Collected Musings of a Hill Wanderer

The options that I have in mind for this post are of the public transport variety. I have noticed that there are years when I visit an area a lot and that is down to number of factors: it might be somewhere new for me to explore and the weather conditions are more favourable there than other places. A window of opportunity for getting there using public transport can be yet another contributor.

After all, public transport options do change over time and not always for the better. One factor that contributes to this is public demand. There have been times when the frequency for bus services has been improved only for it to be cut back again, possibly because of patronage. An example of this that comes to mind is the X94 Trawscambria service that became hourly in 2006 but is as good as two-hourly these days, even if some services extend to and from Chester with Wrexham being the main northern terminus. the trouble with this is that there is the nagging question as to whether enough time was allowed for patronage to build up; that is something that might take a few years rather than twelve months in some cases.

The next thing that crops up in my mind is the loss of a public transport connection and rail-bus connections particularly come to mind. Sunday rail-bus connections in Bangor (in Wales, not NI) or the lack of them have disappointed me in the past. Having the bus leave before the train arrives does sound a bit ridiculous but short connection times are just as useless, especially when you recall how late trains can be.

Then, there regulatory hurdles to be overcome. One that recently came into play was the 50 km limit for local bus services brought into force following an EU directive. That has done for a Sunday Dalesbus service operated by Arriva and introduced changes where there previously were through services. I could see the 555 in the Lake District being hit by this as well. However, I suppose that England and Wales had a better express bus system like Ireland and Scotland, then all of this wouldn’t cause any problems.

The route length limitation can be seen as a piece of regulatory madness but there are home grown ones in the U.K. too. One that annoys me a little is the intervention of the Competition Commission in the Scottish bus market following the coming together of Scottish Citylink and Stagecoach’s Megabus. Thankfully, a sensible compromise was reached with services on some routes going to Parks of Hamilton and they are agreeing to work with Citylink as regards timetables and ticketing. Otherwise, it could have further fragmented an already fragmented system and is an exhibition of the sort of mindset that could stop us ever getting the joined up transport system that we so desire.

What has brought all of this to mind is the retiming of the Macclesfield-Crewe bus service on Sundays to leave twenty five minutes earlier. I seem to remember that an early departure from Macclesfield on Sundays was a possibility some years back but it has since disappeared for some reason. So, the earlier start for the bus service in question is very much a good thing, even if it means that last one home is earlier too. That earlier first departure restores the option of getting to Shropshire and Mid Wales after its being removed by train retiming. I hope to make good use of this opportunity to explore Shropshire and mid Wales a bit more. Who knows but I may even walk new sections of the Offa’s Dyke Path. Not all of the world’s going downhill…

When I was walking from Drymen to Callander last August, I encountered a leaflet proclaiming the attractions of Glen Finglas. These days, it is owned by the Woodland Trust and they have big plans to restore the woodland in the glen. However, it wasn’t that which caught my eye but the walking possibilities. Most are short strolls with a wider appeal but it is the prospect of a longer 15 mile jaunt that is particularly appealing. However, without a car, it seems that getting there is the tricky bit; it might be a case of doing a spot of cycling, then.

My photographic exploits are concentrated in the outdoors but many a report appears in Amateur Photographer regarding photographers experiencing problems with security guards, police community support officers and the like. While it is usually urban photography that is afflicted, it’s never any harm knowing your rights and responsibilities in any case. A guide for the UK is out on cyberspace but PhotoJobo have a commonsense guide with an American slant along with links to guidance for other countries like Canada, Australia and New Zealand too. It’s always useful to know where you stand so that you can both avoid any silliness and keep yourself out of trouble.

Update: It now appears that a recent Metropolitan Police poster has really raised the hackles and the press are beginning to get restless about the situation because it affects livelihoods; apparently, there’s a protest in the offing. A higher profile for the issue might result in a more sensible approach than that which is current, hopefully. For now, we need to be more careful than we were.

From the various weather forecasts that I have been perusing, it looks as if the weather for this Easter is going to be a wintry affair. One thing that does seem strange is that 2008 might get a white Easter while 2007 was bereft of a white Christmas. If we do get the predicted weather, it will be a marked contrast to last year when I enjoyed several trots along the Pennine Way: a clagbound affair on Holy Thursday, a windswept one in the sunshine on Easter Sunday and a dampened one on the day after. The previous year saw me experience a number of seasons while on the way up and down Goatfell on Arran; the nearest I came to winter conditions was a hail showered as I neared the summit and snow underfoot thereabouts too.

While the idea of wintry showers might not appeal to fair weather types and I can vouch for the fact that they can irritate even if you are equipped to deal with them, the prospect of a sunlit landscape coated in white more than makes up for any annoyance. From a walking perspective, snow isn’t so bad so long as visibility doesn’t deteriorate to a level where your ability to navigate is compromised; frozen water can be seem to be "drier" water, an impression seared into my memory by a trek up and over Ribblesdale’s Whernside one Saturday in February a few years ago.

All in all, I could be tempted out of doors by the forecast and I do seem to detect a spot more intelligence with the Met Office’s weather warnings; I won’t be doing anything silly but painting the place red at the least hint of problematical weather is daft too. No concrete plans exist yet so it’ll be a case of seeing what happens…

Regular visitors may have noted that recent trip reports have made their appearance bereft of photographic adornment. I am now in the process of setting this to rights with the two most recent outings already having received attention and some preceding ones in line for the same treatment. It should make things a little prettier…