a awkward station day that also involved Heysham Port and Ince & Elton, the next station down from Stanlow & Thornton.

I also visited on the 14th January, the day that it was announced as a least used station.

The station itself sits within the refinery and is mainly there to serve the workers of the refinery. The station has a similar feeling to it as that at Redcar British Steel. The only difference here is that you can leave the station platforms and exit the station using a footpath and a road through the Oil Refinery.

Road access is restricted and says authorised access only on a sign at the start of the road towards the station. I would assume if you had to access the station for a train that would make you authorised to use the road? If anyone knows please let me know. I might drop Essar, who operate Stanlow Oil Refinery an email to ask them about access to the station on the road. Once I get a reply, I will post it to my social media channels.

The station opened 23rd December 1940. The station was built to serve Aero Engine Laboratory who were responsible for developing fuels and oils for the Royal Air Force, one assumes during World War 2.

Although the station opened in 1940 it was originally listed for closure as part of the report by Dr. Beeching called "The Reshaping of British Railways".

Despite being listed for closure, it survived. It even went on to have 17 services per day in each direction (Mon to Fri), 13 services per day in each direction on a Saturday. There were no services on a Sunday.

Annual station usage over the last 9 years:

2010/11: 342
2011/12: 468 (Up)
2012/13: 260 (Down)
2013/14: 314 (Up)
2014/15: 158 (Down)
2015/16: 88 (Down)
2016/17 : 128 (Up)
2017/18: 92 (Down)
2018/19: 46 (Down)

As you can see in the screengrabs from Real Time Trains the service frequency is alot less than it was in the 1980's. I want to say that therefore the station usage figures are so low. Unfortunately though I'm pretty sure it is probably the other way round.

The service frequency reflects the passenger usage of the line. The next station down the line towards Helsby only received 552 passengers in the latest figures.

Northern are contractually obliged to operate a service on this line, but I would not be in the least surprised to see it cut down even further. From three services per day to two services. It isn't totally impossible to see it completely put back to one parliamentary service.

There is hope for Stanlow & Thornton... In the form of the Liverpool City Region - Long Term Rail Strategy.

It could be possible in the future to see MerseyRail operating services along the stretch of line that serves Stanlow & Thornton, these would be the services that currently operate on the Wirral line to Ellesmere Port. It is hoped these services could be continued through to Helsby using battery power which will be available on the new Merseyrail class 222 and will enter testing in 2020 according to the report.

It is unknown if these services would call at Stanlow & Thornton, one would assume they will definitely call at Ince & Elton. It could be possible that Stanlow & Thornton is a two hourly stop, hourly in peak. Maybe MerseyTravel could consult with the refinery staff about what would make using the station a more attractive option.

Either way, the future for Stanlow & Thornton isn't all doom and gloom. I will continue to make enquires and update as I get answers.

Denton

Now on to the other joint least used station... Denton!

Now to anyone that knows anything about Denton station it won't have come as a surprise to find Denton as the least used station. The station received 2 services per week, both on a Saturday. Now in 2018 RMT industrial action meant there was 25 consecutive Saturdays in a row with no service at all. Not even a rail replacement bus/taxi.

If services had ran on these days then the passengers figures potentially would of been higher. 52 weeks is give or take a full year, meaning you can basically double the figures. This would have left Stanlow & Thornton well and truly alone at the bottom of the pile...

Denton station is located on the line between Guide Bridge and Stockport in Greater Manchester. The line only has 2 passenger services per week. One towards Stockport and then one back in the opposite direction to Stalybridge.

The location of Denton station isn't great for the centre of the town. With busses into Manchester city centre pretty much every 10 minutes it does seem the hope of Denton figures rising is pretty low.

When travelling to the stations the other weekend I was chatting to the rail user groups for the stations and they mentioned that their is hope that trams could end up serving the area... Is this answer to the problems? Personally I don't think so.

Now, while researching for this blog I made a disturbing discovery. The Northern website doesn't actually list Denton, or Reddish South, as one of their stations. This isn't going to exactly help with passenger usage. I have tweeted Northern, the thread can be seen here .

The current weekly services are:

1023 to Stockport
1054 to Stalybridge

Both Denton & Reddish South stations have groups that are committed to the fight to improve services on the line through these stations. As of yet they have limited success, but I am sure that there is still a fight to be had, one I am happy to join in with.

As can be seen in the 1986/87 timetable you can see that the station used to get 15 services per day, 8 towards Stockport and 7 towards Stalybridge. All these services even in the mid 80's only stopped here if requested.

The service frequency was cut in 1992, it had been reduced to just a single weekly train (the statutory minimum level necessary to avoid the requirement for formal closure proceedings).

Annual station usage over the last 9 years:

2010/11: 52
2011/12: 30 (Down)
2012/13: 194 (Up)
2013/14: 110 (Down)
2014/15: 120 (Up)
2015/16: 74 (Down)
2016/17: 144 (Up)
2017/18: 70 (Down)
2018/19: 46 (Down)

Is there any hope for Denton going forward into the future?

Back in 2013 Northern spokesperson said the following: “Although passenger numbers are low, we continue to work closely with the Friends of Denton station group and the South East Manchester Community Rail Partnership on a local level. We would look to industry partners such as the Department for Transport to specify a higher level of service to the station and help us to contribute funding for it.” Unfortunately fast forward 7 years there is no evidence of any signs of improvement. A few rumours of different idea's but nothing solid getting put forward by anyone.

Is there actually any options for the future of Denton?

I believe that there are a few options that can be looked at by the relevant people.

The Manchester Victoria to Preston services could be extended through to Stockport. The service is currently hourly in both directions. If they alternated hourly, one could terminate at Manchester Victoria and the next one continue to Stockport, giving Reddish South & Denton a two hourly service in each direction. In addition to that there would be a direct connection between Stockport and Manchester Victoria which is currently missing on the rail network in Greater Manchester.
Similar to the previous idea, the Kirkby to Manchester Victoria service could be extended to Stockport. Exact same idea as above for two hourly service. There could even be the option to combine the two, one every four hours from Preston to Stockport and one every four hours (two hours after Preston service) from Kirkby to Stockport.
Buxton currently gets two trains per hour from Manchester Piccadilly. I can see no reason why one train can't go to Piccadilly and one train go to Victoria. That would give an hourly service between Stockport and Manchester Victoria. This could potentially give Denton and Reddish South an hourly service, could be two hourly with a non stop every other hour.
Use a similar unit to what they currently use on the Marston Vale Line, Vivarail class 230. One of these could be used as a shuttle service running from Stockport to Stalybridge to Bolton via Manchester Victoria. This service could serve the many little stations such as Reddish South, Denton, Ashton-under-Lyne, Clifton, Kearsley, Farnworth and Moses Gate. This would allow for other services to operate quicker between Manchester Victoria and Bolton.

The rest of the Top 10

Other stations of interest

Teesside Airport

13th Least Used Station

Teesside Airport saw a 178% increase in passengers in the latest set of figures (from 74 to 206).

The 2018/19 figures are the first full year where the station has only had the one platform. Platform 2 was removed in the December 2017 timetable change due to unsafe platform & Footbridge. The removal of platform 2 services made more people aware of the station leading to during 2018 many enthusiasts visiting the station.

It can't be much longer until platform 1 is deemed unsafe and no services stop there.

Breich

24th Least Used Station

In the lastest figures Breich saw an increase of 235.3% (from 102 to 342).

Breich story for the huge increase is along the lines of 'Build it and people will use it'. I know the station was there before, but Network Rail Scotland made significant improvements to the station and then ScotRail improved services to the station. If Stanlow & Thornton and Denton ever want hope, take a good look at Breich!

Redcar British Steel

25th Least Used Station

In the latest figures Redcar British Steel saw a whopping increase of 800% (from 40 to 360).

In the 2017/18 figures Redcar British Steel was Britain's least used station! It's hardly surprising as there is no way of entering or exiting the station. Being the least used station led to enthusiasts visiting from far and wide.

I predict even more passengers will use the station in the 2019/20 figures due to service removal in the December 2019 timetable change and the mass visit by people in the lead up to the closure.

Pilning

33rd Least Used Station

In the latest figures Pilning saw a slight decrease of 4.2% (from 478 to 458).

