Keith goes wandering

[alexf380]

Certainly recognise those places from my bash down there a couple of weeks ago. It looks like you had as good a time as I did! Cracking read, as always.

 

[Techniquest]

As ever, an excellent read and I see that a Tyne and Tees was rather productive for you, as it was for me when I did one in February. Rather in need of doing another one, so many required shacks still to get in the area, not to mention Heaton 142s and 156s!

The Tyne and Wear Metro is quite enjoyable, or at least it was when I spent quite a bit of time on it in February. That's another area I need to get back to, with a handful of Metro units still needed for sight, still quite a few needed for haulage and 16 shacks to go for. Sadly that's not due until 2016, way too much still to do this year yet!

Nicely done getting a winner 91 home, even though it was heavily delayed. Delay Repay claim would be going in if it was me! Rather good luck on the trip across town to get home too!

 

[Keith Jarrett]

24th May 2015 – A Great Northern Escapade

With the month of May three parts gone, it seems odd to be writing up the first Sunday outing of the month. With ever diminishing requirements in the metropolis for me, I decided to make an assault on the Great Northern part of my wants list. While not huge, I needed four 313s, most of the 317s and around half of the 365s for the requisite 10 miles as well as two 365s that I have never had for haulage. I also figured that with football at Arsenal, most inner suburban services would be pairs of 313s thus giving me double the chance of scoring.

The logical route for me to get to Kings Cross would be Thameslink through to St Pancras low level and walk across the road to The Cross. However Thameslink were on diversion with the service off the Wimbledon loop suspended between Wimbledon & Tulse Hill. Instead trains were starting at Wimbledon, all stations to Sutton then running non-stop via West Croydon and Crystal Palace to Tulse Hill before picking up normal line of route. That is a drag so I opted to go up via Wimbledon, Vauxhall and the Victoria line, bagging rides with 319010, 5857 and 5915 in the process.

Arriving at Kings Cross, the first thing that I noted was one of my few required 313s, 313054, forming the next Hertford North train but I was distracted by 365522 which would be leaving first. A Bus Stop Bash to Finsbury Park would sort that one out for 10 miles so 365522 became the first Great Northern unit to enter the haulage log for the day. A short wait a Finsbury Park ensued before 313032+313054 rolled in. Is was a case of “Welcome Back, Old Friend!” as 313054 last featured in the haulage log way back on 29th August 1984 when it was a winner from Highbury & Islington to Moorgate. The initial plan was to stick with it until the clock had tripped past 10 miles but those thoughts went out of the window when (a) I realised that I’d have to go all the way through to Gordon Hill and (b) I made the -2 at Bowes Park on to the next southbound train. The thinking was to keep an eye on both branches of the GN suburban even though they interwork on a Sunday. It was left to double-dud 313024+313062 to take me back to the relative safety (in bashing terms) of Finsbury Park. I did not have long before low mileage 365534 showed up heading for The Cross. Successive leaps out to Finsbury Park with 365503+365510 and back with 365511+365538 saw more mileage tagged onto low mileage 365s.

By now it was time to think about intercepting that low mileage Captain William Leefe Robertson VC returning from his little outing to Hertford North. That entailed taking 365512+365527 to (the former triggering its membership of the 10 Mile Club in the process) out to Finsbury Park followed by dud 313037+313051 onto Alexandra Palace for a comfortable +4 onto the returning 313032+313054 back into Kings Cross. By the time I had reached Kings Cross, 313054 had achieved the necessary mileage. One down, three more 313s to find! During the course of the journey, I had noted another 313 from my wants list, 313063, heading out to Welwyn Garden City but as yet I did not have a plan to get it.

317342 was conveniently waiting to ferry me back out to Finsbury Park where I fell (almost literally) into 313025+313041 heading back to Kings Cross – 313041 was another 313 that I was looking for and all of a sudden, a plan was falling into place. Taking 041 into The Cross and back to Alexandra Palace would allow 041 to clear 10 miles and simultaneously drop me onto 313063 plus partner. So off to The Cross I went and I did not even glance at anything else to avoid becoming distracted. The second spin with 313025+313041 back out to Ally Pally duly saw me reduce the number of required 313s to a mere two. At Alexandra Palace, I had the standard +4 onto 313044+313063 returning to town after their trip out to Welwyn Garden City. The only previous logged journey with 313063 was a mere 31 or so years ago (11 November 1983 Finsbury Park to Moorgate) and only one multiple unit can record a longer absence that 313063 – Merseyrail’s 507033. The plan was to go into Kings Cross and back out to Finsbury Park in order to accumulate 10 miles but that plan went out of the window as 365511+365538 would be preceding the 313 pair out of the Cross. 365538 was still low on mileage and Finsbury Park to Alexandra Palace would still allow 313063 to clear 10 miles. Surprise, surprise, that’s what I ended up doing and alighting from 313044+3136063 at Alexandra Palace, saw me clear my second to last 313 for 10 miles. I had not seen one working on the 313 circuit and that was next up at Ally Pally.

I crossed the footbridge at Ally Pally to be greeted by the sight of 313027+313053 rolling into the platform. Close, but not close enough (I was looking for 313029) but there was a consolation in that 313027 had been absent from the haulage book since 1994. At least I have now logged haulage from all the Great Northern 313s in the 21st Century! I still had some time to spare before I wanted to make my way home so best thing to do was to alight from 313027+313053 at Finsbury Park and see whether any of the main line units would tempt me. It did not take long before 365512+365527 smiled their way into the platforms [Ed: I agree, those fronts look like a grinning faces]. While 512 was already over 10 miles, 527 was still well short of miles so as the supermarket ad says “Every little helps!” In the name of keeping moving, I was back from Kings Cross almost immediately on 365534 for a standard Bus Stop Bash to Finsbury Park. I easily made the +2 onto the next up service with 317342 so back to the Cross. On arrival at The Cross the train was met with a throng of people all eager to get onto 317342 [Ed; surely most of Hertfordshire have already cleared 317342 for 10 miles!]. A quick check of the platform indicators revealed that 317342 was heading back out almost immediately so I re-occupied my seat from the inbound journey and enjoyed the 317 thrashing up the hill to Finsbury Park and in the process cleared it for 10 miles. Job Done!

There was now a substantial wait for anything required back to Kings Cross so I decided to call it a day and head down the spiral staircase to the southbound tube. The Victoria Line was its usual efficient self – dead frequent and no hanging around. I worked out that I’d have about four minutes at Vauxhall to get up to the SWT platforms onto a 455 which in turn would give me a +3 at Wimbledon onto the Thameslink home. My calculations were accurate and I had about a minute to spare at Vauxhall before 5914 came in and even though there was another 455 directly in front, we had a reasonable run to Wimbledon and the expected +3 onto 319453 back towards home The other, much less preferable, options would have been either sticking on the tube to Morden via a change at Stockwell, or the bus from Wimbledon but the train is much more pleasant than bus or tube.

OK it was a longer than normal day out for a Sunday but because of the Bank Holiday, Sunday chores were rescheduled to Monday. I felt that I had a worthwhile day - I certainly did not expect three out of four required 313s to show their ugly mugs. And when the other antics are also taken into account (i.e. more mileage with 317s & 365s), it was an very good day. But there’s still lots to do on the 317/365 front so no doubt I will be back to The Cross soon. For those unable to keep up, here’s the day’s moves -

319010 St Helier to Wimbledon
5857 Wimbledon to Clapham Junction
5915 Clapham Junction to Vauxhall
LU 11091+11092 Vauxhall to Kings Cross
365522 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
313032+313054 Finsbury Park to Bowes Park
313024+313062 Bowes Park to Finsbury Park
365534 Finsbury Park to Kings Cross
365503+365510 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
365511+365538 Finsbury Park to Kings Cross
365512+365527 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
313037+313051 Finsbury Park to Alexandra Palace
313032+313054 Alexandra Palace to Kings Cross
317342 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
313025+313041 Finsbury Park to Kings Cross
313025+313041 Kings Cross to Alexandra Palace
313044+313063 Alexandra Palace to Kings Cross
365511+365538 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
313044+313063 Finsbury Park to Alexandra Palace
313027+313053 Alexandra Palace to Finsbury Park
365512+365527 Finsbury Park to Kings Cross
365534 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
317342 Finsbury Park to Kings Cross
317342 Kings Cross to Finsbury Park
LU 11055+11056 Finsbury Park to Vauxhall
5914 Vauxhall to Wimbledon
319453 Wimbledon to St Helier

Milestones
Cleared for 10 miles 313041, 313054, 313063, 317342, 365512, 365522

 

[Techniquest]

I haven't seen a 365 in a good while so can't comment on their smiley face fronts. Loved the comment on 317342 and people wanting to clear it for 10 miles!

