I appreciate that but for a few quid single Paignton to Totnes it could increase your value of use on the day rover getting you back to mainline quicker
Will look at it
Update: I have decided I want to stick to the rule of starting at a point and returning to it using only my Ranger ticket and my feet. I do have a stiff back, so will see how this goes today. But I am hopeful. I have reluctantly made an itinerary - as the connections as too difficult otherwise - but I appreciate I may need to change things on the fly. I am grateful I have learnt in the past year how to use a smartphone. I got a tip from someone to consider a walking connection Pinhoe to Polsloe Bridge, but I think it's too far unless you are a good runner to be useful - as I think you would miss the train you would catch by continuing into Exeter Central (unless your inbound is late, as it is a 5 minute change and you need to change platforms). It may be a late finish - so I will likely add my report tomorrow.
Further update: Here is my trip report!
I didn't stick to my original plan at all! And no, it wasn't a deliberate Class 150 bashing session. There was at least one class 166 out today as well (I saw it twice - didn't catch unit number to see if it was the same one, but reckon it likely was given the timings), but I didn't get to ride on it.
I woke up nice and early, so I drove up to Honiton and parked on the road by the Catholic church. I went up to the end of the road to have a look at the cricket ground (Honiton CC), which is a nice club ground in the middle echelons of the Devon league. It was still fairly dark, but I got a decent view of the pavilion, the square and the outfield - not in season of course. I then walked up along Honiton high street - the first time for quite a long time. It is a traditional and thriving rural town, with a fascinating history - it was a centre of lace production in the not too distant past. On the right heading up the high street, I noticed a plaque commemorating the house of Juanita Maxwell Phillips, who was sadly repeatedly jailed for her work in promoting votes for women. It is only just outside living memory when women were denied the vote. I continued up the high street, and before turning right up New Street for the railway station, as time was on my side, I crossed over to the other side to see the war memorial which is situated in front of the parish church.
When the requisite time beckoned, I turned right up the hill (another one) to reach the station. Honiton station is small but well appointed and the seldom used platform 2 was in use for an up service. However, my first train of the day was the 07.54 down service to Exeter St Davids (class 159 - I did not write down unit numbers!). Before that, I went into the ticket office (it was open at that time of the morning, as were the toilet facilities). I bought a Devon Day Ranger which was £9.20 with my Devon and Cornwall railcard. While I could have started at my local unstaffed station (Cranbrook), the plan to start at Honiton certainly made me more confident as I embarked on the day out. There is an apparent contradiction between the information on the Devon Ranger webpage which says it can be bought on the train if boarding at an unstaffed station, threatening penalty fare notices at said unstaffed station, and NRCOC term 3 which says that if there is a ticket machine and it accepts a means of payment you can use but does not sell the ticket you want, you should buy a ticket for part of your journey - and ask for the price to be deducted from the price of the ticket you actually wanted! In practice, I think I would be OK with most guards getting on at Cranbrook and asking for a ranger, but I wasn't up for that today. Before long, we passed through the rolling fields of East Devon onwards past the remote villages of Feniton and Whimple (where the train stopped - it is fairly unusual to stop at both but it happened both times today) - I was originally considering a remote walk around Feniton but felt on reflection this was not a good use of an hour and 20 minutes, so my written plans for the day were already dust, five minutes after I started! Before long, the landscape became more urban as Cranbrook, Pinhoe and Exeter Central beckoned - the area between the latter pair being a large 'light industrial' centre, largely logistics companies.
On the approach to Exeter Central, I took out that most modern of contraptions - a smartphone that I only learnt to use last year when I was bored - and looked up on real time trains what was heading soon out of Central - where would my ranger take me next? I was thinking Exmouth, but the connection at Central was only 1 minute and required a platform change. With my back being really stiff in the mornings at the moment, this was not looking likely. And when I saw the unit already in (it was the class 166!) on the other side when we pulled into Central, I knew that was not to be, for now. So, I decided to stay on to St Davids and look up what was heading out of there soon. I noticed a Newcastle service (08.27) on platform 5 departing 3 minutes after our arrival on platform 3 (not an official connection, but doable - as I walked back through the unit to get to a door nearer the footbridge) and checked it was indeed calling at Tiverton Parkway. So, Tivvy it was! It was a double XC voyager and almost as soon as I got into my seat it pulled out of St Davids and across the famous Red Cow level crossing and soon past the bridge/junction/hamlet after which
@Cowley is named! We continued straight up the main line rather than turning off towards Crediton - that would have been an epic case of taking the wrong signal! Before long, Tiverton Parkway beckoned. It was only early morning but sure that voyager had a bit of a whiff already.
Upon alighting from the train at Tiverton Parkway, I undertook an out and back walk to the nearby Sampford Peverell village. The station complex with its sprawling carparks (noting that for the free 20 minute drop off you now need to take a ticket from a complicated looking machine!) contrasts starkly with the surrounding fields and golf course, but does have more in common with the passing M5 motorway. As I walked up to the village, I noticed golfers out for an early morning round at the confidently named Westcountry golf course (the west country is a big area and not necessarily centred on a rural village near Tiverton. I also passed a sign showcasing several local Rotary clubs and the charitable work they undertake. As I entered the village, I saw the parish church on the horizon, and just before the village centre, turned right up a smaller road to see the cricket (Sampford Peverell and Tiverton CC) and football ground (not uncommonly for villages, these are in a shared location). It was now time to turn around and head back to Tiverton Parkway to board another (smellier!) voyager, the 09.32 service to Plymouth. Before long, we passed Red Cow again and I alighted at Exeter St Davids, because I wanted to go to Dawlish Warren, so boarded the 10.03 stopping service to Newton Abbot (class 150 - starting that 150 bash! I promise it wasn't my aim to bash 150s).
