In the last few months, I've not had much time for decent trips out on the railways - but on the plus side I've achieved a long standing ambition and got myself a job working on them. Due to my shifts, I often use my rest days to sit at home and catch up with jobs and, for that matter, this forum - but on the 4th December I'd decided it would be good to escape the house, and with the weather promising to be good I'd formulated a plan to clear some outstanding track in London and include a trip over the inner South London line prior to its conversion to London Overground.
My first train of the day was to be the 0800 East Midlands Trains service from Lincoln to Peterborough, and deciding that the 0733 bus would cut things too fine I jumped into the car to head down to the station. After finding myself a parking space, I headed through to Platform 3, where 153321 was just arriving ready to work through to Peterborough. A second unit was already attached, but this would leave us at Sleaford - so with that in mind I jointed 321 for the long haul through to Peterborough. The train left Lincoln on time, and thankfully most of the Sleaford bound school children joined the rear unit, meaning that 153321 remained quiet. A slight worry came at Sleaford where a TPWS fault developed following uncoupling, but after a 5 minute delay we were on our way to Peterborough.
I'd not visited Peterborough since the refurbishment works had seen the station building reopened, and the toilets reinstated on Platform 2. These were visited and found to be very clean, top marks to East Coast as previous visits here found the toilets to be much less pleasant. After this it was over the bridge to Platform 3 for the 0946 to Stevenage - formed by 365505 and 365525, with me joining the former. Continuing my bad luck with these units, both were duds. The train got increasingly busy, so after our call at Hitchin I made my way to the doors for the short hop to Stevenage.
The station at Stevenage has been on my list 'to do' for quite awhile, but I've never got round to it - favouring changing at Hitchin on my occasional jaunts on the Great Northern routes. Although this was also recommended for this trip, it seemed a shame to miss the opportunity to tick off Stevenage. My next train was a few minutes away, so I bought a coffee from the shop on the platform - the working conditions in this place were questionable to say the least, the serving area floor being buried under boxes and the staff picking their way around them (a H&S nightmare, surely?). It wasn't long before 313024+25 arrived with the 1100 to Moorgate - which would finally tick off the Hertford Loop and the GN&CR tunnels.
The Hertford Loop was a pleasant surprise, I'd expected to be more built up north of Crews Hill than was actually the case. A few 313s were noted in the sidings at Hertford North and it wasn't long before we entered the suburban sprawl of North London. The train got fairly busy as we approached Finsbury Park - but from there the train largely emptied out. The GN&CR tunnels have been on my list to do for a few years, but something has always stopped me heading down there - so I was pleased when our train entered the tunnels, it really is quite amazing how the stations are still entirely branded for Network SouthEast (with the exception of FCC posters) and after this journey back in time we arrived into Platform 9 at Moorgate. I was staying with these units for the trip back to Highbury & Islington, so joined 313025 for the return.
At Highbury & Islington, I made my way back to the surface to join 378207 for the short journey to West Hampstead. Onboard the guard announced severe disruption to the Thameslink line, so on arrival at West Hampstead I instead made my way to the Underground station to take the Jubilee down to London Bridge - the Thameslink core would have to wait for later. Using the Jubilee did provide an extra section of new track from Finchley Road to Baker Street - something I've only ever done on the Metropolitan.
Thanks to an earlier than planned arrival at London Bridge I shifted my plans forward somewhat, and joined the 1341 Southern service to Battersea Park - as well as my first journey on the inner South London line, this was also my first time on a Class 456, 456021 to be precise. The journey to Battersea Park was only short, but I was glad to have ticked off this line in its current form, prior to the LO takeover. Battersea Park was another new station, and I had about 15 minutes to wait for 455846 on the 1417 to Caterham. The Southern branches have eluded me for awhile, so I was pleased to be finally on my way to crossing them off - the journey down to Purley did seem slow compared to the fast runs on the Brighton express services.
On arrival at Caterham, I quickly made my way over to 455816 on the 1509 back to London Bridge. I do like the Class 455s, they are quite atmospheric trains to travel on - though 455816 was quite cold. It was only a short hop back to Purley, and I then discovered that there was disruption further up the line that was delaying services into Tattenham Corner and Caterham, so I was able to join late running 455807 which should have departed some 5 minutes before our arrival from Caterham. I was yet again surprised by the Tatteham Corner line, as I'd expected a suburban line not a jaunt through relatively pretty countryside.