A most productive time there, done quite well with the 313s. A "mere" 31 years gap in the haulage logs on one of the 313s (sorry I've forgotten the number now!), that's just over how long I've been on this Earth for!

I'm aiming to have a go on the GN again when I next go to London, since I still need 3 313/0s. Hopefully they'll all produce so I can get some focus on 315s!

 

[55013]

As expected, another excellent write up.
Agreed about the smiley 365s as well

 

[hassaanhc]

The logical route for me to get to Kings Cross would be Thameslink through to St Pancras low level and walk across the road to The Cross. However Thameslink were on diversion with the service off the Wimbledon loop suspended between Wimbledon & Tulse Hill. Instead trains were starting at Wimbledon, all stations to Sutton then running non-stop via West Croydon and Crystal Palace to Tulse Hill before picking up normal line of route. That is a drag so I opted to go up via Wimbledon, Vauxhall and the Victoria line, bagging rides with 319010, 5857 and 5915 in the process.

That diversion I'd have loved to go on it

Looks like you had an excellent day

 

[Keith Jarrett]

26th May 2015 – The Great Eastern Reprise

The office was closed today and with the threat of a national rail strike lifted, I had the whole day to myself. The planning process had come up with two options that would suit my needs –either drift down to the Brighton Mainline with the aim of bagging myself some new 387s or make yet another visit to the Great Eastern and see what was around that might tempt me. The latter won the day and the deciding factor was the prospect of some older traction such as 315s and 317s rather than brand new 387s!

I set off from home on the usual work train and was pleased to see that 319426+319435 were today’s traction. Why, you might ask, was I pleased with a pair of 319s? Quite simply, 319426, the unique Thameslink grey liveried with pink doors, had evaded me thus far for a ride in 2015.Instead of bailing at Blackfriars like I normally would on a working day, I stayed on to Farringdon where I transferred to a Metropolitan Line service for the relatively short journey to Liverpool Street. Almost immediately upon arrival at Liverpool Street, a 317 caught my eye – 317505. This unit was still under 10 miles so would need attention. 317505 was paired with dud 317659 and this pair was next out and bound for Hertford East with the first stop at Hackney Downs. That seemed a long way to go seeing as it was only a decimal of a mile that was needed to tip 505 over 10 miles. 317512 (paired with 317889) followed up on a Cheshunt stopper – I had toyed with the idea of getting a hack scratch but bailed at Seven Sisters to cover one of the 317 pairs that are “peak hour” only. 317506+317666 took me back to London Fields (new shack) for a +3 on to the next northbound service formed of double dud 317656+317885. As we approached Hackney Downs, 317710+317714 passed the other way heading to Liverpool Street. “Aaaaaaaaaargh!” was the thought racing through my mind. A quick consultation of Real Time Trains revealed that this was a Hertford East working and the diagrams showed that the pair remained out all day. “Phew.”

Anyway, back to the job in hand. I stayed with 317656+317885 up to Silver Street for another shack scratch where I met the familiar pairing of 317512+317889 coming back from their trip to Cheshunt. They were now double, double duds! Next stop was Cambridge Heath for the third shack scratch of the day. I started to formulate a plan to bump into those 317/7s. At Cambridge Heath there was a comfortable +3 onto 315852 back north to Hackney Downs. Tottering through the subway, to the island platform, it was only minutes before 317507+317881 appeared bound for Hertford East. As both of these were dud, I opted to split journey at Tottenham Hale. On the way, I noted 315850, my last 315 for 10 miles and again it would be out all day so no rush to grab that. At Tottenham Hale, I had about 10 minutes to wait for 317888 on the next Stratford to Bishops Stortford service. Again dud but I had to take it in order to meet those 317/7s. Enfield Lock was my destination and in so doing, shack scratch number four of the day was completed.

A few minutes late, 317710+317714 appeared as expected. 317710 was a winner while 317714 was seriously deficient on miles as well as being absent from the haulage book for over 22 years. I’d only ever had it under its original number (317314) the once on 22 November 1992 from Kings Cross to Finsbury Park. I enjoyed the 317 thrash up to Liverpool Street, sitting in my favourite seat which is under the pantograph in the motor car. Now to formulate a plan to get 315850 – on the way in to Liverpool Street we passed it heading for Chingford so all I needed to do was intercept on its way back. Easy! 315852 was waiting for me at The Street to whisk me up to Wood Street where I renewed my acquaintance with 315850 which despite two trips with it in the 1990s, was still low on miles. At least the run back to Liverpool Street saw that deficiency corrected. As well as clearing the whole class for 10 miles – so now the 315s can join the elite classes 159, 319, 332, 4-car 378s, 450, 455 and 456 where every member of the classis over 10 miles.

I’d more or less covered everything on the West Anglia side (at least for the off peak) apart from a couple of Stratford to Bishops Stortford workings so I turned my attention to the main line. Low mileage 360103 took me out to Stratford where dud 321421 took me on to Romford (all ex-Silverlink 321s are dud for me). My target was one of London’s backwater lines, the Romford to Upminster branch which I last visited back in 1989 when 315814 was the motive power. Although I did not know what was working, the Railway Gods were smiling on me and provided something a little more exotic than a 315. When I arrived at Romford, the branch train was not in but soon appeared – a white 317. Perring and squinting at the number I was well pleased with today’s traction. It was my only all-time 317/7, 317732. Now came the difficult task; racking up 10 miles. I figured that for starters, I should do Romford to Upminster and return which would be a hefty down payment towards 10 miles. Then the penny dropped. Add on a return trip to Emerson Park and the whole jolly, while taking up the best part of an hour, would allow me to achieve both 10 miles with 317732 and also scratch Emerson park off of the list. So that’s exactly what I did.

After my second return to Romford, the next thing in my sights was the only shack in the area that I needed. I boarded 315829+315856, the latter being one of the last 315s in the ONE blue livery, out to Harold Wood for the sixth shack scratch of the day. 315856 was already over 100 miles but all of those miles had been clocked up in the last century. After about 8-9 minutes at Harold Wood, 315807+839 appeared to take me back towards London. 807 was another long term absentee from the haulage book – the only entry up until today was a run from Rochford to Brentwood on 29th April 1984. For the record, I managed quite a few 315s on the Southend Victoria line in the period 1984-1986 – this was the period that my girlfriend was living/working in the Southend area (the lady in question is now my wife of almost 29 years so those trips must have meant something). While Monday to Saturday trains on the Southend Victoria line were mainly class 307s supported by an eclectic mix of 302s and 308s, Sunday trains were exclusively worked by 315s which at the time were only a few years old.

