Monday 16th March - Heading upto Aberdeen via VTEC First Class before crossing back down to Carlisle.
Awoken by my alarm at the very unsocial hour of 5.15am especially on a Monday morning, grab my final bits of gear together and head out of the house for the 10 minute walk down to Barnsley station. Head in through the Bus interchange and cross the bridge to the far side to buy my first ticket of the day to get me to Leeds, think its the first open return I've ever actually bought!
Cross back over the bridge to await the 1L72 0610 Express service to Leeds, 158905 turns up and hop on board along with a suprisingly large amount of other people, a uneventful run upto Leeds where we arrive outside the station a few minutes early as usually happens with the Express services and have to await a route to platform 15.
Head straight over to platform 9 where my home for the next 6 hours is awaiting, a rake of Mk3 carriages being Top and Tailed today by 43316 & 43206
https://flic.kr/p/rSr6av
Recently Virginified 43316 awaiting departure from Leeds in the early morning rain.
Head down to my seat in first class and settle down for the off. The first of many drinks runs are done as I prepare to drown in tea by the end of the journey. Numbers in the coach double at York, most apparently on open tickets as they search for an appropiate seat reservation. The smell of kippers wafting past me down the coach marks the start of breakfast being served.
https://flic.kr/p/rSrX4P
My Breakfast!
Pass a Great Central Class 180 at Northallerton station and pass a GC HST set just outside Darlington station, where the opposite seat to mine gets filled. Pass 66548 on 6N56 just outside Thrislington and a quick bit of research on Freightmaster/RTT tells me its heading to Redcar with a load of dolomite. Pass through Newcastle racing a Tyne & Wear Metro train heading across the High Level Bridge as we use the King Edward VII Bridge to cross the Tyne.
Guard swap at Newcastle to a Scottish guard and we get offered a second toast run. Pass EWs liveried 66056 awaiting the route to leave Butterwell Opencast Colliery to head down to Ratcliffe Power Station on 6Z65 and we then swing out towards the coast before crossing the Tweed into Berwick.
This is the first time i've been past Berwick on the ECML, my previous journeys into Scotland have always been via the WCML, head past Tourness Nuclear Power Station and the sidings for rail transport of Nuclear Flasks. Past Oxwellmains Refuse Transfer Station where containerised rubbish for landfill departs on one of the 'Binliner' trains and arrive at Edinburgh for a 10 minute dwell, catering crew is changed over and we set off at a crawl to Haymarket before racing off again crossing over the Forth Bridge. Apologies from the crew leader as enforced change to the First Class offer means no hot food and only sandwiches will be offered, 4 sandwiches, crisps, bun & muffin go someway to soothing my disappointment at no cottage pie.
Pass a wide selection of landscapes; mix of coastal scenes, heavy industrial areas and MOD sites as well as golf courses. Pass Freightliner 66622 on a rake of PCA tanks just outside Aberdeen and 67022 on the sleeper rake as we arrive into Aberdeen.
With a few hours to spare before my trip to cross down to Carlisle I wander off into the city avoiding the seemingly continuous stream of HGVs and explore the city, exploring the dock area before heading into the city and walk down Union Street before managing to get lost on my way back to the station. Buy my North West Rover from the ticket office, no issues with buying it out of area and clerk comments on how it's the first on he's ever sold.
https://flic.kr/p/rzVGy9
https://flic.kr/p/qVvYDh
https://flic.kr/p/qVHExx
Aberdeen! The Granite City
Head out to platform 6S being let through the gateline manually after my ticket gets rejected by the barrier.
Scotrail 170450 arrives from Inverurie with a 10minute booked wait to leave at 1602 so grab a picture then attempt to find my seat, no coach markings either externally or internally means the guard gets queried every 30 seconds by people boarding the train.
https://flic.kr/p/rSr934
170405 awaits departure from Aberdeen
I find my seat and settle down for the repeat of the earlier journey in the oppposite direction until I disembark at Haymarket to await a Virgin West Service to Carlisle. Haymarket station is suprisingly quiet given the number of services passing through. Virgin Super Voyager 221118 arrives at 1856 on time to take me down to Carlisle, ignoring the seat reservation I hunt for an unreserved seat without a body pillar blocking my external view, engrossed on my phone we're arriving at Carlisle before I realise it.
Probably my favourite WCML station if only because its managed to avoid being painted red everywhere as Virgin run stations seem to do. Quick RTT check shows a couple of freights due through so decide to delay my check in at the hotel. 66154 comes through on coal followed by 68002 & 68004 double heading the Tesco Express, an intermodal container train run by DRS to distribute goods from Tesco's Daventry depot.
https://flic.kr/p/rSrbfR
68002 'Intrepid' & 68004 'Rapid' double head 4M48 Mossend - Daventry Tesco Express through Carlisle station.
They are followed shortly by a pair of Freightliner 86's heading down to London Gateway and then 37611 & 37603 running light engine together heading north just past the station to Carlisle Kingmoor a DRS depot. Heading to the same destination as them soon after are 57305 and 57312 hauling a single carriage; a DBSO recently refurbished for DRS. 10 minutes later a multiple Class 325 parcel train passes through with a brief stop for a crew change it soon heads off north into the night.
https://flic.kr/p/rzX7T1
325006/325003/325008 at Carlisle station on the 1S96 Willesden Princess Royal Distribution Centre - Shieldmuir Royal Mail Parcel Train.
Next through are 90026 in faded EWS livery and 90036 'Driver Jack Mills' in DBS Red on a southbound intermodal at which point I decide to head to my hotel for the night, leaving the station and head a short distance down Botchergate to the Ibis Carlisle where my bed for the night awaits.
