Pathfinder unveils new tour programme

Itineraries offer ‘rare track’, haulage and multi-day excursions.

IN AN exciting and varied Pathfinder Tours programme for 2022, one of the first trains to be announced is a four-day all first class land cruise to Scotland spanning the Easter weekend, April 15-18.

Starting very early at

Eastleigh (est 05.15), The

Easter Highlander, will call at Salisbury, Westbury, Bath Spa, Bristol Parkway, Cam & Dursley, Cheltenham Spa, Worcestershire Parkway, Birminngham New Street and Derby. Travelling via the Aire Valley and over the Settle & Carlisle line, the train will take the Glasgow & South Western route via Kilmarnock and Ayr to Paisley Gilmour Street where passengers will transfer to a road coach to the Golden Jubilee hotel on the north side of the River Clyde, which will be the base for three nights.

On the Saturday morning

(April 16), coaches will transfer passengers to Dumbarton Central station and continue by train to Oban, where there will be the choice of an optional tour to the Isle of Mull and Tobermory, a visit to Inverary Castle or remaining in Oban to explore the town. Passengers return to Dumbarton to transfer to the hotel.

Optional tours

The next day, the train will work its way from Dumbarton, north up the Highland Main Line via Stirling as far as Perth, before taking the line towards Dundee and on to Aberdeen, with a number of optional tours to choose from.

For the final day, again starting at Dumbarton, the homeward bound route will be via Edinburgh and the Royal Border Bridge at Berwick-uponTweed, along with a short break at Newcastle and serving of a roast dinner as the train heads south to set down at its various calling points.

Fares are all premier class and start at £1170 per person, with a seat at a table for two £1330 each, while a table for three is £3960 and table for four £4500. There is a single room hotel supplement of £112.

Full information and booking details are at www. pathfindertours.co.uk

Also just announced are details of the ‘Cwmbargoed Collier’ which will visit lines around Cardiff and the Welsh Valleys including the Ffos-y-Fran opencast site where cessation of coal extraction will leave the line redundant.

With a start at Banbury and calls at Leamington Spa, Dorridge, Birmingham Snow

Hill, Stourbridge Junction, Kidderminster, Worcester Shrub Hill, Cheltenham and Newport, the ‘Collier’ will include the lines to Cwmbargoed (for the opencast) and Aberthaw, Barry Docks, Margam yard and a number of loops and relief lines. Traction will be a Class 66 with a Class 60 top-and-tailing where necessary, rolling stock Mk1s.

Next year

Fares start at £109 standard class and £165 first class, with junior and table for four fares available. Full details and online booking via the Pathfinder website.

Other Pathfinder proposals for next year are expected to include tours to Liverpool Docks, Pwllheli and the Kyle of Lochalsh. Full details will appear in these pages once tours have been confirmed. ■ Pathfinder’s ‘Chester

Christmas Cracker’ tour on December 11 has been cancelled due to a driver resource shortage.