Iskra's Odysseys

[Iskra]

My next trip off was pretty special:

I started with an early morning bus down to Sheffield station. Next, I took the cheapest, but also the most optimal route for an enthusiast over to Manchester Airport from there: this involved a change at Stockport onto a TfW Class 67 set. I was hoping for a winner, but instead it was dud 67008 that took me the short hop to Wilmslow. Bizzarely, on board the guard scanned my ticket but questioned my routing despite me having a valid itinerary. Meanwhile, the gentleman next door to me was using a paper ticket which wasn't valid until after 9am, on a train that was running before that time... I didn't say anything however. At Wilmslow I changed onto a Northern 323 and arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare.



I was flying with Easyjet today, but there'd been an interesting flight alteration. I'd booked to fly to Milan Malpensa, but they'd changed the flight to Milan Linate and the aircraft was going to be an ITA one instead. I was fairly happy with this, as Linate is a new airport for me and it's closer to the centre of Milan. Additionally, I'd never flown with ITA before so I was excited for that. The aircraft looked beautiful in its stunning blue livery. Onboard, the seats were the older style leather ones which have better padding, the crew were also ITA staff. The flight was moderately turbulant for the entire duration and I don't think the seatbelt sign was turned off for the duration. On landing at Linate we had to do the new European border formalities, but this didn't take too long. We then took a taxi to the hotel at this point it was sunny, which was nice to see. The hotel was located a 15 minute walk from Milan Central, so would be a good base for the week.



It was a very early start the next morning. I bought our Lombardy day tickets easily on my phone, and we walked in the rain to Milan Central station which was adorned in the colours of the Italian flag with lights. On the Piazza outside, a Winter Olympics store had been erected. Our train arrived quite last minute, but we were able to get seats easily as the Lombardy day ticket permits first class travel. The first class section is nothing special at all, it's just less crowded and a little quieter. As we progressed towards our destination at Tirano, we passed Lake Como at dawn, with snow-capped mountains looking very nice. At Tirano, it was an easy walk to the adjacent SBB station. We'd bought Swiss Day pass tickets well in advance giving us flexibility. The train to St Moritz was formed of a modern multiple unit dragging a number of older carriages with opening windows and comfortable seats, which is obviously where we chose to sit. The journey was everything I thought it would be and more. The scenery quickly became impressive, as were the gradients traversed, the viaducts etc. Once above the snow line, it was a perfect winter wonderland and best of all it was sunny with blue skies and I appreciated the Vitamin D. I made a video of the scenery on the journey so I will just include that here rather than describe it in detail, although I will just state again that the journey was amazing, definitely one of the best I've undertaken.

At St Moritz, the temperature was around -12, but with the sunshine it was still fairly pleasant. The scenery was still excellent, and with the frozen lake, snow capped mountains and typical Swiss buildings it was a worthy end point to a stunning journey. The route to the town centre is well-covered and there is an escalator that helps you get there. Obviously, St Moritz is not known for it's value for money so after a walk around, we found the cheapest looking bar we could. The prices turned out to be fairly reasonable, so this was a good choice and the views were excellent. We then had a further exploration of the centre, and headed back for the return train so that we could do it in daylight. We sat on the opposite side to enjoy a different perspective. It was noticeable that the high levels of excitement among the passengers on the outward trip had subdued and many were sleeping. At Tirano, the connection time was ample as our train arrived late, so we'd missed one. We thus made use of the station bar. The sunset on the journey back so we didn't see much of Como and this train also became around 30 minutes late, so was a bit of a drag. Overall it was a very long day but well worth it- I'd definitely do this route again.

Standby for the next installment of this trip in the next few days...

 

[D6130]

My next trip off was pretty special:

I started with an early morning bus down to Sheffield station. Next, I took the cheapest, but also the most optimal route for an enthusiast over to Manchester Airport from there: this involved a change at Stockport onto a TfW Class 67 set. I was hoping for a winner, but instead it was dud 67008 that took me the short hop to Wilmslow. Bizzarely, on board the guard scanned my ticket but questioned my routing despite me having a valid itinerary. Meanwhile, the gentleman next door to me was using a paper ticket which wasn't valid until after 9am, on a train that was running before that time... I didn't say anything however. At Wilmslow I changed onto a Northern 323 and arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare.