The minimal drop in passenger numbers at Pilning is a credit to the determination of Pilning station group who never seem to give up the fight with GWR and Network Rail.

Visit www.pilningstation.uk , visit the station and take part in one of the competitions they run.

Keep going Pilning folk. I support and respect your efforts!

Top 10 Busiest Stations in Britain

Top 5 Busiest Stations in Scotland

Top 10 Busiest Stations in Wales

Disclaimer:

* I am no rail engineer or expert, I am just a rail enthusiast like many of you reading this blog. I do not know how signalling works and points work etc. Any suggestions I have made in the above blog are just those, suggestions from an enthusiast. Saying that, I am happy to learn more about the ins and outs of how the railways work. If you know anyone who would be able to explain this to me then feel free to get in touch with me.

* Not all stations used in photo's are stations I have yet visited. Where I do not have my own photos as of yet I have used photos that are on www.geograph.org.uk and are licensed for reuse under the Creative Commons Licence.

* All station data is from the ORR website which can be visited at orr.gov.uk .

Northern going into public ownership.

Wed, 29 Jan 2020 23:27:52 GMT

The inevitable has happened - From 1 March 2020 the Northern Rail franchise will be taken into public ownership.

Today, it was announced by The Rt Hon Grant Shapps MP that the Northern Rail franchise will be taken into public ownership. Something many people have wanted for a while. I can fully understand why people would want Northern gone. They had a plan, the plan didn't go to plan. Let's be honest though, that Isn't entirely the fault of Northern's. I am pleased to see that Mr Shapps acknowledges that in this statement.

Key points from the statement:

1st March will see the company operated by Northern Trains Limited (A subsidiary of DfT OLR Holdings Limited (DOHL).
The roll out of trains that has already underway by Northern will continue.
Pacers will be banished very soon.
Next year electric trains will be transferred to the north to increase capacity between Leeds & Manchester.
30 stations will have the platforms extended to allow for longer trains.
All Northern trains to be deep cleaned and cleaning practices to be reviewed.
Infrastructure to have a new masterplan drawn up.
Improved infrastructure in Leeds and Manchester to improve performance across the north.
Staff jobs are safe, and all will be transferred over to the new public sector operator.
Staff facilities are to be closely looked at and improved.
All tickets, including season tickets, will still be valid.

The promises that have been made in the statement sound great. But I can't help but think that the new train roll out would continue if Northern stayed, the pacers have already started going under Northern. Trains getting sent to the North is nothing new, in fact trains quite often swap and change with operators. That makes me think the electric trains would have still been sent north even if Northern stayed.

To me it sounds very much like the promises getting made are for things that would of happened regardless if Northern stayed or went.

It might be an unpopular thing for me to say, but I have an ounce of sympathy for Northern.

When they took on the franchise, they were doing so under the promise of major infrastructure upgrades. Some of these upgrades simply never materialised, quadrupling the Castlefield Corridor, adding an additional two through platforms at Manchester Piccadilly (Platforms 15 & 16) are probably the most spoke about. Other infrastructure upgrades were massively delayed, Blackpool electrification works, Bolton to Preston electrification works to name a couple.

As I understand the timetables that were launched by Northern were made with all the improvement work that the DfT had promised getting done on time. As it is the timetable was ready on time, the infrastructure wasn't. Subsequently Northern had to redo the timetables in a space of only about 4 weeks, as opposed the 16+ weeks it usually takes. The rushed timetables were then approved by Network Rail and as we can all only remember so well, the chaos then began with Northern getting all the flack.

Throughout the last 4 years Northern have had to attempt to hurdle many staffing challenges. The RMT strikes crippled the network for 47 days. The strikes over Driver Only Operated trains and the role of any second member of staff on board the train. This is something Northern had to deal with due to the Department for Transport adding it into the agreement with Arriva. Yes, Arriva knew about it, but could they expect the amount of objection that was received? I sure didn't.

During the strikes I found very few people blaming the DfT for the planned introduction of DOO services. Another example of Northern taking the bullet for the DfT!

Another staffing issues arrived when the electrification work over ran on the Blackpool to Preston and Preston to Bolton line. The overrunning of the works saw significant delays in the route knowledge training of the drivers and guards. Speaking to several Northern staff I know this could have been managed better by Northern management, but the same staff also say that had Network Rail finished the electrification works then the whole training issue would of been avoided.

I know it sounds like all I'm doing is trying to pass the buck from Northern's faults. I am just highlighting that Northern are not the only people that are responsible for the issues. I am delighted that Mr Shapps has acknowledged this in his statement: "Many of Northern’s problems are due to inadequate infrastructure. That, too, must change"

Also, in the statement he specifically mentions the Castlefield corridor in Manchester. One of, if not, the busiest railway corridors in the North, or even Britain. This section of track was meant to be quadrupled at the same time as the Ordsall chord viaduct was built. All the Ordsall chord viaduct did without quadrupling the Castlefield Corridor was create more problems!

It is now time for Mr Shapps and the DfT to deliver! They are now responsible for both the Northern franchise and the tracks their trains will be running on! They will have nowhere to hide!

As the Northern Rail franchise comes to an end, here is just something to bear in mind; Northern Rail have had their faults, mainly at a management level, but they have delivered many positive things to the North West. Northern have introduced 600 new ticket vending machines across the network, many station improvements have been made, there has even been a passenger information screen installed at Kents Bank! And for crying out loud, there has even been a new bin installed at Nethertown!!! You know, for the masses of people that visit the station every year ;-).

Northern have also introduced brand new trains to the North West! Something that no other operator has done within the last decade, and not on this scale for many decades!

Finally, love them or hate them, Northern have started retiring the pacers! The last ones would be gone by May!

As a frequent rail user in North West I look forward to the improvements that Mr Shapps and the DfT have mentioned in the released statement. (I have to say though, I was already enjoying the improvements that Northern were carrying out).

Many thanks for taking the time to read my natterings about the drama that is Northern....

Until next time - The next time being quite soon ;-)

Stuart :)

How to be Ticket Savvy

Sun, 05 Jan 2020 22:14:40 GMT

Aberdeen to Plymouth for less than £56… Yes, it actually can be done!

Since the start of the challenge people have asked me am a millionaire or something to be able to afford to do this challenge. The simple answer is I am most definitely not a millionaire, although I very much wish I was!

So how do I afford to do this challenge, the answer is be ticket savvy.

Well now that the fares have risen (Jan 2020) I have decided now would be a good time to share my learnings from the last few years. All the below is methods I have used for travelling at some stage in the past.

Anyway, let’s get started. This is my advice to savvy ticketing. I hope it is helpful.

Now to put it all together and save big:

If you were to take all the ticketing methods above and put them together you can get the ultimate saving in tickets. So, let’s get on with that Aberdeen to Plymouth for under £60 heading.

So, here is the journey Itinerary and ticket types/prices for this journey:

• Aberdeen to Crewe (Change at Edinburgh) - £27 Advance Single

• Crewe to Worcester Shrub Hill (Change at Birmingham New Street) - £9.90 Advance Single

• Worcester Shrub Hill - Plymouth (Change at Cheltenham Spa) – (£19 Part of South West Explorer)

So, as you will have seen above, I have been slightly sneaky with this journey by using an explorer ticket. This is the way I travel about so freely. The ticket used is the South West 8in15 which is valid from Worcester onwards.

Now I am aware that the actual cost of the rover is £152.50. But if you divide it by 8 days it is basically £19 a day. Anyone who is travelling on a rail holiday must be wanting to use the trains to travel around the beautiful West Country. It just makes sense to make use of the rover as part of your journey to the destination.

Railcards:

Railcards are a great way of making the above prices even cheaper!!! If you are lucky enough to qualify for a railcard, please make sure you do! It could save you hundreds of pounds over the year.

These are the following Railcards currently available:

• 16 – 25 Railcard

• 26 – 30 Railcard

• Senior Railcard

• Family & Friends Railcard

• Two Together Railcard

• Network Railcard

• Disabled Persons Railcard

• Gold Card

With regards to further knowledge of the railcards I strongly recommend looking at the video to the right by the @allthestations team. There Is also a very handy PDF guide which was designed by @geofftech .

