Hi JSAG, I don't think you are wanting to progress into commercial flying, so why would you want to fly in IMC conditions. The thought of spending costly time bashing through clouds at 120 kts doesn't appeal to me at all. Especially as someone might be doing the same thing, but in the opposite direction.
I prefer to fly only in Gin Clear skies where my passengers can get a good few photos as a reminder of their flight. As you can guess theses type of days are a rarity for Cross Country flights. I find the UKGA weather map to be a good indication that you can get more than just a local flight....
UKGA home
However I did get caught out once by an advancing squall line which was traveling in the opposite direction to which I thought, but I have sufficient Instrument Hours to be able to do a quick 180, for a VFR RTB.
So maybe some IMC training is desirable.