Congrats on getting your foe 170420
Hopefully that 153 comes out of hiding sooner rather than later for you
Thanks! Yes I hope so too, it would be nice to get it done and out of the way. I've had it as 309, so it's not a total requirement but it still counts.
Final part of the epic trip report below:
15/01/2022 - Tech's Cycling Tours Return, Day 7
OK this really would be the final day of touring! Having got up around half 6, it was a casual start to the morning before I got bored of sitting around watching TV, the coffee had combined happily with my multi-vitamins and minerals tablet (and yes, their contents are all of benefit and my only good source of some minerals) and a bit of food to get me all fired up and ready to get moving. So after a few little jobs got done, the epic bike clean was up next and that was no easy task. Both for the amount of mud to remove, and the Dirt Juice I had bought is not very good at removing dirt as even now there's still dried-on mud on the bike, and for doing the task in cold weather. Oh I was missing the warm weather I'd had in Scotland!
Eventually the job got done to a sort-of satisfactory level of completion, and I went back upstairs to check on my hitlist of trains. Imagine, then, my shock to find the other EMR 170/5 I wanted was now allocated. As it had only been 531 allocated, I had made no plans to go up that way despite most of my 222 wants also being out. Now I had to make a plan, and book tickets. With that all done, and yes as I was taking my bike I was having to be fussy, I finally got changed into clothing more suitable for outdoor exercise and got on the move.
As per the day before, the 1139 to Birmingham New Street was in the hands of 172102 and 172007, so I took a seat in the former Chiltern Railways 172/1 for the novelty. 172007 seems to like me, as I've now had around 200 miles on it! My credit card bill this month was going to be horrific, however the way I looked at it was that I would never have to chase after 170s again, and I'd have spent more if I'd done an ALR like I had considered briefly before the week began! The journey to Birmingham passed by quite quickly, and I marched my way up to Greggs just up the road. With a doughnut, vegan sausage roll and a vegan festive bake, washed down with sugary black coffee, I felt human again!
I now had an issue. The 1349 to Nottingham, which would be a dreaded 170, had a +2 onto the 1433 to Matlock which would benefit me hugely and make it easier to connect back to the other 170 I wanted. However, I had a cycle space booked on the 1403 to Glasgow Central, which would miss the Matlock by 4 minutes. No bother, I could ride to Duffield and pick up 170531 there and do 170530 later on. Well yes, but that was a +3 at Derby and not worth the risk. I wanted to clear the 170s once and for all today, and leaving one for another day just did not sit right with me! If I hadn't been taking my bike with me, I'd have made the 1312 and all this would have been a non-issue.
However, that was not going to be the case. Not only did I want the 170s but I wanted more coverage on my map. The only way left to do it was to cycle to Long Eaton, and I knew it was manageable in the 50 or so minutes I had, then pick up 170530 to Derby with a +47 or so onto the 1633 to Matlock with 170531, alighting at Belper to pick up supplies in the nearby town centre for the journey south and back to Derby for the Voyager I was booked on back to Birmingham. It wouldn't be the new coverage I had wanted, but it wasn't worth risking the +2 at Derby and getting rejected from the undesired 170 on the 1349. A pair of Voyagers sounded much more fun!
As I went to get my overshoes out, I had a brainwave, which was to check the return of 170530. "1516 Nottingham to Crewe, arrives 1703, turns into 1709 Crewe to Newark Castle, into Derby...1820. When's my Voyager back?" and upon checking my bike reservation "1828, so a +8, that'll do fine!" was the thought process. Amazingly happy I was at that, as I had wanted to do the ride to Duffield as part of a cycling coverage mission. The route I'd chosen to Long Eaton would have avoided the mud this time, but it wouldn't have added the coverage out of Derby I wanted. So it was all good!
Eventually the Lichfield Trent Valley 323s got out of platform 9 to allow the 1403 to Glasgow Central to arrive, and I had 221122 and 221140 for my trip to Derby. I always remember the first time I had 221140 many years ago on a leap from Bristol Temple Meads to Bristol Parkway, primarily because I somehow have the memory of removing the reservation label at the time, not realising until later it had other journeys on it! Every time I see 221140, I have that memory kick in! Back to the current day, at least 15 years later if not 17, and it is a real effort to put a bike onto a Voyager. That space is just not big enough, I mean come on, putting a bike up on IET hooks is easier and that is widely regarded in the cycling community as a challenge!
