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A projected Scottish narrow gauge railway in 3 foot gauge


PeterR

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Hi,

 

In the present issue of the Great North Review there is an interesting projected railway; and 3 foot narrow gauge as well. This was in 1869, and again in 1880, afterwards appearing to 'fade away'.

 

It was surveyed (I suspect this would be a quick and not detailed survey) from Alyth, on the Caledonian Railway to Braemar (being near to the Great North of Scotland Railway, via the Spittal of Glenshee; (Spittal means a shelter or a place of refuge) which meant that it started at 300 foot or so, and the summit would have been in excess of 2000 feet,  descending to just over a 1000 feet  at Braemar.

 

The 'Spittal' is now a skiing area, on the A93 that road used to be known for the double hairpin bend with the last portion being at 30 degrees, called the Devils elbow – since the 1960s it has been bypassed.

 

The weather in winter can be severe!

 

The railway was to use Fairlie locomotives – like the Welsh Highland, but I think (supposition) that they would be much larger (being 3 foot gauge) and possibly single Fairlies. – I have built a couple of American single Fairlies, as used by the Denver & South Park RR (which ran from 5280 feet in Denver to 7000 feet and then 11000 feet), the larger of which is a scale 40 feet long being a 2 8 6.

 

The railway was just one of a whole series of ‘projected’ railways some standard gauge, in Scotland to right some of the wrongs with the Highland ‘clearances’. IF it had been built and managed to survive it would be a superb railway now with the preservation movement, and could/would have relieved some of the long queues on the A93 with ski enthusiasts going to the Glenshee ski area perhaps?   

 

Yours Peter.

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