View attachment 197940

I was flying with Easyjet today, but there'd been an interesting flight alteration. I'd booked to fly to Milan Malpensa, but they'd changed the flight to Milan Linate and the aircraft was going to be an ITA one instead. I was fairly happy with this, as Linate is a new airport for me and it's closer to the centre of Milan. Additionally, I'd never flown with ITA before so I was excited for that. The aircraft looked beautiful in its stunning blue livery. Onboard, the seats were the older style leather ones which have better padding, the crew were also ITA staff. The flight was moderately turbulant for the entire duration and I don't think the seatbelt sign was turned off for the duration. On landing at Linate we had to do the new European border formalities, but this didn't take too long. We then took a taxi to the hotel at this point it was sunny, which was nice to see. The hotel was located a 15 minute walk from Milan Central, so would be a good base for the week.

View attachment 197941

It was a very early start the next morning. I bought our Lombardy day tickets easily on my phone, and we walked in the rain to Milan Central station which was adorned in the colours of the Italian flag with lights. On the Piazza outside, a Winter Olympics store had been erected. Our train arrived quite last minute, but we were able to get seats easily as the Lombardy day ticket permits first class travel. The first class section is nothing special at all, it's just less crowded and a little quieter. As we progressed towards our destination at Tirano, we passed Lake Como at dawn, with snow-capped mountains looking very nice. At Tirano, it was an easy walk to the adjacent SBB station. We'd bought Swiss Day pass tickets well in advance giving us flexibility. The train to St Moritz was formed of a modern multiple unit dragging a number of older carriages with opening windows and comfortable seats, which is obviously where we chose to sit. The journey was everything I thought it would be and more. The scenery quickly became impressive, as were the gradients traversed, the viaducts etc. Once above the snow line, it was a perfect winter wonderland and best of all it was sunny with blue skies and I appreciated the Vitamin D. I made a video of the scenery on the journey so I will just include that here rather than describe it in detail, although I will just state again that the journey was amazing, definitely one of the best I've undertaken.

View attachment 197943

View attachment 197946
View attachment 197947

At St Moritz, the temperature was around -12, but with the sunshine it was still fairly pleasant. The scenery was still excellent, and with the frozen lake, snow capped mountains and typical Swiss buildings it was a worthy end point to a stunning journey. The route to the town centre is well-covered and there is an escalator that helps you get there. Obviously, St Moritz is not known for it's value for money so after a walk around, we found the cheapest looking bar we could. The prices turned out to be fairly reasonable, so this was a good choice and the views were excellent. We then had a further exploration of the centre, and headed back for the return train so that we could do it in daylight. We sat on the opposite side to enjoy a different perspective. It was noticeable that the high levels of excitement among the passengers on the outward trip had subdued and many were sleeping. At Tirano, the connection time was ample as our train arrived late, so we'd missed one. We thus made use of the station bar. The sunset on the journey back so we didn't see much of Como and this train also became around 30 minutes late, so was a bit of a drag. Overall it was a very long day but well worth it- I'd definitely do this route again.

Standby for the next installment of this trip in the next few days...

Excellent trip and videos. So glad that you both enjoyed it! Small point of order: The Swiss station in Tirano is RhB (Rhätische Bahn) rather than SBB.

 

[Iskra]

Excellent trip and videos. So glad that you both enjoyed it! Small point of order: The Swiss station in Tirano is RhB (Rhätische Bahn) rather than SBB.

Thank you! Also thanks for yours (and other forumites if they are reading) assistance with this next instalment:

The next day was a much more civilised start, with time for a nice breakfast at the hotel before the walk to Milano Centrale for the 0820 to Domodossola. This was a fairly standard commuter train again, nothing too exciting until we reached the misty shores of Lake Maggiore and the foot hills of the Alps. Domodossola seemed a pleasant station from what I saw of it as I changed on to the FART (Ferrovie Autolinee Regionali Ticinesi) network. This is underneath the mainline station. Buying a ticket was fairly easy although the vendor seemed surprised that I was only travelling one way. The walk-up fare was reasonable at around 23 Euro including a small surcharge for being on a train with panoramic windows. The trains were very comfortable inside, and I had a carriage to myself it was that quiet. I wasn't overly fond of the sloping design of the panoramic windows. This was a scenic journey, but in January it was either raining or snowing for most of the journey. The snow was beautiful, but the rain stuck to the sloped windows obstructing the view, whereas it would have run off vertical windows better. Nevertheless, I very much enjoyed the elements of the journey above the snow line, winding through the snow-covered trees and cliff-sides, which was very impressive. I wasn't prepared to pay the first class fare on this run, but one positive of the first class compartment is that it shares part of the front window with the driver so that you get forward-facing views, and importantly in the rain; a windscreen wiper. I asked the guard if I could briefly film out of the window and he kindly permitted this. Overall, it was a beautiful run through the Alpine scenery, and I'm glad that I made the effort to do this slightly unusual route. The train frequency seemed high, but the trains I saw were virtually empty. I assume that it is more popular at weekends and in the summer? The line terminates at Locarno, on the Northern end of Lake Maggiore in Switzerland.





