Monday 07/08/72 All Line Rover Day 5
We started off with a DMU through to Birmingham New Street. (At this time the Paddington to Birmingham fast services all ran via High Wycombe, so there were only the sporadic cross-country services on the route via Oxford.
31 (45030) 11:25 Birmingham New Street – York (09:25 Bristol Temple Meads – Edinburgh). Passing Washwood Heath we spotted D2 “Helvellyn” on a coal train, the first of the original Peaks that I had seen. Visible at Derby was Clayton 8512, which was one of the locos used to power test trains for the Derby Research Centre. North of Sheffield we ran via the Cudworth route, which was then the main line from Sheffield to York – and has since been closed.
At York, the National Railway Museum was then still at the planning stage, so there wasn’t anything to visit there. We took a walk down towards the depot to see whatever was visible over the wall. We did spot the General Manager’s Wickham Railcar DB975005/6. Back in York station we saw one of the unique Trans Pennine 5-car DMU sets, and managed to “cab” 51959. After a while spent spotting in York it was time to head home via London. We were pleased to see a Deltic on our train south; less pleased to see it was 9008 again, the only one we’d previously had for haulage.
9008 (55008) 15:13 York – Kings Cross (08:55 Aberdeen – Kings Cross)
Thence back home via Paddington.
DMU Paddington – Tilehurst
Saturday 07/08/76
Staying with relatives in Plymouth for a couple of weeks, I purchased a 7 day Devon Rover and a 7 day Cornwall Rover, giving me free rein on anything in the West Country for a whole week. A smarter move might have been to overlap the validity by a couple of days – as each day I spent in one county, the validity of the other one was being wasted. Still, never mind:
47083 0835 Plymouth – Exeter St Davids
25080 0959 Exeter St Davids – Eggesford
25223 1039 Eggesford – Exeter St Davids
50004 1116 Exeter St Davids – Torquay
1021 1153 Torquay - Exeter St Davids
46035 1252 Exeter St Davids – Plymouth
1053 1435 Plymouth - Exeter St Davids
50037 1611 Exeter St Davids – Plymouth
1010 1750 Plymouth - Exeter St Davids
1048 2015 Exeter St Davids – Plymouth
Tuesday 07/08/79
40117 1313 Chester – Manchester Victoria
(I’ve got no record of how I reached Chester. Perhaps a DMU?)
47481 2225 Manchester Victoria
86012 2310 Warrington Bank Quay - Crewe
Thursday 07/08/80
40017 0802 Holyhead – Crewe
87017 1101 Crewe – Birmingham New Street
87014 1248 Birmingham New Street – Euston
Friday 07/08/81
40056 1710 Kings Cross – Peterborough
40195 1901 Peterborough – Kings Cross
This train was 20 minutes late from Peterborough, after C&W attention to somebody stuck in a lavatory!
At Kings Cross the 2000 and 2015 Scottish services had already departed by the time I arrived behind 40195, so I covered the later evening departures:
40056 2230 Kings Cross – Peterborough
Again, having come light engine back from Peterborough off the 1710 commuter. I alighted at Peterborough as the train was standing room only.
Saturday 07/08/82
REP 3003 + 420 + 417 1235 Waterloo – Bournemouth
33113 (+4TC) 1417 Bournemouth – Weymouth
DMU Weymouth – Yeovil Pen Mill
Taxi Yeovil Pen Mill – Yeovil Junction
50047 1926 Yeovil Junction – Waterloo
Sunday 07/08/83
45025 0021 Sheffield – York via Brightside, Tinsley Yard, Treeton, Rotherham Masborough, Doncaster, Selby
Then, after a few hours’ sleep, I’m out for more …
31106 1159 York – Leeds
45007 1252 Leeds – Manchester Victoria
47459 1436 Manchester Victoria – Chester
40192 1630 Chester – Manchester Victoria
45007 1751 Manchester Victoria – Leeds
5690 1950 Leeds – York via Harrogate (Scarborough Spa Express)
In hindsight, that seems a lot of Sulzer miles for a very dud class 40. Ending the day with the run via Harrogate was good though.
Wednesday 07/08/85
81021 1245 Glasgow Central – Carlisle
87017 1427 Carlisle – Carstairs
25283 + 25303 1814 Carstairs – Edinburgh (1206 ex Bristol Temple Meads)
The regular relief from Bristol / Exeter produced the “booked” pair of 25s for once. Thence DMU Edinburgh – Stirling.
Monday 07/08/89
90018 1147 Crewe – Birmingham New Street
50031 1345 Birmingham New Street – Oxford via Coventry. Terminated at Oxford.
47817 1623 Oxford – Reading West
DMU Reading West – Reading
47512 1943 Reading – Paddington via Greenford Loop
I was in the process of moving home from Crewe to Reading. The previous day 50025 had been derailed at West Ealing whilst working an Oxford – Paddington service.
As a result, services into Paddington (where I was now working) were severely thinned. I managed to get on a service from Reading that took me via the Greenford Loop into Paddington. The derailed loco 50025 was scrapped.
Wednesday 07/08/91
Returning from the family holiday in Jenbach:
47843 1422 Dover Western Docks – Reading via Canterbury East, Dartford, Sidcup, Hither Green, Nunhead, Factory Jn, Kensington Olympia, Willesden SW Sidings, Acton
(Friday 06/08/93)
87009 2203 Euston – Edinburgh
Saturday 07/08/93
37510 + 37113 0445 Edinburgh – Aberdeen
37428 0920 Aberdeen – Inverness
37232 1235 Inverness – Kyle of Lochalsh
37087 1510 Kyle of Lochalsh – Inverness
37428 1838 Inverness – Dingwall
37232 1916 Dingwall – Inverness
37683 + 37505 2020 Inverness – Glasgow Central via Larbert, Whifflet North Jn, Rutherglen East Jn
This was a tremendous period for the class 37 enthusiast, with pairs operating on both the Aberdeen and Inverness sleeper portions (plus a single on the Fort William), and some Aberdeen – Inverness services producing 37s, as well as the Far North and Kyle lines. 37113 was a particularly good claw-back for me, as it had been withdrawn once already, then reinstated in place of 37261 which was rusted beyond repair when presented for overhaul at Doncaster. As 37510 was formerly 37112, there was some numerical likeness too. A very scenic and productive day out.
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