Awoken by my alarm at the very unsocial hour of 5.15am especially on a Monday morning, grab my final bits of gear together and head out of the house for the 10 minute walk down to Barnsley station. Head in through the Bus interchange and cross the bridge to the far side to buy my first ticket of the day to get me to Leeds, think its the first open return I've ever actually bought!
Cross back over the bridge to await the 1L72 0610 Express service to Leeds, 158905 turns up and hop on board along with a suprisingly large amount of other people, a uneventful run upto Leeds where we arrive outside the station a few minutes early as usually happens with the Express services and have to await a route to platform 15.
Head straight over to platform 9 where my home for the next 6 hours is awaiting, a rake of Mk3 carriages being Top and Tailed today by 43316 & 43206
https://flic.kr/p/rSr6av
Recently Virginified 43316 awaiting departure from Leeds in the early morning rain.
Head down to my seat in first class and settle down for the off. The first of many drinks runs are done as I prepare to drown in tea by the end of the journey. Numbers in the coach double at York, most apparently on open tickets as they search for an appropiate seat reservation. The smell of kippers wafting past me down the coach marks the start of breakfast being served.
https://flic.kr/p/rSrX4PMy Breakfast!
Pass a Great Central Class 180 at Northallerton station and pass a GC HST set just outside Darlington station, where the opposite seat to mine gets filled. Pass 66548 on 6N56 just outside Thrislington and a quick bit of research on Freightmaster/RTT tells me its heading to Redcar with a load of dolomite. Pass through Newcastle racing a Tyne & Wear Metro train heading across the High Level Bridge as we use the King Edward VII Bridge to cross the Tyne.
Guard swap at Newcastle to a Scottish guard and we get offered a second toast run. Pass EWs liveried 66056 awaiting the route to leave Butterwell Opencast Colliery to head down to Ratcliffe Power Station on 6Z65 and we then swing out towards the coast before crossing the Tweed into Berwick.
This is the first time i've been past Berwick on the ECML, my previous journeys into Scotland have always been via the WCML, head past Tourness Nuclear Power Station and the sidings for rail transport of Nuclear Flasks. Past Oxwellmains Refuse Transfer Station where containerised rubbish for landfill departs on one of the 'Binliner' trains and arrive at Edinburgh for a 10 minute dwell, catering crew is changed over and we set off at a crawl to Haymarket before racing off again crossing over the Forth Bridge. Apologies from the crew leader as enforced change to the First Class offer means no hot food and only sandwiches will be offered, 4 sandwiches, crisps, bun & muffin go someway to soothing my disappointment at no cottage pie.
Pass a wide selection of landscapes; mix of coastal scenes, heavy industrial areas and MOD sites as well as golf courses. Pass Freightliner 66622 on a rake of PCA tanks just outside Aberdeen and 67022 on the sleeper rake as we arrive into Aberdeen.
With a few hours to spare before my trip to cross down to Carlisle I wander off into the city avoiding the seemingly continuous stream of HGVs and explore the city, exploring the dock area before heading into the city and walk down Union Street before managing to get lost on my way back to the station. Buy my North West Rover from the ticket office, no issues with buying it out of area and clerk comments on how it's the first on he's ever sold.
https://flic.kr/p/rzVGy9
https://flic.kr/p/qVvYDh
https://flic.kr/p/qVHExxAberdeen! The Granite City
Head out to platform 6S being let through the gateline manually after my ticket gets rejected by the barrier.
Scotrail 170450 arrives from Inverurie with a 10minute booked wait to leave at 1602 so grab a picture then attempt to find my seat, no coach markings either externally or internally means the guard gets queried every 30 seconds by people boarding the train.
https://flic.kr/p/rSr934170405 awaits departure from Aberdeen
I find my seat and settle down for the repeat of the earlier journey in the oppposite direction until I disembark at Haymarket to await a Virgin West Service to Carlisle. Haymarket station is suprisingly quiet given the number of services passing through. Virgin Super Voyager 221118 arrives at 1856 on time to take me down to Carlisle, ignoring the seat reservation I hunt for an unreserved seat without a body pillar blocking my external view, engrossed on my phone we're arriving at Carlisle before I realise it.
Probably my favourite WCML station if only because its managed to avoid being painted red everywhere as Virgin run stations seem to do. Quick RTT check shows a couple of freights due through so decide to delay my check in at the hotel. 66154 comes through on coal followed by 68002 & 68004 double heading the Tesco Express, an intermodal container train run by DRS to distribute goods from Tesco's Daventry depot.
https://flic.kr/p/rSrbfR68002 'Intrepid' & 68004 'Rapid' double head 4M48 Mossend - Daventry Tesco Express through Carlisle station.
They are followed shortly by a pair of Freightliner 86's heading down to London Gateway and then 37611 & 37603 running light engine together heading north just past the station to Carlisle Kingmoor a DRS depot. Heading to the same destination as them soon after are 57305 and 57312 hauling a single carriage; a DBSO recently refurbished for DRS. 10 minutes later a multiple Class 325 parcel train passes through with a brief stop for a crew change it soon heads off north into the night.
https://flic.kr/p/rzX7T1325006/325003/325008 at Carlisle station on the 1S96 Willesden Princess Royal Distribution Centre - Shieldmuir Royal Mail Parcel Train.
Next through are 90026 in faded EWS livery and 90036 'Driver Jack Mills' in DBS Red on a southbound intermodal at which point I decide to head to my hotel for the night, leaving the station and head a short distance down Botchergate to the Ibis Carlisle where my bed for the night awaits.
