Richard's Trip Reports

[55013]

An interesting read.
Your mention of the folk on the Barnsley train reminded me of an incident many years ago when I walked into a pub in Barnsley at 11am (opening time in those days) and a glass fight was going on!
Meanwhile, the landlord was just standing nonchalantly wiping a glass.
He looked at me and said "Alright love, what can I get you?"
He called everyone love.
Happy days

 

[rg177]

Thank you all, just landed in Malaga, soon enough we can have an explore on the rails...
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14/02/16- Testing the Water

So today was the first day of the trip to Spain and it was going to be one with a lot of travelling! The alarm went off at around 3am with me hauling myself up and out of bed, making sure that cases were all ready, before I joined the parents in packing up the car ready for the quiet drive to Newcastle Airport, getting there for around 0420. An MCV Evolution was the bus haulage for the day to the Terminal, and soon we were checking in, clearing security, and sat in the departure lounge, with boarding at 0610. Newcastle Airport's departure area had a refurbishment at some point last year, with the removal of the slightly crazy arrangement of you having to walk through duty free in order to access the boarding gates! That resulted in mega congestion. We stocked up on Boots Meal Deals (and energy drinks/coffee, considering that i'd only had two hours sleep! [Considering that it's now 20:11, i'd say that they did their job!- Ed]). Boarding was announced at 0610, right on cue, and it was time for the stroll down to Gate 26 where our Thomson Airways Boeing 737-800 G-TAWK was sat on the tarmac. Short while later, and we are indeed walking to the rear of the aircraft and into our seats. However, we did encounter some day thereafter, with pushback being roughly on cue at about 0650 (we were due to takeoff at 0645, but not far off), but we sat on the tarmac watching other flights leave ahead of us until about 0720, due to us apparently being not allowed to move due to French ATC! Then again, on my Majorca adventure last August, we were delayed by 105 minutes on the tarmac for the same reason, and about 150 minutes on the return, so not so bad this time!

In all honesty, I fell asleep most of the way but I did grab a few shots of the sunrise at about 20000ft before nodding off, not waking up until we were over Madrid! Arrival was at 1112, the plane having done a full 180 degree turn over the sea which was quite an interesting manouvre! Off the plane we went and collected the cases before joining the bus to Benalmadena and our hotel, pretty short sweet ride and soon we had the key cards and proceeded to collapse for a short while before going for a walk, quickly cut short by a freak storm shower! And with the weather being not particularly co-operative, we decided to seek shelter in the hotel room where I had the idea to nip out myself and get an idea of where the station was, seeing as i'd be bashing from there later in the week! I began the walk up the hill to the rather unassuming modern station building, about 15 minutes away, not bad considering I was just following the blue GPS dot on my phone!

'Might as well take a spin on one' I think to myself, entering shack 1, Benalmádena-Arroyo de la Miel, and hammering away at the ticket machine just as winner (obviously ) 220-720 (I don't get Spanish numbering at all! Some carriages were numbered 220M, 220R etc, some were 720R, 720M) rolled in on the platform. Balls. Where's the first stop on this one? Torremuella? 1,80? Sounds good to me. I shoved my little card ticket in the barrier and ran down as the train was just ready to leave, observing the Pendolino-style steps that deployed at most doors. The interior was very airy indeed, although it came complete with a very stern security guard with a truncheon! Think Merseyrail's Rent-a-Thug, but far worse, as he promptly told a passenger to get their feet off the (plastic) seat! If it works, it works, I suppose, but I was cautious not to be seen snapping photos of the train around him considering the rather hit and miss photography policy on RENFE (I am, in all honesty, expecting grief as a permit is technically required but RENFE simply ignored my requests so i'm assuming that 6 days of common sense can't hurt, just don't wave your camera around too much!). Off at shack 2, Torremuele, the next stop, where I observed a whole lot of nothing!

The station was deserted and situated in a rather bleak cutting, I guess this got it out of the way! I heard an announcement bleating straight away so I crossed platforms and hammered away at the machine again for a single ticket back, with winner 213-713 soon coming into sight, with me successfully grabbing a few shots of it, even attracting a smile from the driver! Much quieter service this time with no Rent-a-Thug in sight. Back into Benalmadena shortly after, and Day 0 (this wasn't an intended rail day) had given me a small headstart before the fun begins later in the week!