I had some flexibility in my itinerary, and the weather in Locarno was horrific with driving, heavy rain and cold winds. After a quick look around, I visited the fanciest toilet I've ever seen and a cafe, I decided to move on to somewhere less miserable. I've visited Locarno in the summer before (by boat), and enjoyed it, but this wasn't enjoyable. I thus took the Swiss-liveried Trenord train with a nicer interior down the line to Lugano to see what it had to offer. Lugano impressed me immediately, and the weather was better too. The station itself is beautiful, but it also offers excellent views over Lake Lugano and the town. I crossed the road to admire the views further, and found a hidden away light-rail platform. I decided that this was probably worth a trip, so I bought a return to the end of the line for 11 Euro. It turned out to be a tram-train system that descended past Lugano airport and eventually reached the shores of the lake. I took a few photos across the lake, then reboarded the same tram I'd arrived on back to Lugano station.





I just missed a train to Como here, so instead I took a train to Chiasso which was at least in the right direction. This was a fascinating border-station, with a lot of freight and express cross-border train-interest. After, a bit of a dwell a train for Como arrived. Lugano had been a new lake, as would Como. This completes the major lakes in the area for me. The town of Como itself was a little uninspiring, but again it's probably much nicer in summer. The lake however, was beautiful with the snow-capped peaks in the distance and clouds blowing across it. I had a little walk around the Southern end of the lake, before being treated to the spectacle of a couple of seaplanes landing on the lake in front of me. It was beautiful here, but also very cold so after around an hour I opted to head back to Milan for dinner. All in all, fantastic and fairly easy day trip from Milan that I would recommend to anyone, even if it isn't cheap on the Swiss side.

 

[Iskra]

The day after, was our last day trip from Milan. The plan for the day was a simple cultural visit to the relatively nearby city of Turin, which we have previously passed through but never explored properly.

The day started with the short walk to Milan Central, and this time we boarded a Talgo high speed train for the journey. This was my first time travelling with Talgo and I was quite impressed with the unit, it was smart and comfortable. This was also my first time travelling on the high speed route between the two cities as my previous rail journey between the pair was on a French TGV service, which I believe uses the slower classic lines instead. The journey was around an hour and was slightly underwhelming in that the train spent a disproportionate amount of the journey crawling out of Milan and on the lines into Turin, with just a bit in the middle being done at full speed, with us reaching 300kmh.

We didn't really have a plan for Turin, so I pretty much just winged-it using google maps. Turin was surprisingly walkable with all the cultural attractions fairly close to each other which broke up the walking nicely. The weather co-operated too, although it was chilly; the sun shone which was appreciated considering the grey drudgery in the UK at the time. We were very impressed with the sights of Turin, and we stopped in at a wonderful historic cafe to try a traditional local drink - bicerin, which I greatly enjoyed. Then it was more cultural walking, with my mini-tour ending at a large, thriving market with excellent produce. Next a bar was found for an afternoon aperitivo, then an unusually average meal was had to kill time before our booked train back to Milan. This was on a Trenitalia Frecciarossa, which I've been on many times before and the journey was very similar to the outward leg. The rest of the group had never been on either a Talgo or Frecciarossa train before, and the consensus from them was that the Talgo was the slightly better train.



- - -

The next morning was a relaxing one, while the afternoon was spent travelling home. We took the coach from Milan Central to Malpensa, which was a better option than the train when burdened with a large amount of luggage and cheaper too. Malpensa airport was very relaxed and enjoyable and the flight home on an actual Easyjet aircraft this time was smooth with us arriving in Manchester early. I'd booked a cheap advance home with Transpennine back to Sheffield but with our early arrival and rapid bag reclaim, I deployed a Northern complimentary ticket in order to both set off and get home an hour earlier.

The next morning I nipped out early on to film the new ROMIC HST on its first railtour, which was travelling my local line in Sheffield which rarely gets anything interesting- the Hallam line.

Next up, back in Wakefield were a couple of local Class 37 moves:

Before I nipped out to see Tangmere through Knottingley & Castleford:

- - -

Vintage Trains - The Flying Scotsman 18/2/26
My next trip off was a filming trip down in the Midlands, filming 60103 Flying Scotsman which was doing multiple trips between Birmingham Moor Street and Dorridge for Vintage trains, with a Class 47 diesel dragging it back in one direction. I set off from Leeds at 0611 with Crosscountry. I'd picked up tickets in the rail sail so the return journey was under £40 which I though was decent. The train to Birmingham New Street was 8 carriages so although virtually every seat was taken, it was a pleasant journey which pleased me considering some of the stories that you hear about XC recently. At Birmingham it was a pleasant walk over to Birmingham Snow Hill for my first visit to this station. I didn't think it was bad a station considering its reputation. I was on new track from here until Moor Street, and I alighted at Small Heath where a few other hardy, but informed enthusiasts had gathered to catch Scotsman coming off Tyseley depot.

