crehld's travels

[crehld]

Another hiatus in the trip reports I'm afraid, but I've finally managed to get some time to write this one up! More to follow shortly. Enjoiy

18 November 2015: London bash day 1
It was time to once again tackle the railways of our nation's capital. However first thing's first, and I need to get to London. The usual bus journey to Crewe was made. I picked up my tickets and proceeded to platform 3 where the London Midland Trent Valley services usually depart from. Winning 350237 would be doing the honours today. Normally I would be dreading the prospect of a 350/2 all the way to London, but today I was in first class thanks to the fact the first class advance was going cheaper than the standard class fare, so I took it! A pleasant enough journey down the WCML is had and we eventually get to London where the real work can begin.

I have three main objectives for this trip:

1. Clear all GWR shacks in zones 1-6
2. Clear all Chiltern shacks in zones 1-6
3. Clear all SWT shacks in zones 1-6

The plan was to spend today on the first two objectives and deal with SWT the day after. The first job however was to collect my bag from the lost property office at Euston (you may remember from a previous trip report I left a bag on a train from Lancaster to Crewe - well they found it ). After paying the £5 handling fee, it was off to Euston Square underground station to pick up duds LU21311 and LU21312 to Edgware Road, changing there onto LU21357 and LU21358 to Paddington. I make my way to the mainline station, where I board Heathrow Connect 360203 to West Ealing. From there it's onto 165132 to South Greenford.

The challenge was now to walk back to Castle Bar Park in time to pick up the same train heading back towards Paddington. With power walking mode engaged (quite difficult with an extra bag in tow) I make it to Castle Bar Park in time to pick up 165132 again, this time for one stop to Drayton Green.

Time for more walking now, but this time at a much more respectable pace. Well within 15 minutes I make it to Hanwell, picking up 360203 again to Ealing Broadway. This leaves only West Drayton to get, which I plan to come back later for.

It's time for some London Underground action now, so I make my way from the mainline platforms to the Ealing Broadway London Undergroud station where I take LU7108 and LU7538 one stop to Ealing Common. It's then onto the Piccadilly Line, with winner LU880 and dud LU152 to Sudbury Hill. A short and simple walk is had to nearby Sudbury Hill Harrow to begin working on my Chiltern shacks. Here 165029 takes me to Northolt Park. A short wait is had on the other platform before 165028 arrives to take me all the way to Marylebone.

The formally lost bag is starting to get on my nerves now and is weighing me down so in an impromptu change of plans I decide to slowly head towards the accommodation to check in and off load. This means a trek across London to East Croydon. So at Marylebone it's into the underground station, where it's onto LU3265 and something else I don't quite get (really must get new glasses sorted!) to Regent's Park. A short wait here produces LU3241 and LU3553 to Piccadilly Circus, and then LU3253 and LU3564 to Lambeth North and finally duds LU3232 and LU3555 to Elephant and Castle.

A walk through the shopping centre (picking up a can of ginger beer along the way) takes me to the mainline station. It's onto 319458 and 319220 to Tulse Hill. Here I grab the opportunity of a cheeky cross-platform transfer onto 455808 and 455804 to North Dulwich.

The heavens have opened now and it's pretty clear the platform canopies at North Dulwich are about as much use as a chocolate fire guard. Boy do they leak! To be fair it wouldn't have made too much difference given the rain was horizontal, so the arrival of 455803 and dud 455834 is a welcome sight. I board to get out of the rain and stay on as far as Birkbeck.

It's still raining as I make the short walk to the tram stop opposite, but thankfully the immediate arrival of tram 2550 provides shelter again. This is taken all the way to Lebanon Road, which is only a short walk from the accommodation.

I check in and spend sometime drying off and changing into dry clothes. The plan had been to meet up with the legendary Kite159, but I receive communication that he is under the weather and won't be making it. So it's back out on the tracks. I decide to head back to Marylebone to finish off my Chiltern requirements. At East Croydon station I board 377123, 377426 and 377148 to Victoria. It's then down to the Victoria line to pick up LU11029 and LU11030 to Oxford Circus and then Bakerloo line trains LU3564 and LU3253 back to Marylebone.

A quick check of the departure boards here and it's onto 165007 (if James bond travelled by train...). This is one of the few train a day to stop at Sudbury and Harrow Road, which is just as well as I need this shack. With the limited service I had expected to be one of the only ones to get off here, so I was somewhat surprised that half the train seemed to empty at this station.