Thankfully, the space on the other side of 221140, the other marked up as only big enough for one bike, I had no problem using that one but the one supposedly for two bikes, well I couldn't make my bike fit in it with no other bike in there, so I pity the poor souls who have to try and share that when trains are busier! Eventually it was away a couple of minutes late, and even though I had a reservation in coach I, seat 38, it didn't exist on the screen. What is it with XC seat reservations? Like my one the night before, technically I was booked in coach A for my seat, but previous experience was that labels aren't put out and no-one can tell if a seat is reserved or not on an XC 170!
Talking of quickly, I must mention the shoddy condition of 170420 on Day 6. I thought the ones we (the collective 'we' in the Midlands that is) were sending EMR 170s in poor condition but the ex-ScotRail one I had in the form of 170420, well that was just appalling. In comparison, the 170s going over from WMR will be in much better condition and that's shocking, considering how bad I thought some of them were!
I took an available seat in coach I anyway, and after updating my notes and putting some tunes on it was time to put the overshoes on. I wasn't willing to risk my feet getting cold on the ride, it was still January after all and I had got them cold enough on Day 6! After arrival at Derby, I left by habit via the main entrance, forgetting the more sensible choice was from the Pride Park side. Oh well! After a minor diversion due to taking a wrong turn, I found my way to the Riverside path and thus National Cycle Network (NCN) Route 54 to Little Eaton.
The route is actually quite nice out of Derby, a good one to walk too. Next to Derby RFC, there's a junction with Regional Route 66 heading left, National Route 54 to the right. At the end of this little road, the route runs on the road and it can be busy so I'd recommend that bit on Alfreton Road only to those confident in road cycling. At the junction with the very busy A61, the route thankfully joins a shared-use path to Little Eaton. On the roundabout, where the A38 joins the fun and yes neither the A38 or A61 would be recommended, there's a Starbucks. I can't begin to tell you how tempting it was to pop in! The need to carry on kept the resistance up, I would get a hot drink later I assured myself!
The village of Little Eaton, not to be confused with Long Eaton, is a nice little village. It once had a station, given there was a Station Road although where the line would have gone to I don't know, and I continued up Eaton Bank towards Duffield. At the fork in the road a short way before Eaton Bank, Route 54 finishes and I enjoyed my first ride on that route. It comes up from the Birmingham area from memory, and the bit from Lichfield Trent Valley is on my list to do. Trust me, that list never gets shorter for long!
Also, if you too could not help yourself and said out loud (or in your head!) "Duffield! Oh yeah, ooh!" in the voice of Duffman from The Simpsons, then I grant you an epic thumbs-up. I just had to do it! Not the hip thrusting though, that was too much and a bit challenging to do when it came to mind on the bike!
Eaton Bank, on the way to Duffield (oh yeah, ooh! Sorry, I'll stop. Or will I?) the gradients aren't too challenging, but going down Eaton Bank, on the way to the river, there's a 13% downhill gradient with a sharp-ish curve at the bottom and a big junction too. Pro Tip, go down that one carefully as I did! I took the wrong turn in Duffield, which looked quite a nice little place, and ended up on the Ecclesbourne Valley Railway's side of Duffield. I soon turned around and found the right way, arriving with 20 minutes to spare. E-ticket bought for £8.60, I had my Anytime Day Return to Tutbury & Hatton.
Eventually time passed and winner 170531 rolled in slightly late with the 1513 Matlock to Derby! It was very strange getting on a 170 in ex-London Midland condition, so much so a selfie felt necessary! The short journey to Derby was soon over, and it arrived at platform 4b. I could see the 170 of my final desires on the Crewe service on platform 3a, and I had 2 minutes or less to dash over the bridge. Challenge accepted, thankfully my bike is not that heavy and I made it in time. That dispatcher at Derby was very forceful in getting me to cram in with my bike in the dedicated wheelchair/bike space, even though it had a significant amount of covidiots in there. One of those times where I was glad to be fully vaccinated, quite honestly. Especially glad to have anti-bac gel with me, given the large lavatory at least did not have soap in it. At Tutbury & Hatton, there was cause for the Air Horns of Victory!
There were finally, at long last, no more Class 170s to travel on! Yes, really, 170530 was the final member of the class to mark off in my NREA and remove from my wants list! Sound the Air Horns of Victory!
