diff --git a/client/app/scripts/actions/app-actions.js b/client/app/scripts/actions/app-actions.js
index ca72bba06..0c9a83916 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/actions/app-actions.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/actions/app-actions.js
@@ -345,6 +345,7 @@ export function pauseTimeAtNow() {
     dispatch({
       type: ActionTypes.PAUSE_TIME_AT_NOW
     });
+    updateRoute(getState);
     if (!getState().get('nodesLoaded')) {
       getNodes(getState, dispatch);
       if (isResourceViewModeSelector(getState())) {
@@ -582,6 +583,7 @@ export function resumeTime() {
       dispatch({
         type: ActionTypes.RESUME_TIME
       });
+      updateRoute(getState);
       // After unpausing, all of the following calls will re-activate polling.
       getTopologies(getState, dispatch);
       getNodes(getState, dispatch, true);
@@ -592,11 +594,13 @@ export function resumeTime() {
   };
 }
 
-export function startTimeTravel() {
+export function startTimeTravel(timestamp = null) {
   return (dispatch, getState) => {
     dispatch({
-      type: ActionTypes.START_TIME_TRAVEL
+      type: ActionTypes.START_TIME_TRAVEL,
+      timestamp,
     });
+    updateRoute(getState);
     if (!getState().get('nodesLoaded')) {
       getNodes(getState, dispatch);
       if (isResourceViewModeSelector(getState())) {
@@ -623,6 +627,7 @@ export function jumpToTime(timestamp) {
       type: ActionTypes.JUMP_TO_TIME,
       timestamp,
     });
+    updateRoute(getScopeState);
     getNodes(getScopeState, dispatch);
     getTopologies(getScopeState, dispatch);
     if (isResourceViewModeSelector(getScopeState())) {
@@ -661,13 +666,32 @@ export function receiveTopologies(topologies) {
 }
 
 export function receiveApiDetails(apiDetails) {
-  return {
-    type: ActionTypes.RECEIVE_API_DETAILS,
-    capabilities: fromJS(apiDetails.capabilities),
-    hostname: apiDetails.hostname,
-    version: apiDetails.version,
-    newVersion: apiDetails.newVersion,
-    plugins: apiDetails.plugins,
+  return (dispatch, getState) => {
+    const isFirstTime = !getState().get('version');
+    const pausedAt = getState().get('pausedAt');
+
+    dispatch({
+      type: ActionTypes.RECEIVE_API_DETAILS,
+      capabilities: fromJS(apiDetails.capabilities || {}),
+      hostname: apiDetails.hostname,
+      version: apiDetails.version,
+      newVersion: apiDetails.newVersion,
+      plugins: apiDetails.plugins,
+    });
+
+    // On initial load either start time travelling at the pausedAt timestamp
+    // (if it was given as URL param) if time travelling is enabled, otherwise
+    // simply pause at the present time which is arguably the next best thing
+    // we could do.
+    // NOTE: We can't make this decision before API details are received because
+    // we have no prior info on whether time travel would be available.
+    if (isFirstTime && pausedAt) {
+      if (apiDetails.capabilities && apiDetails.capabilities.historic_reports) {
+        dispatch(startTimeTravel(pausedAt));
+      } else {
+        dispatch(pauseTimeAtNow());
+      }
+    }
   };
 }
 
@@ -806,10 +830,6 @@ export function shutdown() {
   return (dispatch) => {
     stopPolling();
     teardownWebsockets();
-    // Exit the time travel mode before unmounting the app.
-    dispatch({
-      type: ActionTypes.RESUME_TIME
-    });
     dispatch({
       type: ActionTypes.SHUTDOWN
     });
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/components/footer.js b/client/app/scripts/components/footer.js
index e31d833d9..99f7dee2e 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/components/footer.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/components/footer.js
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ class Footer extends React.Component {
             </a>
           }
           <span className="footer-label">Version</span>
-          {version}
+          {version || '...'}
           <span className="footer-label">on</span>
           {hostname}
         </div>
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-info.js b/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-info.js
index 1434c98d9..8fc72bb0d 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-info.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-info.js
@@ -5,7 +5,6 @@ import { Map as makeMap } from 'immutable';
 import MatchedText from '../matched-text';
 import ShowMore from '../show-more';
 import { formatDataType } from '../../utils/string-utils';
-import { getSerializedTimeTravelTimestamp } from '../../utils/web-api-utils';
 
 
 class NodeDetailsInfo extends React.Component {
@@ -68,7 +67,7 @@ class NodeDetailsInfo extends React.Component {
 
 function mapStateToProps(state) {
   return {
-    timestamp: getSerializedTimeTravelTimestamp(state),
+    timestamp: state.get('pausedAt'),
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-table.js b/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-table.js
index a0a91efb0..309cfab9c 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-table.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/components/node-details/node-details-table.js
@@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ import NodeDetailsTableRow from './node-details-table-row';
 import NodeDetailsTableHeaders from './node-details-table-headers';
 import { ipToPaddedString } from '../../utils/string-utils';
 import { moveElement, insertElement } from '../../utils/array-utils';
-import { getSerializedTimeTravelTimestamp } from '../../utils/web-api-utils';
 import {
   isIP, isNumber, defaultSortDesc, getTableColumnsStyles
 } from '../../utils/node-details-utils';
@@ -305,7 +304,7 @@ NodeDetailsTable.defaultProps = {
 