I enjoyed this shot, and there was a bonus slightly afterwards as a Chiltern 68 on a soon-to-be-retired Mk3 set roared through with the driver giving some tones. Next I moved to Widney Manor which was busy with people waiting to see Scotsman. I got a couple of shots here before boarding a train back to Acocks Green to warm up a little. I then discovered a fantastic cafe/bar near the station where a breakfast was enjoyed before I headed to a nearby bridge to do some more filming in relative peace and quiet away from the crowds. It was quite a nice location actually and I had a productive afternoon before boarding a train to Moor Street and retracing my steps. Again the XC train back to Wakefield Westgate this time was a double-set, so it was cosy but not crowded. At Westgate I quickly crossed the footbridge for a class 158 back to Sandal & Agbrigg where I got picked up.

Overall it was a very successful day with some nice footage captured and a couple of decent journeys on XC to give them some credit.

I should be out again this weekend doing some filming in the North West, so I'll probably provide another update then. Thanks for reading

 

[eastwestdivide]

disproportionate amount of the journey crawling out of Milan and on the lines into Turin, with just a bit in the middle being done at full speed

That’s been my impression of Italian high speed services too, a proper trundle through graffiti suburbs and then wind it up to max. If it’s any consolation, I did FART in the rain too, but in summer. That’s mountains for you.

 

[D6130]

The day after, was our last day trip from Milan. The plan for the day was a simple cultural visit to the relatively nearby city of Turin, which we have previously passed through but never explored properly.

The day started with the short walk to Milan Central, and this time we boarded a Talgo high speed train for the journey. This was my first time travelling with Talgo and I was quite impressed with the unit, it was smart and comfortable. This was also my first time travelling on the high speed route between the two cities as my previous rail journey between the pair was on a French TGV service, which I believe uses the slower classic lines instead. The journey was around an hour and was slightly underwhelming in that the train spent a disproportionate amount of the journey crawling out of Milan and on the lines into Turin, with just a bit in the middle being done at full speed, with us reaching 300kmh.

We didn't really have a plan for Turin, so I pretty much just winged-it using google maps. Turin was surprisingly walkable with all the cultural attractions fairly close to each other which broke up the walking nicely. The weather co-operated too, although it was chilly; the sun shone which was appreciated considering the grey drudgery in the UK at the time. We were very impressed with the sights of Turin, and we stopped in at a wonderful historic cafe to try a traditional local drink - bicerin, which I greatly enjoyed. Then it was more cultural walking, with my mini-tour ending at a large, thriving market with excellent produce. Next a bar was found for an afternoon aperitivo, then an unusually average meal was had to kill time before our booked train back to Milan. This was on a Trenitalia Frecciarossa, which I've been on many times before and the journey was very similar to the outward leg. The rest of the group had never been on either a Talgo or Frecciarossa train before, and the consensus from them was that the Talgo was the slightly better train.

View attachment 198990

- - -

The next morning was a relaxing one, while the afternoon was spent travelling home. We took the coach from Milan Central to Malpensa, which was a better option than the train when burdened with a large amount of luggage and cheaper too. Malpensa airport was very relaxed and enjoyable and the flight home on an actual Easyjet aircraft this time was smooth with us arriving in Manchester early. I'd booked a cheap advance home with Transpennine back to Sheffield but with our early arrival and rapid bag reclaim, I deployed a Northern complimentary ticket in order to both set off and get home an hour earlier.

The next morning I nipped out early on to film the new ROMIC HST on its first railtour, which was travelling my local line in Sheffield which rarely gets anything interesting- the Hallam line.

Next up, back in Wakefield were a couple of local Class 37 moves:

Before I nipped out to see Tangmere through Knottingley & Castleford:

- - -

Vintage Trains - The Flying Scotsman 18/2/26
My next trip off was a filming trip down in the Midlands, filming 60103 Flying Scotsman which was doing multiple trips between Birmingham Moor Street and Dorridge for Vintage trains, with a Class 47 diesel dragging it back in one direction. I set off from Leeds at 0611 with Crosscountry. I'd picked up tickets in the rail sail so the return journey was under £40 which I though was decent. The train to Birmingham New Street was 8 carriages so although virtually every seat was taken, it was a pleasant journey which pleased me considering some of the stories that you hear about XC recently. At Birmingham it was a pleasant walk over to Birmingham Snow Hill for my first visit to this station. I didn't think it was bad a station considering its reputation. I was on new track from here until Moor Street, and I alighted at Small Heath where a few other hardy, but informed enthusiasts had gathered to catch Scotsman coming off Tyseley depot.