Back out of nostalgia-land and to the current day, I had no plan at all for the rest of the day once I arrived back at Stratford. The appearance of 321344 soon altered that notion as this was one of around ten 321s still required for 10 miles. It was next stop Romford which would take it over that magic threshold. I had to content myself with 315806+315838 to return to Stratford as there was no fast train for the best part of half an hour. As a simple bi-product of this trip, 315838 cleared for 100 miles. Back at Stratford, I had a bit of a fester before anything required showed up – it all seemed to be repeats from earlier. Then a 12-car 360 showed up, bound for Liverpool Street with 360103+360119+360121. The run into Liverpool Street allowed 360103 to clear for 10 miles. I had all of two minutes at The Street as I wanted to get back to Stratford to cover the last of the Bishops Stortford turns. I was rather pleased that I took dud 321303+321321 as the +3 onto the Bishop Stortford train allowed me to grab a required 317882 which had another 317 for company. I would have to go beyond Tottenham Hale with 317882+317883 in order to clear 882 for 10 miles but all the connections were dodgy but I thought that a bird in the hand is worth a dozen in the bush so off I went. Going down the Lea Valley, everything seemed to be the od minute or two late and at Enfield Lock, I was lucky enough to make a late running Hertford East train with 317650+317662. I bailed off this at Tottenham Hale as there was a pair of 379s immediately behind. That was a good move on my part – 379020+379026 rolled in and 379026 is one of the few 379s still needing to be heaved over 10 miles – the run into Liverpool, Street would sort that. At Liverpool Street, all services were running a few minutes late. This gave me plenty of time to identify the 317s present so imagine my joy at seeing a required one! 317671+317886 were the pair in question with 886. A run to Tottenham Hale would sort 886’s mileage problem out so that’s where I went. By now, I had been going non-stop for over 10 hours and was beginning to flag so with work the next day, I decided to call it a day. While I am not a fan of long tube journeys, the presence of the Victoria line was too tempting as a quick way home. Less than an hour later, after two tube trips and a bus ride I was home.

Reflecting on the day, I’m not sure which was the highlight – there are two candidates. 315850 which allowed me to clear the whole class for 10 miles or 317732 and its totally unexpected appearance at Romford. I think the latter edges it! It was definitely a good day with 10 units cleared for the magic 10 miles, one for 100 miles and six new shacks in the book. The rash of shack scoring leaves only two within Greater London on lines from Liverpool Street – Bush Hill Park and Angel Road. They are definitely in my sights and it may be a case of go to Angel Road then get the 192 bus to Bush Hill Park rather than trying to do it all by rail. I know I was dodging about quite a bit on this bash so for those at the back of the class (and unable to keep up) here are today’s moves -

319426+319435 St Helier to Farringdon
21093+21094 Farringdon to Liverpool Street
317505+317659 Liverpool Street to Hackney Downs
317512+317889 Hackney Downs to Seven Sisters
317506+317666 Seven Sisters to London Fields
317656+317885 London Fields to Silver Street
317512+317889 Silver Street to Cambridge Heath
315852 Cambridge Heath to Hackney Downs
317507+317881 Hackney Downs to Tottenham Hale
317888 Tottenham Hale to Enfield Lock
317710+317714 Enfield Lock to Liverpool Street
315852 Liverpool Street to Wood Street
315850 Wood Street to Liverpool Street
360103 Liverpool Street to Stratford
321421 Stratford to Romford
317732 Romford to Upminster
317732 Upminster to Romford
317732 Romford to Emerson Park
317732 Emerson Park to Romford
315829+315856 Romford to Harold Wood
315807+315839 Harold Wood to Stratford
321344 Stratford to Romford
315806+315838 Romford to Stratford
360103+360119+360121 Stratford to Liverpool Street
321303+321321 Liverpool Street to Stratford
317882+317883 Stratford to Enfield Lock
317650+317662 Enfield Lock to Tottenham Hale
379020+379026 Tottenham Hale to Liverpool Street
317671+317886 Liverpool Street to Tottenham Hale
LU11051+11052 Tottenham Hale to Stockwell
LU 51677+51678 Stockwell to Morden
Milestones
Winners 317710, 317732
Cleared for 10 miles 315850, 317505, 317710, 317714, 317732, 317882, 317886, 321344, 360103, 379026
Cleared for 100 miles 315838
Class cleared for 10 miles 315
New Shacks Cambridge Heath, Emerson Park, Enfield Lock, Harold Wood, London Fields, Silver Street
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
31st May 2015 – A Sunday Shack Scratch

Looking through my lists of required shacks within the Travelcard area, I was surprised to count no less than twelve that are under the control of South West Trains. With a spare Sunday afternoon and not wanting either to wander too far or have the aggro of chasing requirements, I thought that I’d try to knock a hole in that list.

Leaving home, I enjoyed 319453 up to Wimbledon where I had a quick trot over the footbridge for a Guildford bound train with 5859 down to Surbiton. I crossed over for an up Hampton Court service with 5873 which I took as far as Berrylands – first shack scratch of the afternoon. Going down the long staircase, under the main line and back up to the down platform must have taken around half of the available +7 connection [Ed now you see why I went via Surbition - it’s a+23 the other way].5703 showed up bang on time to return me to Surbiton. The Guildford via Cobham line was cosed due to engineering work and station staff were hustling would be passengers for that line out to the station forecourt for the usual RRB. But not me, I was headed back to town although I did see the RRB – provided by Stagecoach (who also own South West Trains). 5717 soon appeared heading for the next leg of my travels back to Wimbledon. The +1 onto the Chessington South failed so I decided to head towards Clapham Junction thinking that the required shacks on the Chessington Branch can wait for another day. The next up train was 5911+5913. The latter unit is severely mileage deficient as following its rebuild after the Oxshott altercation; I regard it as a new unit. Rather than bail at Clapham Junction, I went through to Waterloo simply to put a few more miles on the clock with 5913 as it it’s the only SWT 455 under 100 miles. Hanging around for a 25 minute turnround at Waterloo was not my idea of fun so I went back out to Clapham Junction with 5906+5917.

I transferred over to the Windsor platforms in time to take 8007+8016 onwards to Putney. I continued forward with 450112+450570 on a Windsor service to my second new shack of the day, North Sheen. Rather than wait twelve minutes for the next down service, I doubled back to Mortlake with 5736+5849. I had a few minutes to cross the footbridge for 5725+5912 to St Margarets and shack scratch number three. Again rather than hang around, I took the opportunity to double back to Richmond where I had plenty of time to wander over the bridge and wait for 5865+5874 towards the Kingston Loop where several shacks were still needed. It was easier to go past two required shacks and alight at Kingston rather than endure fairly large festers. 5725+5912 were waiting the bay ( a new concept for me) which I took back to Teddington and shack scratch number four of the day. A comfortable +5 saw me retracing my steps back in the Kingston direction on 5710+5712 before shack scratch number five at Norbiton.

It was a subway here to cross the line for a +7 back to Hampton Wick on 5709+5862 and the sixth and final shack scratch of the day. Again the use of a subway was necessary to cross to the other platform. 5850+5867 were the final SWT units of the day and I headed for Wimbledon, hoping to make the +2 onto the Thameslink back home. I made it easy and within seconds, 319002 was rolling in to take me home.

I achieved the objective of the afternoon, namely halving the SWT shack within the Travelcard area. The remaining six are not so easy, especially on a Sunday where services are only hourly or just not conducive to shack scratching – there’s Barnes Bridge, Brentford and Hounslow on the Hounslow loop, Hampton on the Shepperton branch and Chessington North and Malden Manor on the Chessington South branch. I will wait until I can attack those with weekday service levels.Also, without even really trying I scored 10 more SWT units for the year, I have already managed 67 out of 91 class 455s in 2015 and I am well over half way with the fleet as a whole. The 456s re my best with 21 from 24 already in the book for 2015 and the 44s are definitely worst with nearly all required for 2015.

