Great Western Coffee Shop

Yesterday I took the bike to the Isle of Wight. Cycled from West Cowes, Newport, Sandown, and Shanklin to Wroxall. NCN (National Cycle route) 23 has been extended along the seafront from Sandown to Shanklin. It is then a hard push up the hill to Sandown station. Then over the top and follow the old railway track on to Wroxall. This is shown on the Sustrans web site and the latest OS Explorer map (2019).

A short section of station canopy has been built on Merstone station, very much in the Southern style. Contains information boards.

The platform at Merstone always seems long too me, for a rural railway. Or is it that I am viewing it from the wrong angle, from track level as opposed to being on the platform. I am sure the platform at West Grinstead, the previous weekend's Christs Hospital to Shoreham trip (NCN 223), was shorter (Hope I have remembered the correct station).

Another thing that always strikes me on these former railway tracks is the change of level of several centimetres when going over bridges. I presume that off the bridges the formation was considerable deeper.

Diverting, on the way back I couldn't see if the IEP style sets were still in Eastleigh works, but a very tidy London Underground set is.