Alighting at Dawlish Warren, I walked along the iconic sea wall to Dawlish, where I hit a very annoying delay, which nearly derailed my day. The sea wall walk was open but came to an end suddenly when the access to Dawlish was gated off with cameras keeping watch. An appropriate diversion such as via the lower promenade or allowing access as far as the footbridge just short of the station should have been offered in my opinion - this is part of a national trail, the South West Coast Path. Instead, I had to trudge nearly half way back to the Warren, to pick up a footbridge to the main road and head into Dawlish mainly via the road. This meant that my next train at Dawlish was not until 11.18 (an hour and 4 minutes after alighting at the Warren). It was another class 150 GWR service which I took as far as its destination for the day - Newton Abbot, arriving at 11.30. I found the layout of this station following relatively recent 'upgrades' to be rather disjointed. The traditional station building remains and hosts the ticket office, but affords no direct access to the platforms - this being fenced off, and customers having to walk far to the right to enter a new gateline building, which can be accessed directly from the road anyway.
My next jaunt was to Torquay on the English Riviera. Due to engineering works, this section today was by bus. The signage was a bit contradictory in places, but it was the case that there was no separate replacement bus, but rather ticket acceptance was in place on the Stagecoach 12. There was no issue with my ranger. I think this way of running a bus replacement can be quite effective and address issues with replacement bus availability, in cases where the section of line to be replaced is relatively short and is well mirrored by an existing bus route. However, it is important to provide clear information as to where to alight for stations, which was not the case in Torquay, meaning I accidentally alighted early at the marina. It was a pleasant walk along the marina seeing the yachts of the rich (and maybe famous), before I headed into the town to pick up some lunch at Tesco Express. I then headed back down to the bay near the Torre Abbey. This is a really interesting historical site, and is situated in well kept parkland. However, it is lacking free toilets, like many areas in Torbay, unfortunately leading to a lot of 'watering'. It is the Council's fault in my opinion for encouraging antisocial behaviour by a failure to provide suitable facilities. Torre Abbey shares a name with Torre station, which was renamed after the abbey, having originally been called Torquay and acting as a terminus of the line, until it was extended to the modern Torquay station and Paignton. From the abbey, I continued across towards Torquay station (which is statuesque with its stone façade in comparison to the more homely wooden clad Torre) walking through the next section of the park and seeing the Recreation Ground which hosts the town cricket (Torquay CC) and rugby clubs - I am not sure the scrums will do much for the state of the outfield! Upon completing my Torquay exploration, I returned by bus to Newton Abbot. The name is interesting, since it refers to the new town of the abbots of Torre Abbey.
There was only time for a visit to the facilities, before crossing the footbridge to platform 1 for the 14.40 Exmouth service (yes, it was class 150). Before long, there was another opportunity to see the spectacular Dawlish coast this time with higher tides, before we again headed into the suburbs of Exeter, before a reversal (taking 10 minutes nearly! You could run a class 50 loco round in under that time) at Exeter St Davids took us out through the industrial suburbs of Digby & Sowton and Newcourt (and also a horde of rugby fans heading for a European match starting at 17.30) towards the affluent riverside outer suburb of Topsham, home of many high powered professionals. Leaving Topsham, we went past the Commando camp at Lympstone (it transpired at Lympstone Village a soldier had forgotten to request his stop), and before long pulled into Exmouth (just before 16.00), which is a shadow of the grand station it used to be, and the bus station has also gone (except for the toilets) replaced by an M&S. Giving the rugby hordes time to clear (a large group of kilt-clad Scotsmen boarded the train I alighted - presumably Glasgow Warriors fans, unless they were going to Lympstone Commando!
I walked through the town square and up into the traditionally set out Manor Gardens before walking along the promenade to take a look at the elegant cricket ground (Exmouth CC and Devon CCC) before it was time to walk back along the seafront and through the town to reach the station in time for the 16.56 train (class 150 again), which I took as far as Exeter Central, where I had a 5 minute connection over the bridge onto the 17.30 SWR up service which I took as far as Honiton, where I collected my car. As I walked along the high street, in the impeding gloom, I noticed one final blue plaque commemorating the Manor House, believed to have connections with the Abbots of Dunkerswell abbey. About 5 miles north of Honiton, Dunkerswell is now best known for the airfield that was used in the Second World War. I was home at 18.30.
I thought it was an excellent day. I had to stop earlier than I might due to my back issues and the dark nights, but still covered a range of lines (Honiton to Torquay, plus side trips to Tiverton Parkway and Exmouth), and saved quite a lot of money over the constituent tickets even using break of journey liberally. The Dawlish delay was frustrating, and without it I might have managed to squeeze in a quick trip to Crediton. But it wasn't a priority, as I have seen it before on the Okehampton opening day. Plymouth will have to wait to another day - but I expect to do another of these before too long. I am not a traction basher really, but I found the traction a bit monotonous - I only had 159, 150 and voyager all day! The 'award' to the smelliest train goes to the 2nd voyager for sure - it had come down from Derby.