As ever, here’s the list of the day’s moves -

319453 St Helier to Wimbledon
5859 Wimbledon to Surbiton
5873 Surbiton to Berrylands
5703 Berrylands to Surbiton
5717 Surbiton to Wimbledon
5911+5913 Wimbledon to Waterloo
5906+5917 Waterloo to Clapham Junction
8007+8016 Clapham Junction to Putney
450112+450570 Putney to North Sheen
5736+5849 North Sheen to Mortlake
5725+5912 Mortlake to St Margarets
5850+5867 St Margarets to Richmond
5865+5874 Richmond to Kingston
5725+5912 Kingston to Teddington
5710+5712 Teddington to Norbiton
5709+5862 Norbiton to Hampton Wick
5850+5867 Hampton Wick to Wimbledon
319002 Wimbledon to St Helier
Milestones
New shacks Berrylands, Hampton Wick, Norbiton, North Sheen, St Margarets, Teddington
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I haven't seen a 365 in a good while so can't comment on their smiley face fronts. Loved the comment on 317342 and people wanting to clear it for 10 miles!

Just look at any recent photo of a 365 and I am sure you'll understand what I am getting at.

A most productive time there, done quite well with the 313s. A "mere" 31 years gap in the haulage logs on one of the 313s (sorry I've forgotten the number now!), that's just over how long I've been on this Earth for!

I have got a fair amount of automation in my haulage records although it's all all Excel based - my spreadsheets are full of formulae! However, there's still some copying & pasting which leaves room for errors. But within a minute or two I can produce virtually any list, data or fact as appropriate.

507033 is the longest absentee from the haulage book - I had it new on the 23rd of July 1983 (Sandhills to Moorfields) and never again since. Needless to say, it's on more than one of my lists - Absentees, 10 miles

I'm aiming to have a go on the GN again when I next go to London, since I still need 3 313/0s. Hopefully they'll all produce so I can get some focus on 315s!

Good luck in tracking down those last few GN 313s, especially as you can then start clearing up your 315s - I do not think the latter will be around too long. I still need one GN 313 (313029, still needed for 10 miles) and I think that when I next have a free weekday evening after work, I will go and perch at Drayton Park or somewhere like that. As you will see, I now have all 315s for 10 miles although two are long term absentees from my haulage log.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

The Tyne and Wear Metro is quite enjoyable, or at least it was when I spent quite a bit of time on it in February. That's another area I need to get back to, with a handful of Metro units still needed for sight, still quite a few needed for haulage and 16 shacks to go for. Sadly that's not due until 2016, way too much still to do this year yet!

Don't tell me about what there is to do this year and we are already at the 31st of May! The way things are shaping up, August will be a long distance trip at least once a week if not more often. I still have the following being planned

Liverpool - day trip
Cumbrian coast - day
Manchester - day
Scotland - at least two days
Devon/Cornwall - two days (hopefully)
North East Rover - for days
West Midlands - two day trips

Plus all the odd part days spent running around London chasing my tail!

 

[Techniquest]

You've certainly been busy this week! As you'll see in my trip report thread, I've also been having a productive day.

I don't know what's going to happen with the 315s, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are eliminated in the next few years. 442s are certainly looking likely to be scrapped, but I'd imagine the 315s have a better chance of surviving elsewhere.

I need almost all the shacks on the Hounslow loop, and the ones between Barnes and Richmond. Otherwise within Greater London my SWT requirements, shacks wise, aren't too bad. One of the many things on my list to do when I next visit London, clear out some SWT shacks!

I've been planning 2015 for some time now, mostly all pencilled in for now until funds become available to book more of the trips. It's almost all the expensive trips left on my 2015 plan now, so naturally I've got a lot rolling over into 2016. I know it sounds ludicrous to be planning that far ahead, but it will mean I get to fit in as much as possible!

 

[Kite159]

Sounds like you had a busy day yesterday in SWT land

 

[Keith Jarrett]

4th June 2015 – Scotland & the North: Day 1

Time goes fast and the annual pilgrimage to Scotland has come around all too quickly. As usual I was with my two mates (a father & son outfit) who are happy to photograph train but haulage is something to be logged rather than going outright for winners. We met at Euston and had an uneventful journey (for me) northwards on 390020 – I was unlikely to score a 390/0 as I only need one and today I was out of luck. My mates noted 66434 at Carlisle Kingmoor and that was the only DRS 66 that they still needed for photo so that meant that one of them had to rewrite their plans for the day in order to catch it at Holytown on its way into Mossend yard.

An early arrival into Glasgow Central was rather useful. We pulled in besides one of my winning Scotrail 156s. Thankfully there was no queue at the ticket office and less than three minutes after touchdown; I was equipped with a Glasgow Roundabout ticket. Two minutes later I was on the move on 156435 which I needed outright. It was first stop Bellshill which suited me fine as I could clear it for 10 miles. Six minutes later there was a train back towards Glasgow with 380016 which was still needed for 10 miles. 380s in that part of the world were a novelty for me although they are now common on the Glasgow Central to Lanark services which now run from the High Level platforms at Central (I was more familiar with 318s/320s on the Lanark route serving the low level platforms at Central). With 380016’s first stop being Cambuslang that allowed me to clear it for 10 miles . Two units off of my list, only 188 remaining!

I did not have long to enjoy the delights of Cambuslang as 318257 rolled in headed for Dalmuir. Unit number three off of the list and with only one 318 previously cleared for 10 miles, I decided to make it two! That entailed heading across Glasgow and I was aiming for Scotstounhill and a dodgy +0 onto a train back (or a 15 minute wait at a winning shack). The +0 was easily made and less than an hour after leaving Cambuslang, I was back there having returned with 318261 and tripling the number of 318s cleared for 10 miles in the process. While I was happy to score electric units on the low level lines my real targets were the older class 314s that run in and out of the high level platforms at Glasgow Central. 380001 provided a suitable means of transport back to Central from Cambuslang– the doyen of the class providing a winner in the process but like nearly all of my runs with 380s, would need a second attempt to clear it for 10 miles.

Back at Central, I was immediately attracted to Spotrail liveried 314208, the only member of the class that I still needed for haulage. It was about to leave for a spin around the Cathcart Circle and while not 10 miles, the full loop would certainly knock out most of those 10 miles. As we progressed around the outer rail, my mind started to realise that I was passing up numerous shack score. But mileage on a required unit was more important. Half an hour after leaving Central, I was back there again and eying up another winner. This time it was 156496 that was the focus of my attention and with an imminent departure for Barrhead, I jumped aboard, noting that dud 156467 was hitching a ride as well. I had not made many excursions along the Glasgow & South Western Line so this was almost new territory for me – well Barrhead itself was definitely new territory as it was a shack scratch! Running into the bay platform, I had just about enough time for a quick snap before 156437 rolled in heading back to Glasgow. I was pleased to get 156437 as while it was not a winner, it was ultra-low mileage and so low that the run back to Central would not clear it for 10 miles.

The idea was as far as possible to keep moving so when I got back to Central, the impending departure of winning 380115 could not be refused. First stop Paisley Gilmour Street with a choice of two services back within a few minutes suited me fine. The first one back from Gilmour Street was even more satisfactory as it was a 314 which I managed to clear for 10 miles – 314206. Half an hour later, I was repeating the same move with a winning 380 out to Gilmour Street (380105) for mileage requirement 314213 back. Next up at Central was 314211, another one that was well under 10 miles. It was bound for Neilston and the only time that I had ever been down the Neilston line was way back in 1989 when 303089 provided the traction. Not needing the shack, I decided to bail short at Patterton for shack scratch number three of the day. Patterton appeared to be your bog standard unstaffed commuter station but a poster aimed at the patrons of the local school caught my eye – there were several do and don’ts with regards to one’s behaviour around the station and the one that made me chuckle prohibited the climbing of stanchions carrying electric cables. I assume that the climbing of other stanchions around railway property was perfectly permissible! 314202 brought me back to bashing reality and thoughts of climbing stanchions were replaced with deciding where to go in order to clear 202 for 10 miles. Verdict was Central.