I set off on another short walk to Sudbury Town underground station to pick up LU213 and LU240 to Eastcote, followed by LU21099 and LU21100 to Ruislip Manor and then LU173 and LU856 to Ruislip. More walking now, and after almost 15 minutes I end up at West Ruislip, where I find 165007 again patiently waiting.

That's it, all Chiltern shacks in zones 1-6 cleared (South Ruislip had been done earlier in the year)! 165007 took me the one stop to South Ruislip, where I switched to the Central Line, taking LU91065, LU92208, LU92214 and LU91227 back towards London. My original intention was to go back to Paddington and grab West Drayton to finish off my GWR objective, but I changed my plans last minute and bailed at Shepherd's Bush.

Maybe it was because we spent 15 minutes being delayed on the Central Line. Or maybe (or even probably) it was because I was hungry and wanted to sit down for something to eat. After a few minutes moping about the place I settled on a Mexican restaurant were a tasty burrito and sweet potato side was had, washed down with a bottle of beer.

All filled up I decided to clear the West London Line. So I made my way to Shepherd's Bush, boarding 377205 and 377206 for a short journey to Kensington Olympia.

Here I spotted the rare weekday sight of a District Line train waiting at the platform. This was too good an opportunity to miss so it was onto LU7108 and LU7105 to Earl's Court. I had a bit of a fester here to make use of the station's free WiFi before eventually boarding LU21463 and LU21464 to West Brompton. A change onto the London Overground platforms sees 378233 arrive for a journey to Imperial Wharf.

I'm getting tired now, so I decide to start heading back towards the accommodation. At Imperial Wharf I take 378211 back to West Brompton. It's then back to the underground platforms to take LU21411 and LU21412 to Parson's Green. It's a short wait on the platform here before LU7022 and LU7093 turn up to take me the rest of the way to Wimbledon.

It's back on the trams now, so I make my way to the other end of Wimbledon station to board tram 2535. I had planned to stay on all the way to East Croydon, by a technical fault on the tram led to an unexpected shack scratch at Therapia Lane where we were told to get off and wait for the next service. The guy sitting next to me said this happens all the time because the depot is next to the station and the drivers want to clock off early... not sure how much truth there is in that as he had a bit of a 'conspiracy theory' look about him. Anyway, shortly tram 2560 turned up to take us the rest of the way to East Croydon.

A short walk to the hotel is made before I put my feet up for the rest of the evening and open the iPlayer up on the iPad.

 

[Kite159]

Sounded like a busy day

 

[Keith Jarrett]

What a fantastic time wandering around The Smoke. Plenty of winning units and shacks as well. Getting those awkward Chiltern ones in must have been a relief. I should imagine that all those normals who decamped at Sudbury Hill and Harrow wanted a relatively comfortable commute rather than the prospect of being rimmed up against someone else's sweaty armpit.

Looking forward to hearing how day two went.

 

[FQ]

That sounds like an amazing time around London! I so want to get down there soon!

 

[Kristofferson]

That's a productive day for sure - hope you finish SWT and GWR on day 2...

 

[Techniquest]

Welcome back to the trip report sector!

One heck of an amazing day down London, jealous on the Chiltern shacks as I need that ultra limited one and Northolt Park. Maybe I'll actually do them next time!

Not surprised carrying two bags was irritating you, must have been glad to get it back though! Good fortune with the D stock, very jammy indeed!

Definitely looking forward to the next parts!

 

[crehld]

Sorry for the delay in getting this one posted up gang. It's been a busy couple of months!! Here's day two of the London bash. Hopefully the suspense hasn't been too unbearable

19 November 2015: London bash day 2
As you will have seen the plan for today was to try and clear all my remaining SWT stations within zone 1-6. However I ended up doing something completely different for two reasons. Firstly, it was chucking it down and I really didn't fancy getting soaked on some of the walking transfers. And secondly, I still had my bad recovered from lost property the day before and this would only slow me down. I had a lot of tight connections, walking and bus transfers so I decided I'd be best off leaving SWT until I was less 'burdened'. So instead I decided to make things up as I went along. From the hotel I headed to West Croydon and purchased a day travelcard.

It was then onto the first available train I could get: 378146 for one stop to Norwood Junction. A change here onto the next train to arrive, 455833 and 455838 to Crystal Palace.

Here I decided to try and clear the London Overground shacks as far as the East London Line, so it was onto 378142 to Sydenham, then triple winners 377446, 377306 and 377326 to Forest Hill.

Next up was winner 378144 to Honor Oak Park, followed by dud 378213 to Brockley.

