Saturday, 29 June 2024

Totally Topless Tour Part 1

Dateline Wednesday 26th June ...

... sees a small knot of people joining an open top bus at Woodseats Library in Sheffield, surely an unlikely urban location for topless travel!
The vehicle, housed at Stagecoach depot in Chesterfield, then proceeds down Woodseats Road ...
... before turning left at the bottom of the hill and joining the A621. 
No one notices the former Beauchief tram terminus ...
... or the service 97 First Bus coming in the opposite direction. Everyone on board is far too excited for such mundane detail - specially two elderly gentlemen obviously on an old crocks day out!
They are on their way to Chatsworth House but NOT to visit that noble pile.
The open topper climbs through Totley and past the service 97 turning circle in the middle of nowhere ...
... ignored by all but the two old men! Likewise the terrible twosome will also remember when Sheffield Transport buses ran occasionally via Holmesfield to terminate at the sausage-about at Owler Bar.
It is some "sausage".
The moorland ride to Baslow is simply gorgeous in the sunshine but with a noticeable breeze to make the experience pleasant rather than overheated.
Soon the route descends ...
... to the bus stops at Baslow Nether End. There are many ends to Baslow ...
... but "Nether" proffers some buses to enjoy. The dark red one is service 218 to Sheffield operated by T M Travel ...
... whilst the red and white is a Hulleys 170 from Chesterfield to Bakewell.

It is but a short hop from here to the first major stop.
Chatsworth has become something of a public transport hub in the summer with lots of stuff calling there. Here are T M Travel in Edinburgh livery, Stagecoach bus (as opposed to a tour) and T M Travel in maroon.
But the topless twosome (PLEASE NO!!!) are off on the RED tour to Bakewell on the bus that carried them, also topless, from Sheffield.
Stagecoach provides a simplified route map ...

... taking happy open toppers via Pilsley to the former Hassop station and then in a loop via Bakewell and Ashford in the Water. This was the original route as previously operated and and reported by fbb in an equally previous blog.

The route is pleasant and offers a novel way of visiting a series of Derbyshire communities; but scenery wise it not "spectacular'. 

Here is Bakewell looking back towards Chatsworth.
A quick whizz along the main road takes you to Ashford in the Water, a most joyous village. 
It has riverside gardens ...
... some pleasant typical Peak District cottages ...
... and a gurt big tree on the village green.
All very pleasing and made the more enjoyable from the top of a topless! 

For fbb of course, the locations are very familiar from his residency in Sheffield. The delights would be more delightful for a big city visitor from afar.

The RED route's half hourly frequency also offers plenty of opportunities to alight and enjoy a wide range of eateries (it's a proper Bakewell pudding) ...
... or take a brisk walk amongst the glories of Derbyshire.

It is perhaps significant that every RED tour bus that fbb spotted was lightly loaded even though it was a gloriously sunny day where the breeze of toplessness formed an admirable antidote to the sweatiness of sedentary activity or a torrid trudge round Chatsworth house itself.

Perhaps the "tour" lacks that special "something" that applies to, for example, a seaside open top ride?

By today's standards, however, the prices represent very good value, especially as the fare includes connectional journeys from Chesterfield and "south" Sheffield.
The two ancients pictured above thought it was good value, too, but that is because they set off on the second route (BLUE) immediately after they arrived back at Chatsworth.
It is true that the BLUE is a must do with many a new view, and historic too. 

It will feature in Monday's blog.

 Next Weekend Variety blog : Sunday 30 June 

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