Total Winners- 2
Total Shacks- 2
Total Mileage- 4mi 40ch

 

[Kite159]

with the removal of the slightly crazy arrangement of you having to walk through duty free in order to access the boarding gates

Not as crazy as it sounds, as it happens in a lot of the smaller airports, to encourage travellers to spend their cash.

---

Stern security guard with truncheon is better than a solider with a gun (like some of the Paris RER stations had)

 

[rg177]

I get that idea, as now it's been placed between security and the departure lounge, so now you have to go through it, but it doesn't cause the inevitable mob of people heading for the boarding gates.

 

[Techniquest]

A good start there on things, and I'm amazed you stayed awake that long!

Sounds like an interesting experience, aside from the security guy!

 

[FQ]

Sounds like a good start to things in Spain!

 

[rg177]

And the bashing has commenced! I've spotted a chance to play with a regional RENFE train this evening too. +62 in a sleepy village, but I can always find a café. I'm also about 3 shacks off clearing Line 1 on the suburban network, as it turns out that one station is shut for improvements and another is abandoned but still advertised? If anyone feels like looking up San Julian station and seeing what exactly it does now, that would be most appreciated!
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Argh. The run on an AVANT train I fancied has been scuppered by a rude ticket office bloke. Basically, apparently the train has never called at Alora (last stop on Cerancias network, in case the mainline train is cancelled etc) and I'm a liar, etc. etc. Amusingly, the ticket machine would sell me that exact ticket, but it needed a payment card so no such luck was had. I shall be having a go again tomorrow as it seems weird that RENFE are denying that their own tickets exist! I shall be armed with an itinerary however...

His attitude was something I'd have no hesitation is complaining about, had it happened back here! Smirking and giggling from him, the lot...

 

[Techniquest]

Apart from the ticket office issue, sounds like it's going well!

 

[rg177]

Its about to step up a notch, I'm off for a run to Seville tomorrow! 1040 Mediadistincia and the 1755 AVANT services, probably a glance at the tram and metro on the cards...

 

[Kristofferson]

At least our railways have decent customer service (despite what the moaning commuter brigade spout...)

Good to read about something different, looking forward to pictures as well

 

[rg177]

His attitude was most confusing considering that when the long distance train stops at Álora, it takes a path away from the local service, resulting in random 2hr gaps!

I shall have some reports up later, although I never did get the AVANT experience, ticket office bloke assumed I wanted the slower train and put me on that instead! So, I shall be making a return to Seville to try again, and also to clear the Metro (I'm halfway through the shacks) as well as the Tram.

 

[Kite159]

Could the stop at Alora be on a Spanish style "Pick-up only" basis?

 

[rg177]

It seems not, the machine was perfectly willing to sell me a ticket for that service and even brought up a seat diagram to ask me to select a seat!
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Here's a report from the first day of bashing. Internet is too slow for photos as yet.

16/02/16- City to Coast

So, the bashing was able to commence this Tuesday, and I set myself a target of clearing all the shacks on the C1 line, with the C2 line on Cercanias being far too awkward to also get in (in the end, I’ve only got in the one shack on that line, as there’s no winning units to be had anymore and the shacks are basically in the middle of nowhere!) So here’s a few short reports on the weeks jollies, with the biggest trip occurring tomorrow!

Tuesday was a very relaxed start with me emerging out of bed at around 0900, ensuring I was strolling up the hill to Benalmadena station for the 1034 departure, and soon I was on board winners 464212/464712 to shack 5 (On the Monday I’d scored the two Malaga stations, and 464-201-701), El Pinillo. For this bash I’d bought a Bonotren (10 journey pass) for 11,95EUR which covered Zones 2 and 3, intending to buy any extra tickets as singles, and as it turns out, even the Bonotren was overkill, with me only using up the journeys about an hour before I sat down to write this! Bailing here, I then decided to walk to the next station as looked like only a short distance. It was, but it was a bizarre up and downhill stagger for no apparent reason, but soon enough I was on the platforms at shack 6, Montemar-Alto. This was just the single platform, one of a few on the line which alternates a lot between single and double line operation, quite a feat with 3tph each way! I put my ticket in the validation machine and within a few minutes we had winners 464218/464718 for the short journey along to shack 7, La Colina. Same principle here as before, it was a nice short walk parallel to the railway line before I was arriving at shack 8, Los Alamos.

