9 Aug 09 - Pentney Park Railway

Pentney Park is a holiday campsite, roughly halfway between King's Lynn and Swaffham on the A47. I've driven past there dozens of times and never suspected that a little gem of a railway was hidden within....welcome to the Pentney Park Railway (PPR)....

The PPR is an elusive little devil. This weekend was the only weekend of the entire year in which trains would be running on its narrow tracks. Information is scarce about the PPR and we consider ourselves fortunate to have written to them a while ago, and received a reply, with details of this weekend's opening, last week (thanks to Bryan Webster).

I'm not sure if any trains or engines are housed permanently at Pentney. Their engine shed is roomy enough, but it seems that members of the engine-owning fraternity gather on rare occasions and bring their pride and joys with them. I had a particularly long and enjoyable chat with some chaps from the Evergreens Miniature Railway, which is located in Stickney, near Boston in Lincolnshire. We were even invited to visit them as special guests, an offer which we shall definitely take up. You can check their railway out at their website:

http://www.steamingalan.webs.com/

Today there were about six or seven engines of various sizes and types all taking turns to haul passengers around the track. It's rather incongruous to be chuffing through a campsite, past people snoozing in deckchairs or wringing out their smalls to hang on the washing line! The track is quite long, I'd guess maybe a kilometre in total, and includes a small bridge which marks the start of the loop at the furthest point from the station.

This really was great fun! The drivers have several engines out on the track at any one time, which means you're often involved in what seems like a chase. The cost was a mere £1 per person per ride, which is all donated to charity after the weekend.

We'd highly recommend keeping an eye out for the next time the PPR is in operation - we'll be going back and we hope we'll see you there!

Just When You Thought....

Just when you thought you had you list of railways sorted.....


We had "finally" settled on a list of sixteen railways. And we've done eight, so it will be a tough ride to reach the target.



But then John Mason, of the Barton House Railway, emails to let us know that there is another miniature railway at Hemsby, and there may be yet another at Holt station of the North Norfolk Railway!


This list just keeps on growing!

5 Aug 09 - Wells Harbour Railway

Welcome to the Wells Harbour Railway!

　

Our second railway of the day found us beside the football ground of Wells Football Club (“The Seasiders”) to ride on possibly the only Straight Line track of our entire adventure. The WHR links the main part of Wells with the beach and lifeboat station, which are about one mile apart.

This is an extremely popular and busy little railway, as it provides a neat short-cut for visitors to the town. As such, it must be one of the most “useful” of the railways we’re visiting, as it doesn’t simply exist as an attraction in itself. It does get very busy, so it may be worth your while biting the bullet and queuing, or telling one of your children to queue for you….

　

There are three engines taking turns on the track, and the staff are very friendly and willing to talk about what’s going on, lovely! The fare is paid for a one-way trip, and is £1.20 for adults, and £1 for children. You’ll be seated in covered carriages, which can be described as “cosy”.

Unfortunately we didn’t quite have enough time to visit the lifeboat station as Sam had spent so long playing in the nice little playground next to the town-end station…..and there was a mini-carnival taking place at the same time, so we kinda forgot about the railways for an hour or two…..
　

Wells itself is a nice little seaside town, and we’d recommend a visit. And while you’re there, hop on the WHR too!

Eight down.....eight (?) to go....

5 Aug 09 - Wells & Walsingham Light Railway

The Wells & Walsingham Light Railway connects the seaside with the christian equivalent of Euro Disney, and claims to be the longest 10 ¼ inch railway in the world. And it’s well worth visiting!
　

The timetable varies at different times of the year so it’s best to check before you travel. In August they run the maximum number of trains to coincide with the school holidays, and so it came to pass that Sam and Dad arrived in Little Walsingham (don’t go to Great Walsingham next door) with half an hour to spare before the first departure of the day at 11 a.m. It was a good thing we were early too, as Walsingham’s not an easy place to negotiate on your first visit! The tiny roads are thronged with christians of all sizes, shapes and colours, and best of all, NUNS and MONKS and VICARS IN DRESSES! All this fancy dress scenery will give you a chuckle before you even get parked.

　
Try to find a local sign for Egmere and this will put you on the right road for the station. When you find the station turn round, head back towards the village, and turn into (I think) Coker's Hill, where there’s a convenient Pray & Display (pun copyright of Sam) car park. As we drove in there were yet more vicars milling around, Walsingham’s like Father Ted, but for real. We paid £3 for five hours stay, which turned out to be perfect.

When you turn into the railway you’ll see a small shed and a tiny set of buffers - don’t worry, this IS the station. The green Walsingham sign will confirm you’re in the right place. When the train arrives take your seats, the guard will come to find you to sell you your tickets. There’s a choice of carriages, open or enclosed, so I guess your choice will depend on the weather.

　

Now that we’re seasoned railway riders, we take the back of the train on the outward journey, so we can see the whole thing as it takes a corner, then the front carriage on the way back, to be close to the engine. We’ve turned into anoraks.

