Day 343: Wednesday 17/04/2024 - Otford to Swanley - £1.60 - Anytime Return. Shoreham (Kent) to Swanley - £4.20 - Anytime Single. Gillingham (Kent) to Rainham - £3.20 - Anytime Single. Kent Rover Day 1 of 3 - £10.00 per day - Valid after 9.30 Weekdays. CP Otford - £6.50 + Railway Street Car Park Gillingham - £3.30.
Total time today 1096 mins - time on trains 328 mins and time waiting 768 mins. Stations completed today 16. Total completed 1794. Platforms completed at completed stations 4108.
"Swizzled at Swanley"
It was slightly disconcerting that as i set off early doors the Satnav said i would arrive exactly when my first train was due. I pretty much always try to arrive at least 20mins beforehand especially when travelling from afar, so i was a bit perplexed by how i had miscalculated. Turns out the M6 was closed for a few junctions and the resultant detour accounted for the discrepancy. No rest stop for me this morning and the need to press on remained. I arrived after making up a few of those 20 mins and my start point of Otford was reached without incident.
The Kent Rover is a SouthEastern ticket only and there are a few stations on the fringes of Kent that are served by Thameslink only (Ok SE does call but just the odd service), so i thought i would do a few of these early doors before my Rover ticket activates at 9.30am. My first port of call should have been P3 at Swanley, utilising a minimally used linkline to do so. It didn't today and we arrived in P1 as an alteration. No idea why. Not the best of starts, but as this was also a transitional move to catch both Eynsford and Shoreham (Kent) it wasn't the end of the world. Unfortunately my next service was delayed so much i couldn't do the linear hop i was intending at Eynsford so i got stuck in the waiting room and starts to explain how i got through about 300 pages of my book today! I decided to wait it out at Swanley rather than on a cold platform and do Eynsford some other time. Shoreham was my first station of the day eventually and by this time rush hour was almost over and i did get a seat on the return leg to Swanley, which is more than be said for an hour earlier. A cancellation then meant i would miss my intended foray into Kent proper and after consulting the oracle that is RTT i realised i could make back this time at Borough Green & Wrotham (what a mouthful) but i would have to forgo my intended supply run to the Co-op in the Car Park there (kinda) in order to do so.
With the itinerary winning out in the ideological battle against food it was a short visit indeed, but i think i will be returning here in two weeks in an an attempt at the rare planned use of the loop line here. I have still some unfinished business in the area (Longfield, Eynsford, crossovers at Swanley + others) more on that last debacle later. I may have missed the P1 sign here but it certainly wasn't obvious - i will check another time. Next up was Kemsing, a least used station battle with Swale sees this change occasionally and i am not sure who is top or is it bottom dog currently. Nevertheless it is a pretty rural offering, though i did go off station for a walk, returning via the Business Park which is adjacent. Not many houses in evidence though. All stations on the line are serviced at least hourly with a more direct service to/from Maidstone East only stopping in the peaks. I had the place to myself and the sun came out - bliss.
I thought i may snag some supplies at East Malling which is a quaint spot albeit a busy thoroughfare with vehicles dodging in and out on the narrow streets. No shops selling food however and after a suitable mooch i returned to the platform and spied what i thought was a barrow crossing at the other end of the long platform. Correct, and used by dog walkers mainly in my time there. West Malling was another rural spot in itself but with a massive Car Park and a bus stopping off point. No services on offer here either. I was a bit luckier at Maidstone West albeit my first of two visits at this time was too short before heading off again, this time to Barming, another delightfully named station, albeit uncontaminated by services too. I have to say the rural stations today and in the next 2 days kinda merged in my head at times and whilst there were perhaps individual quirks to share, i just can't be sure of the detail to do so for some places. With services crossing at Maidstone (going further West) i had an hour to go exploring and i was lured by the Colonel to go try some of his chicken which i duly did being rather hungry by this time. Not far away was a place specialising in Greek desserts, and probably because i wasn't sated by chicken i did have a window shop to see the treats on offer, which was then upgraded to going inside and choosing something sweet, which was delicious. It was just labelled "Orange" and i couldn't fault the description. No idea what it really was though. These type of establishments are probably an annual treat for me so i was surprised with myself......