The trains were already repeating as fresh duds 464212/464712 carted me along to shack 9, Torremolinos where I nipped upstairs for a drink from a local supermarket before descending back onto the platforms to the sight of duds 464220/464720. These were taken to shack 10, Plaza Mayor where a distinct linear bashing theme was going to develop! Plaza Mayor is a kind of fancy outlet centre, I’m sure 47403 will be familiar with the Royal Quays or Dalton Park, so think that but with some nicer buildings Duds 464201/464701 were next up to shack 11, Aeropuerto where I was sure that I’d noted a supermarket outside the terminal so I decided to go have a stroll, it was very weird seeing that the station here was basically in wasteland next to the runway, too! Alas not, it was one of those overpriced RELAY!! Shops that took pleasure it selling Fanta for 3.95EUR. Absolutely not, I think to myself, wandering back onto the platforms. One more linear move and I’d be done up this way, and it was duds 464218/464718 to shack 12, Guadalhorce. Nothing at all of note here. I went for a stroll outside and found some dodgy looking industrial units, and not a whole lot else! Now mega duds 464212/464712 were the final mainline move for a while, taking me through to Malaga Maria-Zambrano.

Next stop, the Metro as I walked over to shack 13, El Perchel, and made my way to a machine where a bloke came out of the office and helped me buy a smartcard and load 10EUR onto it before I picked a line at random, so it was down to Line 1, and winner 3030. These Trams that run the service at CAF Urbos 3s, the same type as in Edinburgh, but far more fit for purpose. Better screens, no irritating faults, and no luggage racks with windows yet seats with no view! I took it all the way through to shack 14, end of the line, Andalucia Tech. This end of the line is most bizarre. The overground section is flanked by empty shells of buildings and freshly built roads that are on Google Maps, yet they’re barricaded and impossible to access? The lack of passengers made this all the most eerie. I then headed back a stop to shack 15, Paraninfo where I had a 7 minute wait for winner 3100 to shack 16, Clinico. I was now in a systematic flow of going forward 2 stops and back 1, so winner 3020 was next up to shack 17, El Consul. A brief stray underground saw me take winner 3120 to shack 18, Ciudad de la Justica. Now I could take advantage of some cross platform interchanges, with winner 3010 being next up to take me back to the surface, shack 19, Universidad. The trams started to repeat from now, with dud 3030 taking me to shack 20, Barbarela before dud 3010 took me to shack 21, Carranque. I also got in shack 22, Portada Alta, yet the number of the unit escapes me! In that case, it was also likely to be a dud.

Winner 3060 was next up to shack 23, La Union, and that was Line 1 completely finished in the space of about 70 minutes! I was feeling like a good stretch of the legs, so I took a walk over the bridge that looks into Maria Zambrano station, which is quite a sterile affair, but it was good timing as an AVANT service (think shorter Pendolino) was just trundling into the platform. For me, it was a short walk to shack 24, La Isla, where I caught dud 3030 back to El Perchel. My next idea was to get a ticket for the 1637 to Seville, which stopped at Alora, enabling me to join a local train back to Malaga. And indeed, the machines were willing to sell that ticket! The ticket office was not, and I was laughed out of the place, so I went to plan B, finish the mainline shacks on line C1 completely! Winners 464225/464725 took me on a full line trip all the way to shack 25, Fuengirola, where it was time for a more relaxed pace, having dashed around Malaga for several hours! I sourced a quiet McDonalds before taking a stroll along the beach, nipping up to score shack 26, Los Boliches and then continuing my walk before deviating onto the busier roads and up the hill to shack 27, Torreblanca. It was duds 464218/464718 taking me to shack 28 and the final shack on the line, Carvajal, where I decided for a change of mode and walked down the very steep stairs to the main road.

After a 15 minute wait, a bus on route 120 turned up, and I paid the 1.55EUR fare along the coast, providing some superior scenery to the train which spends its time in cuttings and tunnels rather than going along the seaside! Day 1 of the bash was complete, and was a great success!

Total Winners: 13+24 shacks
Total Cost: £31.08

 

[Techniquest]

Wow that was a busy day! Ridiculously productive, that's for sure!

 

[47403]

Good read mate, very produtive indeed. Yes i've heard of such establishments too.

 

[rg177]

Cheers gents, last trip today in Seville. Was just perusing a poster at one of the Metro stations and it turns out photography is banned! 16/22 shacks completed/photographed and not a word has been said so far, so I assume it's a seldom enforced ban!

*edit* Aaand I was nearly PFed! Apparently using a day ticket for more than an hour continuously is banned!

 

[Techniquest]

Strange rule about the day ticket, sounds like you'll be glad to get back to UK rails!

