0805 7 Newton Aycliffe - Durham Bus Station (ANE 1513)
Predictable! I know, but this is an ideal time to leave the house on a Saturday which is why it's often my first journey of the day on these outings. This journey was slightly different to usual as this run is normally an Enviro 400 but this morning I was given 1513 instead which I was quite happy about as I'd had 7535 three times this week so I didn't really want it again, especially as it's plug sockets don't work although I'm pleased to say this wasn't the case on 1513. Pretty standard journey, just sat back and relaxed until I reached my destination of Durham. As I entered Durham, I spotted Adrian and Marcus taking photos on the roundabout so I decided to say a quick hello before catching my next bus.
0850 15 Durham Bus Station - Consett Bus Station (GNE 6030)
My next bus was of course was a Volvo B7TL/Plaxton President, pretty standard President journey really although this one was slightly better than some of the examples I've had on this service recently although the destination panel did rattle a little. Before I knew it I was in Consett. In Consett I spotted Venture 650's front screen only showing half of the screen fully lit, the other half was so dim you could barely read it!
0945 689 Consett Bus Station - Hexham Bus Station (GNE 647)
Done this journey a few times now so I am starting to run out of things to say about it but it's still a fantastic route to do and I love doing it although next time I would like to do Hexham - Consett rather than Consett - Hexham just to shake it up a bit although I don't plan to do the route again for a while. As the bus got towards Hexham General Hospital I spotted Lee Calder, Gary Hunter and Sam Tilson with Lee and Gary getting photos. I alighted at Hexham Bus Station and was surprised to see that there was no enthusiast's there. Decided to head to the rail station for some shots and wait for my next bus there, annoyingly I tried to get a shot of a Tynedale Links Solo SR on the 683 but a cyclist got in the way, fortunately it was 671 which I snapped in Newcastle the other night.
1113 AD122 Hexham Rail Station - Haltwhislte Rail Station (GNE 635)
Decided that I should sample this route seem as it runs along much of Hadrian's Wall, took my place at the back of the bus and then I heard the next stop announcements kick in with an explanation of how the route works about stuff like how/where to get off etc. Quite like these next stop announcements as it also gave you a bit of info about some of the places along the route sort of like you would get on something like the City Sightseeing services. There was some cracking scenery on this route with bits of Hadrian's Wall to be seen plus despite the weather today there was a fair few people out walking along the wall, rather them than me! This journey was pretty quiet though, there was me and three other passengers on-board with the other three getting off along the route whilst I stayed on until Haltwhistle Rail Station.
Haltwhistle
Got a photo of 635 at the rail station but as a few people have taken shots here I decided to get a shot round the corner which turned out well. During my time in Haltwhistle I also snapped Arriva's 4661 on the 685 to Carlisle, Northern Rail's 156443 and Go North East's Tynedale Links Solo SR 669, first I got a shot near the rail station on the 185 but one thing I must say is the driver missed out Haltwhistle Market Place and just went straight to the rail station (naughty, naughty!) Had enough time to get myself somewhere nice and scenic within Haltwhistle for a shot of it on the 681 to Alston and I'm pleased to say it turned out very well. Then I waited for my next bus.
1256 685 Haltwhistle, Townfoot - Hexham Bus Station (Stagecoach Cumbria: 27141)
My next journey was this Enviro 300, quite like these two E300's for the 685 due to it's comfy coach style seats and the fact it has free WiFi although it is a bit difficult getting signal on it though. Irritatingly the only seats that weren't next to someone were the sideways seats behind the drivers cab, so I had to make do with them, better than standing I suppose. Pretty smooth journey, I did eventually get to view my Facebook and a few other social media sites before arriving in Hexham. Quickly headed off to Greggs for a pasty, hung around and ate that before heading back to the bus station where I snapped PCL Travel's 'Rural Link' Dart LG02 FFP on the 880. Saw Bazza who didn't have time to stop to chat as he was about to get the X85 back to Newcastle. I then met fellow forum member South Tyne Lad, who I chatted to for around 35 minutes before he decided to abandon his original plan for the afternoon due to time and instead he joined me for a trip up to Corbridge.
1422 10 Hexham Bus Station - Corbridge (GNE 6075)
South Tyne Lad managed to get on ahead of most of the passengers although I could not without resorting to shoving so I was one of the last passengers to board, he bagged the front seat and I sat in the row behind him. Coninued to chat to each other on this short journey before we arrived in Corbridge. We tried to get some shots of the TEN within Corbridge but that didn't quite work out, I decided that we should both get some shots of buses where the bridge is just as you enter/exit Corbridge, I think it's a good spot for photos.