I could have done 170503 back to Derby, but I purposefully let it go without me. The 1706 to Newark Castle was due to call at Peartree, and that was the only station between Sheffield and Plymouth that I hadn't been on or off a train at. This was changing at long last! So to fill an hour I went to Co-Op as I had vouchers in the app to use. 20% off the Co-Op own-brand vegan stuff was also too good to pass up, so imagine my disappointment when the lady on the kiosk till couldn't scan the QR code in the app. I therefore overpaid significantly, and just as bad, the points were not achieved. Worse still, the few pence from my transaction that would be donated by Co-Op to a local good cause would not happen either!
Annoyed by this, I went for a ride to add a bit more colour to my map. Weather conditions were turning fast, so by the time I got to Scropton it wasn't terribly safe to be out cycling for long. So at the triangular junction I turned around and returned to Hatton, which is the area north of Tutbury & Hatton railway station, Tutbury is the other side. By now, the chippy was open and I could not resist. The food in my bag would be fine until later, I surmised, I needed something hot and I didn't fancy the Costa Express machine in Co-Op. Which had been my original idea before the little ride, but a portion of chips and 6 onion rings for £3.10 (minimum card spend of £3, compares favourably when the one in Malvern Link is minimum £10, the one I use in Winsford charges £1 fee no matter how much you spend!) was just the ticket.
With that devoured in the shelter on the eastbound platform, 170515 eventually turned up and it was around 10 minutes late by now. It was only 4 minutes late when I got my food! It finally pulled into Peartree, a 'nice to do one day' item off the long list of such things. Quite the steep ramp leading to the gate, one I was glad was not icy, and with a button press the gate was unlocked. Out I went and some signs pointed me towards Derby.
After a while these signs all stopped and I was left to figure it out! Eventually my senses directed me to the centre and I knew roughly where I was from a Derbyshire Wayfarer trip ages ago. It must have been in summer 2021, I can't remember now! With the football crowds slowly returning, my mission was simply to return to the station and retire in a waiting room before the 1828 to Bristol Temple Meads, as far as Birmingham New Street. It rolled in eventually, with 220031 and 221141, and I got my bike on board, securing an available table seat in coach J surprisingly! So the map update just had to get done, a full size table with no other passengers at it on Saturday evening would have been rude to not be used. The journey to Birmingham, well that just flew by, I'd have been happy to stay on all the way to Bristol!
Sure enough, on a Saturday there must be no 1920 to Hereford, but the train for the 1950 was already in and available to board. I had considered doing the 1933 to Bromsgrove for some 323 action, but I decided against that as there had been football in Birmingham. The expectation was there'd be football fans and drunks filling the train, so I'd be better off jumping on 30 minutes early and making sure I had space for me and my bike. So I joined 172334 and settled in. I was in the front coach, which got rather busy with drunks who were still drinking and vaping, so I dread to think what the two coaches behind me were like!
Until Droitwich Spa, I talked to a 63 year old gentleman as we shared the common interest of exploring by cycling, thankfully the drunks mostly stayed further down the train so it wasn't too bad. There was no chance of focusing on reading though!
So, the adventure was winding down to a close, I had things to do on the Sunday that couldn't be postponed. If the weather behaved in the afternoon, there would be an opportunity to do a local ride, but otherwise there was important stuff to do. As the train got close to Hereford, I started to reflect on the week. What a week it had been, wow! I had to continue the review in the morning, granted, but I could not complain at the huge variety of trains and cycling I'd done! If I was to choose a highlight, I have to be honest I can't pin it to just one thing. Likewise with the downsides, there weren't any real bad points!
39 scores on the railway over the week, which I was very pleased with, the majority of those were of course in Scotland. My wants up there have come down dramatically! 188.7 miles of cycling were done over the 7 days, which is not as much as I was really aiming for but then I did a lot more on the railway than originally planned. I got a lot of new coverage by cycle, met some really nice people, had some amazing food and apart from the silly people on the trains (like that vaping woman who got on at Carlisle and the drunks on my last train of the week) then even the train journeys were good too. There really wasn't much to complain about!
So overall, I'd say it was an excellent week. The 320s being cleared was an early highlight, followed of course the day after by clearing the Scottish 156s and making really good progress on the 385s. My NREA doesn't look quite so embarrassing with the 385s now! Of course, the week ending with clearing the 170s was excellent, I'll never have to go chasing a 170 again and I hope it stays that way with no more reforms! I'd also discovered a new destination for my next cycling touring trip, although it's worth noting those weeks off usually end up in an area where I have significant wants on the railway too, in case of rubbish weather. Still, it looked very likely I'd be back in the East Midlands for some more touring when the opportunity presented itself.
Finally to round off this week, I include YouTube links:
Thanks for reading!