 

[rg177]

Seville the First- 17/02/16

Now, we really do need some photos so that I can be understood properly so here they are! Enjoy!

The next day, feeling slightly ambitious, I decided to make a trip to Seville and also clear off my remaining Malaga Metro shacks on Line 2. It was an earlier start, as I nipped down to breakfast by myself before pacing uphill for duds 464201/464701 on the 0834 to Malaga Centro Alameda, as far as Maria Zambrano where I made a quick trip to the ticket office in order to purchase tickets for the 1040 to Sevilla Santa Justa. They were duly purchased at 19,30EUR each way, not bad for a 2hr 30 minute journey with a guaranteed seat thrown in! With that done with minimal fuss, my tickets (even issued with a smile!) in my bag, I went down to El Perchel, tapping in at the gates and joining winner 3120 to shack 29, Princesa (Huelin), where it occurred to me that I’d already ballsed up as I’d already had La Isla yesterday! I continued anyway, and this turned into a great move as winner 3050 took me down to La Isla, not many to go now! Dud 3030 was my haulage to shack 30, La Luz-La Paz, followed by dud 3020 to shack 31, El Torcal. However, a winner was coming my way next in the form of 3040 to the final shack on the system, shack 32, Palacio de los Deportes. That was 10/12 trams captured and all the shacks done! Happy bunny here as I took the same tram all the way back to La Isla (I don’t think the system would like me tapping in/out at the same station) and had a very pleasant 10 minute stroll in the morning sunshine back to Malaga Maria Zambrano.

3030, El Torcal (Malaga) by Richard Green, on Flickr

It’s a funny old procedure boarding at the high level platforms, as I had my bag X-Rayed before being let loose onto the empty, cavernous concourse. There were a couple of AVEs sat at the side, and bizarrely, 464220/464720 were sat there stabled too. However, my traction of choice was in the form of winners 599083/599084, a three carriage DMU, kind of like a Class 180 inside, but with much larger legroom and fewer tables. Boarding was 15 minutes prior to departure, and I found my seat, forward facing at the window, before reclining my seat (yes, this is a thing on ALL regional and long distance trains, regardless of class, and it reclines quite far!) and being begrudgingly joined by an older female. Departure was prompt, and we made our way past the depot before taking the slower route through the suburbs past Alora (conveniently clearing the entire suburban network for track in Malaga in the process), then cutting through the mountains making for some pretty dramatic views! All of our calls outside of Seville were at relatively quiet wayside halts, such as Bobadilla, Pedrera, Osuna and Marchena, before Dos Hermanas (which was a bit like calling at Potters Bar before Kings Cross in terms of timings), San Bernardo (basically what Waterloo East is to Charing Cross) and shack 33, Sevilla Santa Justa, at 1313, 3 down.

Interior, Serie 599 by Richard Green, on Flickr
View from Train 13908, Malaga-Sevilla by Richard Green, on Flickr
Estacion de Marchena by Richard Green, on Flickr
599083/599084, Sevilla SJ by Richard Green, on Flickr
I was a little bit lost at this point, bear in mind that I have never ever visited Seville! I walked out of Santa Justa and decided to fill in some time before my desired move to Cartuja. I went straight out and found my way down one of the main streets, taking a pleasant afternoon stroll to a very busy shack 34, San Bernardo, catching a glimpse of the Tram line which I never did actually use! The rather pathetic 1.4km length did put me off a little, so I continued into the mainline station and bought a single to Zone 1, and the first train in was 465220/465720, which I mistook for a Series 464 (464220/464720 is a mega dud for me) and I let it go instead, catching my intended Line C5 train, formed of winners 447023/447024. This was an older class of train, with a little more character than the usual 462/463/464/465 class Civia EMUs, proceeding out of San Bernardo with the wail of the doors banging shut and the clunk as we gained power. More like it! After Santa Justa, I was gifted with a nice fast run past the depot before bailing at shack 35, San Jeronimo. I had about 15 minutes here. Nothing of note really, with the station being linked to the main road by a very very long footbridge! Soon enough, winners 446119/446120 were rolling in to take me off on the branch to shack 36, Cartuja.