It's then 455818 to New Cross Gate. A short wait ensues before 378147 arrives to take me to Canada Water.

It's London Underground time now! I make my way to the Jubilee line platforms, picking up LU96026 and LU96039 to Canary Wharf. It's then LU96047 and 96050 to North Greenwich, followed by LU96042 and something else I didn't quite get (really must get new glasses sorted out!) to West Ham. Following the short walk to the mainline platforms, it's onto 357020 to Upminster. Here it's onto dud 317887 to Emerson Park.

There's a bit of a wait here while I wait for the train back to Upminster so I go for a little explore, quickly realising there really isn't that much of interest around here. I find a cafe which offers a potential caffeine fix, but to my dismay it's shut. So back to Emerson Park and after a few minutes 317887 returns from Romford to take me back to Upminster. I get my caffeine fix from the little kiosk on the platform, before boarding 357005 to Barking. Here I get on 172008 for the one stop to Woodgrange Park.

I make the short walk from here to Manor Park, picking up double duds 315821 and 315841 to Stratford. I head into the nearby shopping centre for a supply raid at Greggs (Chicken bake, ploughman's sandwich and a gingerbread man) before heading back to Stratford and onto 317515 to Tottenham Hale.

Down underground again now to pick up duds LU11045 and LU11046 to Walthamstow Central (the LU station is new for me). The task is now to work on clearing the Chingford branch line (I already have Chingford itself). So it's on to 315807 to St James Street. A platform switch here allows me to board 315804 and 315810 to Highams Park.

I have a mate who lives near here, but there's no time to faff about with reunions, so it's onto 317719 and 317723 to Clapton, before boarding 315808 back to Walthamstow Central.

Back underground now to pick up LU11045 and LU11046 (again!!) to Blackhorse Road. As I get to the Goblin line platforms I realise I've just missed the last west-bound train, so I take the opportunity to grab east-bound winner 172001 to Walthamstow Queens Road, before heading back east to Gospel Oak on 172005.

Here it's onto 378222 to Willesden Junction, where I change onto 378232 to Kensal Green.

At this point I figure I have plenty of time to head back and grab West Drayton (which I'd missed the day before) before my train back home leaves. So it's onto Bakerloo line trains LU3244 and LU3548 to Paddington. Back above ground, it's onto 166202 and 165137 to West Drayton, finally clearing GWR zones 1-6 stations.

It's then onto 166212 to Hayes and Harlington. A short wait here produces double winners 165121 and 165114 back to Paddington. There's still time before I need to be back at Euston, so it's back onto the Bakerloo line, picking up LU3554 and LU3246 to Warwick Avenue and then LU3531 and LU3255 to Maida Vale and finally LU3538 and 3247 to Willesden Junction. At the high level platforms it's onto 378216 to West Hampstead.

A short walk here takes me to West Hampstead Thameslink station, where I find 319008 and 319010 waiting to take me to Kentish Town.

Back underground for the last time today, where I get onto Northern Line trains LU51521 and LU51522 to Euston. Food and drink for the journey home is purchased before getting on board 390047 to Crewe (via Birmingham).

So another busy day in the big smoke. I hadn't got anywhere close to my SWT objective, but I had made a big dent in my London Overground requirements (both stations and haulage wise).
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

That's a productive day for sure - hope you finish SWT and GWR on day 2...

As you'll the GWR objective was completed... SWT remains outstanding!

 

[Kite159]

Very productive day in London

 

[Kristofferson]

Nicely done not sure I could stomach a day on the Overground, so fair play for sticking with it!

 

[47403]

Great read that, very productive indeed. Top effort crehid, plenty winners alround too.

 

[Techniquest]

That was quite the productive day! Tons of winners and shack scores, not to mention a decent bit of variety!

Top read as always good sir, it's been crazy here too lately so I sympathise with you on that one.

 

[crehld]

Productive indeed, but despite my efforts my London coverage is far, far from complete. There's a massive hole south of the river in particular!

Anyway, still catching up...

22 and 23 November 2015: to Portsmouth and back (again!)
There is another trip to Portsmouth for a meeting. As per my usual modus operandi, I decide to head down the night before and stay at a mates. I get to Crewe in good time to pick up the tickets and make my way to the platform, only to have a mad dash as the platform changes as 390115 pulls in. I make my way to the front of the train and make use of Virgin's £15 first class upgrade offer (not bad, especially considering my ticket was only £11.90 to begin with).

