Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway

 

In a nutshell

Gauge:       15" (38.1cm)

Length:      1,150 yards (1,050 m) or 2,130 yards (1,950 m)

Opened:     1948 - Original 10¼" gauge railway opened
                    1949 - Railway extended
                    1972 - Line extended and changed to 14¼" gauge
                    1991 - Gauge changed to 15" and refurbished
                    2007 - Railway extended 

Location:   

Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway
Lakeside Station
Kings Road
Cleethorpes
North East Lincolnshire
DN35 0AG

Web:      http://www.cclr.co.uk/

Email:    info@cclr.co.uk

Date of visit:     3rd July 2022

Key Facts

• The original line opened in 1948 as the Cleethorpes Miniature Railway in 1948 as a 10¼" miniature railway. It was relocated to its present site and extended in 1949.
• It was re-gauged to 14½" in 1972 and provided with two steam outline locos built by Severn Lamb
• In 1991 the railway was privatised, renamed the Cleethorpes Coast Light Railway and regauged to 15". A National Lottery grant led to the acquisition of stock from the Sutton Miniature Railway, including the original 1907 Bassett-Lowke locomotive 'Mighty Atom'. The Sutton locos have now been sold to the Windmill Hill Railway in Lancashire
• A new 800 yard (730m)  extension from Lakeside Station to Humberston North Sea Lane was opened in 2007,
• The railway now has five steam locomotives including a replica of Effie, an Arthur Heywood minimum gauge loco which ran on the Duffield Bank Railway in 1874
• The railway is open every day from April to October
• There are shops at both termini and hot food, beverages and alcoholic drinks available at Lakeside Station

Route

My Impressions

There is an enormous Pay and Display car park adjacent to the main Lakeside Station and so, after parking the car, I made my way to the station to buy a ticket. A train was just departing and so I had twenty-five minutes to kill. As it was lunchtime, bought a cup of tea and a hot dog from the food outlet.

By the time I had finished, the train had returned and so I made my way to the platform to board it. On the leading end of the train, ex Fairbourne Railway 0-6-0DM Rachel was ticking over awaiting the signal to depart.

We soon set off with around half the seats full. Within a short while we passed the storage sheds for the locos and stock .......

.... before passing through the sea wall and out on to the promenade.

We chugged along beside the prom for around half a mile ......

..... before passing through the sea wall once more .....

..... and crossing over the boating lake.

Within a short while we pulled into Cleethorpes Kingsway Station.

Rather than using my return ticket, I decided to stroll back alongside the line. After watching the departure of the train, hauled this time by a heavily disguised 1944 Lister 0-4-0DM loco.

Around twenty five minutes later, the train returned ......

.... so I made my way towards Lakeside Station to await its next passing.

At Lakeside, I was able to peruse the shop and bought a couple of informative and well illustrated booklets about the Sutton Miniature Railway.

I was intrigued by the extension which, during my visit, was not in use. I understand that it usually comes into operation during the school holidays when the railway also runs at least one of its steam locomotives. It looks like I may have to make a return visit.

With its interesting history and heritage, this is a railway well worth a visit. Even at the time of year I visited, the railway was well patronised - mostly by families with young children. The staff seemed to be very friendly and the railway well-run and, with plenty of nearby attractions and with food and drink available on-site, it is a place well worth a visit.

Video

The Wells and Walsingham Light Railway

In a nutshell

Gauge:          10¼" (260mm)

Length:       4 miles (6.4km)

Opened:      1857 (Standard gauge) 6 April 1982 (present railway)

Location:   

Wells & Walsingham Light Railway
Stiffkey Road
Wells-next-the-Sea
Norfolk
NR23 1QB

Web:      https://www.wwlr.co.uk

Email:    wellswalsinghamrailway@gmail.com

Tel:         01328 711630

 

Date of visit:     24th - 25th September 2021

Key Facts

• The railway claims to be the longest 10¼ inch gauge railway and the smallest gauged public railway in the world
  
