Hi All,

Still here and just about to start (restart?) some more modeling projects. Managed a trip to the UK in April/May, Banbury to see my brother for a few days, various trains to Elgin, Scotland, then back down to Southampton and the Queen Mary 2 to New York. I ws glad of the break on the boat. Banbury to Elgin was a pain, delay leaving Banbury meant a total rescheduling and loss of reserved seats. Ended up going Banbury to Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton to Preston, Preston to Haymarket, Haymarket to Dundee, Dundee to Elgin. Never had to change platforms. I was in in Wolverhampton for an hour, checked out the tram system. Neat. Coming back was a breeze, Elgin to Aberdeen (in an ex-castle HST125 set at 55 mph), then the LNER Azuma from Aberdeen to Kings Cross. Taxi to Waterloo, then SR to Southampton. The Azuma is a really nice train. Crowded in regular, so I went 1st class. Thank goodness for railcards. Beats driving.

I have some projects coming up with AMTRAK trains, more on those later. I've been slowly building some N-scale modules and a couple of smaller "home" modules as time (and neuropathy) allow.

Cheers,

Nigel

What a mess that trip to Elgin was. Glad you enjoyed it on the whole though.

Hi Pete,

I got to Elgin 1 hour later than scheduled. Not that bad. I've often been 2-3 hours late because of a Scotrail failure or cancellation in Aberdeen. The final destination is Lossiemouth, but I normally stay in Elgin. I enjoyed the trip overall. I could fly from Heathrow or Birmingham, but it takes just as long, and I end up in Inverness or Aberdeen, so it's a train ride anyway. There are alternatives via Inverness to Elgin. The next trip I think I'll go Banbury-Marylebone-KC-Aberdeen-Elgin. Slightly shorter and less expensive than Cross Country to York, then on to Elgin. I've got a senior rail card, usually 33% off. Well worth having, as I do the trip to Elgin twice or three times a year. If the timing is right, I will take a boat back to the US. Usually cheaper than a premium economy or business-class flight. Makes a nice break, no internet or phone for a week.

Cheers,

Nigel

I love Scotland (born and bred in sarf lundun). We didn't make it on our last trip and I'm miffed about that.

Never been to Elgin, furthest north for me has been Inverness.

Maybe I need to add it to my bucket list