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Local Lockdown Walks - with a railway connection, however tenuous


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29 minutes ago, Gilbert said:

I agree about the fence post idea but they seemed to be part of a larger structure. I've found a photo from Lockdown #1

49808525983_ab80b9c6e5_z.jpg

 

Yes that is a more substantial structure than I have previously seen,

 

cheers

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2 hours ago, Gilbert said:

I agree about the fence post idea but they seemed to be part of a larger structure. I've found a photo from Lockdown #1

49808525983_ab80b9c6e5_z.jpg

 

Is the bridge thing part of the branch at Keynsham that ran to Fry's factory? I know there was one but I am not local enough to know where it was in relation to your pictures.

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3 minutes ago, john new said:

Is the bridge thing part of the branch at Keynsham that ran to Fry's factory? I know there was one but I am not local enough to know where it was in relation to your pictures.

No John - its local but not close. The bridge is on the GWML a bit east of Keynsham station. Frys was NNW.

There is a very good local historical society which I keep meaning to join!

Chris

Edited by Gilbert
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After re-covering a chair for 'er indoors this morning I decided that it was time I took a decent walk again. We needed some milk anyway and nearest shop is over half an hour walk. Haven't done much walking since before Christmas so set off on a route I used quite a lot last summer.

After walking across Colliers Wood on the former Moorgreen pit site I follow a footpath towards the Hilltop area of Eastwood.

Last year I thought it seemed like a former railway line and found a map on the old maps website which shows it as a mineral railway, but couldn't get a clear enough look at it.

I actually found a large scale OS map of the area as a mural in the newly refitted Co-op at Hilltop a couple of weeks ago which confirmed my thoughts, so took a picture of it.

 

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The footpath follows the trackbed as far as Mill Road then the rest up to the sidings is buried under a recentish, 1990s(?) development of bungalows.

I'm guessing it was a landsales area as the line comes directly from Moorgreen pit yard. It's quite steep in places and again I would guess that wagons were propelled uphill, as it appears there's no run round facility.

As for closure dates, the pit closed in 1985, landsales may well have finished earlier.

 

A couple of photos: the bottom end of the incline towards former colliery buildings and workshops, now prospering with Caunton engineering.

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Towards the top shortly before coming out on Mill Road which must have been crossed on the level, the building on the left is fairly recent but the wall beyond is quite old so could give an idea of the gradient at this point.

 

 

IMG_20210220_155615699.jpg.5036e3a75d8ec4e8b8df3fd8bf4af456.jpg

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To continue from above due to the upload limit.

The view across Mill Road where a level crossing would have been, interestingly there's an area of old paving slabs where I would have expected the line to have run. No idea what they were for.

 

IMG_20210220_155846204.jpg.0afa57ffd1decfb870a0d7fc8f0de336.jpg

 

And looking back towards the incline which comes out at the galvanized gate.

No further trace apart from a blue brick wall beyond here.

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Today's walk. 

 

Incline bridge

 

IMG_5670.jpeg.3fb713edbd877481e9e8a2c1639ebfa5.jpeg

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End of the line. 

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Houses stand to the left (of the harbour) where the standard gauge coal yards used to be and on the right (of the harbour) is the location of the tramway that went coast to coast. 

IMG_5671.jpeg.fe3864da6b9b94ec62d990921ed7c1aa.jpeg

 

All visited with only a reduction in the depth of the soles on my wellies this morning. A pasty may have been picked up to sustain me on the way home.

 

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Engineering work on a lesser scale on today's lockdown bike ride (assuming that's allowed in a topic headed "walks")...

 

Fettling last week's work at Rotherham, nothing larger than a road-railer.

By the stadium:

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And by the scrapyard:

1074800203_RoadrailerRotherham.jpg.6f277f9ab41ef5f7c977cc5c51f3867c.jpg

 

I spoke to an Orange Army member over the fence, who was carrying a tray of hot drinks towards a group of workers, and said  "I know the drinks are important, but what's your real job?" "I'm the Project Manager" was the answer. Top quality management in my book - do the planning, then help the troops get on with it.

 

Further along the canal towards Sheffield, the towpath is blocked as there's scaffolding and pontoons under the GC bridge over the Don that carries the tram-trains just NE of the Tinsley junctions (the higher bridge is the newish road bridge that crosses above everything):

 

1097310770_DonbridgeworkTinsleyN.jpg.7950bb131d4fe138e51bafb6015e4f12.jpg

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Some more of the Orange Army, but on a rather smaller scale.  This time they are fettling the bridge carrying the B4022 Witney road over the OWW.  Apparently works will take 7 weeks, and the road will be closed for the duration, which is causing some concern locally as the diversion is many miles around via Woodstock.

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Ok, this one is a bit tenuous.  Photo of Lord Moreton's Seat, which is about a mile from Sarsden and on which I have sat watching the world go by many a time:

 

2106307856_LordMoretonsSeatP1190541.JPG.e4bd294014e1a0e32574e66fa8366f6b.JPG

 

The railway connection is that the grandmother of Henry Haughton Reynolds, otherwise Lord Moreton, was born Elizabeth Dutton of Sherbourne.  Elizabeth Dutton's youngest brother was Ralph Heneage Dutton, Chairman of the LSWR from 1875-1892.  Ralph Dutton was the chairman who oversaw the diplomatic removal of William George Beattie as LSWR locomotive engineer and the appointment of WIlliam Adams in his place.

