Track bash July 2021

Day 5 (Thursday)

Kilmarnock to Balloch

Last updated 2021-11-27

I've previous ridden three of the five long branch lines in Scotland: Wick as a student (though I didn't get to Thurso because in those days the train split at Georgemas Junction) and Kyle of Lochalsh and Mallaig on our honeymoon. That leaves Stranraer and Oban for today and tomorrow.

The run to Stranraer was routine, though are there any other routes where passenger trains have non-station stops just to change token? The station itself is in the middle of nowhere and there are lots of sidings which look as if they get little or no use. The signalling has clearly been left released by a king lever or equivalent, with signals clear to run both in and out of the station simultaneously. Presumably the box is only staffed when there's a goods train due.

The rest of the day was aimed at doing the various branches along the coast. I could have reversed at Kilwinning, but that would mean missing the very first bit of the branch, so I bit the bullet and went up to Dalry, where there was a long enough wait that I could walk to the village itself, buy some lunch, walk back, and still have to hang around for 15 minutes or so.

The Ardrossan services are a pain: the train to Ardrossan Harbour sits there in the middle of nowhere for ages before returning and, in doing so, leaves you with something like a 50 minute wait at Ardrossan South Beach (with no shops or cafe nearby) for the next Largs train. So I decided to attempt a brisk walk back to South Beach to catch the previous Largs service, which I managed in plenty of time.

Largs has a regular, fast, and cheap bus service to Wemyss Bay, meaning there's no need to splash out on yet another taxi or spend a couple hours backtracking to Paisley and then into Wemyss Bay and out again. Wemyss Bay station was a dramatic sight to behold, with the semi-circular concourse and the long passage down to the ferry terminal. It also has a good railway bookshop and I picked up a couple of bargains there.

The rest of the day was spent ticking off other bits of line I hadn't used before, finishing with a positioning move ready for tomorrow.

Today's trains table

Today's route table

Today's new lines

• Kilmarnock to Barassie
• Prestwick Airport to Stranraer (I may have gone from Ayr to Glasgow when on holiday as a child, but I don't think so, so have counted that as new track)
• Largs and Ardrossan Harbour branches
• Wemyss Bay and Gourock branches from Paisley
• Wishaw Connecting Line
• Wishaw Central Jn to Law Jn
• Lanark branch
• Carmyle branch
• Balloch branch

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