So there you have it. Some of my advise on Ticketing. I am more than happy to answer any questions people might have about ticketing. Just drop me a message on my socials, or contact me via the contact page on here. Always happy to help when I can.

I hope this blog has helped and you start making savings.

All the best.

Stuart

**Additional Info** All fare prices in this blog were based on travelling on Tuesday 18th February and searches carried out on the Sunday 5th January. Fares go up all the time. Just cause i got the above prices, it does not mean they will be availible at the times of your searches. You might even be able to get cheaper prices than I have shown in this blog. If you do feel free to share them with me :).

My Top 10 stations so far...

Wed, 01 Jan 2020 13:25:41 GMT

Over the course of the challenge I've been asked what my favourite station has been so far. So for an end of year treat to everyone I have decided to give you my official top 10 stations I've visited so far...

This has not been an easy task, having now visited over 1000 stations it is tough. All the stations in the list are memorable to me for a variety of reasons. With this been the case, I doubt everyone will agree with me, but then again the world would be a very boring place if everyone agreed about everything!

So without further a do, lets crack on.....

No. 10 - Wemyss Bay
(Scotrail)

Visit date: Saturday 1st December 2018

To get the countdown underway we have the beautiful Wemyss Bay. I am sure some people will question why this station isn't higher up the countdown. Well let me explain...

The simple answer is after reading many books that talk about Wemyss Bay and watching many videos including All the Stations I was expecting to walk in and be blown away. The truth is I simply wasn't. I fully appreciated the beauty of the station, hence why it's in my top 10, but when I compare it to other stations on in the countdown it simply doesn't compare with the WOW factor.

No. 9 - Wye
(Southeastern)

Now Wye station in Kent sold it self to me the second i alighted and spotted the manual level crossing. I love a good old manual level crossing, and this was no exception. After watching the manual level crossing be reopened, which you can watch the video I recorded here , I headed down the platform and got another treat. A beautiful looking signal box. Unfortunately like many others, now abandoned and in need of some serious TLC.

A beautiful waiting shelter, a delightful station building added to the level crossing and abandoned signal box its clear to see why this station makes my top 10. The only thing missing would be an old school footbridge, something like the one at the next station in the countdown...

No. 8 - Corfe Castle
(South Western Railway)

Corfe Castle... A relatively new addition to the National Rail Network, although an old station with much history.

Closing in January 1972 (After much opposition). The Station remained closed until August 1995 as part of the Swanage Railway. From May 2018 South Western Railway started operating services on Summer Saturdays only from Wareham to Corfe Castle.

I strongly recommend making a day of visiting this beautiful village, take a trip on the heritage line to Swanage, oh and don't forget to visit the castle.

I have a blog lined up for all the seasonal services which i will be publishing early next year.

No. 7 - Pont-y-Pant
(Transport For Wales)

Situated on the Conwy Valley Line in North Wales this little hidden beauty exists. Deep in a valley covered in woodland and near to the River Lledr lives this very tranquil Pont-y-Pant.

I remember visiting here well, I got the bus from Betws-y-Coed to the end of the lane that joins the station to the main road. The walk over the river bridge then continued along the lane which was beautiful. I remember thinking how can there possibly be a station down this lane. Then there it was, this tiny little single platform hidden away among the trees.

Stations like this always get my heart, When i visit the Heart of Wales in 2020 I am sure there will be many more like this.

No. 6 - Kildale
(Northern)

Kildale was a lovely surprise. On the Esk Valley hidden away against the backdrop of woodland is the lovely tiny platform of Kildale.

I alighted here in order to take the walk over Easby Moor back to Great Ayton. I ended up having to rush my walk a bit as i ended up spending too much time at the station enjoying its remoteness and beauty.

Thankfully I still have two stations on the Esk Valley Line to visit next year, I might have to sneak a revisit to Kildale in, maybe a walk to Battersby as I only had 1 min there last time.

No. 5 - Dent
(Northern)

England's highest station marks the halfway point in my countdown.

Dent is a station I visit a few times a year when I take the walk between Dent and Ribblehead, a beautiful walk which you can see my video of here .

If you visit Dent i recommend you don't do what i did on my first visit and visit in the evening. It got very cold very quickly, thankfully there is 2 very warm waiting rooms at Dent which kept me warm for the 75 min wait I had.

The station is mainly used by walkers, as the village of Dent is a good 90 min walk away.

No. 4 - Chapelton
(GWR)

Chapelton, on the Tarka Line, is Devon's least used station, and with only one house anywhere near you can see why. But in my opinion that just means thousands of people are missing out on the beautiful platform.

The Platform houses a magnificent waiting shelter, the beautiful flower beds, the amazing ruralness.

I walked from Umberleigh, via the picture postcard village of Atherington. I was glad to of allowed an hour extra for the walk in case I got lost, as it was, I didn't get lost so I had an hour to admire Chapelton. I honestly could have sat on the platform all day with a picnic and a good book... In fact, I think I will be doing that one day in the future!

No. 3 - Coombe Junction Halt
(GWR)

Coombe Junction Halt... This is a station that most certainly needs no introduction! Now if I am completely honest with you, I had to force myself to not put every station on the Looe Valley Line into my top 5. After much deliberation I decided that Coombe Junction was in fact the only station on the line that would make the cut for my Top 10.

Coombe Junction holds the unfortunate record of currently been the least used station in Cornwall. With the same amount of services at Chapelton it's easy to see why. Although with the changes to the St Ives line it looks like in the future Lelant Saltings might take the title of least used station in Cornwall. Coombe Junction deserves to be more served simply because of the quirkiness of the station.

The first time I visited Coombe Junction was an amazing experience, even if it was an absolute nightmare of a trip. As you can probably see from the photos, I decided to visit Cornwall the one time they get snow, it genuinely only happens once in a decade! I had made it all the way from Ulverston to Liskeard only to discover that all Cornish branch lines were closed due to the snow. The result was that in the trip only two stations in Cornwall officially got ticked off. Liskeard & Bodmin Parkway.

I didn't waste my time in Cornwall in the snow. I took a magnificent walk via the lanes from Liskeard to St Keyne Wishing Well Halt and then took the lanes to Coombe Junction Halt. I was pleased I did this as some of the photos I got from that day are amazing.

No. 2 - Llanaber
(Transport for Wales)

So, we are at the final two... Wow, I have literally spent the last half hour going back and forth in my mind trying to work out which gets the edge...

In at second place is Llanaber. It's Just perfection. It really is perfection, there is possibly only one thing I would change about the station, and that is I'd move it further from the main road. When you think of places to go where you cannot be disturbed for hours on end you really need to add Llanaber to the very top of the list.

Crashing waves, birds singing, wind howling, trains few and far between. It is simply heaven on earth.

The day I visited Llanaber was on the back of a break away with the other half. The previous day we had visited Harlech Castle and I had been given a taste of what the Cambrian Coast had to offer. So, after a huge amount of persuading the night before I was allowed to head back to Cambrian Coast while she headed home.

Having done very little research on this line I was not prepared for the beauty that was to meet me at the end of the footpath to the station. At this point I was cursing the bus driver as my hour fester her had now been cut to only 25 minutes. Nevertheless, I enjoyed every minute of it. I will be back again, just try and stop me!

No. 1 - Nethertown
(Northern)

There you have it, my favourite station so far is NETHERTOWN on the Cumbria Coastline.

Nethertown ended up getting the nod ahead Llanaber for literally one little thing. Nethertown has no main road nearby. No sound of busses or lorries.

So, with Nethertown we end the most important Top 10 of the year so far ;-). I've always had a rough top 10 in my head that’s changed a few times over the years... But to sit down and have to finally put them into a definitive order was harder than I ever thought. What I can say is, we have some truly beautiful stations within this fine island of ours!

