Possibly looking at a Merseyside jaunt - any advice

[crispy1978]

If you are quick on your toes or just want to take in an extra station you could alight at Rice Lane (formerly Preston Road) on the 15:28 from Kirkby and nip round to Walton to pick up the Ormskirk train. the 15:28 is due at Rice Lane at 15:34. Rice Lane and Walton are very close to each other and it is just about possible to make Walton in 4 minutes in time to catch the 15:38 Ormskirk service gaining you 15 minutes - and if you don't make it you will still catch your intended 15:51 ex-Kirkdale which is due Walton at 15:53.

http://www.merseyrail.org/plan-your-journey/stations/rice-lane.aspx

Great idea. Looks tight to make it in 4 mins, even though I am a fast walker. The walk might break up the day nicely and I'll still make my planned connection.

 

[Techniquest]

Looks like a damn solid plan, long day by the looks of it although my visit to Merseyside on Monday started at 0632 when I left the house and didn't get home until almost 2220, and I'm a lot closer than you are to Liverpool!

I considered doing the walk from Rice Lane to Walton myself earlier in the year, and I turned it down due to it looking way too risky to do in the short time between one train and the next at the time. It was just as well as it turned out, as I scored a winner 507 unexpectedly!

You MIGHT be lucky to get the Southport train 15 minutes earlier at Sandhills, depending on right time running. Hop off the train and dash over the other side of the island platform.

Sandhills is also the station where the Soccerbus shuttle buses run from for Goodison Park (Everton FC) and Anfield (Liverpool FC), so if it's a match day, which should be easy enough to find out, on your intended day of visiting it'll probably get busy. A local will be able to advise better than me on that one. Oh aye, and the lift mentioned earlier in the thread at Lime Street? It's currently out of use, but it should be back in use by the time you get to Liverpool.

 

[crispy1978]

Looks like a damn solid plan, long day by the looks of it although my visit to Merseyside on Monday started at 0632 when I left the house and didn't get home until almost 2220, and I'm a lot closer than you are to Liverpool!

I considered doing the walk from Rice Lane to Walton myself earlier in the year, and I turned it down due to it looking way too risky to do in the short time between one train and the next at the time. It was just as well as it turned out, as I scored a winner 507 unexpectedly!

You MIGHT be lucky to get the Southport train 15 minutes earlier at Sandhills, depending on right time running. Hop off the train and dash over the other side of the island platform.

Sandhills is also the station where the Soccerbus shuttle buses run from for Goodison Park (Everton FC) and Anfield (Liverpool FC), so if it's a match day, which should be easy enough to find out, on your intended day of visiting it'll probably get busy. A local will be able to advise better than me on that one. Oh aye, and the lift mentioned earlier in the thread at Lime Street? It's currently out of use, but it should be back in use by the time you get to Liverpool.

Thanks - I aren't too bothered in picking up unique trains - stations are more on my list.

It will be a Saturday I'm doing this. Provisionally looking at 25 October at the moment, which at the moment has Liverpool at home at 3pm - but I think given the time I am passing through there, the match will have begun, and I will be out of the way by the time it has finished. Granted, I may encounter them earlier or later in different locations, but I'm a Liverpool fan myself, so not too concerned!

 

[razor89]

If you're interested there are usually a few stock transfer movements during the day between Kirkdale and Birkenhead North depots, using the stock interchange line. Obviously you can't ride on them but they can be seen either at Liverpool Central reversing or at James St, passing through platform 2 which is not normally used. Just checked and realtimetrains has timings up for these movements (for today at least) however you never know whether they will actually run, and I'm not sure whether these are truly timetabled moves or just done on an ad-hoc basis.

 

[Searle]

Hunts X does have toilets but whenever I'm there they are either being worked on or locked.

I do seem to remember them being locked or similar after an incident there on a Cheshire Day Ranger

 

[ATW Alex 101]

All you have to do is pull...... and pee