The North Cornwall Line - what was it really like?

[2ManySpams]

Nail - head - hit. That and the facts that it was essentially a railway known to most only from holiday travels and had the curiosity of the Beattie well-tanks near the far end.

 

That's waht did it for us in the early days of building Treneglos. 2 and 3 coach trains, Bulleids, T9s, N Class, compact stations with interesting architecture and the distinctive countryside. Oh and having a named train the 'ACE' on it too. As time has gone on we've got more ito the detail and realised that some trains were longer than 3 coaches and there's scope for a bit more variety of motive power if you play with time periods. It's also notable how many folk at shows have memories of summer holidays in the area - much wearing of rose tinted glasses and 'the sun always shining'...

[Penlan]

....I believe that today Cornwall is one of the "poorest" counties in England, despite, or perhaps because of, the gazillions of contented retirees moving there.....

Yes, it is probably the poorest County in England, there are very few jobs, but there is plenty of work, especially for trades persons ( ),

we have numerous builders, decorators, plumbers, electricians etc., in the village and they are booked up for at least 6 months ahead,

some never leave the village at all to do work.

 

The 'gazillions of contented retirees' provide plenty of work too, whatever property they buy, it needs gutting, repair, new kitchen units ......

sometimes new roof's - the lot, gardens tending to... yup, plenty of work, just no jobs as we say way down west.

 

Of course the gazillions of contented retirees can't be said to be taking money out of the local economy either (the normal cry from locals) - their pensions are paid by the Gov't and whatever private pensions they have managed to save, and that is spent locally on services and provisions.

[Peter Kazmierczak]

Of course most of the photos taken on the NCL would've shown the line in summer to it's best advantage.

 

Usually the weather rolls in from the North Atlantic so can be very changeable, as illustrated by the picture below (taken this month) on a damp, misty afternoon.....

[Andy Kirkham]

Thank you all for informative replies.

 

My own experience of the North Cornwall Line was a fortnight's (car-based) holiday in Padstow in 1964. I'm really annoyed with my 8-year-old self for not having been very interested in railways then. My Dad took me up the the station one morning and there was a Pacific at the platform, but I wasn't interested enough to ask to go again. I recall we spent some time on a beach which had a view across the water of a girder bridge (presumably the famous Little Petherick Creek) but although we must have been there for some hours, I'm sure no train came past (perhaps it was Sunday) and I remember seeing the level crossing at what must have been Wadebridge, but I wasn't aware of any trains. I know I was more concerned about whether the town had a Woolworths so I could buy an (inevitably miltary) Airfix kit. .

 

(And while I'm on this melancholy theme I will mention that we lived in Bristol and our 1962 holiday was in Bournemouth - and we went by coach:()

 

Andy

[Oldddudders]

My own experience of the North Cornwall Line was a fortnight's (car-based) holiday in Padstow in 1964. I'm really annoyed with my 8-year-old self for not having been very interested in railways then. My Dad took me up the the station one morning and there was a Pacific at the platform, but I wasn't interested enough to ask to go again. I recall we spent some time on a beach which had a view across the water of a girder bridge (presumably the famous Little Petherick Creek) but although we must have been there for some hours, I'm sure no train came past (perhaps it was Sunday) and I remember seeing the level crossing at what must have been Wadebridge, but I wasn't aware of any trains. I know I was more concerned about whether the town had a Woolworths so I could buy an (inevitably miltary) Airfix kit. .

 

(And while I'm on this melancholy theme I will mention that we lived in Bristol and our 1962 holiday was in Bournemouth - and we went by coach:()

Andy

 

In the unimpaired 20/20 vision that is retrospect, we all mis-spend our youth to some extent. My comment above about lack of trains is a classic example. In 1961, staying at Port Isaac - which is some little distance from Port Isaac Road, of course - I spent a day at Wadebridge, catching the 133 or 413 bus. In the course of that day I saw all three Beattie Well Tanks, plus various other "stuff", and had a trip to Bodmin North. No camera, being 12. But I was bored - not enough trains! So the next trip was to Par, by train from Wadebridge via Bodmin General and Bodmin Road, where I knew there would be far more "life" - and there was. Main line trains with steam and diesel. A Grange coming off St Blazey shed. A NBL Type 2 sitting in the platform asleep, which made so much of a bang when restarted that I jumped in the air.

 

Today, I, and many others, would delight in the slow and deliberate workings of a sleepy Wadebridge, but at 12, it just didn't cut it.

[TheSignalEngineer]

Cycled part of the disused line one morning about 20 years ago when I came down on the sleeper from Paddington to Bodmin Road bound for Tintagel. Didn't see a lot, even though it was summer, as at 8am the cloud base was about 200 feet below Camelford Station. Much of the line was amazingly ghostly and desolate in those sort of conditions, but I haven't seen anyone using a pop video fog generator on a layout yet.

[Gwiwer]

I haven't seen anyone using a pop video fog generator on a layout yet.

 

DCC does stand for Digital Climate Control, doesn't it? B)

[2ManySpams]

Cycled part of the disused line one morning about 20 years ago when I came down on the sleeper from Paddington to Bodmin Road bound for Tintagel. Didn't see a lot, even though it was summer, as at 8am the cloud base was about 200 feet below Camelford Station. Much of the line was amazingly ghostly and desolate in those sort of conditions, but I haven't seen anyone using a pop video fog generator on a layout yet.

 

Could be an idea for Treneglos at this weekend's show in Truro. We'd probably have to fit a perspex sheet to the front to keep the 'fog' on though...

[sammyboy]

I wonder if the North Cornwall Line/Withered Arm was still open today, if the passenger numbers would have increased as there are now more cars & lorries on the roads as the A30 runs through the area. And which privatised rail company would operate the trains,

South West Trains? First Great Western?

 

Sam

[brianusa]

Possibly you have answered your own question, Sam.  The improved A30 and others have made it much easier to get around especially to up country. We have noticed the difference when back home on holiday.  Barnstaple works well because of the time and distance involved as well as good frequent service.  Don't know if it would work with the other communities.  One has only to glance at the old timetables.

 

Brian.