Having spent the last week pretty much confined either to the house or the office, I was desperate to get out and about today. It had looked pretty unlikely though, not least because the journey from home to the station had deteriorated into a glassy slither along sheets of ice which used to be pavements. However, with Somerset County Council finally agreeing that the bus and pedestrian route to the station was of strategic importance, at least parts of the trip had become a little easier. So, a little earlier than usual I set out for what should be the routine walk I've managed thousands of times before. Starting with a brisk trot up the cleared margin of the road, a quick slippery bit of pavement, then onto the road again as far as the station entrance. Here, the slushy remains were more unpleasant than dangerous, and once into the station there was plenty of fresh snow to walk on. I found myself on the deserted and very cold platform with time to spare. I felt almost elated - after all, I'd escaped at last! For now, I wasn't even going to worry about the return trip when the road might be just a bit busier!

The purpose of today's trip had been a visit to the Great Central Railway for their winter diesel event. However, just now I wasn't going to speculate on how far I'd get or what I'd find when I got there. I was content enough to be thundering along in the dark. The first leg of the trip took me no further than Bristol, but it felt like a journey into the unknown after a week of confinement. It probably wouldn't have been so bad, but after the recent week of enforced quarantine for H1N1, the feelings of cabin fever came on all too quickly. Arrived at Bristol just in time to hear my train being cancelled! Not in this case due to the weather, but because stock was out of place following the problems at Birmingham New Street yesterday when a contractor cut a signalling cable. Checked I was OK on the 07:30 and found coffee, if nothing else because holding the cup kept my hands warm. Soon off on the 07:30, and noted how quiet it was. The weather had clearly taken it's toll on passenger numbers. Relaxed and watched the first hints of dawn in the east as we sped northwards. Soon announced that we'd make a brief detour around the triangle at Gloucester to pass a train up front with 'a problem'. Turned out as we passed that it was in fact 66154 with 6M60 - the Bescot-bound clay tanks. Made a sleepy posting to a mailing list (in which I made lots of silly mistakes in fact!) and returned to enjoying the bright cold morning passing outside.

Arriving later than planned at New Street, I found it just beginning to wake up. Made my way to the platform for the next train where an anxious woman pushing a thoroughly wrapped up child in a pram asked me if I was going towards Leicester. I said I was, and she asked me when I was coming back. I explained that I'd be back today, probably around 5pm - and she looked pleased. She was making a similar journey and was convinced it was all going to go wrong because of the snow or the problems from yesterday. Cautiously reassured her that things had actually run pretty well, but that stuff could always change. She seemed a little brighter - but it got me wondering about how the day would pan out, as the very delayed 170 rolled in for the journey out to Leicester.

After another pleasant journey I found myself damp and cold at Leicester station. No snow yet, but the platform was slippery and I decided that since I'd have to wait for a Loughborough train I'd do so in the warm, settling for more coffee in the buffet. Reluctantly out to wait for the 10:54 which arrived on time, warm and surprisingly quiet. Settled in for the quick run to Loughborough, arriving to find the station quiet and enveloped in snow - but so far, still nothing falling. Wandered out to assess conditions - the car park looked bad, with vehicles doing little pirouettes as they deposited passengers. In the sun, it felt warm and it was nice to be crunching around in fresh snow instead of sliding on ice. Had a test walk towards town, and found it hard going. There was ice under the snow, and the walk was challenging. Slogging across town to the GCR would be tricky - especially as the quickest route didn't really involve the generally clearer main roads as such. Agonised a bit - I'd come for the diesels and it seemed a shame to miss them, but given the way the week had gone it was good just to be out. As I pondered, the sky grew suddenly purple-grey and large flakes of snow began to tumble down on me. I set off back to the station, rebooked for Sheffield and purchased yet another cup of hot, strong coffee...

The run up to Sheffield left the snow behind and once again I found myself in strong, bright sunshine. Passed a host of locos at the Railway Technical Centre in Derby, and some spectacular winter scenes in the surrounding countryside. Soon in Sheffield, where the redeveloped Sheaf Square was a mass of gleaming metal reflecting the sunshine and snow back at the station. Wandered the station a little, and sat for a while in the cafe drinking more coffee and people watching. Pleased just to be out and about, and not regretting my decision to head further up the line at all. I did however have quite a bit of time to kill as I'd allowed plenty of time for the gala. Decided to head directly back to Leicester, and had another pleasant trip in a lightly loaded Meridian, and inevitably more coffee at Leicester station before hopping onto the busy 17:16 back to New Street.

