Getting There

[pensnest]

I don't know at what point it's appropriate to start talking about travel arrangements, so it may as well be now!

Our booking actually starts at 4pm on the Friday evening, but apparently there is a pub about half a mile away (looks as though it is called the Craven Arms), and I propose that those of us who travel to Ludlow earlier that day should make our way to this pub and have a convivial luncheon there.

We have to be out of the place by 10 on Monday morning (though I imagine many if not most of you will leave at some point on Sunday).

Anyway, the point of this post is,Travel Arrangements. Can I suggest that people comment to this thread with things like

- where in the UK you're travelling from, and when you expect to be travelling

- if you have discovered a convenient and reasonably-priced means of making the journey via public transport, do share the details

- if you can give a lift/would appreciate a lift. If there are some who can collect others on the way, I'm sure suitable arrangements regarding petrol can be made.

ephemera_pop and I were discussing travel arrangements a few weeks ago - unfortunately her might-have-been-available minibus Is No More. But perhaps there is among the London contingent someone who would be willing to hire a car for the weekend, and could make it a peoplecarrier, and thus bring a good handful of you? I know there are several London-dwellers who, ahem, will be signing up, and probably some of our Euro-sparklers will be flying in, and glad of a journey in company. Cost shared between six or seven ought to be quite reasonable, and a lot more convenient than trains.

It may well be necessary for us to figure out who will be dashing off to not-too-distant bus or railway stations to pick up people, so if you're planning on driving and are willing to be drafted for this duty, say so!

I hope this will be a reasonably easy way for us all to figure out where we can help each other. At least, it should provide a place to start.


The postcode of the cottage is SY7 0HH, if you want to check it on www.streetmap.co.uk, and I'll put up a reminder of this, plus the directions I have received, when we get into March.

Comments

[trumpeterofdoom.livejournal.com]

There's a possible complication to this. My one and only class in the week for this term is scheduled to end only at 2.15pm on a Friday afternoon, and including time to the station and collecting my bags from my room and such, probably would only reach the station at around 4pm or so. Including the travelling time by train (if it's too late for Charlie) I'll arrive in Ludlow around 9pmish and definitely will need a ride from the station. And that's just too late.

Then again it's not uncommon to have classes rescheduled for the last week of term (which is when Camp Sparkle happens), and no English student in their right mind would want their last class in uni EVER to be on a Friday afternoon, so there's a big possibility that the class will be rescheduled. I'll know this by next Saturday. Barring that happening, I can always attend the seminar for the other group or something.

My other issue here is that I'll be continuing on to London from Ludlow after Camp Sparkle. I'm meeting a friend in London and vacationing for a week with her there, and a ride to anywhere with a train or tube station is muchly appreciated. I'll also need to leave fairly early on Monday and I'm not so sure if that's going to be an issue. (I'll already have left my friend in London for one day on her own, so I'm already feeling bad for her, but, Camp Sparkle!)

[simply-fly-away.livejournal.com]

Irk. I was planning on leaving at ass o'clock in the morning on the Friday as my route is via the M1 and M6, neither of which I am willing to brave during the rush hour, 5pm really is far too late (I want to be in that area either before the morning rush hour or just after) and would add a whole heck of a lot of time (and petrol money) onto the journey.

If your classes do work out and you can make it in the morning on the Friday, you're more than welcome to a lift from Retford or Newark, or even staying here on the Thursday night. Let me know what you want to do and I'll make plans around you (or not, as the case may be) :)

I'm hopefully going to be staying an extra night somewhere in Wolverhampton, I forgot to say. I'm glad you're heading south, I wouldn't want to leave you there in Ludlow all abandoned! ;)

[trumpeterofdoom.livejournal.com]

I found out that Arriva Wales trains have hourly connections from Manchester Piccadilly, and if I buy a single for each separate connection, it'll only cost me around £25 with my railcard. It's actually not a bad journey, I've done long journeys before, so if the car thing doesn't work out, it's not too bad for me to take the train.

[simply-fly-away.livejournal.com]

Ok, just let me know what you decide :)

[pensnest]

I can probably get you back to the vicinity of London (ie either Hemel Hempstead or St Albans train station) on Monday, as the quantity of Stuff being transported ought, I trust, to have diminished! Not quite sure how early it'll be, but we have to be out of the cottage by 10am.

[trumpeterofdoom.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes if you please! I think I'll hitch a ride back to the London environs with you. :)