Pacer Face-Off at Manchester Piccadilly

What a sight for fans of Pacer Railbuses!

What a sight!

St Annes Miniature Railway

A ride on the Miniature Railway at Saint Annes on the Sea.

While in Lytham Saint Annes to play minigolf I couldn't resist a ride on the Saint Annes Express miniature railway which runs around the perimeter of the MiniLinks golf courses on the South Promenade.

Riding the rails in Lytham Saint Annes

The Miniature Railway runs next to the Crazy Golf course at MiniLinks

On my first go I rode in the last carriage

The track runs all the way around the MiniLinks Par-3 Golf course

Related blog posts:
- Miniature Railways
- Lytham Saint Annes
- Minigolfing in Lytham Saint Annes

The Cheshire Line Tavern

A visit to the Cheshire Line Tavern in Cheadle.

As a bit of a train nerd it was marvellous to find out that a nearby disused railway station on our doorstep is now a pub!

The Cheshire Line Tavern in Cheadle

The station opened as Cheadle North in 1866 and at one time was a double track line and saw more than 200 trains pass through a day!

The single track line and former station last November

The station closed to passengers in 1964.

The line itself is still in use for freight, and the occasional luxury charter. Unfortunately we didn't see any pass by while we were in the pub. However, I've seen a handful of trains on the Mid Cheshire Line since we moved to the area last summer.

We didn't see any trains pass by our window seat on our visit last November

Visit the Cheshire Line Tavern's website for more info.

Links:
- Cheshire Line Tavern
- Disused Railway Stations

Related blog posts:
- Train nerdery
- Disused stations
- Cheadle
- Pubs

Eaton Park Miniature Railway in Norwich

Last Friday we visited the wonderful Eaton Park in Norwich. After we'd played the superb Crazy Golf course we went for a look at the Miniature Railway. It looked like a brilliant layout.

Another miniature railway visited on our travels

Eaton Park's Miniature Railway comprises two tracks - an elevated track and a longer ground level track.

The elevated track on the Larch End loop above the line out of Parkside station

Subject to weather conditions the miniature trains operate every Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday between 1 and 5pm (April to October).

 

The ground level track cutting through a park pathway

A view of Parkside station, a signal box and a tunnel

The turntable at Parkside station

 

Larch End station on the elevated track line

Hopefully next time we visit Eaton Park we'll be there on a day the miniature railway is open.

Links:
- Norwich & District Society of Model Engineers
- Friends of Eaton Park

Related blog posts:
- Miniature Railways
- Norwich
- Eaton Park Crazy Golf in Norwich

Disused railway stations - Felixstowe Beach in Suffolk

As a bit of a train nerd I recently joined the Disused Stations group on Facebook and last weekend found the perfect station location to take a photo of for the group while revisiting Felixstowe in Suffolk.

As we were driving over the level crossing on our way to the seafront we remembered there was an old platform to the left of us.

The disused Felixstowe Beach railway station on a sunny Sunday in May

Felixstowe Beach railway station taken closed to goods in 1966 and passengers in 1967. The station buildings were demolished in 2004.

Links:
- Disused Stations website
- Disused Stations Facebook Group

Lots happening this Saturday

'Three days in one' taking place this Saturday!

Saturday the 13th - anything but dull

So, this Saturday is National Miniature Golf Day, National Train Day AND National Windmill Day. Saturday 13th May will certainly be ticking a lot of my boxes!

'Driving' a little train at Falkirk High station

The floral train at Boscombe Chine Mini Golf course

  

The old Putting Course in Weston-super-Mare used to have a miniature railway running round the outside!

At one of the stations at the now defunct course in Weston-super-Mare

On the wrong side of the tracks!

The very BIG minigolf windmill at Oddballs Crazy Golf course in Cleethorpes

Playing the windmill hole at Prestatyn's Crazy Golf course

 

The old Windmill Theatre in Great Yarmouth is home to a very crazy minigolf course

Emily playing the windmill hole at Hastings Crazy Golf. The course is hosting the 14th annual World Crazy Golf Championships this June

End of the line...

Related blog posts:
- National Miniature Golf Day
- Trains
- Windmills
- Miniature Railways

Pacer Railbuses at Ashburys and Stockport

Riding a much maligned workhorse of the north's rail network.  

Prior to yesterday I had only ridden on one Pacer Railbus - from Paignton to Torquay on our South West Minigolfing Roadtrip in 2015. They're a 'popular' train up north and we quite often see - and hear - them squealing along the many lines in Greater Manchester.

At Paignton station in the summer of 2015

While in the city I managed to make a trip from Ashburys station in Openshaw one stop along to Manchester Piccadilly riding in Pacer Railbus 142037.

I wasn't the only one catching the train from Ashburys. However, I was probably the only person who'd specifically gone there to get on a Pacer Railbus

Prior to its arrival a four-coach Pacer had sped through the station. I also saw a Class 323 and a Class 150 heading towards Hadfield and New Mills Central respectively.

Ashburys railway station

My final destination was back home to Cheadle Hulme, but as I didn't fancy waiting around for the next train I hopped aboard my second Pacer of the day, 142013 to Chester via Stockport where I alighted for a walk home.