The hour soon came and went and off again to another series of stations that are pretty in themselves but not much to saya about, so Hollingbourne, Bearsted, Lenham and Harrietsham all came and went before my first look at the myriad of tracks which is Ashford International to see if i could make heads or tails from it all. My first thought was "hang on they are using a b and c variants on the boards" something i had not considered beforehand, and i will have to do a deeper dive into this for a future visit. We had arrived in p1b as a platform alteration, though from what i was never able to find out. We certainly arrived there but i don't agree under my own rules of logic we departed from there with the front train now in P1a. However, different stations seem to use different methodologies as to what constitutes these variants. Perhaps to prevent confusion it may be practise here to have the arriving and departing platforms the same for the same sets. Anyway, one that needs further study by me to see if i can crack the code.
I was going back up the line for Charing which i had mssed on the way down, and a chance to see what track was covered as we crossed over all the lines back onto the line up to Otford. Charing was not remembered for anything much and back in Ashford (P1b again) i did have time for a quick wander to see the c designation being used by Southern. Perhaps the designations only come into play when 2 services share a platform..... With my head hurting (poetic license - i was just tired i think by now) i turned my thoughts to the return journey to my start point and the possibility of a snooze or two in the light of the late night shenanigans that would follow. I did manage to drop off once or twice although i did have the presence of mind for a linear hop at Maidstone again to catch a service from P3 which was missed earlier due to a late incoming service then. Maidstone East duly completed another snooze was my reward before alighting at Otford and a run east to Faversham, by car this time as i wanted to check in before heading out again.
£92 for 2 midweek days is cheap enough by my standards and the Premier Inn at Faversham was offering this so even though it was out of my way a little bit for tonight it would be handily placed for Fridays start. having duly checked in and made sure they keycard worked (they don't always i have found) i was off again this time basing myself at Gillingham wheer the Car Parks are all in active mode up to 1am so a 4 hour ticket was necessary.
Time for more station tickage and Rainham P0 allowed me to tick that albeit this is a Thameslink platform usually so an extra ticket was needed. The services tonight were nearly all affected by earlier delays elsewhere so i had to think on my feet to get things done, especially at Sittingbourne where i missed my connection because of the slowest of slow journeys. perhaps the driver was trying to get us over the 15 minutes delay repay barrier (he succeeded). One of those instances where the doors close just as you reach them, and an enforced half hour wait was the result. Cue a swifty in a local hostelry to lessen the frustration. As can be seen by the 4 minute changeover at Chatham it was touch and go whether i risked doing this, and again my nerves were jangling a bit as we arrived in Chatham just as another service pulled in on the return platform. It was a late service i realised after scrambling over the bridge - which is becoming a far too familiar thing of late by the way, and i had a whole 4 minutes to enjoy there....
Swizzled at Swanley as both the incoming and outgoing services should have used P3/P4 utilising 2 rare crossovers, and promptly didn't! - twice. It would be rude not to attempt them whilst in the area surely? Its only worthwhle if they do of course and as with all projects there are ups and downs. A wasted journey was the result however you cut it, not to mention it was past 2am by the time i got back to the hotel. I haven't yet had the opportunity to have a look and see what went wrong - in case another similar opportunity arises. And so ended day 1 of 3 consecutives - my first time doing this away from home. Kent is easier than most other places to maintain good progress, but its a heck of a long way to go if something gets missed. I will take 16 station completions as a result despite a rocky start and finish in the Swanley area. A sub 4 hours in bed is my reward as i have to be in Strood before 7am, and its about 40 mins away!