Fortunately, at Central 314208 was waiting for me on the next Neilston departure. Knowing that I’d meet low mileage 314215 at Cathcart, this seemed like a good move to clear 314208 for 10 miles and then add to 314215’s mileage account. I wanted to stay with 314215 but at Pollockshields East, 314209+314216 rolled in heading for Neilston. So I went for a second excursion of the day up the Neilston branch, again to Patterton, would see 314216 cleared for 10 miles. However I still had a way to go with 314209 before 10 miles were clock up on this particular unit. I knew that I was meeting a pair on the way back and was happy with 314207+314210 since both were low mileage machines. Returning to Central with this pair saw 314210 join the 10 mile club. Since the pair were on a tight turnaround and with 314207 still under 10 miles, I took the same pair, 314207+314210, back out of Central to Mount Florida(clearing 314207 for 10 miles in the process to meet 314209+314216 on their return leg from Neilston. The run into Central was enough to heave 314209 over the 10 mile barrier.

It was now time to start meeting up with my mates. One was waiting for me at Central . We walked over to Queen street via the supermarket as supplies were on the extremely low side before boarding 170394 which we took to Haymarket where the third member of the party was waiting for us. We walked back to our lodgings for the night and once we had fed, reflected on our varied days. The freight photographer got everything he wanted (and more) while the unit photographer was happy with his haul but still reckoned that there was still a way to go with his Scottish units. As for me, the haulage basher, I was more than happy with my tally for the day – six outright winners, another class cleared for haulage, 13 units cleared for 10 miles and not forgetting the three new shacks. What would day two bring?

As ever, here’s the usual list of the day’s moves -

LU 51642+51643 Morden to Stockwell ---
LU 11077+11078 Stockwell to Euston ---
390020 Euston to Glasgow Central ---
156435 Glasgow Central to Bellshill WINNER, cleared for 10 miles
380016 Bellshill to Cambuslang Cleared for 10 miles
318257 Cambuslang to Scotstounhill Cleared for 10 miles
318261 Scotstounhill to Cambuslang Cleared for 10 miles
380001 Cambuslang to Glasgow Central WINNER
314208 Glasgow Central to Glasgow Central WINNER, class cleared
156467+156496 Glasgow Central to Barrhead 156496 - WINNER
156496 Glasgow Central to Barrhead
380115 Glasgow Central to Paisley Gilmour Street WINNER
314206 Paisley Gilmour Street to Glasgow Central Cleared for 10 miles
380105 Glasgow Central to Paisley Gilmour Street WINNER
314213 Paisley Gilmour Street to Glasgow Central Cleared for 10 miles
314211 Glasgow Central to Patterton Cleared for 10 miles
314202 Patterton to Glasgow Central Cleared for 10 miles
314208 Glasgow Central to Cathcart Cleared for 10 miles
314215 Cathcart to Pollokshields East ---
314209+314216 Pollokshields East to Patterton 314216 cleared for 10 miles
314207+314210 Patterton to Glasgow Central 314210 cleared for 10 miles
314207+314210 Glasgow Central to Mount Florida 314207 cleared for 10 miles
314209+314216 Mount Florida to Glasgow Central 314209 cleared for 10 miles
170394 Glasgow Queen Street to Haymarket ---
Milestones
Winners 156435, 156496, 314208, 380001, 380105, 380115
Class cleared 314
Cleared for 10 miles 156435, 314202, 314206, 314207, 314208, 314209, 314210, 314211, 314213, 314216, 318257, 318261, 380016
New Shacks Barrhead, Patterton, Scotstounhill

NB - it might be a few days before I get to write up day two but hang in there folks!

 

[alexf380]

A fantastic time was had by the sounds of things! And even better, You're in Scotland! If I'd known, I'd have popped across and said Hi.
Looking forward to day two.

 

[Techniquest]

A most fantastic day there, an excellent haul and much fun had!

314213, someone else has got it! I'm going to be the last forum member to get it at this rate!

 

[47403]

Sounds like you've had a top day there, looking forward to the rest of the report, especially if day 1, is anything to go by. Happy hunting.

 

[55013]

Another smashing write up
Congratulations on clearing the 314s.

 

[Kristofferson]

Thanks for the read always good to hear about different strands of the enthusiast thread!

 

[Keith Jarrett]

5th June 2015 – Scotland & the North: Day 2

An early start was called for on account of all of us (myself included) wanting to get a good go at photographing the Edinburgh rush hour. What better place to do this than Haymarket where the bulk of Scotrail trains serving the Scottish Capital could be found – I was particularly interested in the Fife commuter trains hauled by the Class 68 cats and I was not disappointed as both turns worked with 68s although 68004 replaced one of the Scotrail liveried pair that are nominally assigned to the service.

With a good bag of photos and rush hour well and truly over, we decided that we’d all had enough of Edinburgh. One of the party wanted to do some photography around Stirling while the other headed to Glasgow along with myself – he ended up spending much of the day chasing “Barbie” liveried 156s. Our traction from Haymarket was 170412, one of around a dozen Scottish 170s still needed for 10 miles. We bailed at Croy to allow purchase of our Glasgow Roundabout tickets – it’s a little odd to find a rover ticket issued as a single from the originating station to “Roundabout”. A dud 156509 followed up at Croy and took us into Glasgow Queen street which seemed rather deserted; the only unit present was 156500 which was about to depart for Oban. That suited me fine as ‘500 was needed for 10 miles and a trip out to Dalmuir would easily solve that dilemma.

At Dalmuir I had all of three minutes to wait for my next move which was a winning 320302 bound for Motherwell. I took this across central Glasgow, eying up numerous required shacks on the way until the 320 had 10 miles on the clock and bailed at Bridgeton, itself a requited shack. But I had failed to consult the timetable and had an enforced wait of around 10 minutes before anything showed up. Luckily, the next service with 318257+320315 contained a required unit in the shape of 320315. A trip around the Hamilton Circle to Hamilton Central saw that cleared for 10 miles and also allowed me to renew my acquaintance with the line which I last visited in 1977 on my epic Scottish spotting trip [Ed: The trip is fully documented elsewhere on this forum]. But on my last visit, I bailed at Hamilton West so Central became the second shack score of the day. 318256 was my “Get out of jail free” card and whisked me back to Rutherglen. On the way I passed a winning 320317 so started to lay plans to meet up with it sooner rather than later. A neat double back to Blantyre with 320318 which I almost cleared for 10 miles saw my plan come to fruition. Alighting from 320318 at Blantyre to intercept 320317 had the added advantage of another winning shack although to balance things out, there was a downside – 320318 was low mileage and I did not clear it for 10 miles. Another day, perhaps? 320317 rolled in bang on time and I was determined to clear this winning unit for 10 miles so off to Hyndland I trundled.

The island platform at Hyndland is a great help on account of no leaping over footbridges or through subways to simply change platforms. I was at Hyndland for all of 90 seconds before required 318268 reared its ugly face so yet another trip through the low level lines to Rutherglen saw this cleared for 10 miles. A short wait on Rutherglen’s island platform provided 318259 which was yet another low mileage unit. However, I decided to give the high level lines at Glasgow Central a visit so bailed from 318259 at Central low level and ascended from the Glaswegian subterranean caverns to the light and airy environs of Central’s high level platforms. One of my objectives was to hunt down my remaining 314s that I needed to clear for 10 miles. Within a few minutes, I had struck lucky when 314201 appeared bound for Neilston. Unless I wanted to waste a large amount of time, Neilston was not the place to goas in the off-peak the layover time at the remote terminus was the best part of half an hour. Knowing that I would not clear 201 for 10 miles in one trip, I opted to bail at Whitecraigs in order to have a shack scratch. On my way out of Central, I passed 314215 on its way in. Using Realtime trains, I worked out that it was on Newton via Mount Florida. Now the task in hand was to clear both of these for 10 miles!

