Had a little jolly on a Get Around day ticket today, given that it's half-term and I've got a week off; otherwise, I'd end up climbing the walls in my house with boredom. Just a brief review:
#36 - Chester-le-Street Red Lion to Houghton-le-Spring Church - Go North East 4903
#36 - Houghton-le-Spring Church to Chester-le-Street Corals - Go North East 5326
#X21 - Chester-le-Street Red Lion to Durham Bus Station - Go North East 6040
#16A - Durham Bus Station to Stanley Bus Station - Go North East 3876
#16 - Stanley Bus Station to Durham Bus Station - Go North East 3876
#X21 - Durham Bus Station to Chester-le-Street Corals - Go North East 3878
I did my usual 20 minute walk into Chester-le-Street, arriving on Front Street for around 08:30. Photographed some of the usual goings on, and I was overjoyed to see Deptford-based B10BLE 4903 coming in with what would then form the 09:45 36 to Town End Farm. The driver had about ten minutes to layover, so I floated around in anticipation. During this period of time, an old acquaintance of mine came in with an Angel 21 service, for Durham. He was awaiting his relief driver; his name is Les, and he is a long-serving member of staff at Go North East, with 43 years of service, having come out of the armed forces and into the industry in 1972. Based at Washington for a number of years, he then spent a while instructing in the training school, before coming to Chester-le-Street about twenty years ago (if I can remember correctly). He now only works part-time, as he is semi-retired and in his 60s, spending most of his time rostered on 21s. I first befriended him when he spent a while covering my scholars service a few years ago; to be quite honest, I was surprised he was still around. We had a quick conversation, during which he informed me of his disliking for the Streetlites on the 8/78. Ever optimistic, he said he was still enjoying his job, which I was pleased to hear. When 4903 appeared, I said goodbye to Les and headed up to the stand for the 36. Whilst 4903 was based at Stanley, prior to the arrival of the Streetlites in May 2015, it frequently appeared in Chester-le-Street, but now it only ever returns if it sees allocation to the 36. I hadn't been on 4903 in some time, so was intrigued to see how much it had changed. Unfortunately, it was quite laggy, and didn't really top 35mph, which was disappointing. Nevertheless, it was nice to ride through some sections of the 78 route that once frequently saw B10BLEs, such as Great Lumley.
When Houghton-le-Spring came, I alighted and got some photos of 4903 (which didn't come out great due to the position of the sun), as well as 4970 and two Connections4 Citaros. One of the Citaros was being driven by a young, attractive female driver who seems to have caught the attention of quite a few members on the forum. 58-plate Citaro 5326 soon appeared with a 36 for Chester-le-Street, and as it was freezing cold, I decided to catch this back rather than stick around. I boarded and made my way to the very back, as is standard procedure with a Citaro, and was annoyed to see Drifter 5376 behind us, making an incredibly rare appearance on the 38. Would have been a good photo opportunity, but in hindsight, the things that came later in the day made catching that 36 back the better decision to make. The journey back to my hometown was smooth and enjoyable, although the bus filled up by Great Lumley, with few seats remaining available.
Upon arrival back in Chester-le-Street, I took a few photos and floated around, before I decided I'd head to Durham next. The first bus to appear was Pronto 6040, with the 11:05 X21 to Bishop Auckland. As the Presidents at Crook have only a limited amount of time left on the X21, with the Streetdecks due to enter service in the near future, I decided to bash this across to Durham, for what could possibly be my last ride on 6040. Sat at the back in the lower saloon, on the offside. I enjoyed listening to the engine roaring as it was flat out on the A167, and the cooling fans came on at one point. Was an enjoyable journey on the whole, when we got to Durham, I alighted and made my way up to the North Road roundabout for some photos. I noticed the amount of Y-reg Lowlanders roaming around, and I've now decided to focus on bashing them this Saturday. About twenty minutes of photos ensued, before I spied Stanley-based Lolyne 3876 coming around the roundabout, covering for a branded Citaro on the Durham Diamond services. As I love the Lolynes, as is frequently stated in my reviews, I decided to catch this up to Stanley.
When I boarded, I noted that this was the 16A, and thus only travelling as far as Stanley before terminating and then returning to Durham. With this in mind, I decided to therefore alight at Stanley and then catch it back to Durham. The interior was very well kept, and as I usually do with Lolynes, I sat at the back downstairs, on the offside. Seating was very comfortable, with the graffiti moquette seating clearly being reupholstered recently. While some of the Lolynes have the traditional graffiti moquette seating, some are refurbished so that they sport the commonly found blue ''Go'' moquette seating. It was a typical run behind a Lolyne up until the University Hospital, not really topping any great speeds, but the harmonious sound of the Cummins engine hard at work provided some makeshift entertainment. When we began to hit the countryside (as many of you will know, the 16/16A between Durham and Stanley has some very scenic parts to the route), the driver started to put his foot to the floor; thrashing 3876 along at some tremendous speeds. I was absolutely astonished at how fast we managed to go at one point, it must have been close to 50mph, which I don't think I've ever had occur in my experience of riding the Lolynes. An excellent run up to Stanley, but I wasn't sad to alight here, as I intended to catch 3876 back to Durham. A few minutes passed, as the driver had thrashed it so much that we'd arrived well ahead of schedule, and then I opted to board again. Decided to sit upstairs this time, though. Even from the upper saloon, I could hear the soothing sound of the mellifluous engine hard at work. Once again, the driver caned 3876 on some of the open stretches. I was saddened to have to get off in Durham, but, luckily, this wasn't to be the end of my Lolyne bash.
I headed back up to the top of the bus station, and stood for only a short period of time, before I could hear the unmistakable sound of a Lolyne approaching (again!). This time, it was on a Newcastle-bound X21, with Chester-le-Street's 3878 in charge. 3878 is my favourite of the 4 Tridents still in service at the depot, for sentimental reasons. I opted to jaunt back to Chester-le-Street on this vehicle, as I'm always quite happy to see it. Once more, I took the offside seat at the rear of the downstairs saloon. I noted how hot it was coming from the engine, as I was able to feel the tremendous heat coming through the seating. Sadly, the interior of 3878 was much more worn than that of 3876, but it was yet another unrefurbished Lolyne, so I was completely fine with that. The euphonious sound of the Cummins powering along the A167 was marvellous. I don't understand why the Lolynes are so maligned by the wider enthusiast community, as I think they're fantastic. Each to their own, I suppose.
I alighted at the bottom of the Front Street, and crossed over to the island located half way across, where I take many of my photos from when I'm in Chester-le-Street. With that done, I turned and saw Beamish branded 5419 with a 78 for Sunderland, so I got some photos of that, and then began to make the onerous climb up the incline that is the Front Street. This turned out to be worth it, however, as I therefore managed to get a photograph of 3869, yet another Lolyne, at a halt in the middle of the Front Street. 3869 is my most photographed of Chester-le-Street's Lolynes (3872 keeps avoiding me...), but having another photograph of it is always good for archival purposes. I headed into BonBons, a local independently-run confectionary specialist located half-way up the Front Street. The owners are family friends, and I managed to secure my work experience placement, which takes place at the end of this academic year, during my time in there, having a catch-up with them.
I had a superb day out, overall. I may have another outing over the next few days, but if otherwise, I will definitely be out hunting Lowlanders on Saturday. Photographs from today are available to view on my Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/127739730@N02/
Thanks for reading.
R852 PRG