Normally a trip from Crewe to Euston wouldn't be much to write about, but today engineering works are overrunning at Stafford meaning we're treated to a rare diversion for a 390 via Alsager and Stoke-on-Trent. As interesting as it is, however, the diversion does mean I arrive into Watford Junction late and miss my connection. So there's a 40 minute fester here for the next available train, which I use to grab some provisions for the rest of the journey.

Back at the station dud 377708 pulls in for the journey down the West London Line to Clapham Junction. It's then 377112 and 377129 to Ford (always a nice bonus to pick up a new shack on an A-B journey). It's then 377102 to Emsworth, where I meet my mate who I'm staying with tonight, who takes me to his place via the pub and a couple of pints of course

The next morning it's back at Emsworth station to take 313202 to Portsmouth and Southsea with the rest of south coast commuters. I go to a local cafe for breakfast and head to the meeting.

I get out in time to have a wander around the shops in town before heading to Portsmouth Harbour to start heading back home. I make my way to the platform to see a bit of a kerfuffle going on trying to couple two units together, with several passengers and staff alike gathered round to watch. It appears the couplers aren't working but no one doesn't quite know why. The proposed remedy appears to be to keep smashing the units into each other, at a slightly quicker speed each time, hoping they'll stick together (I'm sure it's actually a lot more technical than that). Anyway, after no success they give up and we head off to Waterloo with the train formed of just 444030.

There are clear skies above and it's not too cold so I decide to walk it between Waterloo and Euston, completing the walk in 40 minutes or so. At Euston the usual wait around for several minutes is had, followed by the stampede to the train as passengers are only informed of the platform 2 minutes prior to departure. 221103 is doing the honours today, taking me all the way back to Crewe.

 

[Techniquest]

Nice little trip there, and aye a winning shack on Mandatory Moves is always a bonus!

 

[Kristofferson]

Nice little trip. I've only ever done Desiros from Clapham to Portsmouth - a long old way at the best of times.

I do love the harbour though, it's just such a refreshing place to be after the bustle of London.

 

[55013]

Nice move there.
Getting any sort of winner on a work move is always nice

 

[FQ]

Lots of winners there!

 

[crehld]

Nice little trip there, and aye a winning shack on Mandatory Moves is always a bonus!

Nice move there.
Getting any sort of winner on a work move is always nice

I heartily agree!

Nice little trip. I've only ever done Desiros from Clapham to Portsmouth - a long old way at the best of times.

I do love the harbour though, it's just such a refreshing place to be after the bustle of London.

I love the harbour too. The station there is currently undergoing a repaint and the council have knocked down the old awful Hard bus station (was such an eyesore) so it's starting to look much better round there too!

Anyway still catching up...

6 December 2015: A trip to France

A rare opportunity to head overseas as I have conference to attend in Strasbourg and work is paying (so there was really very little to stop me from saying "yes")! My travel and accommodation had been sorted out for me, so all I had to do was get myself to Crewe to pick up dud 390127 to Euston. As work had already paid the rail fare, I saw no harm in forking out an additional £15 to upgrade to first class on the way to London, making full use of the complementary Danish pastries and coffee.

At Euston I make the usual walking move down the Euston Road to St Pancras station, pick up my Eurostar and SNCF tickets from the machines and undergo the check in and security procedures. The platform still hasn't been announced to I grab a coffee and sit down with a book for a bit.

Eventually the platform is announced as so we all make our way up the escalators to find 373217 and 373218 waiting to take us all the way to Paris Nord. The journey starts off well enough, but we seem to be taking ages to get through the 'Chunnel'. An announcement by the train manager informs us we're having to go at a reduced speed due to a track circuit failure (or something like that). We arrive into Paris 20 minutes late, but there's still enough time to make the short walk to Paris Est station (picking up a sandwich baguette thing from a deli along the way) and catch the next train - a TGV duplex bound for Strasbourg.

I head for the platforms, remembering this time 'composter' (i.e. validate) my ticket (I forgot on a previous trip a few years back and the train manager successfully managed to make me look like a stupid foreigner in front of a load of French people ).

I get to my seat to find someone else in it! Now I don't speak great French, but from what I understand this bloke and his girlfriend bought his ticket last minute and were given seats in different carriages, so he was wondering if I would be willing to swap. I couldn't really reply in anything beyond basic conversation so I decided just to go with it. This really worked in my favour, not only do I now find myself on the top deck but there are only six of us in this carriage making for a nice and calm atmosphere (my original seat was lower deck and the carriage was packed full and rowdy - perhaps the girlfriend should have swapped her seat instead???)