Back in the borough

Quite the day out!

Ashburys railway station is in Openshaw, Manchester. Ashburys doesn't refer to the area, rather it's taken from the name of the company that built the station in 1850

The station is the closest to Manchester City's Etihad Stadium

There was some unexpected greenery under the stairs on an unused bit of the other platform

One of the most interesting things at Ashburys station was this abandoned glove

Network Rail have a signalling centre very close to the station

323230 arriving at Ashburys station

I was looking in the wrong direction and hadn't even heard this Pacer until it was almost too later

Sprinter 150147 heading away from Ashburys station

Pacer Railbuses 142037 & 142054 at Manchester Piccadilly station

Down the other end they were Pacer Railbuses 142030 & 142054

Earlier in the day I'd seen Pacer Railbus 142067 at Manchester Piccadilly

Related blog posts:
- Trains
- Manchester
- Stockport
- Top Trainspotting

Videos:
- Pacer Railbus 142037 at Ashburys railway station in Manchester
- Pacer Railbus 142013 at Stockport railway station

Class 121 'Bubble Cars' at Aylesbury

Yesterday I noticed a post about an old type of train in the Dull Men's Club Facebook Group.

My fellow Dull Men's Club member had spotted a Class 121 'Bubble Car' at Princes Risborough railway station and it reminded me that I'd seen them before at Aylesbury station.

What a mixture of trains at Aylesbury Maintenance Depot back in July 2011

What I hadn't realised at the time was they are the longest serving DMUs in the UK, having started life in 1960. I thought they were en route to a heritage day or line, not that Chiltern Railways were still regularly using them in service!

Unfortunately the end of the line is nearing for the Class 121 'Bubble Cars' as spare parts are becoming more difficult to source and the engines are getting ever more frail.

Top trainspotting

Well done to Emily who wins this week's prize for trainspotting having seen this Pacer Railbus at Manchester Piccadilly yesterday.

A Class 142 Pacer Railbus at Manchester Piccadilly. Yesterday

What's so special you may ask? Well, take a look at the number. It's the James Bond of Pacers!

Last year we traveled on the old London Underground tube trains in use on the Isle of Wight's Island Line and were carried to Shanklin in number 007.

No more trainspotting

In what could spell the end for my train nerdery I've heard word that trainspotting is to be banned next year!

Don't walk this way. Trainspotting ban to be enforced next year

Until recently train nerds were more than welcome to indulge in their passion for spotting the wide variety of different engines and rolling stock on our rails, no more so than at Stockport station.

Signs like these will be a thing of the past in a year today

But from 1st April 2018 - the same year the withdrawal of Pacer Railbuses is due to begin - Northern, along with other rail operators, will not allow non-travellers on the platform, bringing an end to a much loved (though often maligned) pastime.

Two things of the past - no more railbuses and no more train nerds in 2018

At least my YouTube Channel is well stocked with vids of the wide range of trains we get up north. Enjoy them while you can, as you won't see the likes of this cracker from next year.



I'll have to take up a new pursuit - any suggestions on what is a step-up/down from trainspotting or minigolf course hunting?

Related blog posts:
- Train Nerdery
- Dull Men's Club

Trams in Warsaw, Poland

A view of some trams in Warsaw.

Emily knows me so well and brought me back this great snap of some trams in Warsaw, Poland following her recent trip to the country.

The older of the two trams could well be the Polish tram equivalent of the dreaded Pacer Railbuses we have here.

You can see how efficiently the trams and traffic operates in Warsaw in the video below.



We haven't got any trams in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport yet, but we're surrounded by areas of Greater Manchester that do have tram lines. Some stations share both heavy and light rail operations.



We've seen quite a few trams on our travels over the years.

One of the trams next to the abandoned Crazy Golf course at Starr Gate in Blackpool

Related videos:
- ABC Weekend Television Tram at Blackpool Illuminations October 2016
- Tram at Manchester Victoria railway station January 2017
- Two minutes of Trams in Warsaw, Poland February 2017

Related blog posts:
- Train nerdery

Steam train at Davenport railway station in Stockport

Catching a glimpse of BR Standard 4 76084 Buxton Spa Express at Davenport railway station in Stockport.

Steam Engine 76084 aka the 'Lancashire Lazarus' (and 45690 Leander) passes through Davenport railway station in the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport at 9.35am on Saturday 25th February 2017.



The BR Standard 4 2-6-0 locomotive and carriages formed 'The Buxton Spa Express' special charter mainline service.

76084 at Davenport railway station

The back of the last carriage forming the Buxton Spa Express

Just as 76084 passed through a two-coach Northern rail Class 150 Sprinter (150116) called at the station heading north to Manchester and Bolton.

If this Class 150 Sprinter had been 30 seconds faster it would've ruined the view for the trainspotters on the other platform!

For further information visit the 76084 Standard 4 website.

76084 was preceded by a Class 185 TransPennine Express and followed by a Northern Class 142 Pacer Railbus.





Related blog posts:
- Stockport
- Train Nerd
- Trains