At Tattenham Corner, I made a quick decision not to rejoin 455807 for the ride back into London - I also decided not to wait for the following service due to the ongoing delays, but walk to Epsom Downs. I'd previously looked at the route on Google Maps, and a check on my phone revealed a train leaving in around forty minutes. The walk turned out to be more challenging than expected, without footpaths the racecourse and surrounding area were fairly muddy and the roads (with no crossings) very busy - I did actually make it in one piece, thanks to some friendly locals and my phone pointing my in the right direction. I think the walk would have been enjoyable during the summer but on a misty winters evening it was cold and bleak - though at least it allowed me to cross off both branches in the same trip.
At Epsom Downs, 455804 was just arriving for the short hop to Sutton. By the time the train departed at 1626 it was dark outside, so I ate some dinner and decided that I will revisit the branch during the lighter months. At Sutton it was apparent that the Thameslink delays were ongoing but I decided to risk it and joined 319456 for the run through to St Pancras - I'd also never done the Sutton Loop and with the line being urban, there was still plenty to see despite the darkness. The earlier problems at Blackfriars didn't impede progress and we were into St Pancras ontime at 1721, I was glad to be leaving the train here thanks to large crowd that piled onto the train - as thanks to the delays, there was still a limited northbound service.
From this point it was back to the routine, I joined 222009 for the 1730 back to Nottingham - and I spent a lot of this outside the accessible toilet, sat on the floor. Back at Nottingham, I had a cup of tea from Pumpkin (for free - thanks loyalty cards) before joining 222010 for the late running 2030 back to Lincoln. No reason was ever provided for this delay, but it would appear from my own enquiries that there had been some signalling problems - indeed, my earlier service from St Pancras had been slightly delayed arriving due to being held at a red signal south of Leicester.
Overall, I really enjoyed this day out - but I was pleased to get back home and into my warm bed. I hadn't really warmed up after the walk across Epsom racecourse, so a hot chocolate and my bed finally did the trick. The day covered 368mi 78ch and was originally intended to be my last trip of the year - but I'm now booked to go down to London this coming Sunday - along with a trip on HS1 and the back to London via Tonbridge for some new track.
Hope everyone enjoyed reading this,
Trentside
My first train of the day was to be the 0800 East Midlands Trains service from Lincoln to Peterborough, and deciding that the 0733 bus would cut things too fine I jumped into the car to head down to the station. After finding myself a parking space, I headed through to Platform 3, where 153321 was just arriving ready to work through to Peterborough. A second unit was already attached, but this would leave us at Sleaford - so with that in mind I jointed 321 for the long haul through to Peterborough. The train left Lincoln on time, and thankfully most of the Sleaford bound school children joined the rear unit, meaning that 153321 remained quiet. A slight worry came at Sleaford where a TPWS fault developed following uncoupling, but after a 5 minute delay we were on our way to Peterborough.
I'd not visited Peterborough since the refurbishment works had seen the station building reopened, and the toilets reinstated on Platform 2. These were visited and found to be very clean, top marks to East Coast as previous visits here found the toilets to be much less pleasant. After this it was over the bridge to Platform 3 for the 0946 to Stevenage - formed by 365505 and 365525, with me joining the former. Continuing my bad luck with these units, both were duds. The train got increasingly busy, so after our call at Hitchin I made my way to the doors for the short hop to Stevenage.
The station at Stevenage has been on my list 'to do' for quite awhile, but I've never got round to it - favouring changing at Hitchin on my occasional jaunts on the Great Northern routes. Although this was also recommended for this trip, it seemed a shame to miss the opportunity to tick off Stevenage. My next train was a few minutes away, so I bought a coffee from the shop on the platform - the working conditions in this place were questionable to say the least, the serving area floor being buried under boxes and the staff picking their way around them (a H&S nightmare, surely?). It wasn't long before 313024+25 arrived with the 1100 to Moorgate - which would finally tick off the Hertford Loop and the GN&CR tunnels.