447023/447024, San Jeronimo by Richard Green, on Flickr

What an utterly bizarre setup this station was! The line receives a roughly 1tph service (down to 1tp2h weekends, pointlessly low level of service which doesn’t really attract anyone to the line, as with basically all of the Cercanias lines in Seville, with the exception of the C1 which sees something like a 45min interval, 60mins weekends). This service is operated by a single 446 unit shuttling back and forth as the journey is only about 20-21 minutes. So how many platforms does Cartuja have? FIVE. All covered with a fancy overall roof, and all the platforms are six coaches+ long! Is this a relic of the past? Nope! It opened in 2012. The mind boggles at this waste of money considering the patronage (about 6 people on both services I caught). Nonetheless, I went outside and bought my ticket back to Seville, making myself at home, having an entire carriage to myself for the run back to Santa Justa where I calculated that walking to Nervion Metro station would be faster than catching the connecting train to San Bernardo. And so the Metro bash began with winner 120 from shack 37, Nervion to shack 38, Prado de San Sebastian, where I briefly turned into a tourist, taking a stroll down the Placa d’Espanya. Some very pretty buildings here, along with a very nice little park that I took a walk through before taking winner 106 from Puerta Jerez, shack 39, to shack 40, Blas Infante, where the line came above ground. Only briefly however, as I jumped over onto winner 107 to shack 41, Parque de los Principes. I had time for one more leap out, so winner 104 took me to shack 42, San Juan Alto, where I’d noted a chance to get a shot of the trains themselves one station back. Winner 102 took me back to shack 43, San Juan Bajo, where indeed, I achieved a few shots of the little train-tram things.

Estacion de Cartuja by Richard Green, on Flickr
446119/446120, Cartuja by Richard Green, on Flickr
Avenida del Cid, Sevilla by Richard Green, on Flickr
Untitled by Richard Green, on Flickr
San Juan Alto by Richard Green, on Flickr
Seville Metro, San Juan Bajo by Richard Green, on Flickr

Dud 106 took me to shack 44, 1e de Mayo, where there was one more leap of the day, dud 104, to Gran Plaza, shack number 45. From here, it was a 20 minute walk back to Santa Justa where I picked up a McDonalds (Premium Cheeseburger and Chicken bites for 2.90EUR) and awaited the platform to be announced for the 1725 to Malaga. Imagine my surprise at seeing just a few passengers calmly wander down onto the platform when it’s announced, when I’m used to the Kings Cross stampedes! A very quiet platform with winners 599081/599082 rolling in greeted me, and indeed, the train was very lightly loaded, giving me room to stretch out a bit, grabbing a bag of nuts from the vending machine (yes, these trains have vending machines and at 1,50EUR for everything, drinks, snacks, the lot they’re actually well priced!) before sitting back and enjoying the scenery as the sun gradually dipped before I was dropped at Malaga Maria Zambrano, 2 down at 2001. I wasn’t done yet though, as I grabbed a McDonald’s, this time, a Cheeseburger, Fries and coke for 3,90EUR, before descending into the depths of El Perchel in search of my two remaining trams! Sadly, none materialised as I joined dud 3030 to Carranque, in order to instead bag my last bit of track, the line linking Line 1 with the Line 2 platforms. Dud 3100 stepped up to the mark, and I continued my trend of bailing at La Isla for the short stroll back to Maria Zambrano.

465268/465768, Sevilla SJ by Richard Green, on Flickr

I had a while for the next train back to Benalmadena, so winners 464214/464714 were taken up for the 35 chains to Centro Alameda in order for it to form the 2111 to Fuengirola. It was a pretty quiet run, getting me back to where I started for approx. 2140, into the hotel for 2200, ready to collapse and yearning for another long distance trip!

Total Mileage: 330mi 03ch
Total Winners: 15+13 shacks
Total Cost: £45.04

 

[47403]

Top read that Richard, very enjoyable indeed. A bit warm weather will do you no harm either, as its bloody baltic here.

 

[rg177]

Cheers sir, I share your sentiments on the weather, having returned on Sunday.

 

[FQ]

Congrats on the tram stops (although they didn't seem too hard!)!

I'm really enjoying the read!

 

[Kite159]

Some rather funky looking trains in that area

 

[rg177]

Indeed there are! Cheers to both of you. The second instalment will come in due course, but I'm off for a short shack scratching session down in Yorkshire with my birthday coming up so funds are readily available to tie up a few loose ends in that area! All I'll need after this is Ulleskelf and that's both lines to Leeds done.

 

[Techniquest]

Crikey that was one helluva productive day there!

Those mainline trains sound well funky, as for that 5 platform station that is ridiculously overkill!

