September parkruns

In September I managed 3 out of the 4 parkruns available.  None of which were in Glasgow so I clocked up a fair amount of miles.

07/09 - First up was a trip to Girvan. My Dad has been saying for a while that he would be happy to drive me down to Girvan and this was the chosen weekend. It turns out the reason was so him and mum could have a round of golf at Girvan as the course is included as part of their season ticket. And of course to let me run the parkrun. A win, win for all.  So we headed down on Saturday morning, getting there nice and early. We went to the parkrun start initially to see where it was then headed for the golf course.  I watched them tee off then walked round to the start.

Usually at "away" parkruns I'm not that sociable, just keeping to myself.  But due to the smaller numbers at Girvan it is pretty easy to socialise.  I got talking to folk from Inverness, Girvan locals, Strathclyde, one of the prospective directors at Stranraer parkrun and even someone from my home parkrun Pollok.  31 of us took part today and the course goes out beside the coast, does a lap round the grass and comes back along the coast and you do that twice. 

I set out at a pretty good pace and it felt like there were plenty of people around me. As the first lap went on I realised I was picking people off. When folk were coming the other way I realised that there weren't that many people in front of me. I was thinking - could this be my highest place at a parkrun yet?  I kept maintaining a good pace and finished in 27.31 and to my delight got 8th place! I hadn't run that well in months so it was a good confidence booster.

14/09 - From Girvan in the south east of Scotland the previous week. This week I was up to Ellon in the North East of Scotland.  I stayed in central Aberdeen on Friday night and got the bus up to Ellon in the morning. There is a bus stop convientley placed about 5 minute walk from the start. It was quite a wild morning with wind and rain but once you got going it was fine.  The director giving the pre-run brief was from the prospective Inverurie parkun and she did a grand job along with the rest of the volunteers.  I think I started a bit too far back as it took until crossing the bridge over the river to really find my stride and placing in the pack. But after that it thinned out and it was fine.I enjoyed the bit where it goes right beside the river particuarly as it was very pictureesque.  The route does a loop round a small park before going back along the river. This works well as it means there is not too much traffic in the out and back section.  I got a time of just over 28 minutes so again pretty pleased with that.

21/09 - Today I was meant to go to Pollok as I was heading down to Newcastle for the football straight after.  But when I woke up I just felt like today was going to be a bad run. I wasnt ill but just not feeling it.  So I decided just to do a run round the block.  I had to walk after 5 minutes so I was glad I didnt go to parkrun as timings would have been tight to get my train.

28/09 -  Another Saturday, another adventure. This time it was up to St Andrews parkrun. On the Friday night I met my mum and dad at Glenrothes and stayed the night in a Travelodge. Then we drove up to St Andrews on Saturday morning.  We got to Craigton park about 9 and walked up to where the start was on the map, only to find that the start is now right next to the car park.  After the first timers briefing, the guy who did it saw my Pollok parkrun t-shirt and we had a chat. Turns out it was Andrew the Fife ambasador.  It was quite busy day due to the golf being on at St Andrews. And that is exactly why my mum and dad were there as we were heading there after.  Another win, win for both of us.  This run was a bit different to usual. it was 3 laps and the first lap I was thinking I need the toilet. Then I realised there was a toilet so went.  Then the next 2 laps I was thinking how glad I was there was a toilet on the course.  lol.  Anyway the course is fairly flat but there is a slight incline at the back of the course which I did notice but it is still quite a fast course.  I was delighted to dip in under 29.29 even with the stop!

So pretty pleased to get 3 parkruns under 30 minutes this month which will bring the total average down for the year. I have a funny feeling if I did do Pollok it would have been game over as it could have quite easily been a 40 + minute parkrun. As much as I wouldnt mind that, it was the right decision to miss it on this occasion.

A guide to touristing the Aberdeenshire parkruns

I have managed to get up to all the Aberdenshire parkruns this year and enjoyed them all. Whatever you look for in a parkrun I think there is something for everyone in this area.  If you want to find out about the parkruns themselves I have done blogs on them throughout the year and also I would recommend searching for Douglas Mason's videos on You tube if you want an even better idea of what they're like.  But this blog is mainly aimed at how to get to these parkruns if you can't drive or just would prefer to get public transport.  To make it easier I have split it up into different sections. I realise if you don't live in Glasgow or Edinburgh the first bit might be mute. But once you get to Aberdeen I think everyone who can't get there in the morning faces the same dilema. So here is what I have learned and what I did.

1) Getting to Aberdeen from Glasgow or Edinburgh

2) Where to Stay

3) Aberdeen parkrun

4)  Hazlehead parkrun

5)  Crathes Castle parkrun

6)  Stonehaven parkrun

7)  Ellon parkrun

8) Going home

9) Reasons I ended up staying central

1) Getting to Aberdeen from Glasgow or Edinburgh

For all my journeys to Aberdeen I got exactly the same train from Edinburgh each time. The 1736 from Edinburgh Waverly which gets into Aberdeen at 2005.  Its ideal if you can just go straight from work and you can also go up from Glasgow Queen street.  The trains to Aberdeen from both are generally once an hour.  If you live in Stirling, Perth, Dundee or surrounding areas you are on the way too.  I would say if you are going from Edinburgh, you are as well going from Waverley if you can rather than Haymarket as the trains do tend to be busy and by getting on at Waverley its a lot easier to get a seat.  And if you have a seat reservation which you get with cheap singles, I wouldnt bank on it because every time I have been on that train there have been no seat reservations. So it is just a free for all.  