At Whitecraigs, 314203 showed up for the return which I was originally going to take to Mount Florida and wait for 314215 which was 15 minutes behind. But rather than a 15 minute fester, I opted to carry on to Crosshill in order to score another shack. Around eight minutes later 314216 appeared to take me on the Bus Stop Bash back to Mount Florida so that I could maximise the mileage with what should be 314215 on its way back from Newton to Central. 314215 duly appeared at Mount Florida so I took it into Central, waited a five minutes and promptly took 314215 back out to Mount Florida. Another 314 cleared for 10 miles! Now to get 314201, which by now had migrated back to Central from Neilston. Easy thing to do was nip back to Pollockshields East with 314207 to meet 314201 going back to Neilston. As I only needed a microscopic mileage to clear 314201 for 10 miles, I leapt at Mount Florida for 314206 back into Central. That’s 13 out of 16 315s cleared for 10 miles – would the day throw up anymore. I reckoned that I had seen all the off peak workings so would have to wait for the extra units to appear for rush hour.

380020 was the first thing at Central to grab my attention – I’d cleared very few 380s for 10 miles so the offer of one that needed a few more miles on the clock to reach 10 was not refused. I figured that instead of the usuaol Paisley Gilmour Street leap, I could bag another shack by bailing at Hillington East. I had a +4 there (Hillington West would have been a +0)so what gem would I get back to Central? Scotrail came up trumps and provided a winner for me – 380013. Just as I boarded 380013, I received a text telling me that 314205 was working the next departure to Paisley Canal. I had a +2 at Central off of a train that was running two late so wondered whether I would make it. I ended up with about 45 seconds at Central to switch platforms and board 314205. ‘205 was rather low on mileage as my only previous trip was from Central to Queens Park in 2013 so I was sort of compelled to head down the Paisley Canal branch but rather than go all the way, I bailed short at Hawkhead to scratch the shack while 314205 went down to Canal. Trundling back into Central on 314205 (and clearing it for 10 miles in the process) , thoughts turned to seeing what my last two 314s (212 and 214) were up to. There were no signs of them in Central and thus far my mate who was photting 156s had not seen them.

Consequently, I turned my attention to the legions of 156s that I still required. Winning 156495 (with dud 156434 for company) was a suitable excuse to do this on the next East Kilbride train. Rush hour was now in full swing so there was more chances of pairs of 156s our on the East Kilbride trains. But I did not want to stray too far from Central lest either of my 314s were to appear so a bail at Thornliebank was the order of the day. Good move on my part as this was a required shack (number seven of the day). A good move soon turned into a better move as 156432+156499 were the traction back to Central – 156432 was a winner and 156499 cleared for 10 miles. On the way back into Central I passed a pair of 314s heading out of town – no prizes for guessing which two units formed the pair! A quick consultation of realtimetrains soon brought me firmly back to earth. I could only get to the pair for a Bus Stop Bash on their return leg into Central and that would be no good to clear either for 10 miles. The pair then seemed to sit in Central for ages so I gave that a miss.

My final move of the day out of Central was on another East Kilbride train – formed of 156431+156496. 156496will be familiar to readers as it was only the previous day when I had it new while 156431 was a winner from a year ago on last June’s Scottish trip.. My mate texted me wondering what time we were going to meet so before replying I worked out whether I could clear either or both of these 156s for 10 miles. A dodgy +1 at Busby would do nicely and then I noticed that everything running back from East Kilbride was a few minutes late implying that the single line section beyond Busby was holding things up. Despite 156431+156496 arriving one late into Busby, I still had a comfortable +3 to stroll over the footbridge for my steed back. As this was my first ever visit to Busby, this became shack scratch number eight of the day. I was pleasantly surprised when 156437+156512 rolled in for the return run to Central. Both were needed for 10 miles and by the time I returned to Central, both units would have the necessary credentials to apply for membership of my Ten Mile Club. At Central, my mate was waiting (he got to the agreed point moments before me) and he confirmed the whereabouts of my last two 314s which I had to send up again as it would have taken another hour to clear both for 10 miles. Time I could not afford on account of a very early start the following day. However, something to look out for on my next visit to Glasgow. Soon we were off to Queen Street where the whole service was in disarray following an earlier signal failure at Haymarket. We were tight on an Edinburgh train but there was nothing in the station. Within a few seconds a six-car 170 appeared and in less than four minutes, the six-car had been split and was blasting away out of Queen Street (with us on board) – dud 170433 was the final log of the day in the haulage book.

Reflecting on the day which I thought had been slow in places; I started to tot up the day’s takings and was pleasantly surprised to find that no less than eight shacks had been scored along with five winning units. Additionally 16 units had been cleared for ten miles so over the course of the two days, I had managed 11 new shacks, 11 winners and 29 Scottish units cleared for 10 miles. Not bad for two day’s work although there’s still quite a mountain for me to climb with Scotrail requirements. I have visited less than a third of Scottish stations and I still need 159 Scottish units for 10 miles. Of those 159, I have never ridden on 64 of them with the two classes needing most attention being 334s & 380s. There’s still plenty to tempt me back to Scotland …….

Day three’s write up will follow soon but here’s a record of today’s moves -

170412 Haymarket to Croy Cleared for 10 miles
156509 Croy to Glasgow Queen Street ---
156500 Glasgow Queen Street to Dalmuir Cleared for 10 miles
320302 Dalmuir to Bridgeton WINNER, cleared for 10 miles
318257+320315 Bridgeton to Hamilton Central 320315 cleared for 10 miles
318256 Hamilton Central to Rutherglen Cleared for 10 miles
320318 Rutherglen to Blantyre ---
320317 Blantyre to Hyndland WINNER, cleared for 10 miles
318268 Hyndland to Rutherglen Cleared for 10 miles
318259 Rutherglen to Glasgow Central Low Level ---
314201 Glasgow Central to Whitecraigs ---
314203 Whitecraigs to Crosshill ---
314216 Crosshill to Mount Florida ---
314215 Mount Florida to Glasgow Central ---
314215 Glasgow Central to Mount Florida Cleared for 10 miles
314207 Mount Florida to Pollokshields East ---
314201 Pollokshields East to Mount Florida Cleared for 10 miles
314206 Mount Florida to Glasgow Central ---
380020 Glasgow Central to Hillington East Cleared for 10 miles
380013 Hillington East to Glasgow Central WINNER
314205 Glasgow Central to Hawkhead ---
314205 Hawkhead to Glasgow Central Cleared for 10 miles
156434+156495 Glasgow Central to Thornliebank 156495 = WINNER
156432+156499 Thornliebank to Glasgow Central 156432 = WINNER, 156499 cleared for 10 miles
156431+156496 Glasgow Central to Busby Both cleared for 10 miles
156437+156512 Busby to Glasgow Central Both cleared for 10 miles
170433 Glasgow Queen Street to Haymarket ---

Milestones
Winner 156432, 156495, 320302, 320317, 380013
Cleared for 10 miles 156431, 156437, 156496, 156499, 156500, 156512, 170412, 314201, 314205, 314215, 318256, 318268, 320302, 320315, 320317, 380020
New Shacks Blantyre, Bridgeton, Busby, Crosshill, Hawkhead, Hillington East, Thornliebank, Whitecraigs

 

[Techniquest]

Not a bad day at all there! Shame about the 314s mind, but as you say there's plenty to return to Glasgow for. I'm certainly jealous as it feels like forever since my last Scottish adventure, and still feels like an eternity until I get there again on 2nd August!

Were the sleepers not enticing with 92 haulage for the trip to/from Scotland?

 

[55013]

Well, that does it.
I had no plans to visit Scotland again this year, but I've got a free day coming up and thanks to another excellent write up, I'm yearning for some more 314 action

 

[Techniquest]

Glad I'm not the only one who got the bug for more 314 haulage after reading Keith's report!

 

[Kite159]

I've got the bug for some more 314 haulage, I'm in Glasgow this coming Saturday so might make a start at clearing the 314 shacks

 

[Keith Jarrett]

Well, that does it.
I had no plans to visit Scotland again this year, but I've got a free day coming up and thanks to another excellent write up, I'm yearning for some more 314 action

Glad I'm not the only one who got the bug for more 314 haulage after reading Keith's report!