The journey progresses pleasantly enough, not that I can see much given it's dark now. At tiny station about half an hour away from Strasbourg we stop unexpectedly incurring a ten minute delay while an ambulance takes someone off the train - I hope they're OK, but it, along with the earlier track circuit failure, does go to show the French have the same problems running a railway as we do!

Arrival into Strasbourg is at 20:00 not hideously late and the trams are still running, but I don't really know where my hotel is so I just opt for the taxi option instead. I'm here for a few days, working most of the time, but there will be time to explore the city and have a go on the trams...

... all will be revealed in the trip report to be posted up tomorrow!

 

[Techniquest]

Ooh nice, some proper serious mileage going on there! I do wonder what you got up to, so I'm looking forward to the read!

 

[Kristofferson]

Does it feel like drawing the short straw to get a 373 these days instead of a 374?

Which reminds me, I haven't even seen one yet

Going back to Portsmouth - glad they're getting rid of that ugly bus station. It was a shock walking out of Gunwharf Quays and seeing that eye sore next to it!

 

[crehld]

Does it feel like drawing the short straw to get a 373 these days instead of a 374?

Part of me was secretly hoping to get a ride on a 374, but the odds were stacked against me (I think they only have one up and running)

 

[FQ]

I'm looking forward to the next part. Lucky that you got a seat in the top deck!

 

[crehld]

Ooh nice, some proper serious mileage going on there! I do wonder what you got up to, so I'm looking forward to the read!

Proper mileage indeed - 744 miles in one day! I managed a bit more on the way home!

7 December 2015: an afternoon with the Strasbourg trams
I woke up refreshed after a long day travelling the day before and ready to go. The conference wasn't starting until this evening so I had a whole day to take in the sights of Strasbourg before getting down to business. So off I set to explore.

As I took a taxi to the hotel the night before I hadn't quite realized where I was until this morning. In their infinite wisdom, the people who organized my accommodation back at the office booked me somewhere in the district of Robertsau, a fair distance from the city centre and certainly not walkable within a reasonable amount of time. It was either a bus or the tram, so I went for the latter.

I headed out to the and bought a 24 hour ticket from the self service machine and boarded my first Strasbourg tram, 1015 from Robertsau Boecklin to République. After figuring out the triangular nature of this tram station, I boarded 1051 to Homme de Fer, the hub of the Strasbourg tram system and also conveniently located for the city centre.

A quick note about the trams: they have a long slanting nose, and look quite different to your conventional tram. It took I while for me to figure it out, but it also seems each station on the network gets its own unique little jingle which plays at the same time the automatic announcer tells you what the next stop is. It's actually quite a nifty idea as the announcer's voice can be difficult to pick out on a packed tram, but the jingles are quite distinctive.

Anyway, I spend the morning doing touristy things. I also visit the world famous Christmas market and buy a gift for Mrs Crehld and then head to a restaurant for lunch (which the French do very well indeed). As I leave the restaurant there's still plenty of time before the conference starts to I decide to head out and explore one of the tram lines. I opt for Line B, mainly because this is the first tram to arrive at République, taking 1026 to Lycée Kléber.

From here it's a succession of trams 2009 to Rives de l'Aar, then 1056 to Futura Glacière, then 1052 to Le Marais and 1035 to Lycée Marc Bloch. By now it is apparent that I've chosen a rather uninteresting route which seems to be wandering around boring housing estates - but I'm committed now so I'm going to stick with it!

Next up it's 2024 to Général de Gaulle, followed by 2011 to Hoenheim Gare. This is the end of the tram line, and there's an interchange here with an SNCF station which will take me back into Strasbourg. However, a quick check of the timetable shows I've just missed the train and there won't be another for at least half an hour, so it's back onto the trams.

This time it's 1062 to Le Ried, followed by 1058 to Pont Phario and then 2006 to Wacken. 1026 shows up again to take me to Parc de Contades. A quick check of the watch tells me it's probably time to head back to the hotel and don some more professional looking clothes before making my way to the conference venue. So it's time to switch to Line E, and onto tram 1060 back to Robertsau.

 

[FQ]

I'm still liking it a lot!

 

[Techniquest]

While I have no familiarity with the area, it sounds like you had a good day! Was it an expensive 24 hour pass?

 

[crehld]

While I have no familiarity with the area, it sounds like you had a good day! Was it an expensive 24 hour pass?