This is the commemorative plaque for Ralph Heneage Dutton in Sherbourne Church:

1864017613_RHduttonmemorialP1190137.jpg.79694b4903669e9cf28cbe466fdbc457.jpg

Odd to see a memorial to an LSWR Chairman deep in GWR territory!  (And no, I haven't misspelled Sherbourne, the plaque is in Sherbourne Gloucestershire, he was born in Sherborne, Dorset.)

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On 17/02/2021 at 14:29, dagrizz said:

There is a stub of the old Rugby to Leamington line still in place as far as the Cement works at New Bilton; until recently it was very overgrown by trees and other greenery but someone has cleared it - took these pics today on our lockdown walk. I don't know if there was a reason for clearing it or if it was just housekeeping.

 

That could well be a precursor to track recovery, either by scrap dealers or hopefully by a preservation group.

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On 21/02/2021 at 14:17, Kris said:

Today's walk. 

 

Incline bridge

 

IMG_5670.jpeg.3fb713edbd877481e9e8a2c1639ebfa5.jpeg

IMG_5669.jpeg.dd62e3058623b058f953b71518a2eb9b.jpeg

 

End of the line. 

IMG_5692.jpeg.c8d8d38e10f9542f79f17f8018670e67.jpeg

 

Houses stand to the left (of the harbour) where the standard gauge coal yards used to be and on the right (of the harbour) is the location of the tramway that went coast to coast. 

IMG_5671.jpeg.fe3864da6b9b94ec62d990921ed7c1aa.jpeg

 

All visited with only a reduction in the depth of the soles on my wellies this morning. A pasty may have been picked up to sustain me on the way home.

 

We visited Portreath in 2019 and had a look around before walking along the coast. I found it interesting and would like to read up about the area and the history before we visit again. Is it possible to walk any of the old track bed of the Portreath Branch?

 

cheers

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1 hour ago, Rivercider said:

We visited Portreath in 2019 and had a look around before walking along the coast. I found it interesting and would like to read up about the area and the history before we visit again. Is it possible to walk any of the old track bed of the Portreath Branch?

 

cheers

You can walk the length of the tramway from coast to coast, it's a bike trail.

 

Of the GWR line, there are bits that could be walked as they are roads, but it would be very disconnected and you would not notice remains. The incline is private so can't be walked but you can walk up a path beside it. 

Edited by Kris
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3 hours ago, Rivercider said:

We visited Portreath in 2019 and had a look around before walking along the coast. I found it interesting and would like to read up about the area and the history before we visit again. Is it possible to walk any of the old track bed of the Portreath Branch?

 

cheers

Further to Kris's comment, volume 2 of Bob Acton's "Tramway Trials" (2nd ed Landfall Publications, 2000, ISBN1 873443 37 4) covers the coast to coast trail from Portreath to Devoran using the Portreath tramroad and the Redruth and Chasewater. Can be done end to end or as a series of 15 circular walks.  I did it about 15 years ago, well worth it.

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3 hours ago, eastglosmog said:

Further to Kris's comment, volume 2 of Bob Acton's "Tramway Trials" (2nd ed Landfall Publications, 2000, ISBN1 873443 37 4) covers the coast to coast trail from Portreath to Devoran using the Portreath tramroad and the Redruth and Chasewater. Can be done end to end or as a series of 15 circular walks.  I did it about 15 years ago, well worth it.

Thanks.

So far we have mostly done bits and pieces of the Coast Path in Devon and Cornwall, but with some river walks, canal paths, and old railway routes for variety. I will add that to the to-do list.

 

cheers

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After a few months of relative inactivity, myself and Mrs SM42 went for a walk yesterday. 8k in total. Now have sore legs.

 

We cut the corner  off our planned route as the light was fading and rather than walk across Wilden viaduct we got an early evening side on view of it instead

 

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Part of the original Severn Valley route between Hartlebury and Stourport  on Severn.

There were two other viaducts on our walk but it was too dark to photograph them 

 

Andy

 

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First time attempting to post photos from my phone, hopefully this works... 

 

Home is a few hundred yards from the Midland Railway branchline to Dursley from Coaley Junction. Quite a few remnants, I've only photos of the more obvious ones! 

 

This is the fairly well known "Gallows Bridge" footbridge over the railway alongside Everlands road, which the railway ran parallel to. Now it just pokes out of the hedgerow looking very out of place, a footpath runs alongside it across where the railway isn't. These were taken over Christmas.

 

The second picture taken from the bridge is very close to being a match for the second photo on this link http://www.dursleyglos.org.uk/html/dursley/railway/cam_dursley/cam_dursley.htm

 

To be pedantic it was the original wooden bridge that was known as the Gallows Bridge, the replacement that still stands was pretty late in the railway's life. 

 

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Edited by brianthesnail96
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These ones are from last summer's exploration, the footpath across the fields from here are decidedly soggy at this time of year. A view of and along the trackbed across the concrete bridge over the River Cam at Draycott. This is rather hidden in plain sight as it's behind an industrial estate and you don't ever really get a view of it unless you walk away along the river bank and look back. There are several other smaller bridges, both traditional brick arch and another concrete structure, between here and the footbridge in my last post. I'll have to try and snap a few of these. 

The picture of the bridge is looking towards Dursley, the one across it back towards the junction. This was the most significant structure on the branch, again some pictures of it in use are here http://www.dursleyglos.org.uk/html/dursley/railway/coaley_cam/coaley_cam.htm

 

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Edited by brianthesnail96
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