Throughout choosing my definitive top 10 there was several stations that kept coming into my mind, So, here is 10 of the stations that very nearly made it in to my official top 10:

Tal-y-Cafn - Conwy Valley Line (Transport for Wales)
Roman Bridge - Conwy Valley Line (Transport for Wales)
Exton - Avocet Line (GWR)
Lealholm - Esk Valley Line (Northern)
Dove Holes - Manchester to Buxton Line (Northern)
Dawlish - Exeter to Plymouth Mainline (GWR)
Dolgarrog - Conwy Valley Line (Transport for Wales)
Chetnole - Heart of Wessex Line (GWR)
Causeland - Looe Valley Line (GWR)
Bodorgan - North Wales Coast (Transport for Wales)

I wonder how this list will look at the end of 2020... Got the Far North Line to visit in June, Isle of Wight in July and Heart of Wales in August... I might have to turn into a top 20 or break it into categories.

All that remains for me to say is Happy New Year.

Many Thanks

Stu :-)

Proposed Stations to open in 2020

Thu, 26 Dec 2019 22:38:57 GMT

The latest on proposed stations opening in 2020.

2019 saw the opening of three new station; Meridian Water (June 2019), Warrington West (Dec 2019) & Robroyston (Dec 2019). We also saw the closure of two stations; Angel Road (June 2019) & Redcar British Steel (Dec 2019).

Below we take a look at the stations ' proposed' to open in 2020.

The Final Countdown.

Mon, 23 Dec 2019 23:37:20 GMT

My own little farewell tour to Virgin Trains.

I’d decided quite a while ago that I wanted say my farewell to Virgin Trains in a special kind of way. Although then I thought it might just be by travelling on the final service. As it turned out, the day became a full farewell tour that would take me from Lancaster to Glasgow, then back down to Wolverhampton before heading to London for the final trip.

The day started with the 0727 departure from Ulverston. Although this was not a Virgin service, I was in for a surprise, it was a new 195. It was my understanding that the 195s was being used for the Barrow-In-Furness and Windermere services to Manchester Airport. I was clearly mistaken as this was a local stopping service to Lancaster. With that nice surprise in the bag I wondered if this was an omen for the day ahead. Off to Lancaster at warp speed Mr Northern driver… Ah right that’s right, it’s the stopper service. Stop at Cark for 2 people, stop at Kents Bank for nobody and so on…

We departed Birmingham New Street for Sandwell & Dudley. At this point of the journey I had the whole carriage to myself. Most people had travelled on the advertised service that was a few minutes ahead. We arrived at Sandwell and Dudley uneventfully before departing for the final leg of a very memorable day!

After the final departure announcement was made, they played the song the final countdown. Which was incredibly fitting. The journey to Wolverhampton took for what felt forever. After short wait outside Wolverhampton we pulled into the platform and that was it. The end of an era.

After alighting I went to the front of the train where I was allowed to have a peak into the cab. The trip to the cab really ended the evening on a massive high.

An era was over, 22 years had come to an end.

Avanti West Coast…. Over to you.

THE LONG & WINDING ROAD OF MERSEYSIDE

Mon, 25 Nov 2019 21:14:37 GMT

The Home of The Beatles, Cilla Black, Brookside and one or two average premier league teams �� .

My journey to completing Merseyside started way back near the beginning of the challenge, before I even had Social Media accounts. The date was the 15th April 2018 which was the first time I got to experience the reliability and total awesomeness that is that of Merseyrail.

A similar search on the history or Kirkby station and I discover that there was a bit more to that one. The station configuration was mainly changed due to the closure of Liverpool Exchange station 30th April 1977 and this station getting replaced by two underground stations, Moorfields & Central. The opening of this meant that Diesel units could not operate past Sandhills and diesel multiple units were banned from operating in the tunnels due to safety reasons. Here is what Wiki says about the situation:

My next trip to Merseyside was only a few weeks later. In June 2018 I returned to Merseyside to focus on the Southport line. But I came down the Ormskirk route into Liverpool again as I wanted to visit a new station that had opened on the Ormskirk line, Maghull North. New stations are great. I won’t babble on about them for long as I am going to be doing a whole blog soon about new stations, given that there are another 3 scheduled to open by the end of the year.

I alighted at Maghull North had a quick look around and went back to the platform and waited for the next southbound service. While I was waiting for the next service, I decided to have a look at some station figures, I had to have a giggle when I saw that the amount of car parking spaces was 156… I like to imagine that the person responsible for the amount of parking spaces is a fan of a class 156.

FOR F*^K SAKE!!! GOODBYE… I’M GOING HOME!

Mon, 11 Nov 2019 21:17:38 GMT

“The 1034 service from platform 2 is cancelled, this is due to a fault with this train”

Friday 23rd August… A date that will stick with me throughout this challenge as the day I nearly quit. The first time I’ve really felt like I can’t be arsed with this, the first real day this challenge wasn’t fun. Before I tell the story of the day let me start with what the plan was for the day.

The original plan was to head to Wigan and finish the line between Wigan Wallgate and Southport. In finishing that line, I would be completing Lancashire. In the afternoon I planned to head down into Merseyside with a plan that would get me to within 5 stations within completing Merseyside, meaning an easy leisurely day the following day. Anyway, as we all know by now the above is not what happened!

llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch!

Fri, 13 Sep 2019 21:22:37 GMT

An awesome few days in Wales on board Transport for Wales

Monday 5th August 2019

So, after my 2 day jolly to the southwest it was time to head to North Wales for a few days. The day started with a delicious Premier Inn breakfast before taking the short walk to Ashchurch for Tewkesbury station, on a little side note I was quite annoyed with myself for not allowing anytime to have a look around Tewkesbury itself. I have made a note in my notebook to revisit and stay more central than I did on this occasion. It’s meant to be a lovely town! Anyway, back at the station I awaited the GWR service to Great Malvern where I would make a change and continue to my first new station of the day.

As I type this blog I have been using google maps to remind me of certain things, in doing this I have discovered there is an impressive looking castle near Chirk station. This has now been added as a station to 100% return to in the future.

Wednesday 7th August 2019

After a rest day on the Tuesday it was time to get back to some stations. I visited North Wales at the start of September for a long weekend, the plan this week was to finish off all the areas that I had missed on that trip.

Thursday 8th August 2019

A later start this day, I was heading out with my other half and her son today. We headed to Llandudno Junction where we boarded the Conwy Valley line and set off for Blaenau Ffestiniog. Of course we was heading for the Ffestiniog Steam Railway which would take us through the beautiful Snowdonia national park and down to Porthmadog.

Friday 9th August 2019

The original plan on the Friday was for a sleep in and a relaxed journey home, but after the previous day I decided to return back to the Cambrian Coast line. I started with the 5:45am bus again to Llandudno, unfortunately it was absolutely tipping it down this time, I contemplated just going back to hotel and cancelling my plan. I persevered and made it to the bus station and ultimately on to Llandudno again. Back on the Conwy valley to Blaenau Ffestiniog where I had chance to get some breakfast before a bus journey to Penrhyndeudraeth where I was starting my day on the coast line.

End of the line...

Fri, 16 Aug 2019 21:07:33 GMT

Sad times as the Virgin Trains reign on the West Coast Main Line comes to an end.

It's hard to believe that after 22 years of providing services up and down the West Coast Main Line it's all about to come to the end. It's a sad time and even now as I type this I am unable to imagine anything other than the Virgin logo on the side of a Pendolino. The thought of losing this logo on our railways is hard for me to take in.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog, until next time.

Stuart :)

The Lovely Southwest... TICK

Mon, 12 Aug 2019 08:00:55 GMT

From Cheadle Hulme to Bishops Lydeard. Yep, it was that sort of trip.

A few weeks ago it was confirmed that Great Western Railway would be operating services to and from Bishops Lydeard on selected Saturdays during the Summer. It was also confirmed that on one Saturday, Great Western Railway would call at Norton Fitzwarren. Well there was only one thing for it. Book tickets, book hotels, and make a weekend of it.

Friday 2nd August 2019

Saturday 3rd August 2019

Friday 2nd August 2019

That is it for this blog. My trip was not over yet though. After my night I headed into Wales for 5 days. That will be a seperate blog that will be availible later this week.

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

Unitl next time.

Stu :)

Time for a Southwest adventure!

Fri, 02 Aug 2019 20:39:24 GMT

3 days
2 Heritage Lines

1 Adventure

The final day will consist of knocking out some stations around Hereford while heading to north wales for a holiday.

Until my next blog.

Many thanks.

