For some time I have been considering using public transport to get me to the hills instead of a car. The main reasons being:
It has eventually become cheaper to use public transport due to the rising costs of fuel. Especially if flying to Scotland as opposed to taking a car.
It will reduce the servicing costs on my car from all the miles I drive to the hills.
I'm fed up of getting stuck in traffic jams and road works, so alot of times it would be quicker to use public transport.
I can chill out and read, rest my eyes etc instead of having to concentrate on the road.
I know a lot of you use public transport to get you to the hills, so I'm just trying to get some feedback about the whole experience. I mean, what happens when you are soaked to the skin, freezing cold, smelly with filthy boots. If I was in my car I would have a towel, full change of clothes and dry shoes and socks, I don't really want to lug all that stuff in my backpack.... do I just sit at the back of the train / plane like some tramp? Would they even let me on?
Also, is there a website or point of contact that will give me all the required train and bus times so that I can plan my journey.
Oh almost forgot, the main reason for using public transport is that it allows me to plan big multi-day linear routes without the worry of getting back to my car!
I like to go by train with me bicycle and do day walks, the bike means you can get to nicer destinations with more gear.
Set up camp, cycle 5-10 miles to the start of a walk so giving yourself much more scope in an area, call in the shops for supplies of liquid refreshment. when the tops are socked in you could just go for a bike ride around the Vally's instead or visit a village.
The only down side is booking the bike on a train, most ticket sellers go white when you mention your taking a bike if it involves more than one train!
Don't forget hitch-hiking. Traffic densities are low in places you'd probably want to go, but a higher proportion of fol with space are likley to pick you up... It can certainly be a handy way to close the gaps between railheads, bus stops and the Back Of Beyond.
Most bus companies have online timetables these days. google is your friend. National Rail enquiries will give you train possibilities.
"do I just sit at the back of the train / plane like some tramp?"
Seems to work fine whenever I've done it!
Actually... sometimes I've done it the other way round. When my clothes are getting really worn out, they go into a heap for 'special' occasions. If I'm going to be faced with some long-haul travel to get to the start of a walk, then I'll set off wearing rags. When I reach my destination all hot, sweaty and dirty, they go in the bin and I change into my 'proper' clothes when I'm ready to start walking. Towards the end of a long, hard trek, it's no big deal to rinse stuff out in cold water, hang it dry, then wear it on the plane / train home. It just means reserving two or three hours at the right time to get the job done. The only spare clothing I carry is a complete change of really lightweight clothing, and I usually wear that every evening, as well as for travelling home.
If it comes to the crunch and you really can't avoid travelling home humming like a skunk, then think of all the empty seats you'll have around you!
For long-haul UK travel, compare and contrast journeys with Transport Direct.
For short-haul local bus/train travel, use Traveline.
Train fares can be expensive unless you are able to buy your ticket several weeks in advance. But if you make a last-minute decision to head for the hills the cost can be astronomical.
Long-distance coaches are much cheaper and the network is surprisingly extensive. Also there are several overnight services which can save you precious walking time especially if you can sleep upright. I bought an advance concessionary ticket from London to Glasgow on the overnight National Express coach for £10.50, slept from about midinght until 0600, and then walked 20 miles before pitching my tent. On my return, I bought a walk-on concessionary one-way ticket from Melrose, Midlothian to London, changing at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, for £19.20. I left Melrose at 1050 and was in London at 1945.
By using www.traveline.org.uk/ you can access virtually all public transport services, including local buses, in the UK. It is not infallible but it is pretty good.
Also, try www.nationalexpress.com/ www.megabus.com/uk You can usually book your seat and buy and receive your ticket online.
train tickets are a mine field. Look at your route and buy your tickets carefully. For example, I wanted to go from Edinburgh to Leamington Spa.
The price quoted online £84 one way!
However when put in Edinburgh - Birmingham it came to £26.
Then Birm to Leamington -£6
Total.... £32!!
They really make nosense with their pricing.
I remember abandoning a high camp in feb years ago next to angle tarn and heading down a flooded stonethwaite valley in the dark, i thought the valley would be a better camping spot being less exposed, wrong!! Any way to cut a long story short I ended up wading waist deep through becks, and got absoloutely drenched, every thing got wet in my pack as it was submerged as was i on afew occasions.
i sat in a soggy tent at the bottom of the vally drinking brews through the night to keep warm. I then caught the bus to Penrith via keswick and then a train for 6 hours.
I had all my clothes on including water proofs whilst sat on the train and i was literally steaming in my seat with the smell of sweat and socks mixed in for good measure, suprisingly nobody took up my offer of the seat next to me even though the train was full!
I finished a long-distance walk in an absolute deluge a couple of years ago. The route actually finished at a railway station and I got on the first train that stopped. It was fairly crowded, but I managed to find a double seat. I managed to changed EVERY STITCH OF CLOTHING in the comfort of my seat, and what's more, I managed it before the conductor reached me. Then again, for all I know, the entire thing was captured on CCTV and has been screened at the train company's Christmas party!
