I’m half Scots, my late father came from a small ironworks town in the middle of industrial Lanarkshire and through him I have a great affection for Scotland and try to get there as often as I can. Up until a couple of years ago I would go up and stay on the outskirts of Dunkeld on the fringe of the Highlands, so I could soak up the peace and quiet of a slower pace of life for a couple of weeks. Circumstances have put a temporary halt to the long Scottish stay but I am working on getting back into that routine again asap.
On one of my last stays a friend asked to come up and spend a weekend walking in the area and that was fine by me, it would be a chance to show off my northern hideaway. Niall would be travelling up by train so we arranged to meet on the station, his train would be arriving in Perth at about 9.15 in the evening.
To be on the safe side I made sure I arrived a little early as it would also be a chance to take some evening photographs around Perth and chase down a coffee and cake. After adding to my waistline I made my way over to the station and checked which platform Niall’s train would be arriving at.
PERTH. Solitary passenger waiting for the Dundee train
Like the majority of UK railway stations, Perth’s grew up in a slightly piecemeal way through the great Victorian railway boom. It had it’s origins in the late 1840’s with a line up from Glasgow which terminated in the town. Over the succeeding years lines came in from Dundee along the Firth Of Tay while others headed northwards through the Highlands to Inverness and beyond.
PERTH. Looking along platform 2 towards Dundee
I always feel that there’s a particular atmosphere about railway station at night, a mixture of the sinister and the romantic. This is particularly so at Perth, the buildings being designed by the eminent Victorian architect Sir William Tite, the adjacent station hotel has the bulk and presence of a Scottish Baronial castle. Always having a camera with me I spent the 20 minutes or so before arrival time taking a walk around the large open platform spaces.
PERTH. The footbridge, a recent addition and not popular as you have to go out into the rain to use it and there are already stairs and ramps in the original building.
The station’s shape is a large main group of platforms that serve the route to Inverness and in years past branch lines that were closed down in the unfortunate clearing out of the Beeching years. These are joined by two platforms which are served by the line coming in from Dundee, this passes over the south of the city centre after crossing the River Tay. There’s a more regular service on these platforms. The trains through here go on to serve Glasgow and Edinburgh.
PERTH. Lights glittering on platform 1, wait here for trains to Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Here and there people waited for their train, some on the northbound platform and some waiting for a train out to Dundee or Aberdeen. There was a general quietness about the place, only disturbed by the distant, steady rumble of the idling diesel engines of a train waiting for it’s next journey. Before long Niall’s train rumbled in, we said hello and made our way back to Dunkeld after a shortish visit to a local bar for me to warm up a little and for Niall to unwind a little.
GLASGOW. Behold The Necropolis.
EDINBURGH. A Day At The Fringe.
EDINBURGH. A Drink in An Elegant Bar.
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Categories: Scotland, Transport, travel, Uncategorized
Tags: architecture, Black& white photography, candid photography, Perth, photography, railways, Scotland, Uk
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