1508 687 Corbridge - Hexham Rail Station (GNE 556)
Decided that I would like to sample this route back to Hexham with South Tyne Lad joining me on this journey as well. I will be honest, the interior on this one was looking pretty tired. The number of MPD's are dropping within the Go North East fleet, but it's nice that there is still a few kicking about for now (from an enthusiasts point of view). We were the only two passengers on-board for this journey which at least meant it was nice and quiet, well as quite as a MPD can be shaking over some rather rough roads! Enjoyed my short trip on this bus. I decided to alight at Hexham Rail Station in order to catch my next bus, so I bade farewell to South Tyne Lad on continued onto Hexham Bus Station.
1533 880 Hexham Rail Station - Wall, The Hadrian Hotel (PCL Travel: LG02FFP)
I quite like to sample the efforts from the independents and one I had yet to sample was PCL Travel, so I decided to sample this Dart for a short journey up to the village of Wall, quite a nice route I thought although much of it was the same as my journey on the AD122 earlier in the day. There was only me and one other passenger on-board for this journey, I decided to sit at the back. Quite enjoyed my run on this, sounded pretty similar to an MPD really. Alighted the bus at The Hadrian Hotel fortunately for me the driver sat at the stop for a short while so I was able to get across the road and get a shot of it, nice to have a photo somewhere that is less photographed within this hobby.
1554 AD122 Wall, The Hadrian Hotel - Hexham Bus Station (GNE 670)
Tried to get a photo but wasn't totally pleased with the result. My first ride on one of the new Tynedale Links Solo SR's, this was only a short trip up to Hexham but I quite enjoyed my trip on this, fortunately the three other passengers on-board also wished to alight at Hexham Rail Station so I made sure to make it so I was the first to depart so I could get a photo here and I did.
1613 74 Hexham Rail Station - Newcastle, Eldon Square Bus Station (GNE 667)
Bit sick of the sight of Hexham Rail Station by this point, 667 passed through the rail station on the 74 heading to Hexham Bus Station running a few minutes late then it came back shortly afterwards on a trip destined to Newcastle. This is my first time on the 74, I've heard some good things about this route so I thought it was about time I tried it out and my it did not disappoint, the views were pretty something like, tight roads and picturesque villages made for an enjoyable journey, the long route also gave me a good opportunity to sample the new Tynedale Links Solo SR's which I must say I do quite like, thought the seats were reasonably comfortable and I was quite impressed with how well the WiFi worked although I didn't look at my phone much on this journey as I was really enjoying the route. As we got closer to Newcastle the heaven's finally opened and boy it didn't half tip it down, was so pleased I was on the bus when this happened.
1739 X21 Newcastle, Eldon Square Bus Station - Durham Bus Station (GNE 6307)
This was my steed back to Durham, I actually quite like these StreetDeck's think they perform pretty well across the route and the seats seem pretty comfortable and I like a bus with WiFi and it works a treat in these, as do the charging points. Sadly my journey on this was spoilt by loud annoying teenagers one of which said apparently it's raining, repeatedly, really? No kidding! It got to the point they were screaming at each other, so I had to try my hardest to enjoy the journey but I couldn't but at least I managed to stop myself from feeling angry.
1845 7 Durham Bus Station - Newton Aycliffe (ANE 1514)
Fortunately the annoying teens got on the 20 at Durham but sadly in typical fashion there was more sat in the bus station, there was also some drunk people, one woman decided to it would be a good idea to climb the railings where you board the bus which of course went well, yep she did have a bit of a fall, don't panic she was fine! Whilst waiting for the 7 someone asked me if the X21 had gone so I sadly informed them that it had gone. The drunk people were waiting on the 22/24/43 stand but I later discovered that they actually wanted the 7 I was waiting for. I sat in my usual Pulsar seat which is where the step is and the drunks sat at the back although I wasn't too bothered about them as they weren't too bad, they did have a bit of a singsong etc. A woman was drinking a can of Carling on the bus, classy! Charged my phone on this bus but annoyingly the WiFi logged me out at Ferryhill because I exceeded the limit.
That's how my day went today, was nice having a quick chat with Adrian and Marcus in Durham this morning and I enjoyed the company from South Tyne Lad for some of my outing this afternoon
The photos are now on Flickr, there's some nice scenic shots in there so be sure to have a look, I'm quite tired now but I'm up and out again tomorrow at the Kirkby Stephen/Brough Rally, hopefully there is no rain or thunderstorms.
Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your Easter Weekend.