First time visiting SVR and NYMR - any tips?

[Lacathedrale]

My wife, newborn and I are heading to the SVR for the Autumn Steam Gala on the Thurs 15th of September, and to the NYMR for the Yorkshire Express on the Tues 18th of October. Other than them being two of the larger preserved railways I know NOTHING about them - what to see, what to avoid, etc. I say this, because visiting the Bluebell with a knowledgeable friend he suggested we take the first train up to EG from SP, next train back to HK, get lunch before the rush of the next train, etc. etc. and it was a much more pleasant experience than just muddling through.

 

For the SVR trip we are based about 15 miles away in Alcester, and the plan is to drive into Kidderminster and try to catch the Black Five and 2800 in motion - but thats about as far as i have got! As it pertains to trips to take/avoid I'm a bit lost.

 

For the NYMR trip we are based in Whitby. The train departs Whitby at 10:00 heading for Pickering before returning after a few hours at 16:30ish. Seeing as this is the only train of the day and getting off, while permitted, means hanging around until the train returns. Is there a station/area that is significantly nicer than Pickering to pass a few hours? Anything particular to see at either end? Not sure a shed tour is on the cards with baby, really... 

 

Any tips at all would be gladly appreciated!

[AY Mod]

29 minutes ago, Lacathedrale said:

For the SVR trip we are based about 15 miles away in Alcester, and the plan is to drive into Kidderminster and try to catch the Black Five and 2800 in motion - but thats about as far as i have got! As it pertains to trips to take/avoid I'm a bit lost.

 

You may have already seen the timetable for the gala weekend https://www.svr.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/SVR-Autumn-Steam-Gala-Timetable-Updated-15082022.pdf but check back nearer the time as it will usually say what locos are operating each train which may guide your movements.

 

It'll be a busy weekend of course but I would recommend heading for the King & Castle pub or the tearooms and pick up some delicious cheese and onion or ham rolls and munch you way through those on the train and if you reach Bridgnorth the Railwayman's arms is the other catering to aim for.

 

Rather than trying to cram too much in it's worth taking your time and maybe stop off at Highley and walk over to the Engine House museum and after a look around sit on the balcony if the weather's OK  (more food and cake) and watch the comings and goings and you'll see plenty with trains no more than 30 mins apart. I love sitting there and hearing whistles echo around the valley and a clear elevated view of the stock.

 

Fingers crossed you get the weather as it's a really enjoyable day out. Bonus I-Spy points for elephants en-route.

[Blandford1969]

For breakfast AJ's just round the corner from the station and ironically under the SVR offices is great food at a great price.  2857 should not be too heavily loaded being a home fleet engine, albeit its last gala before withdrawal . Not sure on the 5 as to how much that will be a pull, we have not had one for a good few years since 5110 went out of traffic (from memory). 

 

The Engine House is worth a visit at Highley as you can watch trains go by. Not sure what the food is like now it is not upstairs. 

 

Downsides baby changing is not great and food on the railway can be expensive.  The pub at Bridgnorth serves great beer and the cake in the restaurant is very good. Hagley Hall is likely to be heavily loaded being the first gala since coming back into traffic - it is now painted and is being shunted out of the TMD this morning.  Not sure how heavily loaded the suggested Terrier might be, but would expect that on locals. 

 

At least being Thursday you will be much less likely to come into contact with the more pungent visitors which is more a trait of the tail end of the weekend. 

[tractionman]

For the SVR I do love Arley, there's a picnic area at the station--the steam gala is popular and trains busy, but going on the Thursday is a wise choice! The line is long and for a new born might be bit of an endurance trial unless they're asleep... so breaking up the journey into sections is a good plan, there's something to see at every station and lots of atmos. Watch the platform at Hampton Loade, as the train usually overhangs the length of the platform and it can get a bit testy getting off and on here if it is busy. Bridgnorth is a lovely town if you leave the station and head up the hill.

