# Berwick on Tweed



## caravanman (Aug 27, 2005)

Hi Folks, I am having some trouble getting back to America to ride Amtrak..I have been on holiday here in the UK, staying in our caravan at a campsite near Berwick on Tweed, which is the northen most town in England. Judith and I thought it would be fun to visit Edinburgh, in Scotland, and decided to take the train, instead of driving.

The return fare (cheapest available) was £14.00 each for a day return from Berwick.

The train we caught was an "intercity 125" which arrived exactly on time at 9.28am, having started out from Leeds. As the journey was only just 1 hour we didn't bother to investigate the food service.

Edinburgh hosts the Edinburgh festival, a 3 week long feast of theatrical and other art events each year, and it was in full swing when we arrived. There are lots of free and amateur events to see as well as the main events, these are known as "the fringe".

The train journey is scenic as we run allong the coast towards Edinburgh, the coast is quite rugged here as we look down into the bays and see the sea pounding against the shore.

The rail track is silky smooth, and we average 80 MPH and in some places 100 MPH.

The festival attracts a world wide audience, as well as performers from across the globe.

Judith and I found a Quaker meeting house which was not only a venue for some of the performances, but also was selling realy good food at a reasonable price. I was amused to hear an American family puzzling over some items on the menu, much as I puzzled over "Grits" on Amtrak's menu!

The train from Leeds carried on to Aberdeen, and we caught the return train at Edinburgh which was from Aberdeen down to London.

Our return trip left at 5.30 pm on the dot, and we got back to the caravan in plenty of time for a wash and a walk into Berwick (1.5 miles) for a couple of pints of real ale!

Ah well, its not Amtrak, but it is train travel!

Ed

B)


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## AmtrakLoverAndHater (Aug 27, 2005)

Imagine how bad it would be if UP operated in the UK...


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## Conrail (Nov 30, 2005)

What gauge is the tracks in the U.K.?


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## caravanman (Dec 11, 2005)

Hi, the guage here in UK is 4 foot 8 and a half inches...what is it in USA?

As for UP, there is not much rail freight here in the uk, much of the bulk traffic has also gone with the demise of coal and steel. There is some container rail traffic, but not much...it is always impressive for me to see the hundred car trains in USA, even if the freights do cause delays. When British Rail was one entity passenger trains were always given priority anyway. As far as I am aware almost all UK track is twin, avoiding some bottleneck problems.

Ed.


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## Ken (Jan 26, 2007)

caravanman said:


> Hi, the guage here in UK is 4 foot 8 and a half inches...what is it in USA?
> As for UP, there is not much rail freight here in the uk, much of the bulk traffic has also gone with the demise of coal and steel. There is some container rail traffic, but not much...it is always impressive for me to see the hundred car trains in USA, even if the freights do cause delays. When British Rail was one entity passenger trains were always given priority anyway. As far as I am aware almost all UK track is twin, avoiding some bottleneck problems.
> 
> Ed.


Track gauge in the USA is same as UK.


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