European Railroad Discussion > Social distancing by bike

Here across the UK we're allowed out only to exercise - bike, run, walk - shop for essentials (food, medicines, fuel) and work, if you can't work from home. So here in the Grwyne Fawr Valley in SE Wales I bike down to the railway in and around Llanvihangel. On Sunday, before the latest restrictions were imposed I went a bit further in the car. The last few days have seen unbroken sunshine across the southern half of the British Isles, cold at night but warming up during the day. The sun is set to continue for the next few days but the temperatures are due to dip as the airflow turns back to a northerly. It takes the sting out of being confined

1: On Sunday I was out for my morning bike ride, stopping for the 10:06 Bridgend to Manchester Piccadilly which yielded a class 150 and two class 153 tin rockets, the leading one in East Midlands livery as it's only recently been transferred to Transport for Wales.
2: I knew that this formation would return as the 14:30 from Manchester to Bridgend, due through Abergavenny just after 17:00. According to another local railfan there were four passengers in four cars so plenty of 'social distancing' was being practised.
3: Another treat on Sunday was the diversion of the daily Cardiff (Wentloog) to Daventry intermodal 'Tesco Express' via the Welsh Marches line. Don't be fooled by the locomotive, it is run by DRS and DRS has recently acquired a number of off lease ex-DBC ex-EWS 66s such as 66031

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biking in this day and age to watch trains is a great idea out where i live.

in fact, i saw my first snake of the year on my ride 30 minutes ago...............

66  

goneon66 Wrote:
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> biking in this day and age to watch trains is a
> great idea out where i live.
>
> in fact, i saw my first snake of the year on my
> ride 30 minutes ago...............
>
> 66  

Rattler?

it was extremely small (approx. 10 inches), had a what appeared to be a triangular head, but NO button on the end of the tail.

i THINK it was a baby bull/gopher snake as he never really coiled up like a rattler would..........

66

 

oh, and 86235, i really like image #3.

be safe on your bike............

66

More interesting trains than I can get to on my bike!

Hmm, I started my railfanning career, aged 12, on a bike. 3 miles to go see the D&H at Central Bridge, NY. 

I didn’t know I was practicing social distancing at the time. Guess I was just precocious. 

4: Yesterday I went out at lunchtime, timing my ride for the afternoon northbound steel train. But first another 150 on the 10:20 Holyhead to Cardiff. Now I know it's the Covid 19 emergency timetable but it's still a bit of an imposition for the few travellers on board to have to ride 250+ miles in a commuter train. 
5: Plodding uphill a few minutes after the 150 comes 66020 on the Dee Marsh bound steel. Not sure how much longer this will warrant a daily run, at least two of the customers, car makers Jaguar Land Rover at Halewood and Vauxhall Motors at Ellesmere Port (once owned by GM now PSA) have suspended production. Behind is Ysgyryd Fawr - the Skirrid or Holy Mountain - which is the eastern most summit of the Black Mountains and the eastern edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park.
6: I went out late morning today, stopping at Llanvihangel for the 09:26 Swansea to Manchester Piccadilly which yielded a trio of tin rockets in three different liveries - Transport for Wales, Arriva Trains Wales (TfW's predecessor) and East Midlands. The plaque on the bench reads 'Rest and remember John Beardsmore, who walked the lanes and watched the trains'. I think he'd have liked this one.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/24/20 16:12 by 86235.

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Wonderful pictures sir...
Be safe on your bike and watch out for those cars !
Thank you for sharing !!! :):):)

A nice set of photos Nick, take care on the bike riders.   This country goes in to "Lock down" at 11-59 hours Wednesday 25th for four weeks [ could be more ]

Malcolm
New Zealand.

goneon66 Wrote:
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> oh, and 86235, i really like image #3.
>
> be safe on your bike............
>
> 66

Thanks, because of the lockdown on non-essential travel there's much less traffic on the roads, less planes in the sky too so presumably whilst homo sapiens suffer mother earth breaths a sigh of relief.

Great photos, Nik.  As you say the weather has been fantastic, and great to get out whilst we can. Love my cycling, but today I was out walking from home. A couple taken just west of Wakefield, before Horbury Junction. A local passenger train, and the Liverpool to Drax power station biomass.
chris d uk

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What canal is that Chris?

86235 Wrote:
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> What canal is that Chris?

Think that'll be the Calder and Hebble navigation.

Yes - it's Thornes Flood Lock, on the Calder & Hebble Navigation. A couple of miles further on towards Healey Mills, the Figure of Three locks were destroyed during one of the recent storms, when the river Calder burst its banks into the canal. A couple of drone shots I took. chris uk.

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55002 Wrote:
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> Yes - it's Thornes Flood Lock, on the Calder &
> Hebble Navigation. A couple of miles further on
> towards Healey Mills, the Figure of Three locks
> were destroyed during one of the recent storms,
> when the river Calder burst its banks into the
> canal. A couple of drone shots I took. chris uk.

Thanks for that Chris, I wonder whene the Canals & Rivers Trust will effect repairs? i guess it won't be anytime soon with the Covid 19 lock-down ongoing.

Did one fine job on these photo's.