 

NYMR, lovely to spend sometime at Goathland and Grosmont stations (and villages) en route, if a break of journey is feasible.

 

You've picked two corkers, great lines, hope you have a good time and post some pics here!

 

cheers,

 

Keith

 

 

 

[Morello Cherry]

With a baby I would definitely recommend breaking the journey for a pure a simple reason - nappy stops/feeds etc.

 

My suggestion would be:

 

Kidd - Arley/Highley - break

Arley/Highley - Bridgnorth - break

Bridgnorth - Arley/Highley - break

Arley/Highley - Kidd

 

With the return trip if you need to get home because baby is tired/hungry you've then you can just go straight through and skip the break.

 

Baby changing not normally great on preserved railways so take the full kit.

[rogerzilla]

Been to both, several times.  SVR: most of the stuff to look at is at Bridgnorth, Highley or Kidderminster.  Arley and Hampton Loade are very pretty stations but there's not much there if you're stuck for an hour or two.  Bridgnorth town is well worth a visit, Kidderminster a lot less so.

 

NYMR: Grosmont is the only real station with lots to look at.  The walk from Goathland to Grosmont is quite nice through the woods.  Whitby is a good place to visit although there's not much NYMR presence there except a ticket office, being a NR station.

[Lacathedrale]

Thank you all! To repeat back the advice so far:

 

For SVR:

• It seems the pram will need to be loaded into luggage area but that's fine
• Breakfast beforehand in Kidderminster at AJ's, or sandwiches/etc. from King & Castle/Tearooms
• Break up the trip with stops over at Highley and/or Arley.  Trains every 30min so no major dramas stopping off at Arley even if there's nothing else going on, in theory?
• Bridgnorth - worth a trip to the town for a bit and have a bite to eat at the Railwayman's Arms Pub

For NYMR:

• I have booked a compartment so we should be able to get the pram in with us, and change baby en-route
• Since only one train each way, can't really get off at Goathland or Grosmont unless I'm prepared to skip Pickering, I can't imagine that's worth it without the walk/anything else to do? A walk through the forest sounds lovely but not practical with pram so will have to wait until she's a rambler.
• Would like to have done the shed tour, but unless I can convince the wife to take care of baby for a couple of hours on a different day, it's unlikely.

[43110andyb]

I can only comment on the NYMR and having travelled with young children many times (albeit over 10 years ago as kids grown up) and latest journey yesterday.

Whitby - One of our favourite coastal spots! And as your based there you can explore at your leisure I guess!

Grosmont - the walk to the sheds via one of the oldest railway tunnels in the world is pushchair friendly but a little less so at the shed itself (shop is upstairs and underfoot a little uneven around the site but nothing too bad). Village lovely with pub/cafes and a model shop near the railway.

Goathland - (Heartbeats Aidensfield) short walk uphill but not steep into the picturesque village centre. Again pubs/cafes and usually a few Heartbeat themed vehicles and souvenirs to be found. 
Levisham - a fairly remote station and probably not ideal for pushchairs but plenty of great walking routes but a trek to the actual village. 
Pickering - lovely small market town. Railway station is right in the centre and great to access the many shops/pubs/cafes/restaurants/flea market and castle!

 

hope this helps! Ps-  If you want me to expand (if I can) just shout!

 

 

  

   

[wollastonblue]

On gala days the King and Castle/Railwaymans Arms do get extremely busy. I live in the street opposite the station in Kidderminster so I can testify to that. Parking around the station is either Pay and Display or in our case Residents Permits. So park on the SVR station at £4 for the day. Kidderminster end I would head for the Weavers Real Ale House down the road from the station, which will be quieter, whilst they do Cobs, you can get something more substantial from one of the many takeaways on Comberton Hill (Chips/Pizza/Indian/Chinese and Chicken available) and eat it in the pub (children are welcome until 7pm).

 

Bridgnorth end many pubs in High Town worth visiting including the White Lion for a Scotch Egg and a Pint of Golden Wanderer.