I've got the bug for some more 314 haulage, I'm in Glasgow this coming Saturday so might make a start at clearing the 314 shacks

I am pleased that I have wound so many of you up to go 314 bashing .....

 

[Kite159]

Gives me something to do

Will probably decide on the day which way to head, probably on whatever is departing first from Central HL after picking up my Roundabout ticket.

 

[Keith Jarrett]

And now the write up of day three (at last)

6th June 2015 – Scotland & the North: Day 3

All too quick, the final day of our three day trip had come around and it was definitely an early rise for us. We were out of our digs by 06:25 for the walk up to Haymarket as we wanted to be heading south pretty smartish. There was too much engineering work around on key arteries to make a third day in Scotland worthwhile. Normally, after our Scottish trips we would progress down the East Coast stopping off at various points and indulging in a spot of photography. But today we had something different in mind – a spot of loco bashing.

Both of my travelling companions were rather partial to a spot of tractor action [Ed: And not the Massey Ferguson type either before anyone gets any ideas even though an old MF 35 can be quite hellfire in itself!] so when I suggested that we all went for a spin on the Cumbrian Coast, I did not even have to wait for the unanimous vote. I had been monitoring the traction used on the newly introduced trains and was rather pleased to see that one of the 37s that was out and about was an all time winner – not that this particular fact influenced me at all! (When I looked at the books, I was quite surprised how many extant 37s that I’d never had were still available for the grabbing of).

A double Voyager was our way out of Scotland on an Edinburgh to Euston working. Fortunately for me 221108+221116 were both winners and in the process I cleared both for 100 miles by the time we bailed at Carlisle. All three of us have always had a soft spot for Carlisle and the prospect of tractor action only added to the lure of the place. There was around half an hour before the tractors were due in from Barrow but the time soon flew by. There were a few units in the station that needed the attention of our cameras as well as the need to get tickets for our trip – Cumbrian Coast fares seem rather cheap compared to what I am used to in the South East.

Time flew by and it was not long before 37609 was growling its way into Carlisle with 37402 on the back. While 37609 was required for renumbering – I’d only ever had it as 37115 way back in 1979 – 37402 was a little more desirable. Like its classmate on the other end of the four coach train, it was needed for renumbering as the last time I had it for haulage, it was running round as 37274 and had no ETH cables. But it was required for 10 miles so a spin down the coast would sort that out. Leaving Carlisle with 37402 providing all the power, I tried to work out when I had last experienced tractor action on the main line. I came up with 2001 as a pure guess but later consultation of the records showed that it was 2002 on the Fort William sleeper with 37416. And when was the last time that I visited the Cumbrian Coast? That illustrious event was much further back in history in October 1974 when I did Carlisle to Barrow in one go on a Kingmoor allocated 108.

Passing through stations such as Aspatria and Flimby got me thinking about shack attacks in years to come. We pressed on through Workington – all those disused yards before hitting the first single line section just north of Parton when the discussion amongst us turned to who was bailing where. We were supposed to pass the northbound train at St Bees but not knowing the layout of the station opted to play safe. One member of our party leapt at Parton as he wanted to get shots of the station while the other two of us continued to Whitehaven (shack score). My mate also wanted station shots so we had a productive 20 minutes or so getting station shots and even took a short walk up a lane to get a decent shot of the signal box. A few other bashers had done the same move they had used the time usefully and had gone into town in search of supplies [Ed: They probably only went to the Tesco store close by the station].

All too soon the silence was broken and we could hear the north bound train coming through the tunnel – I was on tenterhooks as I knew that I had a chance of a winning loco but in order for it to count, it had to be leading. “Oooh, it’s not got an ETH cable” was the thought that went through my minds and within nano-seconds the brain had clicked into action. “WINNER!” was all I could scream at my mate. Then came the words “Thirty Seven Six Eight Eight”. Indeed 37688 was my 220th different member of the class for haulage. The last time that I had seen this particular loco was September last year (2014) at the opposite end of the country. I was on holiday with my wife down in Kent and she wanted to go and scratch one of the more obscure churches on the Romney Marsh; the ruins at Midley. [Ed:I supposed it’s only a different form of shack gricing!]. The site is only accessible on foot by walking over a couple of fields and the railway from Midley Crossing on the Dungeness branch. On the way back to her car we looked down the line and could see headlights of a loco at Lydd Town. We simply had to wait for the loco to come up from “Dungee”.

Snapping back to reality, we all clambered aboard the train with some of the normal commenting how comfortable these “new” trains were. We picked up the final member of the part from a windswept Parton. He was happy though as that is another station bagged for phots. 37688 was on fine form and at that point we did not know what was on the back providing ETH although we had a good idea. While I sort of wanted to get the mileage up, I was also thinking about all those shacks that I was passing up. ‘688 did us proud and rolled back into Carlisle bang on time and so concluded my first ever northbound run on the Cumbrian Coast . We then discovered that 37409 was on the rear (and would thus be leading on the return run to Barrow and beyond to Lancaster). We had the obligatory phots of the train in Carlisle before I split from my mates. They wanted to head over to the East Coast and phot loads of VTEC trains but that was not for me – too much standing around! I could have gone with them and tried to do some bashing but I was not feeling 100% so rather than have the potential of things getting worse, I turned for home.

I quickly worked out a potential move that might get me something else for the haulage book. A dud 390153 took me to Penrith for a shack score; at least that's all shacks operated by Virgin West Coast out of the way. After about 20 minutes, an equally dud 350404 followed up for the journey to Preston . Passing Lancaster, I realised that 37409 would take at least two additional hours to get to this particular county town. Clearing the 350 somewhere south of Lancaster for 100 miles sort of made up for its dud status. I left 350404 at Preston and had a quick look around – an ex Thameslink 319 was in one of the sidings north of the station and there was a Freightliner 66 running round a ballast train to distract me. At least Virgin had the decency of providing a winning 390 south from Preston in the shape of 390112. I had previously had this as a nine car unit but my rules are that extra cars have been added so I need to start all over again. I went all the way through to Euston on this lightly loaded train. We had a cracking run up the West Coast which was only spoiled by catching up something that had stopped at Milton Keynes and slowing for a 350 crossing in front of us at Ledburn. Having two hours or so relaxing with my own company on the 390 did wonders for me. At Euston, I phoned home to warn of my early arrival and was advised that dinner would be waiting for me. Result!

A quick trip on the Victoria Line to Vauxhall followed by 5707+5734 to Wimbledon saw me arrive just in time for the half hourly Thameslink train home with 319005. While I was disappointed to leave my mates, I gather that while on the photo front, they did well; I would not have scored hardly a thing on the haulage front.. Given that I got something out of a more direct run back to London rather than their convoluted route south, I think that I made the right move especially as in times gone by I have done a couple of bashes where I have not been 100% and paid dearly for it afterwards. I still managed four winners and two new shacks as well as getting my first trip along (part of) the Cumbrian Coast since 1974!.

And to conclude, here are the moves for the day -

221108+221116 Haymarket to Carlisle WINNER x 2, both cleared for 100 miles
37402 tnt 37609 Carlisle to Whitehaven 37402 - 1st time as current number, cleared for 10 miles
37688 tnt 37409 Whitehaven to Carlisle 37688 WINNER, cleared for 10 miles
390153 Carlisle to Penrith ---
350404 Penrith to Preston Cleared for 100 miles
390112 Preston to Euston WINNER, cleared for 100 miles
LU 11001+11002 Euston to Vauxhall ---
5707+5734 Vauxhall to Wimbledon ---
319005 Wimbledon to St Helier ---
Milestones
Winner 37688, 221108, 221116, 390112
1st time current number 37402
Cleared for 10 miles 37402, 37688
Cleared for 100 miles 221108, 221116, 350404, 390112
New Shacks Penrith, Whitehaven

 

[Techniquest]

Nice, lovely bit of NB 37 haulage there! I too have looked at the amount of shacks to do on the Cumbrian Coast, it's going to take a long time to get that lot all done!