I enjoyed this shot, and there was a bonus slightly afterwards as a Chiltern 68 on a soon-to-be-retired Mk3 set roared through with the driver giving some tones. Next I moved to Widney Manor which was busy with people waiting to see Scotsman. I got a couple of shots here before boarding a train back to Acocks Green to warm up a little. I then discovered a fantastic cafe/bar near the station where a breakfast was enjoyed before I headed to a nearby bridge to do some more filming in relative peace and quiet away from the crowds. It was quite a nice location actually and I had a productive afternoon before boarding a train to Moor Street and retracing my steps. Again the XC train back to Wakefield Westgate this time was a double-set, so it was cosy but not crowded. At Westgate I quickly crossed the footbridge for a class 158 back to Sandal & Agbrigg where I got picked up.

Overall it was a very successful day with some nice footage captured and a couple of decent journeys on XC to give them some credit.

I should be out again this weekend doing some filming in the North West, so I'll probably provide another update then. Thanks for reading

Excellent and very enjoyable reports as always! If the maroon-coloured train in the second photo was your ride from Milano to Torino, it was an open access Italo class ETR575 unit (Alstom type AGC). As far as I'm aware, no TALGO stock had run in Italy since withdrawal of the Barcelona-Milano overnight service about fifteen years ago.

For the benefit of any readers who are unfamiliar with it, Becerin is a three-layered hot beverage consisting of espresso coffee, hot chocolate and cream.

 

[Iskra]

Excellent and very enjoyable reports as always! If the maroon-coloured train in the second photo was your ride from Milano to Torino, it was an open access Italo class ETR575 unit (Alstom type AGC). As far as I'm aware, no TALGO stock had run in Italy since withdrawal of the Barcelona-Milano overnight service about fifteen years ago.

For the benefit of any readers who are unfamiliar with it, Becerin is a three-layered hot beverage consisting of espresso coffee, hot chocolate and cream.

Thank you for the correction, you are of course correct!

 

[Iskra]

Saturday 28th February

On this date I made a quick trip over the pennines to an old haunt of mine, Lancaster. I travelled with Transpennine from Meadowhall, catching the 0559 service from there. First class was a mere £2 more for the journey, changing at Manchester so I opted for that. The first train was a pair of Class 185 units, where I had the lead first class compartment to myself over the Hope Valley Line to Manchester Piccadilly via Stockport. The journey was pretty routine, and it was dark so the views couldn't be enjoyed. It was a very peaceful journey at least. At Manchester Piccadilly I made the same-platform change onto 397007 as far as Lancaster, with the train bound for Glasgow Central ultimately. I was surprised that there was an at-seat service actually in operation, unlike on the 185. The friendly hosts soon sorted me out with a coffee, and I then ordered the cooked breakfast. The breakfast was hot and tasty, but the sausage has had a downgrade from being a large cumberland one on previous journeys to being just a regular sausage. Still, one can hardly complain for the £2 surcharge I paid, and I wasn't expecting anything at all on a relatively short journey on that service.

The purpose for being at Lancaster was to film the Winter Cumbrian Mountain Express being Class 86-hauled through the fastlines. I'd also seen that I could see the Black 5 steam locomotive passing through light engine bound for Carnforth. A class 86 at speed through Lancaster is something I used to enjoy as a teen, so it was very nostalgic and a great sight. I also saw a pair of Class 90's plus a few other freights through the station while I waited. Once the railtour had passed, I headed to Carnforth to film the Black 5 departing from there, which was quite the spectacle. After the grand depart, I had quite a bit of time before my next train so I visited the Brief Encounter cafe on the station. This is a great facility and I'm glad to have seen it busy on my visit. I had a second light breakfast of Eggs Royale, washed down with a Pint of Hobgoblin. Next up was a busy Class 158 of the two-carriage variety for the journey back to Yorkshire. I changed onto a 6 carriage 331 combination at Skipton in order to travel with a friend and have a nice comfortable journey down the Aire Valley, while everyone swamped onto the 158 travelling ahead of us to Leeds.

Later on that evening I took a 195 off a chaotic Platform 17 back down to Meadowhall. Overall, a great day out with some fulfilling filming done, some good food enjoyed and it was good to travel the scenic Bentham Line once again.