[Michael Hodgson]

In addition to the SVR, if you have time to spare in Bridgnorth, there's this

https://www.bridgnorthcliffrailway.co.uk/

Kidderminster has an interesting museum http://www.krm.org.uk/

Bewdley is probably the best place to see things going on

 

Whitby used to have a steam bus, though I gather that has now left the area.  The town is famour for the Abbey, Dracula and its popular with goths who invade the town from time to time.

Grosmont (the junction with the national network) is interesting station, with as mentioned above, the sheds nearby.

Goathland is pretty, much more rural and as mentioned above agian, local traders capitalise on the Heartbeat TV series.

Levisham is perhaps bleaker, a small passing place among the moorland, but it does boast a more traditional NER image, with slotted post signals.  The signalbox doubles as booking office (and there's an accurate model of it in the Hornby range).  The level crossing is also unusual, being worked by the box when thats open, by road users at other times.

Pickering is worthwhile if your good lady wants a break from trains as it is a pleasant town to wander round or break for lunch in a pub.

 

 

 

 

[RichardT]

3 hours ago, Lacathedrale said:

Seeing as this is the only train of the day and getting off, while permitted, means hanging around until the train returns.

Not quite.  You can only *return to Whitby* on your designated Whitby train, as that’s the only one on which you will have a reserved seat. The NYMR are now making a big thing of advance bookings, but that’s mainly aimed at regulating demand on the very busy Whitby services. However, you are allowed to hop off and then use one of what the NYMR now call their “internal services” - The Moors Explorer service - to travel between the intermediate stations on the NYMR, if the timetable on the day makes that feasible. You won’t have a reserved seat on those trains but if you’re visiting on 18th Oct that shouldn’t be as bonkers busy as the summer, and all the trains have a “turn-up and go” carriage on them anyway for on the day bookings.  
 

Have a look at the Bronze timetable on the NYMR website - the full timetable, not just the timings for the Whitby train - and see what’s possible, and what the NYMR say about hop on and hop off.

Timetable link: here

 

RichardT

Edited August 22, 2022 by RichardT
Adding timetable link

[Morello Cherry]

@Lacathedrale - Bridgnorth is hilly. You might not want to push the pram up and down the hill. Does it have to the be the pram or can you use a baby carrier? Baby carrier does give you free hands but a long day can/will kill your back. It can also be hot.

 

The only other advice is pace yourself and work to baby's timetable rather than the railway's. The advantage with the SVR is if baby is having a long feed/sleep or needs an urgent change there will be another train along soon.

[AY Mod]

If you need any further distraction https://www.footplate.co.uk/ is quarter of a mile down the hill from Kiddy station. There's a well-stocked model/book/gift shop on the station too.

[Blandford1969]

2 hours ago, Morello Cherry said:

@Lacathedrale - Bridgnorth is hilly. You might not want to push the pram up and down the hill. Does it have to the be the pram or can you use a baby carrier? Baby carrier does give you free hands but a long day can/will kill your back. It can also be hot.

 

The only other advice is pace yourself and work to baby's timetable rather than the railway's. The advantage with the SVR is if baby is having a long feed/sleep or needs an urgent change there will be another train along soon.

I'd agree on the baby's timetable, however having pushed my two up and down from High town to the station and back, (for me) it was not too bad (as a town resident)

 

High town also has wonderful food that will eat you to a standstill at The Old Castle. They also keep a very good pint. For your other half Bridgnorth has some great small shops - such as 'Wild Heart' on Listley Street - my wife loves the clothes in there generally Italian but at really good prices. 

[pete_mcfarlane]

If you want to kill an hour or two in Pickering there's a rather nice castle. Good bit of exercise pushing a pushchair up the hill to it too. 

[Michael Hodgson]

25 minutes ago, pete_mcfarlane said:

If you want to kill an hour or two in Pickering there's a rather nice castle. Good bit of exercise pushing a pushchair up the hill to it too. 