• The trackbed for the line was once the standard gauge railway which ran from Wymondham to Wells where there was a terminus
• Wells on Sea Station was also the terminus for the Heacham to Wells branchline
• The original railway was built quite cheaply and so follows the undulations of the landscape and hence includes some fairly stiff gradients (up to 1 in 66)
• The Wells and Walsingham Railway was established by Lieutenant-Commander Roy Wallace Francis  (1922 - 2015) a former British naval office
• The railway's principal locomotives are two 2-6-0+0-6-2 Garratt steam locomotives (Norfolk Hero and Norfolk Heroine) and a Bo-Bo diesel loco (Norfolk Harvester)
• The railway runs five trains each way during the summer season and four trains each way during the spring and autumn
• There is a shop with a small range of refreshments available at Wells on Sea station
• There is a large, free car park at Wells and the village (pay and display) car park at Walsingham is a five minute walk from the station

 

Route

My Impressions

I started my visit by going straight to the main station at Wells, where I familiarised myself with its layout and facilities.

The ground floor of the signal box includes a shop and a café serving a basic array of drinks and snacks.

Immediately behind the signal box is the engine shed and turning to the opposite end of the platform is the carriage shed. Spare stock is also stored on the siding behind the platform loop.

There is a large grassy car park, picnic facilities a play area for children and a gift shop selling locally produced paintings, ornaments and clothing accessories.

Ere long, a steam whistle announced the imminent arrival of a train from Walsingham.

I watched the train disgorge its passengers and the rather magnificent Garratt loco (Norfolk Heroine) run round its train.....

A few minutes later, the train departed for Walsingham

Most of the passengers decided to sit in the open topped carriages to make the most of the gorgeous late September sunshine with which we were blessed during my visit.

The following day, I revisited the line. This time going straight to Walsingham station where a large group of passengers was patiently awaiting the arrival of the first train of the day.

Once more, Norfolk Heroine had been rostered ......

.... and, after running-round, ........

...... she made a swift and efficient departure with quite a heavy train.

I hastened back to my car and then sped up the road, parked and was able to observe the train passing through Wighton

Returning to the car, I was then able to watch the train climbing the bank out of Warham

Another short car journey and I was able to catch the train's arrival into Wells, where the loco ran round and took on more coal and water.

Before long, the train departed once more.

I then drove down to Wells harbour where I found a very pleasant eatery and bought a few essential supplies, before returning to the station for my afternoon's adventure. .......

..... a cab ride!

Despite its diminutive size, the cab, while cosy, was sufficiently large to accommodate myself and the driver who described in detail the actions required to keep the locomotive performing at its optimum.

A 1 in 80 gradient out of the station is followed by a very short 1 in 440 gradient .........

...... then another 1 in 76 gradient - all within the first mile!

There then followed a 1 in 66 decent then a 1 in 96 ascent, and so the driver (who acts as fireman) has his work cut out ensuring the correct balance between fire and water level, as it runs from one end of the boiler to the other, maintains sufficient steam pressure for the climbs, without wasting steam on the descents.

In addition, there are five ungated level crossings and two intermediate halts to contend with so the train's speed has to be optimised for the conditions and there is much rather creative use of the whistle to alert drivers and warn potential passengers of the train's imminent arrival.

After three miles, there is a long and steady 1 in 80 climb .........

...... into Walsingham station, where a knot of passengers was awaiting our arrival.

After a sprightly run-round, we departed ......

There was time to admire the surrounding landscape which, at this time of year is quite picturesque with the lengthening shadows from the afternoon sun.

The passengers also seemed to be enjoying the sunshine and vistas of the Norfolk countryside - not to mention the ride!

As we approached Wells, I was alerted by the driver to a local avian resident perched on a branch just above the track.

On cue, the buzzard swooped down the track ahead of the train before swerving off to the left. A rather poignant and impressive end my rail-borne experience.

We slowly and, to my mind, rather majestically, coasted into the station.

This is an experience which will live with me for a long time. What a lovely little railway in a beautiful setting and an extremely picturesque part of the world. 

I can thoroughly recommend this railway for a visit. There is plenty to see and do in the area for all ages - and I can also endorse the quality of the dressed crab sandwiches available from the eateries in the town.