Lets all do the Locomotion

Sun, 28 Jul 2019 20:58:12 GMT

Photo's from my visit to Locomotion Museum at Shildon station.

On Monday 22nd July I took time out of my schedule in the North East to visit the Locomotion museum at Shildon station on the Bishop line. Below is my gallery of the photos took that day.

I'll be back!

Fri, 26 Jul 2019 20:05:00 GMT

Monday 22nd July 2019: North East - It was a pleasure.

Well today was my final day in the North East and it was looking like it was going to be a scorcher. Thankfully i didn't have many stations planned today, that is partly to allow time to travel to Manchester to meet up with my partner, but also so i could have time to visit Locomotion which is a 5 minuet walk from Shildon station.

My day started with a quick trip to Allens West then went back on myself to Eaglescliffe. At Eaglescliff I got my first sighting of a Grand Central train. Up until now i'd only ever see them on pictures on social media. I think their units looked rather slick and stylish. In addition to this, when at Hartlepool the previous day i noticed that they were offering fares from as little as £14.50 from Hartlepool to London which i thought was remarkably cheap!

After a short wait at Eaglescliffe i waited for the service that would take me to Doncaster. On arrival at Doncaster i decided to save myself some time and do a sneaky taxi maneuver. I hopped into a taxi and asked him to take me to North Road station, to say he was a bit perplexed was an understatement. Anyway he took me as i requested. I arrived at North Road and found a single platform that was located next to some old sidings with some very rusty old units sat in the yard. There was also what looked like to be the old platform further up which is now disused. All in all it was a very interesting station that i definitely wasn't expecting.

After a short wait at North Road my train arrived in the form of 142091 which i traveled on up to Shildon. My last station on the Bishop Line. Also Shildon is the home to railway museum "Locomotion'. After some advice on twitter from Jan ( @AvfcSquirrel ) that i must allow some time to visit the museum i did just that.

Now i will add all my photo's from my visit to my gallery page (which hopes to be launching this weekend). After a lovely walk around the museum i headed back to Shildon station to catch the train southbound, and back to Middlesbrough where another taxi move was in the waiting.

I hoped in a taxi to take me to Marton station. A taxi was always in mind for the upcoming three stations due to the frequency of services it was a lot easier to start in the middle of the three. On the way in the taxi the driver asked me what i was doing so i explained my challenge to him and he told me loads of things about how there used to be more stations in the area many years ago, how he lives near to Great Ayton, but when he catches the train to Whitby he goes into Middlesbrough first as its only way of guaranteeing a seat. Local knowledge is priceless to hear about.

Marton station is a single platform station that serves the Middlesbrough suburb Marton. I was surpriced as the station had a slight rural feel to it up on the platform. Although when i was travelling in the taxi it certainly didn't feel rural, funny what a few bushes and trees can do the mind.

Time for the short hop up the line to Gypsy Lane. While on the short hop i chatted to the guard who had dropped me off earlier in the day at Darlington so was a little puzzled to be picking me up at Marton only a few hours later. Anyway after the quick explanation we arrived at Gypsy Lane where I alighted. Gypsy Lane is a single platform station on the outskirts of Nunthorpe. I had a 5 minuet connection here for my train that would take me to my final station.

Heading back south through Marton i arrived at my final station of the trip. James Cook, Or James Cook University Hospital Station as some people might know it as. Or you might even know it as James Cool depending on which sign you read [See picture below]. After alighting at James Cook i headed towards the main road where i caught the first bus heading into Middlesbrough.

And that was it, that's the end of my North East Adventure for now. I hope to be back by the end of the year to finish off Newcastle/Middlesbrough area.

Until my next blog update.

Happy travels

Stu.

P.S:

On a slight side note, the following day i was at hospital with my partner near Wigan. While travelling to our appointment I was able to tick off another station, Appley Bridge was the one. We can both confirm that the pub (The Boathouse Pub & Kitchen) by the canal near Appley Bridge station serves a fantastic pint! Strongly recommended!

Battered @ Battersby

Tue, 23 Jul 2019 22:56:21 GMT

Sunday 21st July 2019 - Lovely relaxing day to reach a milestone

Sunday morning stroll through the woods and over the hills, sounds good right? Well it was, it was blooming awesome.

I headed to the station from the hotel, hopped on the first train of the day and headed to my first station of the day, Kildale. That announcement that city commuters will of not heard before, "at the next station only the rear door will open, if you are wanting to alight at Kildale, please make your way to the back of the train now". Personally i love hearing that announcement as it means there is a good chance it is going to be a little cute rural station. Kildale did not disappoint my theory. The platform did fit the whole 2 carriages, but it was very tight. It quite possibly is my favorite station on the Esk Valley line. Anyway time to take a walk.

The walk was beautiful. I headed all up hill for what felt forever. The hill never seemed ending, bear in mind these are hills that the buses struggled with the day before. After taking the wrong footpath, then cutting through overgrown woodland, i made it to the monument at the top. The views were quite special, i then headed back down the hill. Needless to say, the walk down was much easier than the walk up.

At the bottom of the hill i arrived at my next station, Great Ayton. Now at Great Ayton this is where i encountered my one delay. The train from Hexham was running 20 minutes late which worried me that my connection at the next station was going to be in jeopardy. Back to Great Ayton station. There was quite a few people waiting to board the train to Whitby, family days out to the seaside i expect. But it was good to see people using the train rather than the car.

When the train arrived on I hoped, after a quick chat i discovered that the 2 x 156s were running at a reduced speed. I also learnt that I need not worry about my connection at Battersby because the train from Whitby would go into the platform first and wait for this train to pull in first and leave again, guaranteed connection you could say. Apparently this is a maneuver that only happens on a Sunday.

Now there was two trains at the one platform, with the Whitby bound unit at the front blocking the other in. Unfortunately the service for Whitby was having issues getting going, not sure what it was but it basically wasn't moving. In the end it got going (No idea how it made it to Whitby!) Now it was my turn to get moving, easier said than done apparently. Off we went to head towards Middlesbrough. less than 50 meters from the platform our trains brakes randomly decided to go on hard. Unit restart was required then we got on our way 26 minutes late.

By this point my schedule had been well and truly battered. I was planning what to do as there was no way i was going to make my connection at Thornaby for the Transpennine Express service to Yarn. Then we pulled into Nunthorpe station and the guard said we had to wait there for the single track ahead to become clear. I'd had enough of the sight of 156 units by now so decided to bail at Nunthorpe, as it turned out the train that was coming in was going to be the one i got after my Yarn excursion. So i was sort of back on plan, i'd dropped Yarn, but picked up Nunthorpe instead.

After quickly heading the the Spar shop by Nunthorpe station i boarded 158844 and headed to my next station on a very quiet service, I think it was so quiet due to 156479 only running 10 minutes ahead so most people would of boarded that one. I had a pleasant half hour journey to Billingham. While on my way to Billingham I made a discovery... If i was to walk quickly i could in fact make a bus that would take me to Stockton station allowing me to get an earlier train meaning I could fit in an extra station in on my day. Now Billingham was nothing to write home about, and neither was Stockton station. So on I moved to my extra station... Hartlepool.

After Hartlepool I took a service to Seaton Carew where i had a 5 minute connection for my next train, unfortunately I had no time to look around or head to the beach. The killer blow was there was a sainsburys right by the stations that I also did not have time to get any lunch from.

Time for Difficult station of the day, Teeside Airport gets one train per week in one direction only. This used to be 2 trains per week (1 in each direction) but due to the bad state of the footbridge and of platform 2. The service was cut in December 2017.

Once i had alighted at Teesside Airport i was having a sense of deja vu. I felt the same as when i was stood at Redcar British Steel the day before, a feeling of neglect and nothingness. To be completely honest i was feeling a little disappointed. I had looked forward so much to visiting both Redcar British Steel and Teesside Airport that the reality of been there was that they were quite sad places to be. Not so much from a station point of view, but from an all you could see around was evidence of what used to be there. It was mixed feelings leaving the station and starting my walk to Dinsdale.

This walk i'm sure isn't that long really, but on this particualar Sunday let me tell you this, It felt like 100 miles away! Choosing to walk the road route after one third of the walk i was really regretting this decision. Anyway i made it to Dinsdale. Found a Shop, purchased some pop, sandwich, chocolate and headed to the station.