Noted along the way that the 19:12 was beginning to get very late on it's journey south via York and Leeds. Delays had been affecting a lot of the services heading that way, and this one seemed to have got really entangled. Realised that in fact I'd have a very long wait at Bristol if I stuck to my booked service. Instead popped into Customer Services, politely explained my situation and was soon out sporting two endorsed tickets allowing me to travel on the preceding 18:42 which was on time. Made my way to the platform and settled in to the warm train which arrived just minutes later. It meant a bit of a wait at Bristol, but it was the best option by far. Soon speeding south again, catching up on weeks of podcasts which I'd not had a moment to listen to. At Bristol, I had a little while to wander before the 20:40 arrival - the 19:00 from Paddington in fact, and a train I've used a fair amount lately. Purchased yet more coffee to keep me warm, and pondered over how much today's caffeine insulation had set me back! Onto the HST the moment it arrived, happy to spend it's 15 minute dwell in the warm.

In the event, my walk back from the station went pretty smoothly, and despite feeling cold and tired, and not really achieving what I set out to do, I felt a sense of accomplishment having travelled 450 miles or so despite the weather and it's effects. I had felt that perhaps travelling for fun when others were struggling to get home or to work was a little irresponsible. Looking back though, I think I'd have struggled to face the next bout of grim weather without this trip!

As the final trips of last year were passing by, I began to wonder how to fill the early weeks of 2010. This time of year is always a little tricky as the preserved railway sector snoozes through it's off-season and railtour operators become somewhat risk-averse in planning anything unusual. Last year we had the bonus of lots of interesting changes in the timetable leading to new services, but this time around it's mostly down to me planning some trips to places familiar and perhaps less so to pass the time until things brighten up - both figuratively and meterologically!

But one change which did take place today affected travel in London significantly - the expansion of the Oyster pay as you go scheme to all National Rail stations. Thus the Oyster card is now just as flexible as a Travelcard, and means that travel - particularly to the south and north-east of the city is much, much simpler to do on a whim. So today's mission was to have no plan - to turn up in the capital on a complementary First Great Western ticket and to see where things went. There were of course a fair number of closures dotted around the city given the opportunity a long weekend of closure presents for major engineering. However, there was still enough to be sure of occupying myself. Decided not to take the easy and direct option, but to go for the early train via a change at Weston onto the 06:24. A smooth, drowsy trip east - finding myself woken by the sunshine around Didcot. As the sun rose, it promised to be a clear and cold day in London - probably perfect conditions from my perspective.

My first decision was to head south - primarily because it's south of the river which has always been hardest to get around and which should benefit most from Oyster PAYG being available. Firstly, had to negotiate the closed Circle Line via a change at Earls Court. Into Victoria in time for a coffee and breakfast - though both weren't quite how I'd ordered them. Wondered if this was somehow symbolic and today was going to be complicated and difficult? However, I tapped my Oyster card on the reader and found myself through and safely onboard a very lightly loaded eight-car set bound for Sutton. Due to closure around Crystal Palace this was going via Norbury. Despite the route being fairly well travelled, the bright sunshine on the city rooftops along with a day of wandering ahead made me feel relaxed, content and surprisingly happy. This almost never happens, and was clearly a sign that things wouldn't go to plan! At Sutton, planned to head back via the former-Thameslink route. This meant a brief wait, so wandered into the street and explored a bit before descending once again to the platforms to board a very tired looking 319371 bound for London Bridge via the meander into Wimbledon.