　

The fares are £7.50 for an adult return, and £6 for over-threes. A little steep? Possibly, but attractions like this need to raise funds to keep going, so I’m all in favour.

　

The ride itself was absolutely beautiful at this time of year. The untouched embankments and cuttings that make up much of the route are overgrown with wildlife-friendly planting, and thousands of butterflies flutter around as the train goes by. It’s a shame there are quite so many cuttings, because they obscure some wonderful views of the Norfolk countryside. Your journey lasts about half an hour each way.

　
The station at Wells Next The Sea is actually about a kilometre away from the main part of the town. That’s not so bad on the way in, as it’s downhill and children have the excitement of the seaside ahead. To go back you may want to consider an alternative method of transport….I lugged Sam back on my shoulders, which was fun but bloomin’ hard work!

　

Altogether a lovely little railway - and your little ones may conk out on the way home!

28 Jun 09 - North Norfolk Railway

The next stop on the Most Excellent Railway Adventure was the North Norfolk Railway (NNR).

This is a superbly presented railway, running from Sheringham to Holt, and is well worth a visit. This railway is a step above most of those that we’ve travelled on so far, inasmuch that it’s a full-size railway, with “real” old rolling stock and engines, as opposed to some of the more “hobby-ist” railways we’ve visited. They’re all good fun - but this one is bigger - the biggest so far apart from British Rail.

But don’t let that put you off, far from being diminished by the size, the NNR lives up to it, and gives you a full-scale, authentic heritage railway. The carriages and engines are great in themselves, but for me the NNR really scores highly for its complete attention to detail. There are barrows of suitcases around the stations, awaiting the attention of the porter. There are authentic tin signs, old bicycles, beautifully kept flower beds (seen one of those at your local BR station recently?). It’s all a lovely blast from the past. Even the volunteers who staff and run the railway dress in realistic clothing. Wonderful.

A new addition this year are the voluntary donation boxes, which invite you to choose the project that your loose change will go to support. It’s not compulsory, but I defy you not to add your own 50p worth after looking around this lovely railway. When the level crossing across the coast road is in place, the NNR will have access to the national rail network, and vice versa…..more visitors, more inventive excursions, the future looks very bright!

One warning I must give you, with regard to your travelling time TO your starting station. Work out how long you think it will take, the night before, and then double it. We’ve been to this railway before and “just” made the departure time, and the same happened today when we allowed an hour to drive the 33 miles, and ended up sprinting up to the ticket office at the very last moment. It’s because of Sunday drivers, tractors, caravans, and all the other extra stuff you find on Norfolk’s roads that you don’t find in most of the rest of the country.

Anyway, once you’re there you’re in for a lovely visit. The price for unlimited travel for a day is £10 for adults, and £7.50 for 5 to 15 year olds, which does seem slightly costly. As you ride between the Holt and Sheringham stations you are rewarded with beautiful views of the sea over heathland, and it’s all rather splendid - and over too fast. On my own, I would ride up and down the line all day, with Sam we made the one trip, with a lot of fun in Sheringham in between trips.

We’ve been to the NNR before. We’ll definitely go again!



Six down….errrrm…..more to go…..

Two Month Progress Report

We’re now two months into our challenge. It’s time for a progress report.

We started with a list of 13 railways to ride on within 6 months….we’ve found out about another one while on our travels, and we’ve got wind (Sam, less baked beans please) of another two….

Here’s the tale so far (click the coloured word for a link to their website):

In The Bag- 5

3 April - Bure Valley Railway

8 April - Bressingham Steam Museum

25 April - British Rail (whatever they’re called)

17 May - Lynnsport Railway

17 May - Barton House Railway

Planned - 5

Mid-Norfolk Railway AND Yaxham Light Railway - to be visited on the same day due to geography and an extremely helpful staff at Yaxham (2 railways total)

Wells & Walsingham Light Railway AND Wells Harbour Railway - to be visited on the same day in early August - Wells Carnival Day, gonna be a great day out! (2 railways total)

15 August - Norton Hill Light Railway

On The Horizon - 3

North Norfolk Railway - quite easy to visit

Pentney Park Railway - awaiting details, uh-oh

Pettitt’s Animal Park Railway - will be a good day out

Those are the original 13 railways we identified. But….



Coming Out Of Left-field - A Few….

Ashmanhaugh Light Railway - only open first Sunday each month

Merrivale Model Village, Yarmouth - rumours only so far

“Somewhere near Cromer, maybe something to do with golf” - investigations ongoing!

Eaton Park Railway - Sundays

Strumpshaw Steam - tbn

Fritton Lake - eh?

So 5 down, 13 to go, maybe a few to add! It’s great fun!

The Quest Goes On....

As much as we love the Interweb, sometimes you just have to go back in time and WRITE LETTERS!



Such is the case in the Excellent Train Adventure. Three pesky railways are very tough to track down online, so we've resorted to snail mail to request more information.

If you know anything about Pentney Park Railway, Norton Hill Light Railway, or Ashmanhaugh Light Railway, please let us know!