While sat at Dinsdale station i had a decision to make, go off plan in order to get my 700th station that day. I decided to throw the plan in the bin and go for the 700th. So after boarding at Dinsdale I headed to Newton Aycliffe where i wasn't there long enough to have a real look around, i had to jump on the next service back down the line to Heighington.

At Heighington there was quite a bit of notices up about the history of the station, how it played a part in the war effort in the 40's. How the original station building are some of the oldest still in use on the national rail network, It's worth noting that the old station buildings are no longer in use as part of the railways.

After my read up on the history of the station i took the next service heading to Bishop Auckland, the end of the line nowadays, although it did used to go further in the past. I'm not entirely sure where it did go to either, i did ask the guard and he didn't know.

Now after a quick bite to eat in the weatherspoons in the town i hopped on a bus to Durham. On the way i passed through some nice looking villages/towns. Must go back on the bus for more of an explore of the area... Every Last Bus Route has a certain ring to it.... Who knows ;-)

I decided to get off the bus well before the station in Durham as i wanted to take a walk through the city, it was beautiful. Really beautiful.

After a short wait at Durham it was time to head to my final station of the day, the 700th station of the challenge.....

Yep Darlington became my 700th station visited on my challenge. As with Newcastle station I was slightly surprised at how nice Darlington station was. LNER even sent a fairwell gift for me in the form of an Azuma... I will leave the photo below to end my blog.

Until next time

Stu :)

Not all Dandy at Danby!

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 00:37:07 GMT

Load of poop, and that was before 7am!

The day started with my alarm going off at 5am! After a quick spruce up i took the short walk to Middlebrough station to catch the first train out of the station, pretty sure i was the first member of public in the station that morning. My first unit was pacer 142086 which would be taking me to Longbeck. Now when planning i knew Longbeck station was only a short walk from another station, so i decided to walk it. So on i went, best foot forward and all that stuff...

Now as the picture above shows the walk was through fields of wheat. There was a narrow path at the bottom of each field. I was walking pretty quick as Google maps was telling me it was a 14 minute walk and i only had 16 minutes before the train. As it was i managed to get to the end of the fields in 10 minutes. On stepping onto the pavement again i thought to myself my boot feels funny, when i looked down i was horrified to see that my foot had a load of straw attached to the base of it, on wiping it on some grass i quickly learnt it wasn't just straw! Some dog walker had just left dog poo on the path! I have nothing against dog walkers, or dogs for that matter, but please, if your going to own own, do the right thing and clean up after it! I managed to get most of the poo of my boot, unfortunately while walking some had got onto my cargo pants around the ankle. Que a 34 year old man swearing excessively in a country road.

Stinking of dog poo i had a train to catch. I headed to the platform at Marske where the pacer that dropped me off at Longbeck now picked me up and took me to Redcar East. I can only imagine what the guard thought of my smell when she came and checked my ticket, she was polite and said nothing. i told myself she has a cold and couldn't smell anything, and i'm still telling myself that ;-).

At Redcar East i waiting for the next train to take me to Redcar Central, thankfully this train was nearly empty and no guard came near me for the 3 minuet journey. Now i had half hour a t Redcar Central and i'd spied a Morrison's near the station. Still with a whiff of poo coming from me i made for there, buying a cheap bar of soap, a 1.5ltr bottle of Evian, some gloves I headed back to a quiet corner of Redcar Central where i rubbed my trousers with soap and water to try and rectify the poo issue. I think it worked.

It was now time to head to Britains Least Used station. Redcar British Steel, or British Steel Redcar, what ever you want to call it, for the purpose of this section of the blog i'll simply refer to it as BSR. Now BSR gets 4 trains per day Monday to Saturday, if your wondering why more people don't use it it's because you can't actually leave the station. There is no public access off the platforms. This was pointed out to me by a confused guard who actually said "You know you can't leave right" to which i replied back "we best hope northern don't cancel the next train then". As i alighted the train i quickly climbed the steps on the footbridge to get a shot of the train departing

Once the train had vanished out of sight i had a good look around and just thought to myself how bleak and empty the area was. What was once a hive of activity was now just abandoned land with the odd security patrol. To be honest with you it was quite a freaky experience been there. It felt very much like I shouldn't of been there.

Anyway, my time at BSR was over, and to be honest i was quite pleased to see my train approaching in the distance, even if it was a pacer, 142091 to be precise. Please remember, I don't write numbers down, got the number from a picture ;-)

Once on the train at BSR the guard started chatting to me and asking what I was doing, after all, it's not everyday someone gets on the train at BSR. I find most guards i chat to about the challenge are always interested and normally with me luck.

Anyway onwards to Saltburn, now despite several people advising me to spend some time here, i'm afraid to say i didn't. I got off train, took few photo's then hopped straight on a bus to Whitby. Now this really has annoyed me. Saltburn will be getting a revisit sooner rather than later!

Armed with an Arriva North East Explorer ticket I traveled on the X4 service to Whitby. A journey of just over an hour with some beautiful scenery. Anyway on arrival into Whitby i had about and hour and half to look around. To be honest i was getting quite hungry, after all i was out of the hotel before the cook had even arrived for work! I had a quick walk around the harbour and then headed for Wetherspoons for a good fry up! Now this has got to be a contender for the most expensive Wetherspoons in the UK! £10 for a fry up and a Pepsi.

After this it was on to another bus, only a short journey this time. It was on board a Transdev Coastliner service and to say i was impressed with the on board facilities was an understatement. I was only on it a short time, but am trying to get a full length journey from Whitby to Leeds in on my way home.

After getting off the bus at Sleights it was time to head back to the trains, I was starting to get with drawl symptoms, and was also getting tired of the bus w**ker GIF from a certain person haha.

Sleights station was really quite nice, the old station house is now a private house that was absolutely beautiful. I had a little wonder around and then waited for the train.

I hopped on the train, as i was only going to be on it a matter of minuets i stayed at the back and chatted with the guard about the weather.

We arrived at my next station, Ruswarp. The weather here seriously warmed up, to the point that i removed my jumper, little bit of a mistake that was, I was wearing a Man United shirt. Within minuets some young lads from a group trip were shouting dirty united and other things. I politely asked who they supported. One supported Tottenham, to which i replied "as least Man Utd is in the north".

Anyway, i waited for the train to arrive, after the friendly banter i noticed the train was running late, this wasn't good as i had a tight connection to make at my next station. Anyway, 156454 arrived out of the distance and on I got and traveled to Egton.

As i said, this train was delayed and i only had a 4 minuet connection with a bus. Running 4 minuets late i crossed my fingers and toes and hoped for the best. Arriving into Egton i literally took 3 photo's and then headed straight down the track to the road and into the village to try and get the bus, just as I got to the bus stop around the corner came the Arriva North East bus 95. I boarded using the explorer ticket i bought earlier that day.

Travelling through the Esk Valley on little Optare busses that were full of local people was great fun, ear wigging to there conversations and just grinning at how simple life must be in areas that rural. Anyway, we arrived at my next station, Grosmont!

Now at Grosmont it was time for something a little different. I was going to do Grosmont station and Whitby station by Steam Train! It really was a trip back in time! The fair was obviously not included in my rover ticket, but at £8.70 i thought this to be quite reasonable for a heritage service. I got on board, got a table to myself and off we went.

After a very pleasant half hour we arrived at Whitby where i had 10 minuets to catch another bus, actually a bus i'd already used, the 95 again, this time though i was doing the full length journey. From Whitby to Lealholm. What a journey the scenery was terrific, the other passengers were chatty and friendly. For all the tourist bus services, coastliner to name one of a few, you can't beat the good old local bus services for local people.

On the journey to Lealholm the mobile signal was really patchy so was struggling to see how the train was running, this was quite important as the bus was running 15 minuets late and i only had a 10 minuet connection. Now as it happened when i did get some signal i learnt the train was running 15 minuets late too. phew.

Lealholm was a beautiful little station, it was also another example of an old station house now been in private ownership and looking very beautiful. I honestly could of spent hours at this station, but as it was I had 10 minuets, it's on my to revisit list for sure.