Arrival at the buffers at London Bridge heralded a search for a working toilet at this amazingly poorly-convenienced station! Finally back into the station feeling much better, and after grabbing a snack onto a train bound for East Croydon via Norbury Junction in the hope I could make the 12:10 Milton Keynes train. These services fascinate me with there complicate manoeuvres around Clapham Junction and their use of the lines around Acton and Willesden which have always been of great interest for some reason. Comfortably made the connection, and noted that the unit was surprisingly busy - likely with shoppers bound for Westfield. This was confirmed on arrival at Clapham where large crowds squeezed on, only to disperse again at Shepherds Bush. Relaxed and enjoyed the space for the remainder of the journey, taking the diving route under the West Coast Mainline and surfacing adjacent to Wembley Yard. Not much action here or at Willesden, but interesting move nonetheless. Decided to bail at Harrow and Wealdstone for a connection back to Euston. Also had a chance to look briefly around Wealdstone - a rather uninspiring spot, but happily good coffee was available back in the station. Soon on board a mixed pairing of 350/1 and 350/2 heading non-stop into Euston. Since the sun was still out, decided to make the next leg of the journey on foot, passing the British Library and grand St. Pancras on the way to Kings Cross - itself the subject of an ongoing, but as yet not very visible programme of improvements. The plan was to travel on a local service from the suburban platforms here, again new territory for Oyster. However, the staff here had largely abandoned the scheme, with the ticket gates left open. The advice given to a fellow passenger by a member of First Capital Connect staff was "not to touch out at the other end then" on observing this. Knowing how notoriously vicious I've heard Revenue Protection staff on FCC can be, I thought twice about travelling. However, curiousity overcame concern, and I soon found myself heading north near Finsbury Park, on route to Harringay.

The plan here was to make another foot transfer - from Harringay to Harringay Green Lanes station on the Gospel Oak to Barking line. This made the northern excursion a little more interesting, as otherwise it was a case of covering just part of the two branches out of Kings Cross. Instead I could cut across the north of the city, with some ideas forming about the next move into Fenchurch Street. However, this particular scheme was my undoing - although not at first, as my wander got me to Green Lanes in good time with even a short pause to take a snap of the New River on it's sluggish route into the City. At Green Lanes, I had a brief wait for a near empty 150120 - although as we headed for Barking things got busier. However, our station stops were getting longer and longer, and we were clearly losing time. As we left Wanstead Park it became clearer - there was a major signalling fault and the train would terminate at Woodgrange Park. Moreover it was unclear when services might resume. Trudged up the steps to Romford Road, planning to hit the buses, as the alternative rail service from nearby Manor Park was suspended for the works. However I hadn't bargained on the effect that the closure on the Great Eastern Lines would have, and several buses from Ilford passed by, clearly wedged to full capacity. I sulked in the cold shelter, telling an odd woman that I had no idea how to get Barking easily, and doing my best to help a young lady force her pram onto a heaving Oxford Circus bound 25.

After flagging a procession of 25s and 86s with faces and bodies pressed up against there steamy windows, several arrived at once meaning I could sneak onto a relatively empty 25. Considered my plans as we snaked south towards Stratford. With local rail options largely out of the window, I could bank on a very busy shuttle to Liverpool Street, or I could cover the Jubilee Line - something I need to do at some point. However, in mulling this over I missed the appropriate stop for Stratford bus station. I could of course have hopped off and walked back, but the weather and my innate laziness prevented this. Instead, decided to stay on the 25 as it travelled into the more familiar East End, via Bethnal Green and into Whitechapel. Noted lots of familiar sights as we headed into the sunset, the sky darkening almost by the minute. Not wishing to head into the City or the West End, hopped off outside the depressing hulk of the Royal London Hospital and boarded a following 205 as far as Liverpool Street. After a much needed refreshment break, tried to decide what to do. There were Oyster options from here too, but with the closures and being aware of how tricky getting back to Paddington would be if I didn't get back around to the southern reaches of the Circle, I decided to flag these. Instead, hopped on another 205 heading West and enjoyed a familiar winter bus journey back to Paddington via Moorgate, Angel and Marylebone. I've become attached to this trip during previous closures and tonight was no exception. However, it did mean an earlier arrival than planned at Paddington. Noted a surprising Police presence at the station and decided to lie low upstairs with a Coffee. A wander around later confirmed that a football match was the cause of the concern, and I watched one or two loud but mostly good natured fans get a warning from the BTP on appearing at the top of the underground stairs. Stuck to my planned 19:00 train as I imagined most of the fans would have dispersed by then.

The journey home was strange - a little dull being in the dark again after such a fine day on the rails. The presence of a few straggling fans heading back to Chippenham was mildly diverting at first, but as we slowed to an unexpected halt at Wooton Bassett and failed to budge an inch for the next 40 minutes they became more and more angry and menacing. The Polish train manager though dealt well with the group, and happily nothing major occurred. Some further frustrating delays as we let the 21:13 Voyager pass by at Bedminster, and waited at Weston for a northbound train to clear the single line. The first excursion of the year was a strange mixture - some fine weather and interesting travels - by rail and unexpectedly also by bus - but a strangely muted ending thanks to delays and me brooding on work and future trips as we waited. Perhaps I should resolve to stop worrying and get on with it this year? In any case, it was good to get out and about, and to kick of the year with a varied and interesting dash around London.