But take the baby out first if Compo or Foggy decide to ride back down the hill in it !

[43110andyb]

1 hour ago, Michael Hodgson said:

But take the baby out first if Compo or Foggy decide to ride back down the hill in it !

Will have to get some speed up to travel the 80 odd miles back to Holmfirth though 🤔😂

[Chris M]

If you stop of at Arley take a walk down to the river and across the bridge; not railway related but just very pleasant. The Engine House at Highley is a good place to visit and admission is included with your ticket.

 

Pickering is a small town and worth having a walk around. The Castle is ok; I enjoyed spending an hour there. There used to be an interesting little book shop by Pickering station with old railway books at reasonable prices - I expect it is still there.

[Wheatley]

Pickering - the yard north of the station (just off the platform end) often has some interesting  stuff parked in it, and you can stand at the LC for a less crowded view of the trains going by. There are a couple of sheds used for carriage and wagon restoration, both were open last time we went and worth wandering through to see what they're up to. There is also a large car park/shop/cafe on the old trout lake immediately north of the station which I believe has some model railway interest but I've not been yet and I can't find a link to the business (anyone ?)

 

Toilets and a decent cafe on the station but there are also a few small cafes, chip shops in Pickering itself as well as pubs. 

 

Walk south from the station, turn right, the Beck Isle Museum of Rural Life is well worth a visit. Walk south from the station, turn left, there is a rather good toy/model/lego shop hidden behind the first pub on your left, and a sort of flea market thing further up the hill on the right. They've tidied it up a bit but still worth a rummage.  

 

The book shop is still there, but he can talk for England - you have been warned. 

 

Edited August 23, 2022 by Wheatley

[Boris]

SVR is ace, plan on spending the day exploring, the Engine House is a brilliant way to spend an hour and the cafe has decent priced food.

 

Don't bother with the NYMR until they sort out their stupid ticketing system, and ideally clear the management out from the top down.

[BMS]

SVR; At Bridgenorth the station is directly connected to High Town via a long flat footbridge.  Then there is the cliff railway to drop to the lower level. If you want😄

[RichardT]

53 minutes ago, Boris said:

 

SVR is ace, plan on spending the day exploring, the Engine House is a brilliant way to spend an hour and the cafe has decent priced food.

 

Don't bother with the NYMR until they sort out their stupid ticketing system, and ideally clear the management out from the top down.

 

Thanks for that negativity. As the OP has already booked a trip on the NYMR your comment was really helpful.
 

Still, it’s always useful when people put themselves forward for the “ignore user” button - saves having to read lots of their posts. Although your username is a pretty good red flag.

 

RichardT

 

Edited August 23, 2022 by RichardT

[rogerzilla]

41 minutes ago, BMS said:

SVR; At Bridgenorth the station is directly connected to High Town via a long flat footbridge.  Then there is the cliff railway to drop to the lower level. If you want😄

 

The footbridge does save a lot of going down and up again but there is still half the climb to do!  You can go up Cannon Steps right into the castle gardens, or follow the road up to West Castle Street.

 

Bridgnorth is full of nooks and crannies.  Telford lived on East Castle Street (the most expensive street) and designed the domed church at the end.

 

By the way, the SVR has two tunnels.  See if you can spot the shorter Knowle Sands tunnel.  Blink and you'll miss it.

[Blandford1969]

1 hour ago, BMS said:

SVR; At Bridgenorth the station is directly connected to High Town via a long flat footbridge.  Then there is the cliff railway to drop to the lower level. If you want😄

As a historical note the town lost the e in about the late 19th century. In fairness after the footbridge there is still a little walk to high town.

[Blandford1969]

18 minutes ago, rogerzilla said:

By the way, the SVR has two tunnels.  See if you can spot the shorter Knowle Sands tunnel.  Blink and you'll miss it.

Its so short it might as well be a bridge ! that's why most of us do not whistle - the only thing on my first driving test I was picked up on , lol