Otford | Depart | 7.26 | ***** | SE | | | stations | platforms |
Swanley | Arrive | 7.35 | P1 | SE | wait 61m | | completed | completed |
Swanley | Depart | 8.36 | P2 | TL | | | | |
Shoreham (Kent) | Arrive | 8.44 | P2 | TL | Wait 18m | | | |
Shoreham (Kent) | Depart | 9.02 | P1 | TL | | | 1 | 2 |
Swanley | Arrive | 9.10 | P1 | TL | wait 73m | | | |
Swanley | Depart | 10.23 | P2 | SE | | | | |
Borough Green & Wrotham | Arrive | 10.40 | P2 | SE | wait 5m | | | |
Borough Green & Wrotham | Depart | 10.45 | | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Kemsing | Arrive | 10.49 | P1 | SE | wait 47m | | | |
Kemsing | Depart | 11.36 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
East Malling | Arrive | 11.49 | P2 | SE | wait 46m | | | |
East Malling | Depart | 12.35 | P1 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
West Malling | Arrive | 12.37 | P1 | SE | wait 28m | | | |
West Malling | Depart | 13.05 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Maidstone East | Arrive | 13.16 | P2 | SE | wait 11m | | | |
Maidstone East | Depart | 13.27 | P1 | SE | | | | |
Barming | Arrive | 13.31 | P1 | SE | wait 23m | | | |
Barming | Depart | 13.54 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Maidstone East | Arrive | 13.58 | P2 | SE | wait 61m | | | |
Maidstone East | Depart | 14.59 | P2 | SE | | | | |
Hollingbourne | Arrive | 15.07 | P2 | SE | wait 9m | | | |
Hollingbourne | Depart | 15.16 | P1 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Bearsted | Arrive | 15.19 | P1 | SE | wait 19m | | | |
Bearsted | Depart | 15.38 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Lenham | Arrive | 15.48 | P2 | SE | wait 20m | | | |
Lenham | Depart | 16.08 | P1 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Harrietsham | Arrive | 16.10 | P1 | SE | wait 26m | | | |
Harrietsham | Depart | 16.36 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Ashford International | Arrive | 16.58 | P1b | SE | wait 29m | | | |
Ashford International | Depart | 17.27 | P1b | SE | | | | |
Charing | Arrive | 17.34 | P1 | SE | wait 13m | | | |
Charing | Depart | 17.47 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Ashford International | Arrive | 17.58 | P1b | SE | wait 28m | | | |
Ashford International | Depart | 18.26 | P1b | SE | | | | |
Maidstone East | Arrive | 18.58 | P1 | SE | wait 15m | | | |
Maidstone East | Depart | 19.13 | P3 | SE | | | 1 | 3 |
Otford | Arrive | 19.35 | ***** | SE | drive + | | | |
Relocate to | ***** | ***** | ***** | ***** | wait 126m | | | |
Gillingham (Kent) | Depart | 21.41 | ***** | TL | | | | |
Rainham | Arrive | 21.46 | P0 | TL | wait 13m | | 1 | 3 |
Rainham | Depart | 21.59 | P2 | SE | | | | |
Sittingbourne | Arrive | 22.09 | P2 | SE | wait 30m | | 1 | 3 |
Sittingbourne | Depart | 22.39 | P1 | SE | | | | |
Chatham | Arrive | 22.59 | P1 | SE | wait 4m | | | |
Chatham | Depart | 23.03 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 2 |
Gillingham (Kent) | Arrive | 23.06 | P3 | SE | wait 12m | | | |
Gillingham (Kent) | Depart | 23.18 | P2 | SE | | | 1 | 3 |
Swanley | Arrive | 23.51 | P3 | SE | wait 51m | | | |
Swanley | Depart | 0.42 | P4 | SE | | | | |
Gillingham (Kent) | Arrive | 1.42 | ***** | SE | | | | |