 

[Iskra]

On Wednesday the 18th I headed out on a Northern Newspaper Day Ranger. I took the train from Leeds over the Bentham Line, which was a well-loaded 158 no doubt helped by the glorious weather. The purpose of my visit to Carnforth was to film the LSL Intercity Class 89 passing through on test. I'd never seen this loco before (or at least I have no recollection of doing so). Unfortunately, the West Coast Mainline was in disarray due to issues with the overhead wires which delayed the Class 89 (and everything else) heading North. I had spotted a Carnforth to KWVR diesel move on RTT, which I was expecting to be a 47 or 57. I was thus pleasantly surprised to hear a distant whistling sound from Carnforth depot. Eventually, Class 40 40145 emerged with a Class 37 which was a lovely sight and sound as it headed off over the Bentham Line. Back on the mainline, the 89 charged through and I waited around for it to head South. Once it did, I had a nice pint in the Brief Encounter Refreshment Rooms on the station, before observing the Class 40 & 37 return from the KWVR with a single carriage. This move looked great in the lighting conditions, but seeing this meant I had just missed a Northern service back to Leeds, thus creating a 3 hour wait for the next train. Both the Settle & Carlisle and Bentham Lines have this large annoying timetable gap in the afternoons. I wasn't prepared to spend anymore time hanging around Carnforth, as although I'd enjoyed the time while interesting trains were around, there was nothing interesting remaining. I thus headed to Preston on a 195, where there was a minor medical emergency, with one passenger banging on the drivers cab in the hope of assistance while we were doing 100mph down the WCML... ...I pointed them in the direction of the Passenger Call Point, and the guard responded. Everything was okay in the end. Due to the disruption on the WCML Preston was busy and chaotic. I took a service over the Calder Valley from here, with the train originating at Blackpool. I always regret using this line, due to the clientele it attracts, and this occasion was no different, with an anti-social yob on board attracting disdain from the wider travelling public. Luckily, they weren't travelling too far and the rest of the journey was okay and fairly scenic until we reached Bradford Interchange where the journey becomes a bit dreary. Once back at Leeds, it was a quick and easy change for the train back to Sandal & Agbrigg. Overall, it was a great day out and I was pleased with some of the railway sightings and video I was able to make from the day:

The next day I headed over to the first day of the KWVR steam gala, which was a very enjoyable day of filming lineside in pleasant weather and the trains did not disappoint either. The star of the show for me was Nunney Castle, with the Black 5 in second place. I particularly enjoyed the early morning shots, the Castle, the Vintage Carriage Rake and the demonstration freight train:

 

[Iskra]

Firstly, a bit of a life update.

I’ve had fewer trips away recently, and will continue to do so for the next few months. This is because just over a year ago I left a job that I’d been doing for 16 years for a bit of a stopgap job that would hopefully help me to change career permanently into a job I’d be more interested in long term. I’ve now secured a role that I hope I can do and enjoy for the long term. This had all impacted my ability to plan ahead and book things in advance to secure decent prices, hence a reduction in trips. That said, I’ve not wasted the time, I’ve used it to grow my Youtube channel where I’ve enjoyed occasional success, but filming trips haven’t always been worth a report on this thread. Overall, I do expect that my new career will be beneficial in terms of future rail trips once I’m established in my new role.

Next, a trip:

Earlier this week, I headed off on my annual holiday. I caught the bus down to Sheffield station, and then had a very ‘British Railway’s journey to Manchester Airport. My first train was a 4-carriage EMR 158 set for a well-loaded trip across the Hope Valley line. It was a simple cross-platform interchange at Manchester Piccadilly for a single Northern Class 323 towards the Airport, which was also a busy train.



I wasn’t flying until the day after, so I headed over to the Tribe Hotel at the airport. This was £75 for the night and very good. They fulfilled my request for a quiet room well, putting me on the top floor down the end of a corridor. I had a nice view of aircraft landing, but the room was excellently soundproofed so I couldn’t hear them at all. I also got a free welcome drink for being an Accor member. I dined at the in-house Italian restaurant for simplicity, which was a pleasant meal. I also pre-booked breakfast for £12, which as I had a late flight I basically just used the breakfast buffet as my bargain version of the airport lounge.