 function mapStateToProps(state) {
   return {
-    timestamp: getSerializedTimeTravelTimestamp(state),
+    timestamp: state.get('pausedAt'),
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/components/time-travel-wrapper.js b/client/app/scripts/components/time-travel-wrapper.js
index c694ea636..90379d60e 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/components/time-travel-wrapper.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/components/time-travel-wrapper.js
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ class TimeTravelWrapper extends React.Component {
   }
 
   changeTimestamp(timestamp) {
-    this.props.jumpToTime(timestamp);
+    this.props.jumpToTime(moment(timestamp).utc());
   }
 
   trackTimestampEdit() {
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ class TimeTravelWrapper extends React.Component {
     return (
       <TimeTravel
         visible={visible}
-        timestamp={timestamp || moment()}
+        timestamp={timestamp}
         earliestTimestamp={this.props.earliestTimestamp}
         onChangeTimestamp={this.changeTimestamp}
         onTimestampInputEdit={this.trackTimestampEdit}
@@ -75,6 +75,7 @@ class TimeTravelWrapper extends React.Component {
 
 function mapStateToProps(state, { params }) {
   const scopeState = state.scope || state;
+  const pausedAt = scopeState.get('pausedAt');
   let firstSeenConnectedAt;
 
   // If we're in the Weave Cloud context, use firstSeeConnectedAt as the earliest timestamp.
@@ -89,8 +90,8 @@ function mapStateToProps(state, { params }) {
     visible: scopeState.get('showingTimeTravel'),
     topologyViewMode: scopeState.get('topologyViewMode'),
     currentTopology: scopeState.get('currentTopology'),
-    earliestTimestamp: firstSeenConnectedAt,
-    timestamp: scopeState.get('pausedAt'),
+    earliestTimestamp: firstSeenConnectedAt && firstSeenConnectedAt.utc().format(),
+    timestamp: pausedAt && pausedAt.utc().format(),
   };
 }
 
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/reducers/root.js b/client/app/scripts/reducers/root.js
index 1cfafc5bf..80bb49411 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/reducers/root.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/reducers/root.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 /* eslint-disable import/no-webpack-loader-syntax, import/no-unresolved */
 import debug from 'debug';
+import moment from 'moment';
 import { size, each, includes, isEqual } from 'lodash';
 import {
   fromJS,
@@ -9,8 +10,6 @@ import {
   OrderedMap as makeOrderedMap,
 } from 'immutable';
 
-import { nowInSecondsPrecision } from 'weaveworks-ui-components/lib/utils/time';
-
 import ActionTypes from '../constants/action-types';
 import {
   GRAPH_VIEW_MODE,
@@ -24,6 +23,7 @@ import { isPausedSelector } from '../selectors/time-travel';
 import { activeTopologyZoomCacheKeyPathSelector } from '../selectors/zooming';
 import { timestampsEqual } from '../utils/time-utils';
 import { applyPinnedSearches } from '../utils/search-utils';
+import { deserializeTimestamp } from '../utils/web-api-utils';
 import {
   findTopologyById,
   setTopologyUrlsById,
@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ export const initialState = makeMap({
   topologyOptions: makeOrderedMap(), // topologyId -> options
   topologyUrlsById: makeOrderedMap(), // topologyId -> topologyUrl
   topologyViewMode: GRAPH_VIEW_MODE,
-  version: '...',
+  version: null,
   versionUpdate: null,
   // Set some initial numerical values to prevent NaN in case of edgy race conditions.
   viewport: makeMap({ width: 0, height: 0 }),
@@ -381,13 +381,13 @@ export function rootReducer(state = initialState, action) {
     case ActionTypes.PAUSE_TIME_AT_NOW: {
       state = state.set('showingTimeTravel', false);
       state = state.set('timeTravelTransitioning', false);
-      return state.set('pausedAt', nowInSecondsPrecision());
+      return state.set('pausedAt', moment().utc());
     }
 
     case ActionTypes.START_TIME_TRAVEL: {
       state = state.set('showingTimeTravel', true);
       state = state.set('timeTravelTransitioning', false);
-      return state.set('pausedAt', nowInSecondsPrecision());
+      return state.set('pausedAt', action.timestamp || moment().utc());
     }
 
     case ActionTypes.JUMP_TO_TIME: {
@@ -694,6 +694,9 @@ export function rootReducer(state = initialState, action) {
         pinnedMetricType: action.state.pinnedMetricType
       });
       state = state.set('topologyViewMode', action.state.topologyViewMode);
+      if (action.state.pausedAt) {
+        state = state.set('pausedAt', deserializeTimestamp(action.state.pausedAt));
+      }
       if (action.state.gridSortedBy) {
         state = state.set('gridSortedBy', action.state.gridSortedBy);
       }
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/utils/router-utils.js b/client/app/scripts/utils/router-utils.js
index ce35ca468..ae0c3a743 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/utils/router-utils.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/utils/router-utils.js
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import { each } from 'lodash';
 
 import { route } from '../actions/app-actions';
 import { storageGet, storageSet } from './storage-utils';
+import { serializeTimestamp } from './web-api-utils';
 
