Category: Travel
Getting a bus to Glendalough
7th November 2006 The rolling landscapes of Ireland's Wicklow Mountains have long appealed to me, and they also were a favourite haunt of my parents. And now, I've discovered a twice-daily bus service that transports you straight to this alluring corner of the Emerald Isle: the St. Kevin's Bus.
The 30-mile (48 km) route commences in Dublin, where I once spotted an evening service departing, adorned with its web address. This coach ride will take you to one of the most picturesque locales in Ireland. Along the way, the bus makes a stop at the coastal town of Bray, a place where my parents once honeymooned. The place is home to an enchanting promenade that offers panoramic views of the Irish Sea. Beyond that, Roundwood is the next landmark along the route, the highest village in Ireland.
The final destination is Glendalough, which resides within the expansive Wicklow Mountains National Park, a haven for nature lovers and adventure seekers alike. Two picturesque lakes, the Upper Lake and Lower Lake, beckon visitors to embark on serene picnics or invigorating hikes. The area offers a variety of outdoor activities such as rock climbing, making it an ideal destination for those wishing to immerse themselves in the natural splendour.
The Wicklow Mountains, with their rugged beauty and abundance of walking trails, make for an ideal destination for those seeking nature. And while I have yet to visit this captivating region, the knowledge of the bus times has sparked a sense of possibility within me, the promise of new journeys waiting for embarkation.
So, if you find yourself in Dublin and yearning for an escape into the countryside, you can hop aboard the St. Kevin's Bus. Then, you can allow the Wicklow Mountains unfold before your eyes, as you traverse an enchanting land and uncover its quieter corners. Their rugged beauty and abundance of walking trails, make for an ideal destination for those seeking an escape from urban confines.
Even though, I have yet to visit this captivating region, the knowledge of the bus times has sparked a sense of possibility within me, the promise of new journeys waiting for embarkation. Perhaps one day, I too will step off that bus in Wicklow, hoping for invigoration as I take my first steps into this attractive area not far from Dublin. Until then, those hills and valleys will be kept on a shelf where appealing ideas are retained.
Travel travails
20th October 2006 Here are some stories from my experiences with transport mishaps. It goes to prove that not everything works like it should.
An Eventful Journey
Getting from Macclesfield to Stockport, they're only 10 miles apart, should be a straightforward affair. On Virgin trains, the journey is 10–15 minutes long and takes 20 minutes on the stopping local Northern train service. In addition, there are hourly buses operating daytime on weekdays, with just three services each way on Sundays. Buses take 60 minutes to reach their destination, so most use the more frequent trains.
However, when I headed into Stockport for a new laser printer one night last week, the journey by train took 45 minutes. The reason is that I had the misfortune of catching a failing train; it was already an hour late. Around a mile north of Macclesfield station, the Virgin Pendolino from London Euston came to a halt just as the train manager was telling us that Stockport was only 10 minutes away. Thankfully, we were not in a tunnel at the time. 30 minutes of the train driver's tinkering followed, including the "resetting" of the train. That means turning the thing completely off and back on. Lights went out and doors stopped operating: I was thinking of the consequences if this went wrong. I suspect that windows would have to be broken with emergency hammers for us all to make an exit. Happily, this did not prove necessary, as the "resetting" resolved the problem and we were on our way. And I did get my printer, but train times were completely thrown out for the rest of the evening. The sight of pairs of Manchester-London and London-Manchester trains leaving Stockport was odd, to say the least.
M6 Chaos
In the past week, the M6 has been affected by a number of crashes. When cycling home on Monday, I encountered a tailback extended from Congleton, but I turned off on my way back to Macclesfield and left the queue behind. Today, though, has been much worse. Today's disruption was caused by a series of crashes on the M6 and when the M6 is subject to delays and congestion, the result is that traffic that normally plies the M6 ends up on Cheshire's trunk roads. Because it is an artery to Manchester and crosses the M6, the A34 usually is badly affected and traffic chokes the villages and towns like Alderley Edge and Wilmslow. Another town affected is Knutsford, not on the A34, but not far from the M6. And when the roads are choked, buses and coaches are brought to near-standstill too. The result, like tonight, is that I got home 20–30 minutes later than usual, and I was lucky; others had a 60-minute delay, and I was left waiting for 90 minutes one evening when a lorry turned over on the A34. Also, being the time of year that it is, we can expect road congestion like this on the approach to Christmas. Curiously, things tend to settle down after then.
Of course, when it comes to traffic conditions, it often pays to know things in advance and that is where these traffic sites come in very handy. The first of these was very useful today. They may even stop me having to stand out in the cold for too long.
