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PHOTO
GALLERY GROUP 67
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| Above:
Grenofen Tunnel, Devon, shortly after it had been opened
by Devon County Council as part of the new Drake's Trail, which
links Tavistock with Plymouth, largely via the former GWR branch
line from Launceston. The tunnel is a little wet and has low level
lighting near to ground level. September 2012. (Bob Spalding)
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| Above:
A view from inside Grenofen Tunnel looking north towards
Tavistock. At the south end, i.e. behind the photographer, the railway
path leads on to the new Gem Bridge – see Photo
Gallery 65 for further details. North of the tunnel, the trail
continues on the trackbed for a few hundred yards and then
heads diagonally across a field on the start of its non-railway approach
to Tavistock via Tavistock College – no doubt the old GWR line
within the town had been sold off in pieces and re-developed, making
a new route the only option available. If you want a bit more railway
walking, there is a link path at Tavistock College that will take
you across to the pre-existing railway path that re-uses the Southern
Railway's old line through the town; this is worth doing for the views
from the substantial viaduct just south of the former Tavistock North
station. September 2012.
(Bob Spalding) |
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| Above:
The incline at Portreath in Cornwall was built by the Hayle
Railway in 1838 but ended up serving the Great Western, which operated
the old HR's line until 1936 as its goods-only branch from near Carn
Brea. This is the raised northern end of the incline, where it crosses
the Portreath's Glenfeadon Terrace; it is a Grade II listed structure,
a relatively rare survivor from the age of horse-drawn tramways. The
course of the branch can be walked from near the top of the incline
to Illogan, thanks partly to Cornwall's Mineral Tramways Project;
it is hoped that the incline itself will be incorporated into this
route, but the Project's map sin January 2013 showed that this was
still awaiting a creation order. 9th June 2012. (Jeff Vinter) |
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| Above:
A row of stone sleepers can still be seen near Wheal Plenty
in the trackbed of the former Portreath Tramroad, which opened in
1812 to link the copper mines around Scorrier and St. Day with the
harbour at Portreath. The club's former secretary Robin Wade is just
rounding the corner with his grandson. 9th June 2012. (Jeff Vinter) |
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Left:
Anyone arriving at Pentewan via National Cycle Network
route 3 from St. Austell might think that these 2ft 6in gauge
rails near the village's silted up harbour are relics of the
former Pentewan Railway, whose trackbed now largely forms
the modern cycle trail. However, these are relics of the later
Pentewan Sand & Block Works, founded in 1907, which inherited
a number of wagons from the Pentewan Railway (which closed
in 1918). This company also took to manufacturing concrete
blocks, which were used in the construction of a number of
houses in the area, especially in and around St. Austell.
10th June 2012. (Jeff Vinter) |
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| Above:
Limpley Stoke station, once the junction for the branch line
to Camerton (of 'Titfield Thunderbolt' fame), is on the still operational
ex-GWR line from Bath to Westbury. It is a remarkable survivor. It
lost its passenger service on 3rd October 1966 – a black day
which saw the closure of many stations and branch lines in the west
country. (This day also saw a number of major lines in the region
reduced from double to single track.) Many of the closed stations
are now barely discernible beneath decades of vegetation, and it is
rare for anything more than a crumbling platform to survive –
yet here, the station has not only survived, but been restored to
its original splendour by Simon Castens, who runs his specialist bookselling
business from the premises. This photograph was taken from the B3108,
approaching the Kennet & Avon Canal on the east side of the Avon
Valley. The white globe atop the black pole in the foreground is a
light on the private road from the B3108 to the offices of Five Hats
International. 7th April 2012. (Jeff Vinter) |
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Right:
The parish church at Monkton Combe (the first stop
on the Camerton branch heading west) contains the grave of
Harry Patch. It reads:
HENRY
JOHN
"HARRY"
PATCH
17th JUNE 1898 - 25th JULY 2009
AGED 111
LAST SURVIVOR OF THE TRENCHES
OF THE GREAT WAR
An exploration
of the churchyard reveals that Harry had 'good genes': his
father is buried nearby, and he too lived to a good age considering
that he grew up in relative poverty in Victoria rural England.
Unexpected discoveries about local and national history are
often a feature of the club's walks. 7th April 2012. (Jeff
Vinter) |
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| Above:
A view across Midford from the Somerset & Dorset Railway
shows clearly the 'other' Midford Viaduct on the former GWR line to
Camerton, although it has lost its parapets and its span across the
B3110. To the right of the picture, the two lines crossed, the S&D
passing over the GWR. 23rd March 2012. (Jeff Vinter) |
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