After boarding i stayed stood at the back again as it was a very busy service and I was only going to be on the bus for a matter of minuets.

The next station for me to visit was Glaisdale. Now here i had an hour and half to kill, I had planed to take a walk and take in some of the countryside and woodlands. But nature had another idea. The heavens opened, and how they did!

Now, I'm definitely committed to the challenge, but getting soaked to the skin is no fun for anyone and I simply wasn't going to do it. Instead i put a picture of the phone box in the shelter on Twitter to see if anyone called. I was surprised at how many people did actually call. Kept me occupied for over an hour. Before i knew it the train was returning and it was time to head off.

Now at this point it was still raining hard and i had an hour walk to do between Castleton Moor and Commondale. I had then planned to go to Danby and go to the pub for some dinner. I decided to cancel the walk and go straight to Danby station where i knew i could get a bus to Redcar. Now every app, website, timetable told me that the M3 bus was operated by Arriva North East, when an Arriva north east bus finally turned up i hoped on it and put my QR code under the scanner for the driver to say it wasn't valid on that bus as it was on hire.... Puzzled was an understatement. I then asked for a single to Redcar for which he told me that he was only going as far as Guisborough. I bought a ticket for £3 (Which was printed on an Arriva North East ticket. The driver advised me to get off at Guisborough and change for another bus to Redcar.

I got off the bus at Guisborough as he said, went across to a shop to get a drink, only to come out of the shop and see the same driver, same bus, just empty drive past me empty but saying Redcar on the front. I swear there was smoke coming out of my ears. When i had a look online i noticed he was the next bus and that it was now a 40 minuet wait for the next bus. I decided to just get the next bus for Middlesbrough and call it a day.

But NO. I decided to knock out two more stations. On arrival back into Middlesbrough i got a taxi to take me to South Bank station where i caught a bus to Thornaby, I was only coming here as google maps told me there was a sainsburys near the station, as it turned out it was very handy i did Thornaby on this day as you'll find out in tomorrows Blog.

Many Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

All the best

Stuart

Howay man

Sat, 20 Jul 2019 23:38:47 GMT

Why aye man! I'm on the toon!

My north east adventure started with a nice relaxing ride up the Cumbria Coastline to Carlisle on Northern unit 156486. The Cumbria Coast is one i quite often travel on, every time I do this journey I think about how lucky i am to live on this line.

During my travel between Carlisle and Newcastle i visited several stations. The first of which was Prudhoe. I got off here and thought i had enough time to take a quick walk to get a photo of the castle, I was wrong. I got half way then saw the time so had to fast track back to the station, just as i got on the platform the train was ready to depart. So no photo, but i managed to get to go back, the only cost of going back later in the day was losing out on food eating time.

Anyway, on to the next station. I arrived at Metrocentre which is located in Gateshead. When at Metrocentre i had a quick look around, took some photo's and then headed back to the platform to get the stopper train to Dunston where i had half an hour to kill. As i exited the station i saw some lads eating chips and thought I would go in search of the chip shop in hope of food (to make up for loosing food time later on). No luck, even a look on Google Maps showed nothing. So back to the platform where i just took some photos of passing units.

After boarding my first pacer of the trip (I didn't get a photo, or write the number down, I don't do that). I headed back towards Hexham, although I got off at Wylam where i had a 3 min connection. At this time i was travelling in commuter hour. Getting pictures was getting tough as you can see by this image below

As you can see this very kind gentleman tutted as he walked past then stepped just as i took my photo, he didn't hear me tutting at him because i could hear his music blasting.

Anyway. On to another station, the next station to visit was Blaydon. Blaydon was where i had planned to go and get some food from one of the many food outlets near the station, instead i opted for a fast walk to the local garage and got a couple of bottles of pop and a bar of chocolate to keep me going. This is the point where i headed back to Prudhoe, on this occasion i got my photos, job done.

Now Prudhoe was dealt with I hoped on the Pacer and made my way to Newcastle. Now, this was my first visit to Newcastle station and had no idea what to expect, I'd not even seen any pictures online. I found Newcastle station to be rather beautiful. Quite bright and airy. Busy but there was plenty of space. There was the usual Friday afternoon drinkers, who accounted for most of the noise. After taking a few snaps I noticed a Sainsburys, which meant only one thing... Bacon and tomato ketchup sandwich for tea on my next train...

Anyway, on to Chathill. There was one little surprise for me, a 156, 156454 to be precise. I was expecting nothing but pacers around Newcastle, so I fully expected an obscure run up to Chathill to be nothing other than a pacer. Upon departure from Newcastle the train was surprisingly full. It didn't stay full for long the further north the train headed the emptier the train got. On arrival into Chathill there was 10-12 people who alighted. I loved the station buildings at Chathill, the waiting room on the southbound platform had flowers everywhere, it really was not what you'd expect at a train station, especially one that only gets 4 trains per day.

The stretch of line between Morpeth & Chathill has more arkward station other than Chathill. Upon departing Chathill we headed south towards Widdrington. I got a very nice welcome at Widdrington, a fish and chip show next to the station. I got a hot dinner that i didn't expect last night. With hot food in my belly I headed back to the station, got a few snaps then headed to the bus stop. I waited for the Max X18 Arriva North East bus service that would take me to Morpeth.

Once at Morpeth i got some snaps and then hopped onto my first LNER service of the challenge, the LNER service took me down to Northallerton where I took a few pictures in the dark before hopping onto a Transpennine Express service to Middlesbrough, the guard on this service even let me sit in 1st class. One could say perfect end to the day.

The actual perfect end to the day was arriving at my Premier Inn and going to sleep!

Until tomorrow everyone.

Cheers

Stu :)

New trains for the North West

Tue, 16 Jul 2019 22:26:17 GMT

Mr Mayor of Manchester... Did you enjoy attending the launch of the 195s?

On Monday 1st July Northern entered nine 195 units into passenger services operating a variety of services around the North West. Now after 3 weeks I give my opinion on these units. I could give this opinion in one word... Marvelous. But what sort of blog would that be, so here is a more in depth review.

After a full day at work i jumped on the 1823 service from Ulverston to Lancaster on a ex Scotrail 156. I originally thought i could change at Lancaster straight onto a 195 for Windermere. Wrong, with the latest timetable change most Manchester to Windermere trains now run non stop through Lancaster. I'm sure there is a very good reason for this, personally i can't see the reason.

Anyway, after a quick hop up the WCML to Oxenholme I wait for my first 195 to arrive, and indeed it did, 195117 arrived (Pictured below) . My first impression of them was WOW!!! What a upgrade. After years of class 142 and class 150 units rattling around Cumbria it was a refreshing change to have a fresh, brand new trains to travel on.

On board the seats are comfy, the carriages are spacious and bright, the train has good wifi, the toilet is very spacious and it's got a proper lock on it, a handle, not a button like some modern units.

After an explore i hopped off at Burneside where i had a little wonder about the village and then waited for the same unit to return. After boarding at Burneside i then headed to Kendal, then back down the line to Windermere. At Windermere I headed down into the village to get some dinner/tea/supper from Popeyes burger and kebab shop. Burger was delicious, even if a bit expensive, nearly £8 for Burger and chips. Anyway, back to the station to start my journey home.

On the journey home i tested the WiFi by using my laptop to upload some photos to twitter and Facebook. I can confirm it managed this with no problem.

So, the issues... As with everything that's new there is bound to be teething problems...

On the first evening in service i witnessed doors not opening when they should, one woman who wanted to get off at Kendal had to go all the way to Windermere and then back to Kendal before she could get off.
Also on the first evening there was two occasions where doors would randomly close on people while boarding and alighting. Having used these units several times it's good to see this these issues appear to of been resolved.
The Wifi, although it's good to start with, after you've used your limit it becomes really slow, Neanderthals developed tools quicker than a picture loaded on Twitter.
Mr Mayor of Manchester... Did you enjoy attending the launch of the 195s??? I look forward to reading all about your attendance at the launch ;-)

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog.

Until next time

Stuart :)

A week of Firsts and Lasts

Thu, 23 May 2019 16:41:06 GMT

Great trip to Kent, London, Devon & Bristol - Also a grand farewell for the HST!