 

[rg177]

Evening in Yorkshire- 24/2/16

It was time for a little jaunt out and I decided to attack some of my remaining shacks in North Yorkshire. That required a North East Round Robin, one hell of a pricey day ranger at £31.35, but when it includes unlimited travel between Newcastle and Leeds, which is an even higher price at a return, one can see why. I finished up college at 1255, and having nothing to do except collect a letter from the local royal mail depot, I was sat at home slightly bored by about 2pm. A plan was quickly formulated and my mam’s weekly bus pass was handed over to me as she got back from work, allowing me to get free travel into Newcastle.

And so, I was able to work with the plan by starting on the 1559 off Newcastle, but I decided to try for a winner and also allow myself to get dinner in York by catching the 1541 to Plymouth, which sadly had dud 221130 working. The service had a healthy load but sourcing a seat wasn’t difficult at all, as I plonked myself down for the sunny run down south. We only picked up a few people en route to York, where I bailed and made a beeline for the Sainsbury’s, finding a cheese and onion pizza for 70p (and it was still hot, bonus!) and an energy drink (I was quite zonked) for £1.20, and nipping back to the station to catch the 1704 to Leeds via Burley Park, which happily had winner 144013 working. It was very cosy indeed for the run through Hammerton and Knaresborough, but it was most scenic as I gradually watched the sun dip across the fields before arriving at shack 1, Starbeck. I also had enough time here to get a +1 rather than a +16 back to Knaresborough, and this was a good move as winner 153304 was trailing dud 155346 on this service today. Short and sweet, into shack 2 at Knaresborough a few minutes later.

Next up was Hammerton which had a +30 here so I opted to join dud 142023 back to Starbeck, noting that the earlier service was a good call as dud 150150 was on the following one. Quick cross of the platforms, and duds 150147/142025 were working the 1810 to York. The 142 was completely empty, so I did, bizarrely, opt to sit in it just for the peace! I was bounced around a fair bit on the run to shack 3, Hammerton, where the only real option was a linear move onto the peak extra 20 minutes behind. Thankfully, the waiting room was open so I made myself comfortable and was pleasantly surprised to find a pile of rail magazines on the table! By the time I’d flicked through a few of those, the time was up and the 1849 to York appeared with…duds 142021/142086. Double dud pacers? Really? Still, I was out for shacks today, not winners, so I sat in 086 to be back at York for 1904.

I wasn’t quite done yet though, making my way over to Platform 7 and onto dud 158855 working the 1918 to Blackpool North. Indeed, I was bailing at shack 4, Church Fenton. This is quite a large station considering the service (1 train every 2 hours plus the York-Sheffield parly and a sporadic Hull service) and indeed quite eerie in the dark as I crossed platforms, sitting out the +20 in the waiting shelter flicking through a history textbook. Soon enough however, dud 158816 rolled up to take me back to York, where I made a run for Sainsbury’s again with the ol’ stomach grumbling at me! A sausage roll it was this time, and I had just enough time to make the very quiet 2020 to Newcastle which had dud 91120 hauling it up front. I had one more try though, bailing at Durham for the Edinburgh Voyager behind, only to find dud 220007 working. Never mind, I still got what I wanted out of tonight. Successful little evening.

Total Winners: 2+4 shacks
Total Mileage: 224mi 76ch
Total cost: £33.50

 

[Keith Jarrett]

A good afternoon out there, even if a bit pricey. I can't see many of those tickets being sold at full whack (47.50 without a railcard). But good, for example, if you want to crank up the mileage on the East Coast between York and Newcastle.

 

[Techniquest]

Unlimited use between Newcastle and Leeds? I thought it was just one round trip, or have I missed something?

Chingy indeed, not one I'm rushing to do that's for certain! At least you had a good little evening out of it!

 

[rg177]

Round Robin tickets are day rangers on the Northern network, not quite like the ATW ticket which requires a circular trip. The Round Robin here allows for unlimited travel Newcastle-York, then between York-Leeds via Garforth or Harrogate, followed by all the stations to Skipton, Appleby, Carlisle and back along the Tyne Valley.

Yes, twas expensive but it was the cheapest way, return to York is £25 with a railcard to start with!

 

[FQ]

Not good on the winners front at all but at least you got what you wanted!

 

[Kite159]

That line between Leeds & York (via Harrogate) is quite expensive to do on a day rover, unless you get one of those Northern £10 tickets (although it remains to be seen if Arriva carry on with the promotional fare come April)