Video

North Bay Railway (Scarborough)

In a nutshell

Gauge:         20"(508 mm)

Length:       ⁷⁄₈ mile (1.4 km)

Opened:     1931

Location:    

North Bay Railway
Scarborough,
North Yorkshire,
YO12 6PF

Web:      http://nbr.org.uk/

Email:     info@nbr.org.uk
Tel:         01723 368791

Date of visit:     22 July 2017

 

Key Facts

• The railway was planned as an integral part of the development of Northstead Park (formerly known as Hodgson's Slack)
• The line was originally intended to be 18" gauge and then 15" gauge, the gauge promoted by Sir Arthur Heywood and Wenman Bassett Lowke as the 'Minimum Gauge' (see A short Chronology of the Minimum Gauge). Eeventually, Hudswell Clarke won the contract to supply the locomotives to a gauge of 20".
• The plan for the original railway was a circular route but this was later modified into the present terminus to terminus route along the cliffs
• At Scalby Mills, there was originally a balloon loop for reversing the locomotives, which included a short tunnel into the cliffs. This was replaced by a Y junction in 1962 and ultimately by the existing turntable in 1988.
• The only time the railway has ceased running was between 1940 and 1945 during the Second World War.
• The decision to use steam outline diesel locomotives instead of live steam locomotives was motivated by reduced operating and maintenance costs.
• Neptune was the first locomotive to run on the railway and is still running today.
• The original locomotives use torque converters to transfer power from the diesel engine to the driving wheels to provide a very smooth transmission and is akin to driving a steam locomotive with a single regulator and no gears. The torque converters have now been replaced by hydraulic pumps and motors.
• The railway has four steam outline diesel locomotives - 1931 Neptune 4-6-2 (built in 1931), 1932 Triton 4-6-2 (built in 1932), 1933 Poseidon 4-6-2 (built in 1933) and 570 Robin Hood 4-6-4T (built 1932).
• The coaching stock was originally built by Robert Hudson in Leeds. The bodies were replaced in the 1960s and again in 1991, 1998 and 2007.
  
• The railway is open daily from April to October and then some weekends and school holidays during the winter (January excepted).

Route

 

Map by Svitapeneela at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47840137

My Impressions

On arriving at Peasholm station, the first thing which struck me was the size of the locomotives. As the gauge is wider than most miniature railways (ie 20" v 7¼" - 15"), the locomotives are proportionately larger.

Having paid for my ticket, I watched my loco (1931, Neptune) running around her train .....

..... making use of the balloon loop which circles the engine sheds and enables the loco to reverse direction without the need for a turntable. I am not aware of any other railways which use this clever approach, but I am willing to be corrected.

After coupling-up, within a few minutes we were off, skirting the boating lake .......

.... and passing beneath the rails of the water chute.

After passing the outdoor concert arena, we reached the cliffs and the passing loop at the former Beach Station where we passed another train travelling in the opposite direction.

Travelling on shelf cut into the cliff face ......

....... we reached Scalby Mills Station, where our loco was turned on the turntable......

...... and ran round our train ....

... ready for the return journey.

We, once more, made our way back along the cliffs to Beach Station ......

.... where we passed the returning train and the drivers exchanged tokens.

We then retraced our steps into Northstead Park .....

.... and returned to Peasholm Station.

I now took the opportunity to walk beside the line, watching the train depart .....

..... and the boat on the water chute splashing into the lake, ......

 ...... before being hauled back up again.

I gained a good view of trains as they passed by on the opposite side of the lake.

 At Beach Station, I watched loco 1932, Triton ......

...... passing Neptune.

 There are plenty of good vantage points for watching the trains pass by on the cliffs above the beach.

As they had two trains in service (which I believe they do on most operational days), the services are very regular .......

...... and so the wait is not long between trains.

And, of course, there are always the attractions of the beach, itself.

What a fine little railway this is! Although the locomotives are not steam powered, they are distinctive and interesting in their own right. Their heritage is undeniable and their size and the quality of their construction gives them poise and elegance as they ply their trade back and forth through the park and across the cliff face.

I spent a good 2-3 hours travelling on and watching the various train manoeuvres - being particularly fascinated by the balloon reversing loop at Peasholm Station. The staff were attentive and keen to discuss the railway and its locos. The railway gauge of 20" makes it fairly unique in the UK, Shipley Glen Tramway and the railway at Woburn being the only others (to my knowledge). A very interesting railway with an interesting history and heritage.

There is a cafe adjacent to the station at Peasholm and plenty of other eateries within a short walk of the park. The ticket office sells a few mementoes and a guide to the railway which elaborates on the history and operation of the railway outlined above.

Video