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Your longest journeys made within in the UK?

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Sad Sprinter

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What are the longest journeys you’ve made by train-for an actual reason. For instance visiting family or friends and not just for the joy of the journey. I’d be interested how many people actually need to travel from Aberdeen to Weymouth for example.

I think the longest journey I’ve made is London to Horton in Ribblesdale.
 
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yorksrob

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Normanton to Penzance, regularly for the family holiday (I meet the family down there). I like to take a gentler route via Waterloo which takes about twelve hours (including pit stops in London and Exeter).
 

Sheridan

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I did Warrington to Thurso a few years back, when I lived in the north of Scotland and had been back visiting family. I flew down but got the train back up.
 

Butts

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Back in the seventies my Dad used to work at Dounreay Nuclear Power Station when we lived in Southampton.

That was an "all day" and most of the night back then !! - not much quicker now.

Has anyone ever done Aberdeen to Penzance which must be the longest direct service in the UK.
 

Iskra

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I routinely do ridiculous trips as part of being a rail enthusiast.

Outside of that, Leeds-Newquay and return to visit RAF St Mawgan, it was a borrowed GNER HST all the way home from Newquay in the days of Virgin Cross Country.
 
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Inverness to Purley Oaks on the way back from a holiday. If other surface transport is permitted South Croydon to Fetlar (Shetland) by train, boat from Aberdeen, bus up mainland, an inter island ferry another bus and another ferry. Was picked up at the dockside in Fetlar.

Hitched down Shetland on the way back, so public transport was only Lerwick to South Croydon.
 

cuccir

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I travelled from Durham to Plymouth for an academic conference; but perhaps more impressive were the 4 people from Aberdeen University on the train who were travelling down for the same conference. It was the Aberdeen-Penzance service so they didn't quite do the full run but certainly did most of it!!
 

route:oxford

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We needed to have a document physically signed and witnessed, but the person who needed to sign it was in Edinburgh.

So I took the GNER service from Kings Cross to Edinburgh, the relevant person was waiting at Waverley with his lawyer where the document was signed and witnessed, then I took the next train back to London.

On the return portion, it was the same crew working to Newcastle and the train manager noticed that I was heading back South again. He invited me to move to First Class for a more comfortable journey.

I'd commuted in from Oxford that morning anyway, so my journey was:-

Oxford - Paddington - Bishopsgate - Kings Cross - Edinburgh - Kings Cross - Bishopsgate - Paddington - Oxford

I'm guessing that's around 900 miles?
 

mm333

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An overnight to get home from holiday Waterford-Rosslare-(ferry)-Fishguard Harbour-Swansea-Bristol Parkway-Sheffield-Leeds.

Hanging round Swansea station for half an hour at 3.30am was not fun when all you want to do is sleep.
 

Ianno87

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My longest (not including via Channel Tunnel for an actual purpose when getting there:

Bolton to Plymouth (for ferry to Spain)
Bolton to Inverness (for holiday)
Cambridge to St Ives (Cornwall)
Cambridge to Edinburgh (longest for a day return trip)
Cambridge-Holyhead-Dublin-Rosslare-Fishguard-Cambridge
Bolton-Stranraer-Belfast
 

Eddd

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Barnstaple to Mallaig probably for me on holiday last year. Onwards to Armadale if you count the ferry
 

xotGD

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Newcastle to St Ives for family holiday

Brussels to Darlington for work
 

Alfonso

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What are the longest journeys you’ve made by train-for an actual reason. For instance visiting family or friends and not just for the joy of the journey. I’d be interested how many people actually need to travel from Aberdeen to Weymouth for example.

I think the longest journey I’ve made is London to Horton in Ribblesdale.
Bristol to Milan for work, in a long day, ditto Gloucester to Marseille. Bristol to Vienna for work Inc overnight from Cologne to Vienna.
 

Adsy125

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Ayr to Poole via London. It was great fun, but a journey I actually needed to make! Admittedly I took a rather long break in Glasgow.
 

Ken H

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Settle to Aberdeen (and back)
or was leeds torquay further

As Struner has done a foreign one, I will say Warwick - Palermo. broken by a replacement bus Rosario - Villa san Giovani so we missed out being shunted onto the train ferry.

Chiltern Warwick-London. Eurostar Waterloo -Lille. TGV Lille - Nice. Then Florence (2 nights), the Eurostar Florence - Naples (2 night. did circumvesuvia to Pompeii). Then 'espress' Naples - Palermo.
 

Graham Hall

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Hartlepool to Falmouth for a holiday and to see the solar eclipse back in 1999, and a few trips from Hartlepool to Southampton for family holidays.
 

Kendalian

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For work nothing spectacular distance wise, Preston or Manchester to London several times and Preston to Glasgow would be the longest.
For leisure, Penzance to Inverness in 1983 on an all-line rover (Penzance-Paddington, Kings Cross-Edinburgh, Edinburgh-Inverness (Mk1 sleeper) about 780 miles.
2017 did Euston-Wick - Euston-Inverness on the sleeper then 1041 Inverness-Wick via Thurso. About 760 miles.
 

30907

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Ignoring non-UK ones to comply with the thread title (aren't I being snotty?), Cambridge to Newquay and back for an interview. By mutual agreement it came to nothing, but we did get expenses.

Recent International, Sliac Kupele near Zvolen (SK) to Shipley via Zilina, Wien, Nightjet diverted via Zell am See to Feldkirch, Ulm, Rhine Valley, Brussels (overnight). Lisbon to Shipley coming soon. Though I think Shipley to Uppsala and back 10 years ago for a course beats that. Out via Niebüll-Tonder-Great Belt-Helsingor, back via Gothenburg-Malmo-Puttgarden.
 

noddy1878

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For me Plymouth - Glasgow Central. Unfortunately it was for a funeral but was the cheapest way to get there without driving at the time.
 

Fast Track

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Oban to Gatwick many years ago interrupting wonderful holiday on Mull for a job interview
 

big all

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inlaws in irvine parents in edinburgh son in a pram sundays only edin to brighton or glasgow to brighton to redhill about 27 years ago by far the easiest with a pram and a 2 year old yes took perhaps 9-10 hours but all easy no waiting or changing other than at glasgow carlisle reading or east croydon dependant on year off travel
 
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