I wandered over to the airport at around 11am and was quickly through security for my Ryanair flight to Ciampino, which boarded promptly and pushed back early. It was was quite a nice flight with just a little turbulence and some pleasant views of the Alps. The landing at Ciampino is also great as you get fantastic views of the centre of rome, including Aqueducts, railway lines and the Collosseum



Entry into Italy was also pretty quick, albeit illogical as you basically scan your passport twice on two different machines. I then walked out to the bus stop and bought a ticket online. I also advised quite a few other Brits how to get a bus ticket and/or get to Rome centre. I alighted the bus at Ciampino station, where I picked up some supplies nearby, before heading to a Burger King Drive Thru, I appreciate that this is heresy but I’d had Italian food the night before and would be doing for the rest of my trip. It also has USB charging points, opens until late, is somewhere you can be anonymous as a solo traveller and Italian Burger King is superior to the British equivalent. Once I’d outstayed my welcome, I headed back to the station and filmed some loco-hauled trains of different varieties. Ciampino is primarily served by Regional commuter trains, but there is a solitary Night Train which departs just after midnight for Lecce in the deep South, this would be my train as far as Bari where I would change for a daytime Intercity service across to Locri. My journey was first class and cost 112 euro for a sole occupancy sleeper cabin and the daytime train too. The cabin was comfortable, and a light breakfast is provided along with an espresso (the best bit). It wasn’t the best nights sleep as the carriage had a wheelflat on it and the driving isn’t that sympathetic to passengers but I slept a bit, and it’s an exotic and exciting way to travel.



I had plenty of time to change trains at Bari onto the daytime Intercity train, which was enjoyable with views of the coast and mountains. This took a diversion at Sibari over to Lamezia Terme and then back to Catanzaro before continuing onwards. I alighted at Locri, where a lot of yellow engineering trains were stabled and the track appears to have e been renewed. There was also evidence of preparations for the next set of electrification along the line, with OHLE supports piled up along the line West of Catanzaro.



I’m on holiday in the area for the next couple of weeks, but I am going to have a trip off to explore the new Ferrovia Della Calabria line from Catanzaro Lido to Catanzaro Citta.

 

[D6130]

Firstly, a bit of a life update.

I’ve had fewer trips away recently, and will continue to do so for the next few months. This is because just over a year ago I left a job that I’d been doing for 16 years for a bit of a stopgap job that would hopefully help me to change career permanently into a job I’d be more interested in long term. I’ve now secured a role that I hope I can do and enjoy for the long term. This had all impacted my ability to plan ahead and book things in advance to secure decent prices, hence a reduction in trips. That said, I’ve not wasted the time, I’ve used it to grow my Youtube channel where I’ve enjoyed occasional success, but filming trips haven’t always been worth a report on this thread. Overall, I do expect that my new career will be beneficial in terms of future rail trips once I’m established in my new role.

Next, a trip:

Earlier this week, I headed off on my annual holiday. I caught the bus down to Sheffield station, and then had a very ‘British Railway’s journey to Manchester Airport. My first train was a 4-carriage EMR 158 set for a well-loaded trip across the Hope Valley line. It was a simple cross-platform interchange at Manchester Piccadilly for a single Northern Class 323 towards the Airport, which was also a busy train.

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I wasn’t flying until the day after, so I headed over to the Tribe Hotel at the airport. This was £75 for the night and very good. They fulfilled my request for a quiet room well, putting me on the top floor down the end of a corridor. I had a nice view of aircraft landing, but the room was excellently soundproofed so I couldn’t hear them at all. I also got a free welcome drink for being an Accor member. I dined at the in-house Italian restaurant for simplicity, which was a pleasant meal. I also pre-booked breakfast for £12, which as I had a late flight I basically just used the breakfast buffet as my bargain version of the airport lounge.

I wandered over to the airport at around 11am and was quickly through security for my Ryanair flight to Ciampino, which boarded promptly and pushed back early. It was was quite a nice flight with just a little turbulence and some pleasant views of the Alps. The landing at Ciampino is also great as you get fantastic views of the centre of rome, including Aqueducts, railway lines and the Collosseum

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Entry into Italy was also pretty quick, albeit illogical as you basically scan your passport twice on two different machines. I then walked out to the bus stop and bought a ticket online. I also advised quite a few other Brits how to get a bus ticket and/or get to Rome centre. I alighted the bus at Ciampino station, where I picked up some supplies nearby, before heading to a Burger King Drive Thru, I appreciate that this is heresy but I’d had Italian food the night before and would be doing for the rest of my trip. It also has USB charging points, opens until late, is somewhere you can be anonymous as a solo traveller and Italian Burger King is superior to the British equivalent. Once I’d outstayed my welcome, I headed back to the station and filmed some loco-hauled trains of different varieties. Ciampino is primarily served by Regional commuter trains, but there is a solitary Night Train which departs just after midnight for Lecce in the deep South, this would be my train as far as Bari where I would change for a daytime Intercity service across to Locri. My journey was first class and cost 112 euro for a sole occupancy sleeper cabin and the daytime train too. The cabin was comfortable, and a light breakfast is provided along with an espresso (the best bit). It wasn’t the best nights sleep as the carriage had a wheelflat on it and the driving isn’t that sympathetic to passengers but I slept a bit, and it’s an exotic and exciting way to travel.