Now i'm back home it's time to reflect on my latest adventure. My first trip visiting Kent, visiting Angel Road, The HST farewell trip, first trip of the year for the Okehampton line.

Blog continues below...

Kent completely surprised me, I didn't really know what to expect from Kent, one person back home called Kent Concrete County due to all the roads they said. To be honest i don't really know what they was talking about, it was beautiful, some really nice beaches and some fantastic countryside. on day one i arrived quite late, still had time to go and do the Sheerness-On-Sea line which is a short line that connects Sittingbourne with the Isle of Sheppey. It is clearly a well used commuter line with a very frequent service. After visiting the stations on this line it was back to Sittingbourne (Where i took the above photo) . I then headed down to Folkestone Central where i was booked to stay at the Grand Burstin Hotel.

The Grand Burstin Hotel is part of the Britannia Hotel chain of hotels nationwide. Now i have never stayed at a Britannia Hotel before, and at £25 per night i was quite skeptical about what the accommodation and facilities would be like. As it turned my concerns were unjustified, it was more than acceptable, to be honest the bath was better than the one i had at Travelodge later in the week. The bed was quite comfy and the sea view was to die for in the morning.

Blog continues below...

My first full day in Kent... I headed to the east coast and worked my way around the top knocking out everything between Dover Priory and Sandwich. I then progressed to the north Kent coast where i visited every station between Dumpton Park & Faversham. Before heading down the line between Faversham and Kearsney. Unfortunately due to signalling issues in London one of my train was delayed and i missed a connection at Shepherds Well. As this point i headed back to Folkestone West. I got off at Folkestone East and headed down to seafront where i had a beautiful evening walk along the beach. Before heading to the hotel i took a little walk along the Folkestone Arm.

Blog continues below...

On the Friday i had planned to not visit many stations and just relax. That plan changed as i was heading between Ashford International and Canterbury West I traveled through 3 little stations, Wye, Chilham & Chartham. They looked really beautiful so i decided to go and visit them stations. Manual level crossings, Old signal boxes, nice village greens. It really was beautiful.

After these three i went to Canterbury East and then to Selling and Adisham before heading into London via Gillingham, Rainham & Rochester. I soon discovered why i was nervous about London. The walk between Stratford International & Stratford (via the Olympic Park) was heaving, trying to avoid getting run over by bikes & scooters. Anyway, once i dodged all the people i was on a train heading to Angel Road.

So my original plans was to catch the very last train out of Angel Road, unfortunately the closure date was changed meaning my great big plans were in the bin. I've still done the station now, and as i write this I see that it's been delayed again... Who know's when this station will finally close, and more to the point, who knows when Meridian Water will finally open. I never actually realized how close the two stations were going to be. Quite literally a stone throw away, platform to platform anyway.

After Angel Road i made my way to my Travelodge for the night at Enfield.

Blog continues below...

Saturday i started the day late, i didn't leave my hotel until 1145. Ticked off some stations in London before heading to Paddington for the final Great Western Railway HST.

The HST journey was amazing, I'll be doing a separate blog for this trip soon. So anyway, lets fast forward to Taunton.

So with the journey ending in Taunton/Exeter i had to find some accommodation. Prices in Exeter and Taunton are very expensive on a Saturday night. Cheapest place i could get was a guest house for £56. I stayed at the Royal Ashton Hotel just 250m from Taunton station. I was very impressed with it overall. Check it out here .

Blog continues below...

So it was an early rise on the Sunday, time to head off to Exeter for the first service of the year to Sampford Courtenay and Okehampton.

I started with visiting Sampford Courtenay, the least used station in Devon. Since they only have trains on Summer Sundays it's no surprise really. It was so peaceful and relaxing at the station while i waited for my train back.

After this i got the train back down to Crediton where i went to get breakfast at Wetherspoons. Terrible experience, worst Wetherspoons i've been in for a very long time. 35mins i waited for my breakfast. Anyway, i made it back to the station in time, just. Anyway i then headed up the Tarka line to Kings Nympton. I then headed back to Newton St Cyres and then headed for Okehampton. What a beautiful treat Okehampton was. I mean absolutely beautiful.

After Okehampton it was time to head towards Bristol where my hotel was for the night.

Blog continues below...

The Monday was a personal morning, in the afternoon I finally got to tick of Keynsham, a station that had eluded me on a few previous trips. I always got to tick off Bristol Temple Meads properly! Then it was homeward bound.

Blog continues below...

Now my trip has finished i look back on this one as one of the best, felt really positive all throughout, and I've learnt things about myself as a person and learnt lots about the challenge. Got to meet several people during this trip, was good to say Hi to say hi to people. If anyone see's me about in the future, feel free to say hi, i might even grab a selfie with you for this blog.

Anyway, until next time.

Stuart

NEW VIDEO Back In The Southwest

Wed, 03 Apr 2019 08:24:55 GMT

Here is Episode 3 from my Every Last Station challenge.

Episode 3 takes us to the south-west again. In this video we visit: Freshford, Avoncliff, Bradford-On-Avon, Oldfield Park, Bath Spa & Chippenham. There was walks, pretty village, mud and missed trains.

Bradford-On-Avon was a disaster, should of had 30 minuets there, but due to a phone call i ended up only been able to grab a quick shaky phone video as the train arrived. I'll definitely be back to Bradford-On-Avon as i really wanted to spend some time there exploring.

Anyway, Hope you all enjoy my first attempt at voice over, was as nervous as hell doing it, think it probably came across a bit? I'm sure that will get better with time, quality will come with confidence i suppose.

Anyway, thanks for watching and reading :-)

Until next time then.

Stu

Day Trip to Dent & Ribblehead

Mon, 25 Mar 2019 23:56:39 GMT

No new stations, just videos and beautiful scenery.

Hello.

A few weeks ago i did a pole on my twitter page to decide where i would go to film some video's for my various social media channels. The winner was the beautiful Dent station on the Settle & Carlisle line.

I started my day catching the 0626 (1Y54) Northern service from Ulverston to Carnforth where i hopped across to platform 2 to catch the 0700 (2Y54) service from Carnforth to Gargrave. At Gargrave i quickly popped to the local co-op to get a bacon butty for breakfast. After this i went and got the 0830 (2H12) Northern service from Gargrave to Dent.

So after arriving at Dent and filming the required videos. After this i decided to take the walk to Ribblehead. The walk was slightly more challenging than i had first anticipated. This been said i plowed straight into the walk, firstly heading up Great Knoutberry Hill before heading down towards the Artengill Beck. When i got to the cross paths i decided to head over Wold Fell and drop down on to Newby Head Gate Road where i followed to Dent Viaduct.

At this point i was planning on videoing the Network Rail Maintenance HST. Unfortunately i had no mobile signal so was unable to notice it was running 30mins early so i just managed to get a quick shot as it passed over the viaduct.

Anyway... Back to my walk, i followed the road as far as Bridge End Cottage, I then turned left and followed the footpath towards the mouth of the Dent Tunnel. I then proceeded to climb to the right of the tunnel and up onto Blea Moor. When I reached the first air shaft, I stopped to take a video and photos of a northern unit heading towards Dent viaduct.

After a break for a drink and snack i descended over the moor to Blea Moor signal box and onto Ribblehead viaduct. Overall a very tiring walk, but very worth while to enjoy the scenery and piece and quiet.

My journey home started with the 1614 (2H93) service from Ribblehead to Skipton. At Skipton i popped to Morrisons to get a hot meal, before heading back to the station to get the 1808 (2H21) service to Carnforth where i connected with the 1922 (1C54) service to Ulverston.

Below is a rough route i took. I really recommend this walk, but probably for the more experienced walker.

Until my next adventure, which is likely to be Saturday 6th & Sunday 7th April all been well. Planning on heading to do the Newcastle to Carlisle line over these two days.

I'll say bye for now and speak to you soon.

Bye

Stuart :-)

New World & Old Blogs

Thu, 21 Mar 2019 00:00:00 GMT

It’s official, this is my brand new website

Wow... It's here! My new website. All future blogs will be on here. Please save www.everylaststation.co.uk as a favorite and see how my challenge is going :-).

For all historic blogs please click here .

I'm looking forward to sharing more adventures with you all :-)