---

Day 3 : Tuesday 28 August 2001

I wake to hear Reading announced, the its Paddington. No cereal with FGW complimentary breakfasts. Still get a good pot of tea though. This side (north) of Paddington is still a building site. The morning sun filters through the magnificent train shed roof to the south however. The station is fairly quiet - a couple of HST's and a couple of Heathrow Express units. The new departure boards are convenient if you're sat in the few seats on the concourse. At least the departures are in time order. The Circle and District Underground station at Paddington isn't really underground. The first train is a District to Edgeware Road. I get on anyway. The next train at Edgeware Road is a Hammersmith & City train to Barking. It's full and standing. I wait for the second Barking train which is right behind. It's almost empty until Baker Street.

The front of the magnificent St. Pancras station is boarded off - presumably for the start of the CTRL phase 2 works. The iron roof supports say "Manufactured by the Butterley Company, Derbyshire, 1867". 43045 brings in the 08:24 arrival from Nottingham. 43058 "Midland Pride" is on the rear. This train forms the 08:55 back to Nottingham. It is followed by two more HST arrivals - all these trains are full.

After a slow start from the station past the gas holders, we pick up speed. I treat myself to a cooked breakfast and watch the scenery go past - definitely the way to travel! We pass a few Thameslink trains and EWS 58046 on a rubbish train just north of St. Albans. A gang is at work on the slow lines south of Sharnbrook summit. It's quite industrial between Wellingborough and Kettering. After glorious sunshine, it's looking a bit hazy off to the north west. Lots of evidence that there was once more railway on this route - empty track bed and bridges 4 tracks wide. Rolling countryside and the fields have been harvested.

We slow for the sharp curves and junctions at Wigston, then into Leicester. A 60, a 66 and a pair of 08's are on the stabling point. The large power station at Radcliffe-on-Soar comes into view and we slow for a 30 TSR through the tunnel and come to stand on the river bridge. A fiberglass cruiser and a narrowboat are heading downstream past the yacht club and toward the lock. A southbound HST passes us and then we take the right-hand curve toward Nottingham. We slow again and almost come to a stand just after Attenborough Junction. A pointed church spire pokes above the trees on the side of lake at Attenborough. We slow again at Lenton S. Junction and hold up a CT 156 on the north curve. Slowly across Manston Junction, past the castle buildings on the hill and, after stopping for 5 minutes, arrive at Nottingham at 10:48 having waited for a southbound HST to depart. We arrive at platform 1b, the 156 (413) pulls in behind us on 1a.

158784 is the 11:06 CT to Birmingham. Back the way I came in, although somewhat faster! Past 60081 "Isambard Kingdom Brunel" on the slow line, then to the stop at Beeston. We branch right before Radcliffe-on-Soar, at Trent Junction then Sheet Stores Junction. We cross a 156 at Long Eaton. Quite a few people get on and off. Several 08's are at Etches Park and a new building is going up on the industrial estate. A 47, a 56 and an 08 on the SERCO site and then we are at Derby.

43090 is at the head of the slightly late 11:43 to Plymouth. The sun is still out as we travel along the route I took on Sunday. The clouds and haze have moved further north. The train is full - presumably people returning from an extended bank holiday weekend. We overtake 60067 "James Clerk-Maxwell" on oil tankers just before Burton. Past Tamworth - railway, canal and road. 60032 waits for us just past Water Orton, where 3 tracks become 2. The usual collection of loco's (47, 56, 60, 66's) at Saltley. Right at Landor Street Junction, over the canal at Proof House Junction and down to New Street. 43089 is on the rear. I head off to the Ian Allen Bookshop on Stephenson Street. It's opposite the Midland Hotel.

The 13:49 from Edinburgh / 14:06 to Bournemouth is shown as arriving at 14:43 on platform 5. 47841 "Spirit of Chester" arrives on the through road between platforms 5 and 6. The crew depart and leave it ticking over. By 14:30, the board shows technical problems - 50 minutes late from Edinburgh - a 14:57 arrival. At 14:50, the 15:05 HST to Edinburgh arrives in platform 5. Then a platform alteration is announced - to platform 6. We all troop to platform 6 and the train arrives at 14:57 behind 86209 "City of Coventry". We depart at 15:12 on the Coventry line. At Birmingham International, work is being done on the ex-monorail line next to the station. A 66 with a load of Ford cars passes just before Coventry. We wait just outside Coventry for a northbound 47-hauled rake to come off the single line from Leamington.

Boats on the Oxford Canal between Banbury and Oxford. Perfect weather for canal boating. Oxford - lots of people get off - we're missing out the Reading stop, so the Reading passengers have to get off here. Cruisers moored on the river south of Oxford. The power station chimneys mark Didcot - a new housing estate west of the west curve, 2 37's and a 60 stabled behind the station. We slow just before Reading and branch right, round west curve. We stand for a few minutes north of Basingstoke station - there's another train in front calling at the station. We branch left at Worting Junction onto the Southampton line. The line runs largely in cutting from here to Winchester. I talk to the couple at the same table - they are heading to Southampton to start a holiday cruise. We're still an hour down - missing out the stop at Reading doesn't seem to have helped much. Lots of wagons in Eastleigh yard. 37156 in faded Loadhaul livery. A shiny 08804 in EWS livery. A light aircraft takes off as we arrive at Southampton Airport. Then a right curve (with the old line to the docks ahead) a tunnel and Southampton Central, with cranes visible in the distance. 08585 in Freightliner livery in the container depot at Millbrook. 47's and 08's on the south side and in the Freightliner depot.

We arrive under the refurbished roof at Bournemouth and the train is drawn forward to clear the main platform. Several trains were delayed - there were signalling problems in the London area earlier. 47841 runs round and eventually arrives back in platform 3. 4309 brings in the delayed 11:08 from Newcastle and then quickly departs eastward. On the board, we're due to depart at 19:04, then delayed and we eventually depart an hour down at 19:18. Back again but heading away from the sun this time. The small stations we pass are deserted now. The train is fairly quiet too, especially compared to the way down. I see a few wild ponies in the forest east of Brokenhurst. Soon, we're passing the docks again and arrive in Southampton Central at 19:49. I'll catch the next train to London from here. 57007 comes through - it was the Freightliner just departing from the container terminal when we passed. SWT EMS's and DMU's come and go. 57003 "Freightliner Evolution" heads east. The 20:42 to Waterloo (18:59 from Weymouth) arrives in the guise of 442424. First class is compartments on this stock, probably the last time I travelled in a compartment on a service train was from Reading to Waterloo in 1998. We continue up the route I followed on the way down as far as Basingstoke, then we head east via Woking and Clapham Junction to Waterloo for a 22:07 arrival.

I head down to the Northern Line for a tube to Euston. One arrives within a few minutes, creating quite a draft as it arrives. 90222 "Freightconnection" has brought the sleepers into platform 15 - 90239 is on the front. We leave right time at 22:40 with a jolt.

---

Day 4 (Wednesday)

---

Introduction Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Timetable Mileages

---

Text and photographs Copyright J.D.Coleman 2001.

---