Had it been the usual Saturday or Sunday trip, today should really have qualified as one of the 'Lost Weekend' series where I replace some cancelled event by my own wanderings, utilising whatever accommodation or advance tickets have been booked in the process. It should have been a spin up to Carlisle in the company of Pathfinder but instead it turned into an attempt to salvage something sensible at a time of year when advance purchase tickets had been snapped up long ago. As Mr Spinks was also due to be making a rare railtour experience and had also booked a night in Bristol based on the published timings, we ended up selecting a trip he'd never done and one I'll never tire of repeating - a journey along the North Wales coast to Holyhead.

Taking advantage of being in Bristol, started out on the 06:15 Voyager to Birmingham. Using Off-Peak rather than Advance tickets meant a choice of route, and we opted for a brief wait for the 08:24 Arriva service for Aberystwyth. Found seats on a surprisingly busy train, presumably with Wolverhampton bound commuters unfortunate enough to be working between the holidays. These Class 158s haven't seen any sort of refurbishment since they worked local services around the South West many years ago - and seemed to be in both aesthetically and mechanically poor shape on the journey to Shrewsbury. With heavy in snow predicted in mid-Wales, I didn't relish putting my trust in one of these all the way to Holyhead. Also our route had us tackling a five minute same-platform connection at Shrewsbury, and we were dropping minutes here and there as we chugged west via Telford.

Eventually, the unit sluggishly drew in to platform 4a at Shrewsbury. It wasn't clear what would happen here. I know there are a variety of joining and parting moves to provide a roughly hourly service to Wales from Birmingham, with alternate services going West or North. In the event this wasn't one of the trains which joined here, and we walked swiftly down the platform to where a pair of 175s were waiting, with only the set at the extreme north open and ready to leave. Settled in to thankfully warm seats and we soon departed for points North. Despite having their own reliability issues when new, this unit was making a far more convincing sound than the last - and we were soon making stops along the line to Wrexham General. The threatened snow hadn't materialised, but the sky was a purple-grey haze and the landscape hadn't brightened a bit since sunrise. Steeled myself for a cold, grey day - and in Holyhead that always seems so much worse. Tried to mentally prepare Mr Spinks for this with tales of my previous forays and attempts to 'get away from it all' here on the coast, but he was much more concerned with the new track he was scoring! Reversed in Chester, with most of the passengers emptying out here to shop, but with a few extras for the ferry joining the train too. Still looking bleak out, and the filthy state of a 507 working to Liverpool showed that conditions weren't much better further north. Underway again, and once we'd passed the racecourse, into Wales again. As we headed west into deepening gloom, the coast took on a surprising quality. The grey sky suited it rather well, and with a silvery reflection from the sea, the stations were little oases of warmth and light in the gloom. The huge, desolate looking banks of slate and the expanses of rocky country somehow made a lot of sense in the equally hostile conditions.

After traversing the majestic bridge over the Menai Strait and speeding non-stop over Anglesey we were soon curving into Holyhead's impressively large but mostly abandoned station. A far cry from some of my previous visits, which I explained as we ascended the ramp from the station towards town. As soon as we reached the road, the sharp, freezing wind from the Irish Sea whipped by, carrying dashes of icy rain. We turned into the wind and headed for the town centre. Perhaps now Mr Spinks understood why I'd been talking a lot about wrapping up warm and the shortcomings of the place. A quick wander through the small town showed that many places were closed - either for the holidays, or perhaps permanently? A couple of pubs were still doing business, but they were ones which I'd either experienced before or been warned away from in the past. Today wasn't one for brave new discoveries - so despite the bonecracking cold which seemed to seep between buttons and find it's way inside your body - we walked on. After making some purchases we headed back over the new bridge to the station. This innovation has arrived since my last visit, and manages to bring the station - always a little out on a limb - into the town centre. It was a long cold walk over road, railway sidings and water to get to the spiralling ramp down to the station. Also noted that our next unit had arrived on platform 1 in the form of a four-car voyager. It was going to be very busy, so after queuing for a while for coffee in the ferry terminal, we found some pleasant extra-legroom seats and settled in for the ride back to Crewe. The train filled pretty quickly, and with the reservations system out of use things got fairly heated around us at times. However we were soon speeding east again, and the sky was darkening, having not really managed to achieve daylight at all since we set out this morning.