The Hertford Loop was a pleasant surprise, I'd expected to be more built up north of Crews Hill than was actually the case. A few 313s were noted in the sidings at Hertford North and it wasn't long before we entered the suburban sprawl of North London. The train got fairly busy as we approached Finsbury Park - but from there the train largely emptied out. The GN&CR tunnels have been on my list to do for a few years, but something has always stopped me heading down there - so I was pleased when our train entered the tunnels, it really is quite amazing how the stations are still entirely branded for Network SouthEast (with the exception of FCC posters) and after this journey back in time we arrived into Platform 9 at Moorgate. I was staying with these units for the trip back to Highbury & Islington, so joined 313025 for the return.
At Highbury & Islington, I made my way back to the surface to join 378207 for the short journey to West Hampstead. Onboard the guard announced severe disruption to the Thameslink line, so on arrival at West Hampstead I instead made my way to the Underground station to take the Jubilee down to London Bridge - the Thameslink core would have to wait for later. Using the Jubilee did provide an extra section of new track from Finchley Road to Baker Street - something I've only ever done on the Metropolitan.
Thanks to an earlier than planned arrival at London Bridge I shifted my plans forward somewhat, and joined the 1341 Southern service to Battersea Park - as well as my first journey on the inner South London line, this was also my first time on a Class 456, 456021 to be precise. The journey to Battersea Park was only short, but I was glad to have ticked off this line in its current form, prior to the LO takeover. Battersea Park was another new station, and I had about 15 minutes to wait for 455846 on the 1417 to Caterham. The Southern branches have eluded me for awhile, so I was pleased to be finally on my way to crossing them off - the journey down to Purley did seem slow compared to the fast runs on the Brighton express services.
On arrival at Caterham, I quickly made my way over to 455816 on the 1509 back to London Bridge. I do like the Class 455s, they are quite atmospheric trains to travel on - though 455816 was quite cold. It was only a short hop back to Purley, and I then discovered that there was disruption further up the line that was delaying services into Tattenham Corner and Caterham, so I was able to join late running 455807 which should have departed some 5 minutes before our arrival from Caterham. I was yet again surprised by the Tatteham Corner line, as I'd expected a suburban line not a jaunt through relatively pretty countryside.
At Tattenham Corner, I made a quick decision not to rejoin 455807 for the ride back into London - I also decided not to wait for the following service due to the ongoing delays, but walk to Epsom Downs. I'd previously looked at the route on Google Maps, and a check on my phone revealed a train leaving in around forty minutes. The walk turned out to be more challenging than expected, without footpaths the racecourse and surrounding area were fairly muddy and the roads (with no crossings) very busy - I did actually make it in one piece, thanks to some friendly locals and my phone pointing my in the right direction. I think the walk would have been enjoyable during the summer but on a misty winters evening it was cold and bleak - though at least it allowed me to cross off both branches in the same trip.
At Epsom Downs, 455804 was just arriving for the short hop to Sutton. By the time the train departed at 1626 it was dark outside, so I ate some dinner and decided that I will revisit the branch during the lighter months. At Sutton it was apparent that the Thameslink delays were ongoing but I decided to risk it and joined 319456 for the run through to St Pancras - I'd also never done the Sutton Loop and with the line being urban, there was still plenty to see despite the darkness. The earlier problems at Blackfriars didn't impede progress and we were into St Pancras ontime at 1721, I was glad to be leaving the train here thanks to large crowd that piled onto the train - as thanks to the delays, there was still a limited northbound service.
From this point it was back to the routine, I joined 222009 for the 1730 back to Nottingham - and I spent a lot of this outside the accessible toilet, sat on the floor. Back at Nottingham, I had a cup of tea from Pumpkin (for free - thanks loyalty cards) before joining 222010 for the late running 2030 back to Lincoln. No reason was ever provided for this delay, but it would appear from my own enquiries that there had been some signalling problems - indeed, my earlier service from St Pancras had been slightly delayed arriving due to being held at a red signal south of Leicester.
Overall, I really enjoyed this day out - but I was pleased to get back home and into my warm bed. I hadn't really warmed up after the walk across Epsom racecourse, so a hot chocolate and my bed finally did the trick. The day covered 368mi 78ch and was originally intended to be my last trip of the year - but I'm now booked to go down to London this coming Sunday - along with a trip on HS1 and the back to London via Tonbridge for some new track.
Hope everyone enjoyed reading this,
Trentside
Last edited:
think you mean 365505 and 365525. Brilliant write up none the less!