 

[55013]

Thanks for yet more interesting reading.
The only stations on the Cumbrian coast that I've done are Workington and Maryport, during the bridge replacement jobs a few years ago.
I'll have to drag myself over for some coastal tractor thrash at some point, especially if 37059 produces.

 

[Kite159]

Nice, lovely bit of NB 37 haulage there! I too have looked at the amount of shacks to do on the Cumbrian Coast, it's going to take a long time to get that lot all done!

At least its hourly and had a rover ticket.

Although might need a bike to ride/walk between nearby stations if there are close enough together to do so without the risk of a missed connection.

 

[Segedunum]

St Bees is easy enough to change with a level crossing. I did the swap of direction there back in 2011 (Albeit from 2x153s to a 156 )

 

[Keith Jarrett]

28th June 2015 – The first Sunday afternoon outing for several weeks

I’d been missing my Sunday afternoon outings - the last was four weeks ago. And what’s more, regular Sunday afternoon jollies will become far more erratic in the near future as my other half’s shift patterns are about to change meaning that she will get far more Sundays off. But as one door closes, another one looks likely to open in that there will be chances of more opportunity for after work bashes around London during the week providing I resist the temptation to go out on the beer!

Anyway, back to the present day rather than planning my life out, there are a few units in my wants list that have been nagging like the proverbial festering sore. Falling into that category are my last 313/0, my last 442 and three 444s; all of these would enable me to record “All of class cleared for 10 miles” against their respective record in the haulage log. My plan for dealing with the solitary 313/0 is to pitch up somewhere such as Drayton Park in the evening peak but the other four are work south of the river. I thought that I would target the 442 as this class faces an uncertain future. The fall-back position was to go playing with five-car 378s but first the name of the game was to identify all the 442s out on the Gatwick Express.

I left home on the uniquely liveried 319426 (it carries Thameslink grey but retains pink doors – light blue doors are the norm with grey units). A quick trot over the footbridge at Wimbledon saw me get onto 5851 for the shortish ride to Clapham Junction where the aim was to find a comfy bench so that I could observe all the 442 workings and also keep an eye on the 44s on the South West and even the five-car 378s. As we arrived at Clapham Junction, a 442 set whizzed through heading for Gatwick – no chance of grabbing the number as I was on the wrong side of the 455. I was distracted by a couple of 377/6 units which I duly photographed. While I’ve got all my 377/6s for 10 miles, most of my 377 bashing was done after work last year when it was dark and so I need quite a few for photo! Then I saw a spotter furiously scribbling numbers in his book but he was only after the newer 377s and did not record the 442. Just as I bid him farewell a 442 shot through Clapham Junction headed for Victoria. The chase was on!

377417+377443 had conveniently ground to a halt behind me on the slow lines and the service was next stop Victoria. Ideally placed for a spot of 442 chasing. I knew that when I got into Victoria, I’d have 15-20 minutes to sort my ticket out for the ride to Gatwick (a Travelcard would not get me too far). Southern’s ticket machines are handy in that they sell tickets from other stations and also do Boundary Zone xx Travelcard extensions. It took all of two minutes for me to persuade the machine to sell me the appropriate ticket. I killed some more times in the local branch of the WH Smith Reading Rooms before proceeding to the Gatwick Express platforms where I was waved through and there she was, in all her glory.

“Welcome to 442415” was the phrase that I wanted to utter out loud but I thought better of it having visions of men in white coats appearing and dragging me off to some unknown place. It was actually a case of “Welcome back 442415” . I last has 442415 (when simply numbered 2415) way back on 29 October 1998 and it, paired with 2417, constituted my first ever ride on a 442 on the Bus Stop Bash from Clapham Junction into Waterloo. Since then it had constantly eluded me but not anymore. Just over an hour after leaving home, I took up my seat in the motor coach so that I could enjoy the EE546 traction motors that were recycled/recovered from the old 4-REP units when the 442s were built back in 1988. We seemed to have a speedy run down to Gatwick with no signal checks and were able to record a three minute early arrival. With all 24 members of the class now on 10 miles or more, I have no reason to travel on a 442 again. That’s eight classes now where every member has been cleared for 10 miles so the 442s join that hallowed status already enjoyed by classes 159, 315, 319, 332, 450, 455 and 456.

Within a few minutes, I was on my way from Gatwick with a pair of winning 387s (I want a lot of those still – must make the effort sometime) – 387101+387102 were the units in question which had only entered traffic a few days previously. I left them at East Croydon and as I still had time on my hands, I opted for 387111+387122 back to Gatwick. I’d previously come across 387111 on a Bus Stop Bash from Blackfriars to St Pancras but 387122 was a Winner. This time around I had longer at Gatwick as the first northbound Thameslink was 319452+319459. While I don’t mind 319s, I knew that the following train up from Brighton was a pair of winning 387s so I opted to wait.

I watched a couple of 442s come and go but soon 387121+387126 were heading into the station – double winners for me. I took these back up to East Croydon and while I contemplated a third visit to Gatwick, I calculated that if I went back south, I’d have an excessive wait for any 387s back north. Instead I joined 377428+377463 back up to Clapham Junction where there was a nice cross platform interchange onto 5850+5916 to Wimbledon which in turn gave me a short wait for 319217 back home. I certainly did not expect to get my last 442 so quickly – I was fully prepared for several fruitless waits at Clapham Junction and/or the prospect of trying to track it down in the evening peak when it’s nigh on impossible to cover all the 442 workings and be able to pick one to ride. Add in five winning 387s (and a further one cleared for 10 miles, I was more than pleased with the outcome. Before the new regime kicks in in the middle of next month, I will have to think carefully how I use my remaining Sunday afternoons. As ever, here’s the customary list of the afternoon’s moves -

319426 St Helier to Wimbledon ---
5851 Wimbledon to Clapham Junction ---
377417+377443 Clapham Junction to Victoria ---
442415 Victoria to Gatwick Airport Cleared for 10 miles (last of Class)
387101+387102 Gatwick Airport to East Croydon Both = WINNER + cleared for 10 miles
387111+387122 East Croydon to Gatwick Airport 387122 = WINNER. Both cleared for 10 miles
387121+387126 Gatwick Airport to East Croydon Both = WINNER + cleared for 10 miles
377428+377463 East Croydon to Clapham Junction ---
5850+5906 Clapham Junction to Wimbledon ---
319217 Wimbledon to St Helier ---

Milestones
Winner 387101, 387102, 387121, 387122, 387126
Cleared for 10 miles 387101, 387102, 387111, 387121, 387122, 387126, 442415
All of class cleared for 10 miles 442

 

[Techniquest]

It must have felt quite strange going back to a Sunday afternoon bash after some weeks without one! The forthcoming changes sound like it'll work nicely in your favour, after all post-work weekday trips will mean more pairs and more trios will be out, thus increasing your chances of knocking out those requirements much faster!

Congratulations on clearing the 442s for 10 miles, I still have 12 outright winners to get there. Not particularly fussed there as I'm not a big fan of 442s, so when they go I won't be shedding tears. 313s, now that's different, they'll be more than missed!

Certainly you're doing well with your 387s, although I couldn't help but smile when I noticed that 387126 was one of my first 387s had for haulage. It seems strange to think I had it before one of the forum's top men! Sorry, I couldn't resist that comment, I'm rather jealous and in dire need of a London bash having not done one for 3 months now!

Drayton Park is definitely good for 313 festering, you'll love how frequent it is along there in the evening peak and it should hopefully be easy to get that last 313/0 in, what with all those pairs of 313s!

 

[Kite159]

Busy sunday trip in London

Congrats on clearing the 442s for 10 miles