4.3 Euro if I recall correctly. It includes all tram, bus and train travel (a la London Travelcard) so not a bad deal really. And it's valid for 24 hours from the point of validation, rather than simply valid for the day it is bought.

9 December 2015: a few more trams before heading home
The day before had been spent boring myself listening to dull presentations while taking copious notes. A nice meal was had in the evening but I was glad that today I would be heading home. There was still time before my train, however, to get in a few more trams and to have another quick look around the city centre.

I checked out of the hotel and made my way to the now familiar tram stop Robertsau Boecklin. I called into the post office on the way to send the obligatory postcards, leaving one of my bags behind in the process. I only realised when I got to the tram stop, so had to quickly double back and pick it up (I seem to forget my bags a lot you will notice). It was then onto tram 1009 for one stop to Droites de l'Homme, home of the European Court of Human Rights of news fame (which has nothing to do with the European Union). It was a short wait until the next tram, 1033, showed to take me to Parlement Européen (also of news fame, which has everything to do with the European Union).

From here it was the now very familiar 1026 to Gallia, followed by 2014 to Université, 1014 to Observatoire and finally 1003 to Place d'Islande, which was the end of the line. It was now time to start heading back home, so it was straight back on to 1003 to République, where I changed lines onto 2029 to Gare Centrale.

Now at Strasbourg SNCF station, there was just enough time to pick up a coffee and a sandwich for the journey before boarding the TGV (only a single decker this time) to Paris Est. I had a 3 hour wait before the Eurostar home so I did what one always does in Paris... go for a late lunch! Suitably filled up after a three course meal I go through the usual Eurostar checking procedures at Paris Nord, before boarding 373013 and 373014 to St Pancras. It's the usual walk up the Euston Road to pick up one last winner for the day, 390009 back to Crewe.

 

[Techniquest]

Very nice, looks like a good time was had! Good value too for that Strasbourg ticket

 

[crehld]

12 December 2015: Another Cheshire Day Ranger
I had to be in Chester today for some Christmas shopping, to meet a friend for coffee and then to meet some mates in the evening for a good ol' catch up, so I decided to fill in the time between the various commitments with another Cheshire day ranger. Upon arrival to Crewe it was straight into the ticket office to purchase the necessary ranger ticket, before heading to the platform to get the train to Chester. Dud 150284 was on the Crewe-Chester shuttle today.

By lunchtime I was back at the station. There was no plan really so I just hopped on the first thing which was due to depart, which turned out to be double duds 142052 and 142028 to Cuddington, allowing me to pick up another shack on the mid Cheshire line.

I switch platforms by way of the road bridge over the railway, completely missing the blatantly obvious passenger foot crossing. Oh well, at least I still managed to get on to 150277 and 150211 back to Chester. Here it was straight onto 507024 to Moorfields (which I had to miss off from my last visit to Liverpool as it was shut), and then 507030 to Conway Park.

By this time a tentative plan had formed in my head. I had to be back in Chester for 6.30pm, but I figured out I'd be able fill in the Borderlands Line as far as Shotton on the map, and score a couple of shacks in the process. So at Conway Park it was 508131 to Leasowe, followed by a mad dash across to the footbridge to catch 507032 to Bidston.

It was only a short wait before 150280 showed up, taking me to Neston.

There was some time to kill here so I had a look round Aldi (I have no idea why) and then found a nearby Sainsburys cafe for a cheap caffeine fix and some shelter from the rain and cold. Eventually it was time to head back to the station to pick up northbound 150259 to Upton.

There was only a short wait here for 150259 to return to Bidston and take me all the way down to Shotton. I notice here that the northbound train is running late so for the novelty factor I rush to the other platform, jump on the train and ask the guard to stop at Hawarden Bridge (I already have this station, but I couldn't resist the novelty of a request stop station ). It was then a walk back along the bridge to Shotton again, where 175112 takes me back to Chester in time to meet up with people, eat, drink, be merry and all that (although I'm driving back from the station this evening, so no alcohol for me!).

The run back to Crewe is courtesy of 158840, which has a huge police presence on board for some unknown reason. Despite this (or maybe because of it) everything is quiet.

 

[Kite159]

Sounds like a good mini-day trip, good to know about that cafe at Sainsburys as I need Neston to clear the top half of that line (Shotton to Bidston)

 

[alexf380]

Just caught up with your last couple of trips there, sounds like a good time. Strasbourg certainly sounds different!

 

[Techniquest]

Neston is required for me too, the Sainsburys will be very useful indeed!