Not exactly "in front of everyone" - more a case of "behind everyone". Just happened to get the right seat in the right place, with everyone looking somewhere else!
travelling by public transport need a change of mindset from "i want to go there" to "where can i go". the former can of course be achieved via the latter.
some places offer bus fare discounts if you travel there by rail. rail fares can be fun but they have, in theory, been rationalised. you need to explore variations of input e.g. two single journeys may be considerably cheaper than than a return. some return journeys offer a return leg at silly money. so a return and a single may cut the cost of two way travel at times you want to travel e.g. return to sheffield from london. early start late return -expensive. early start and return and hour after you've got there - cheap. single ticket late back to london cheap - possibly even a return to sheffield! and just use the portions of the tickets you need. sounds confusing but easy when you sit down and play with a site with travel combinations that at least one part of the journey avoids peak times.
on the smaller bus lines always check on the bus times, especially for return travel to get to a station as they may not have updated their web site (3 hour wait as the timetable had changed taught me that one)
water+soap = not smelly.
all airports have washing facilities. anywhere with a handbasin the same (pubs, restaurants, supermarkets). failing that water + soap.
stinking a carriage out is not likely to enhance your reputation to travellers nor that of those who follow.
I don't drive so i have to use buses and trains and it's great, just needs a bit of planning.
I go from London like this. To the Lakes. Train to Lancaster then the the 555 bus to Keswick (takes a while but it's a nice ride) or get the train from Lancaster to Drigg then walk in.
To Dartmoor, train from Waterloo to Ivybridge.
To Scotland, train from Kings cross to Aviemore.
The best time to book is 10 weeks in advance, the rail companies do an e-mail alert for `value advance' fares.
just to pick up on two points Parky made. Change your mindset, treat the journey as part of the fun.
Cleanliness. I travel in Craghopper Kiwi's (the pockets are good for tickets and money) and a light t-shirt,then put them in your pack for the return. Carry a pack of wet wipes and use the station toilets for a wash and brush up.
I've got the advance booking thing down to a fine art now and only travel 1st class
I mean, what happens when you are soaked to the skin, freezing cold, smelly with filthy boots. If I was in my car I would have a towel, full change of clothes and dry shoes and socks, I don't really want to lug all that stuff in my backpack....
I can't say I use UK public transport very much at all, but I use foreign flights, trains and buses to head off on multi-day backpacking trips. The travelling side can be a bit of a challenge to the lightweight backpacking load but it is certainly do-able.
For example, I've always carried spare clothes for backpacking (one hill set and one dry, spare set). The spare stuff is kept for travelling, for dry wear in the tent if necessary, and for when I collide with civilisation on the trip so I won't be stinking - that said, it is all perfectly good hill-wear that could be used if my intended hill clothes suffered a calamity! Over the years i've searched out some pretty light options - undies 60g, Smartwool socks 55g, Rohan t-shirt 55g, previously Rohan trousers 330g but this year I've found some 200g Haglofs ones - that's a complete change of presentable or hill clothing for 370g on my load, not much of a burden. (Oh, and a small Ultralite Packtowl is about 25g more.)
It's easy to be wise after the event but this is what you could have done once you had reached Keswick. Your waterproofs should have dried out on the bus ride but if not you could have wandered around the supermarket next to the bus station until they had. Next, find a loo, take off all your clothes and just wear your waterproofs. Repair to the laundrette next to the Co-op, which is but a stone's throw from the supermarket, and wash and dry your clothes. Return to the loo to dress in dry clothing and take the bus to Penrith.
I've often washed from head to foot in the cubicles of both pub and public loos. It's especially easy to wash in train loos because they are almost always wheelchair-accessible which means that there is lots of room.
I don't drive so have used public transport to get to the Scottish hills and back for years - never worried about smelling or being wet - on transport in Highlands people expect it if you have been out for days - never worried me or them.
Using public transport forces you to take 'intresting' through routes, means lots of camping, and lots more walking- longer routes.
The Sunday hillwalking trips in my friends car are different, circular routes, plenty change of clothes, drawback for driver is no pint afterwards.
used to get transport information in a wee book now its all on the web - buses, trains post buses, ferries
Try a public transport trip and see, I can't compare it with driving for you.
When i'm planning multi-day walks, i try to finish at a hostel or campsite with facilities. I don't carry spare clothing, so it gives me a chance to 'scrub up', before i sit beside someone on a bus.
www.seat61.com is where you need to go for overseas train travel. Anywhere in an arc from N Spain, S France, N Italy is easily accessible overnight from London on a sleeper train. We just got back from the pyrenees and it cost £130 return (and that's including two nights in a couchette) from Manchester - Pau booked two and half months in advance.
Cheap Virgin tickets Manchester - London are available from 6 weeks in advance.
For the Lakes, Windermere station is aout 3 miles from Ambleside but you can straight out of Staveley station into the hills. The 555 Keswick - Lancaster bus goes to Windermere station.
For North Wales, you can walk straight from Llanfairfechan or take the branch line to Betws.
And not flying or driving keeps your carbon emissions low, increasing the chance that the next generations will still have the chance to enjoy the mountains.
In front of everyone Paddy?