In terms of cost I made the mistake the first time I did it of getting an open return.  Yes I could come back anytime I wanted but at £70 it was expensive.  Getting cheap singles by booking in advance (earlier the better!) is the way to go in my opinion unless you want that flexibility. Because getting the cheap singles does mean you are commiting yourself to certain trains. I realise not many people will live exactly in Glasgow or exactly in Edinburgh. So will probably have to get another train to get to Queen street or Waverly.  If you are doing this you are as well seeing if buying each part of the journey seperatley is cheaper and it is quite often the case.  To give you an idea on how much cheaper it can be. On my last trip to Aberdeen I got cheap singles and it ended up costing £24 return.

I know a lot of people choose to drive, but I would recommend the train even just once for the amazing views you get going up the coast both in Fife and in the North east. Some of these views you can only see by train.

2) Where to Stay

With every parkrun in Aberdeenshire you have a choice as none of them are right in the city centre.  You can either stay in the centre, then get a bus or run to the parkrun in the morning or alternatively you could get a hotel closer to the parkrun and travel to it on the Friday night.  I did a bit of both.  Its basically a choice between B & B's and independent hotels nearer to the parkruns or chain hotels in the city centre.  

3) Aberdeen parkrun  - 10 minutes by bus north of city centre

For Aberdeen parkrun I took the bus from the bus station in union square which is right next to the railway station on the Friday night.  I stayed at the Brig Inn which is litrally just 10 minutes on the bus.  There are quite a few buses which go out that way so no issues on getting a bus at that time.  From the Brig Inn it is about 400 metres to the start. So its an ideal location if you want a lie in. I used booking.com to book it and it was only about £35 for the night.  

In saying that now I know how easy this parkrun is to get to, I would probably have stayed in the city centre next time. As from the bus stop its about a 5 minute walk to the start.

4) Hazlehead parkrun - 2-3 miles west of city centre

For Hazlehead parkrun there does seem to be buses which go past the park entrance and it is about 10 minutes to get from the park entrance to the start. But I stayed in what I thought was the nearest hotel to the start which was the Double tree hotel.  It didnt seem like it was that handy for the buses and when I arrived in Aberdeen on the Friday night my thinking was I just want to get to the hotel. So I ended up getting a taxi which was about 7 quid.  It was only about 2-3 miles out from the city centre.  From the hotel in the morning it was about a 20 minute walk to the start.  Again this was booked on booking.com for about £40.  To get back, it was a nice day so I ended up walking and it took around 50 minutes.

As nice as the hotel was, I think if I was to do it again I would stay in the city centre.

5) Crathes Castle - 40 minutes by bus west of city centre

For Crathes Castle there was 2 options.  Either stay in Banchory on the Friday night which is just beyond Crathes Castle or stay in the city centre.  For this one I stayed in the city centre.  The reason being if you stay in Banchory you still have another 3 miles back to Crathes castle in the morning. If you can manage a 9 mile run round trip including the parkrun fair enough. There is also the option of getting the bus from Banchory back to Crathes Castle. But there is the 202 bus which goes from Union street in Aberdeen about 815 in the morning and is due in at Crathes Castle entrance at just after 9am.  It is still a 3/4 mile walk to the entrance which is probably about a 10-15 minute walk. But to give you an idea of how much time you have. My bus broke down and they had to get a replacement bus.  I got to the entrance at 926 and I still made the start of the parkrun - Just!

If I did it again I would stay in the city centre too.

6) Stonehaven - 15 minutes by train south of city centre

For Stonehaven I also stayed in the city centre and got the 827 train out from Aberdeen in the morning.  This train gets to Stonehaven about 845. Its a 10 minute walk from there to where the parkrun is, so I got there in plenty of time at 855.

If I did it again though I would probably stay in Stonehaven. There are hotels and B&Bs which are very handy for the parkrun. Also you stop at Stonehaven on the train on the way up and it did feel a bit pointless going all the way into Aberdeen and then coming back out again.  If there was a problem with cancelations I think it would be quick enough to get into Aberdeen then out to either Hazlehead or Aberdeen beach.

7) Ellon - 45 minutes by bus north of city centre

Ellon was my last trip up to Aberdeen and again I stayed in the city centre.  In the morning the 67 bus goes from Union square bus station beside the station about 815 and takes about 45 minutes. I use my phone to track where I am so I know where to get off.  The bus is a bit slow getting out of Aberdeen but once it gets out onto the dual carriage way its very quick.  The bus is every half hour for the way back. 

8) Going home

Depending on whether you like to go to cafes after parkrun or not will decide as to what train you choose for the way home.  All the parkruns I have done I have got back to the city centre well before 12 as I don't bother with cafes and prefer to get a shower in the hotel before I leave.  So the 1248 train to Glasgow has suited me well and there is also a 1312 train to Edinburgh which I have taken once as it worked out cheaper that time to get home to Glasgow via Edinburgh.   There are also plenty of lunch options both in Union square and Union street before getting the train back.

9) Reasons I ended up staying central

So apart from Stonehaven where I would probably stay in Stonehaven next time. Here are the reasons why I would stay central for the others.

 - When you get off the train on Friday night in Aberdeen you don't have to worry about connections to your bus. Aberdeen is your destination for the night.  Especially if your train gets delayed as you could end up missing the bus

- Being in the centre means there is greater flexibility in terms of which parkrun you do.  Where as if you stay beside a parkrun you are commiting to that parkrun. Moreover, when you are booking a month or 2 in advance can be risky in terms of bad weather, as it may lead to cancellations .  But on the otherhand you get more of a lie in!

- And finally I stayed in Holiday inn to get points and make use of their extended checkout which is 2pm.