At Chester we were relieved by the addition of another Voyager, but even this managed to go badly for Virgin, with platform staff not explaining things to waiting passengers who joined the four coaches which we arrived on and began a series of pitched battles for seats. Eventually things settled down and we made the dash to Crewe. Good to wander about and stretch my legs a little before heading over the bridge for our next working - a 350 to Birmingham. We could just have made a connection with an earlier 220 heading for the Midlands, but the thought of so many Voyager trips in a day wasn't encouraging. Opted instead for the clean, light interior of the Desiro, which performed impeccably on route via Stafford and Wolverhampton. However, this had the slight drawback of a longer, colder walk from platform 4c at New Street towards civilisation. Realised we could manage comfortably an earlier train than planned, due to it being somewhat delayed. Found the platform busy but not totally wedged. Tried and failed to predict the right end for a couple of seats in the quiet coach, but still managed to find a pair - however I suspect they were empty because somehow the heating in the coach has been wedged on and the whole vehicle was sweltering. At first it didn't bother me, as I was still aching with cold from Holyhead - however I soon warmed up and joined the choruses to get it turned down. As a result, snoozed a fair bit of the way back to Bristol. After a short wait, dragged my weary and achingly cold bones onto a unit bound for home, realising that the poor light meant not a single chance to get my camera out during the day. It had been a long, cold and grey final trip of the year - but as ever the coast had provided a little spectacle and Holyhead, in its faded and drab, quiet way had reminded me of the fun of visiting old haunts and why I still made these excursions. It's been a long, busy year of travels - indeed, the travels have been the things which kept me relatively sane throughout troubled times. Despite feeling much too sleepy to drag myself up for work tomorrow, there is a whole new year of these often odd, always interesting journeys to plan.

NB: The title of course is a nod to The Wedding Present's Christmas-themed song of a similar name.

Not much happens in that strange time of year between Christmas and New Year, and in particular it's not always easy to get out and about on the rails, which makes me predictably irritable and frustrated. In recent years, I've managed a longish trip out in this period - but I've also noticed the annual Winter Diesel event at the Gloucester & Warwickshire Railway. This year I resolved to visit as it's always seemed like an interesting event. So sure enough, I found myself up early for the first time in days and cruising up an empty and wet M5. It may seem like anathema for me to get to an event in this way, but because the event fell on a Sunday, it was the only way to get there sensibly early with our poor local service. Once north of Bristol, the sky began to lighten and clear, and we soon found ourselves at Ashchurch in what promised to be bright and cold conditions. Stopped for a welcome breakfast before heading to Toddington for the first train of the day.

The railway was running it's usual, fairly intensive timetable, but had thoughtfully separated the engines onto a Sulzer set and an English Electric set, so those with strong traction preferences could follow their favourites all day if they wished. However, the usual connection opportunities were available at Winchcombe, and staff were sensibly allowing lots of time for people to cross over the bridge - even when trains were a little late. Started with a non-stop run down to the Racecourse with 24081 and 47105, with steam heated coaching stock and lots of noise through Greet Tunnel! Couldn't think of a better way to spend a winter Sunday morning! Returned as far as Winchcombe where we switched to the unheated set conveyed by 37248 and 37215. Lots more noise and smoke, and I hardly noticed how chilly I was once I had hot coffee in hand courtesy of Mr Spinks dash to the buffet! Settled into a pattern of Winchcombe leaps, in order to ensure we also experienced the other engines including D8137 and 47376. However, my photographs, particularly of 47376, were really bad - I'm going to put it down to very cold hands. Didn't really get quite the shot I wanted all day. I'm still learning about this camera, and seem to mess up the focusing pretty frequently at the moment. Noted the brake van rides running now too, albeit to an almost random timetable, with two of the railway's fleet of Class 08 shunters doing the honours.

After a relaxing day spent happily shuttling back and forth, finally back to Toddington behind the pair of 37s just as darkness fell. Flagged the last Winchcombe round trip for a warm car homewards. An excellent day, well organised and also very well attended with all of the trains surprisingly full and some notable faces present. Great to spend time at a railway which respects both it's diesel fleet, and the punters who pay to travel with them.