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I had plenty of time to change trains at Bari onto the daytime Intercity train, which was enjoyable with views of the coast and mountains. This took a diversion at Sibari over to Lamezia Terme and then back to Catanzaro before continuing onwards. I alighted at Locri, where a lot of yellow engineering trains were stabled and the track appears to have e been renewed. There was also evidence of preparations for the next set of electrification along the line, with OHLE supports piled up along the line West of Catanzaro.

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I’m on holiday in the area for the next couple of weeks, but I am going to have a trip off to explore the new Ferrovia Della Calabria line from Catanzaro Lido to Catanzaro Citta.

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Great report, photos and videos as usual! We're in Italy until 8th June....one of these days we'll meet-up in Il bel paese! In my recent experience, the vast majority of Trenitalia InterCity carriages - and many others beside - seem to suffer from chronic wheelflats....some of them pretty bad. My wife and I recently travelled from Napoli to Siracusa (Sicily) and back on the daytime InterCity services and every vehicle in both trains had bad flats. It's a long and incredibly scenic journey, but it was a huge relief to disembark from our carriage on the train ferry for half-an-hour's peace and quiet and a breath of fresh sea air. Have a great holiday in Calabria and please do send more reports, photos and videos! Sorry I never seem to be able to find the time to write-up my trips.

 

[Iskra]

Great report, photos and videos as usual! We're in Italy until 8th June....one of these days we'll meet-up in Il bel paese! In my recent experience, the vast majority of Trenitalia InterCity carriages - and many others beside - seem to suffer from chronic wheelflats....some of them pretty bad. My wife and I recently travelled from Napoli to Siracusa (Sicily) and back on the daytime InterCity services and every vehicle in both trains had bad flats. It's a long and incredibly scenic journey, but it was a huge relief to disembark from our carriage on the train ferry for half-an-hour's peace and quiet and a breath of fresh sea air. Have a great holiday in Calabria and please do send more reports, photos and videos! Sorry I never seem to be able to find the time to write-up my trips.

Yes, I heard quite a few other wheel flats on Intercity trains too, such a shame as I think they are the best trains to travel on. Is it because the carriages are due to be replaced soon? Yes, if we can align our schedules it would be nice to meet in Italy. Enjoy your holiday!

 

[Iskra]

Yesterday, there was a General Strike in Italy. This just happened to be the day that I’d pre-booked a trip on Trenitalia to Catanzaro Lido for a journey on the Ferrovie Della Calabria (FdC) up to Catanzaro Citta.

We had tickets booked on the Intercity, but we received an email saying this was cancelled a few days before and advising to claim a refund and instead travel on an alternative service. As far as the Ionian Coast line goes, the General Strike just seemed to mean that the 2 daily Intercity trains in each direction were cancelled, but all the Regional services ran as normal. I was unsure whether the FdC lines would be suspended or running, but we were going to travel anyway.

We’d re-booked on the day for Locri to Catanzaro Lido, with the on the day price being 6 Euro-something, which is pretty cheap.

Unfortunately, we were very unlucky as a ALN Single Car Railcar rolled in to form our service. These are now pretty rare. In one sense, I was pleased to have a last ride (I’ve said that many times now), but overall it was a dismal journey for the regular passenger. The train was full and standing, and had filthy windows. Furthermore, it was hot onboard by British standards, but not warm enough by Italian standards for the air con to be switched on. Luckily, we did find seats in the former first class section, but other than that it wasn’t a great journey at all.

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More positively, the newly renovated FdC station is much more clear from the Trenitalia Station, and the walk is much better and safer now that you don’t have to walk down the main road to reach it.

There was a small queue at the ticket office, and the we boarded the air conditioned train.

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The improvements to the line have been much more extensive than I envisaged. The line is now double track throughout until the rack and pinion tunnel section begins at Catanzaro Sala station, however only one track is in use at present.

Additionally, a new line now diverges off the original line to serve the University Campus. The stations are modern and nice and the ride is smooth. The old alignment has also been turned into a cycle path which is a nice touch.

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You should hopefully be able to see the old and new alignments in the photos above, as well as the start of the rack & pinion tunnel section. Better and higher definition photos are available on my X account where file sizes are less limited than here.

I opted to walk back down the hill to Catanzaro Sala as it was a pleasant day, which wasn’t a universally popular decision. Luckily, a bar was found en route and the owner put on a fantastic lunch spread for us to enjoy with our beers which earned me a reprieve.

The train from Catanzaro Sala was full and standing, which I’ve never encountered before on this line, but the air conditioned train remained tolerable.

The journey back from Catanzaro Lido was much more pleasant than the outward leg, as it was one of the modern units and it made for a pleasant trip home.