 //
 // page.js won't match the routes below if ":state" has a slash in it, so replace those before we
@@ -50,6 +51,7 @@ export function getUrlState(state) {
   const urlState = {
     controlPipe: cp ? cp.toJS() : null,
     nodeDetails: nodeDetails.toJS(),
+    pausedAt: serializeTimestamp(state.get('pausedAt')),
     topologyViewMode: state.get('topologyViewMode'),
     pinnedMetricType: state.get('pinnedMetricType'),
     pinnedSearches: state.get('pinnedSearches').toJS(),
@@ -59,7 +61,7 @@ export function getUrlState(state) {
     gridSortedDesc: state.get('gridSortedDesc'),
     topologyId: state.get('currentTopologyId'),
     topologyOptions: state.get('topologyOptions').toJS(), // all options,
-    contrastMode: state.get('contrastMode')
+    contrastMode: state.get('contrastMode'),
   };
 
   if (state.get('showingNetworks')) {
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/utils/string-utils.js b/client/app/scripts/utils/string-utils.js
index d64123055..65788be56 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/utils/string-utils.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/utils/string-utils.js
@@ -104,13 +104,12 @@ export function humanizedRoundedDownDuration(duration) {
 // that matches the `dataType` of the field. You must return an Object
 // with the keys `value` and `title` defined.
 // `referenceTimestamp` is the timestamp we've time-travelled to.
-export function formatDataType(field, referenceTimestampStr = null) {
+export function formatDataType(field, referenceTimestamp = null) {
   const formatters = {
     datetime(timestampString) {
       const timestamp = moment(timestampString);
-      const referenceTimestamp = referenceTimestampStr ? moment(referenceTimestampStr) : moment();
       return {
-        value: timestamp.from(referenceTimestamp),
+        value: timestamp.from(referenceTimestamp ? moment(referenceTimestamp) : moment()),
         title: timestamp.utc().toISOString()
       };
     },
diff --git a/client/app/scripts/utils/web-api-utils.js b/client/app/scripts/utils/web-api-utils.js
index 6672bb847..7f9d503b4 100644
--- a/client/app/scripts/utils/web-api-utils.js
+++ b/client/app/scripts/utils/web-api-utils.js
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 import debug from 'debug';
+import moment from 'moment';
 import reqwest from 'reqwest';
 import { defaults } from 'lodash';
 import { Map as makeMap, List } from 'immutable';
@@ -49,16 +50,17 @@ let firstMessageOnWebsocketAt = null;
 let continuePolling = true;
 
 
-export function getSerializedTimeTravelTimestamp(state) {
-  // The timestamp parameter will be used only if it's in the past.
-  if (!isPausedSelector(state)) return null;
+export function serializeTimestamp(timestamp) {
+  return timestamp ? timestamp.toISOString() : null;
+}
 
-  return state.get('pausedAt').toISOString();
+export function deserializeTimestamp(str) {
+  return str ? moment(str) : null;
 }
 
 export function buildUrlQuery(params = makeMap(), state) {
   // Attach the time travel timestamp to every request to the backend.
-  params = params.set('timestamp', getSerializedTimeTravelTimestamp(state));
+  params = params.set('timestamp', serializeTimestamp(state.get('pausedAt')));
 
   // Ignore the entries with values `null` or `undefined`.
   return params.map((value, param) => {
diff --git a/client/package.json b/client/package.json
index 84262ece0..0416b0f08 100644
--- a/client/package.json
+++ b/client/package.json
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@
     "reselect": "3.0.1",
     "reselect-map": "1.0.3",
     "styled-components": "^2.2.1",
-    "weaveworks-ui-components": "git+https://github.com/weaveworks/ui-components.git#v0.1.51",
+    "weaveworks-ui-components": "git+https://github.com/weaveworks/ui-components.git#v0.1.52",
     "whatwg-fetch": "2.0.3",
     "xterm": "2.9.2"
   },
diff --git a/client/yarn.lock b/client/yarn.lock
index cf7961609..aec961cd1 100644
--- a/client/yarn.lock
+++ b/client/yarn.lock
@@ -6666,9 +6666,9 @@ wd@^0.4.0:
     underscore.string "~3.0.3"
     vargs "~0.1.0"
 
-"weaveworks-ui-components@git+https://github.com/weaveworks/ui-components.git#v0.1.51":
-  version "0.1.51"
-  resolved "git+https://github.com/weaveworks/ui-components.git#a08ea6a026f4cd58c66d4965838cf04d074604a4"
+"weaveworks-ui-components@git+https://github.com/weaveworks/ui-components.git#v0.1.52":
+  version "0.1.52"
+  resolved "git+https://github.com/weaveworks/ui-components.git#48978545233bfb0d1ac87795f332221cdaa58fc9"
   dependencies:
     babel-cli "^6.18.0"
     babel-plugin-transform-export-extensions "6.8.0"