2/7 Reading & Oxford
So instead of the normal Saturday trip, today was a Sunday, and the plan was to head East towards Reading & Didcot, with also a hour or two planned in Reading to visit the Reading Buses Depot during its annually open day, which happened to be today. The first train out of Weston on a Sunday is the 08:11 and I made that with a minute to spare, today it was formed of dud 43093 and winner
43034! I take these as far as Didcot before alighting and joining winner
165101 on a delayed service to Oxford. Once at Oxford, I have 2 minutes to join winner
165104 and dud 166209 all the way back to Reading on a stopping service.
Once at Reading, it was a walk outside the station to catch the shuttle bus to Reading Depot, spending around an hour in the depot before catching the bus back! Another 15 minutes was spent outside the station photographing buses before I head back onto the station and board the 14:14 service back to Didcot formed of double duds 43194 + 43144. A 5-minute wait was had at Didcot before double duds 43142 + 43022 rolled in to take me as far as Oxford! I had decided to try to head to Bicester to try and clear off the shack and a few units along the way. When I reach Didcot, I check GWR Journey Check and notice trains are starting to be cancelled due to staff shortages, I notice the 14:54 and 17:53 are already cancelled and did not wish to be stuck as services to Weston on a Sunday evening are very sparse! I abandon the plan to get to Bicester today, and head back to Didcot on double duds 165104 + 166209!
On arrival, back at Didcot, the 15:53 is cancelled, Great! Which means I will now miss the 17:30 off Bristol back to Weston! I have to catch the 16:29 service formed of duds 43155 + 43164 back to Bristol Parkway before joining winner
221138, 20 minutes later to take me back to Bristol Temple Meads, by this time I have missed the service back to Weston at 17:30, and now the 18:30 is cancelled! The next train now being back at 19:05! 2 trains loads of people would use this train, but now a XC voyager has terminated and passengers are being advised to catch it! Great! 150104 rolls in at 19:05 to take the full train back to Taunton, dropping me off at Weston at 19:43, 2 hours 15 minutes after I was meant to get home!
4/7 Freedom Travelpass
A couple of days later and I was back on the rails, I was meant to do this trip the day before, But I managed to oversleep so postponed it until the next day! The plan for today was to sample the Turbos which were newly introduced onto the Severn Beach line, as well as clear some HST power cars and hopefully clear my last two GWR west units, as well as clearing many shacks! I walk down to the station at 07:35 and pick up a Freedom Travelpass, a zonal ticket for area which covers all rail lines and buses from Weston to Bristol and Bath. The 07:49 soon rolls in formed of dud 43002, which is still looking lovely, and winner
43024! I take these as far as Temple Meads, before alighting and making my way over to platform 1 for the Severn Beach line! 10 minutes later winner
166205 rolls in to take me to my first new shack of the day,
Shirehampton! I wait here 10 minutes before 166205 returns and takes me back to my second shack,
Sea Mills! Around 20 minutes later
166212 rolls in to take me to my third shack,
St Andrews Road! Luckily the train is late, as I quickly run to the bus stop and pick up First Buses Route 3 formed of ALX400 32288, for the ride back to my fourth shack,
Avonmouth! I wouldnt have been able to make that connection if the train hadnt of been late, and it saved me two hours! After clearing Avonmouth, I had now officially cleared the interior Severn Beach line, so I jump back onboard 166212 all the way back to Bristol TM!
GWR Turbo 166205, Shirehampton 4.7.17 by
DSH Trains, on Flickr
I head over to platform 15 to see if any required power cars are in, and according to my records 43186 is required, but after getting home, I find out it in fact isnt! But anyway, I took double duds 43186 + 43191 to Bath, before joining dud 43179 and 43078 back to Bristol! Next, I board dud 221137 for the journey out to Bristol Parkway before returning on 150106 to my fifth shack of the day,
Parson Street. 5 minutes later 150101 rolls up to take me back to Temple Meads. Next up, I head back over to platform 15 and join double duds 43139 + 43162 back to Bath, before picking up dud 150221 and my final GWR 150,
150234 for the ride back to Bristol TM! My next move is to take 150106 to my sixth shack, Stapleton Road! As we approach Stapleton Road, the horn sounds and the brakes lock up. About a minute later we start moving again, I alight at
Stapleton Road and look back down the line to see two men walking up the track! The BTP where fast to respond, but they found no one! I messed up my timings here so spent half an hour here, before 150127 rolled in to take me back to Temple Meads! From here, I had been tipped off that 158958 should roll into Temple Meads at any time, and at 14:54, my final GWR West unit
158958 rolled in to take me on a hop to Filton Abbey Wood, I returned to Temple Meads on 158951.
GWR 158958, Filton Abbey Wood 4.7.17 by
DSH Trains, on Flickr
It was now time to clear another shack, Bedminster, I caught 150101 down to
Bedminster and then 150106 back to Temple Meads, I quickly get something to eat before joining winner 159107 for the ride to Bath Spa before returning to Temple Meads behind 150261 and 153369. I now had some time before my train home, so I boarded delayed 166205 to Montpelier and then returned to Bristol on 166212, I then took another hop to Bristol Parkway, with double duds 43378 and 43301 doing the honors. A quick platform change was made onto 150221 back to Temple Meads before finally I joined double duds 43017 + 43148 back to Weston!
Winning Units: 10
Shacks cleared: 7
Winning Units YTD: 301
Shacks cleared YTD: 95
It was my fault I missed the units! I forgot what way they where heading and ran the wrong way up the platform!