Catching up on my outdoor reading
28th September 2006 A brief sojourn in Ireland sparked a thought that refused to dissipate amidst the hustle of family and other obligations. As I caught up with my favourite outdoor magazines (TGO, Walking World Ireland, Outdoor Photography) a question lingered: why do we seldom discuss the public transport options for accessing our natural wonders?
Trail and Country Walking, fortunately, have grasped this concept already. Yet, even TGO, which strives valiantly to cover all aspects of the outdoors, could do more. The assumption, perhaps, is that public transport is wanting in many places. For photographers, the timings often run counter to the whims of landscape photography, best captured during the extremes of daylight. However, I suspect there's another reason behind this omission: car-using writers might simply neglect to mention alternative options when they do not use them themselves.
The Traveline phone number or website address, possibly a beacon for many a British traveller, has become synonymous with a certain lack of application in our outdoor community. Could we, as advocates and practitioners of the great outdoors, nudge them towards more providing comprehensive information? It could start with our showing where to find this; even a bus route number would be an improvement on what we see much of the time, and telling the whereabouts of the nearest bus or train stop would help, even if there is more distance to go on foot to reach a trailhead.
To embrace this new frontier, one must first acknowledge the sustainability that public transport offers, and there are times when it works better for linear hikes too. So let us seize this opportunity to redefine our outdoor pursuits, embracing the journey as much as the destination. Why don't we champion public transport, advocate for comprehensive information, and encourage fellow explorers to leave their cars at home?
Northumberland travel
26th September 2006 Being a large county with a low population and dramatic hilly countryside means that care and planning are required when using public transport in Northumberland. Northumberland County Council does produce a useful leaflet that helps a lot with bus services but Traveline remains the best authority. Train services are provided in the county by LNER, Virgin Trains and Northern Rail but it is the bus network that really allows travel to its many sights. What follows are a series of pointers as regards getting to these.
After experiencing Northumberland's glorious coastline last January, I fancy the idea of a return. Arriva and Travelsure operate useful services that allow you to get to such sights as Holy Island, Bamburgh Castle, Dunstanburgh Castle and the villages like Alnmouth that dot the coast. Trains serve Berwick-upon-Tweed and Alnmouth to boot. Historic Alnwick, some miles inland, is also well served with buses.
Exploring Northumberland's national park, one of the least visited of the bunch, remains an aspiration of mine. Given the distance from Macclesfield, a day trip is a tricky proposition but having engineering works on the train line between Edinburgh and Newcastle-upon-Tyne like on next Saturday and Sunday (with journey times doubled as a result) makes it even trickier. Nevertheless, a journey to Hexham via Carlisle remains a viable possibility with a ride on bus service thereafter. Overnight coaches might help but spending a weekend in Berwick-upon-Tweed, Hexham or Newcastle is an altogether more comfortable proposition, allowing for Friday night travel and a long Sunday journey home (a minor perturbation if enough time is allowed). A stay in Berwick would mean that I could then pop over and back from Wooler from there on services 267 and 464 and enjoy a day in the Cheviots. Weather permitting, that remains a possibility for the coming weekend. Otherwise, basing myself in Newcastle could get me to Rothbury, Kielder and Bellingham.
Getting to Moffat
12th September 2006 While getting to Moffat by public transport takes some care, it really is worth the planning and the effort. Moffat lost its railway branch line some years ago and is now dependent on bus connections. Nevertheless, the West Coast Mainline still runs near it, even if the nearest station is Lockerbie. And there is the A74(M) for those endowed with a motor car.
Speaking of Lockerbie, the obvious thing to do is to get the train there when travelling to Moffat. However, the connecting bus (Stagecoach 382) to Moffat is not as regular as it might be. Another option is to get to Dumfries and catch a bus from there: these are more frequent.
However, getting to Dumfries is then the trick to accomplish. There are train services there from Carlisle, but there is an air of irregularity about them. There is, however, a regular bus service (Stagecoach Cumbria 79) between Carlisle and Dumfries with a journey time of up to 90 minutes. From the north, there are somewhat infrequent services from Glasgow (Stagecoach Western X74) and Edinburgh (coach services 101 and 102).
For information, Dumfries and Galloway Council is a good port of call for public transport information, particularly timetables. Stagecoach Western Scotland is the major bus operator in the area, while smaller operators like McEwan's Coach Services abound as well. Stagecoach Cumbria operates services from Carlisle into the region. And DGC operates social services itself as well. ScotRail and Virgin Trains are the rail operators in the region.
