A visit to North Devon

Thursday at Broadway.

 Just the two of us, and no trains.

 

 

 

John is on the front, filling in up to the window.

It's quite a slow job, making smaller pieces fit, so only one mix was used during the day.

The store room wall also got another course on it.

 

 

 

 

Yours Truly was on cutting bricks, and the rest of the day was spent in the undergrowth by the signal box, dealing with thick and rampant bramble bushes. Sadly, as there were no trains that Thursday, we were unable to nip over to the cafe for a breather.

As the build progresses, the lack of certain special bricks is becoming more apparent. This is because the bricks for P2 were ordered nearly 10 years ago (to the considerable surprise of our then FD) and today's actual needs on the day are slightly different.

What we're missing at the moment is the other hand of this brick. It's the start of the vertical column alongside each window. There's another, upside down, at the top. Discussions with a supplier were held earlier in the week, but due to low demand (natch...) they aint gonna be cheap.
 

 

Monday on a PWay special

Four of us at Hayles, with a Telehandler and a truck. This one off day was arranged to remove the remaining debris, mainly old sleepers, from the relay at Hayles.

 

The weeds were already taking over again, but we found the sleepers eventually. Better us, than the robo-flail later on. He doesn't like hitting hard objects buried deep in the grass.

 

Chris watches Simon poking the forks into the weeds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The van was parked sideways on for Simon to load.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ready to go - destination: The garden centre at Toddington.

 

 On arrival there we were surprised by the roar of this tree top A400. That's always exciting.

 

 

 

 

 

The cargo was distributed according to quality. Some sleepers were re-usable, but many were poor and now need their chairs removing.

 

 

 

 

In the field next door we heard the sound of a large dumper driving around.

 Sadly, that marked the start of another housing estate being built, this one right next door to us.

 

 

 

 

In better news, we found that Neal had completed three out of the four trusses for Broadway.

 

Brilliant!

The fourth one was under construction in the loco shed.

Tuesday at Broadway.

 

Two of us on brick laying, with Neal, the third, dealing with the last truss at Toddington, which needs to 

vacate the steam shed in time for the gala.

 

 

We were pleased to see, first thing, that Neal was placing the second window cill on the storeroom end.

However, at the end of the day it was no longer there - false alarm !

 

At the same time John was working on the platform side of the store room, as well as on the side by the first window. Two courses were laid here, after a bit of measuring and cutting.

 

Yours truly spent much of the day at the back of the building, and down the embankment by the signal box, eliminating brambles which were starting to get rampant.

 

Occasionally we would get a brief glimpse of a steam engine going by.... 

It was a hot day, in fact an eight hour one, just the same as during full employment at work. Retirement is not very restful.

Just as we were leaving with our kit the last train of the day rumbled in.

It was a joy to see just how many people got off. The Broadway team spent so much effort in building the station over a good 10 years, and this is the reward that we can be proud of: people voting with their feet (inwards, not leaving !) That crowd speaks for itself.

 

 

 

Wednesday with the Usketeers.

 

 A fine day, and three Usketeers, present and correct.

 

Dave on the SDS drill.

 

Last week we took out several spalled bricks, and replaced them with complete ones. This week we moved along a bit, and did several more.

Gently does it.... as we are undermining the corner, we don't want it to come down of course, so bit by bit is the way forward.

 

 

 

 

Paul then finished off the void with a lump hammer and chisel, until it was nice and square. Notice also the broken plinth headers. The hole made by someone in the past wasn't actually used by the downpipe.

 

Interestingly we spoke to a retired volunteer who said that they saved the building - the only original one at Winchcombe -  30 years ago, when the railway wanted to knock it down. The nearby acetylene hut, similar to the weighbridge, was in fact knocked down, to make way for the two houses that were built on the corner instead.

 

 

Here the broken plinth headers have been removed, and Dave is just doing a dry run with the replacement bricks, making sure that they fit and we have all the old mortar out.

 

 

 

 

Later in the morning the replacement bricks, sourced from our collection in the yard, have been mortared in. A small pillar of spalled bricks has been left under the corner.

 

We made an interesting discovery while fitting the bricks. Paul wetted them with a brush, and before our eyes the brick absorbed the water and became dry again in about 10 seconds. We did it a second time, with the same effect. These bricks have an unusually strong absorbent function, and this explains why they spalled along the front, where the ground was wet (and the frost came...).

 

We are considering a water repellent mortar for this section, below ground where it is out of sight.

 

After sourcing two replacement plinth headers in the same style (different types were found in the yard) we cut them to size and Dave slid them into their places.

 

Then it was lunch time, taken outside this time, as it was nice and sunny.

 

Paul had brought his toast maker, but forgot the spatula.

No worries, the brickie's trowel works just as well. Enjoy your meal !

Mid afternoon the C&W shunter trundled through the station, part of a very efficient carriage shunt in between trains. As soon as the Toddington train appeared, they were gone.

At the end of the day we were here: 9 bricks replaced, as well as the two plinth headers. Don't they look good ?

When this has gone off (next week) we can remove the corner and work round it to meet the bricks replaced last week.

 

 

A look over the fence - EA update.

Saturday saw the next regular update meeting by Exmoor Associates and the Yeo Valley Trust. There are three potential purchases in the pipeline, of which one quite close to completion. As is usual they would rather not go into detail, as things can go wrong at the last minute. These land purchases need a lot of patience. Some people even decline to sell at all, ever, and then it's a case of a long wait, until someone else comes along with a more helpful frame of mind. To give you an idea of the sort of issues that they face, here are three examples:

- The seller can't locate the deeds

- The seller died, after agreeing to sell, and

- The seller agreed to sell, but there is no agreement over the price (yet).

There is some degree of confidence that, by the next scheduled update meeting at the end of September, we should be able to hear of one, possibly two deals concluded. 

After the meeting we intended to visit Chelfham station, where the open station coincided with two days of open access to the viaduct (very unusual, and thanks to the National Highways Residual team), and an open day in the 'Grow Forward' project in the former school under the viaduct.

The viaduct visit was far more successful than anticipated. Thanks to the flexibility of the Grow Forward team visitors could park their cars not only in the GF car park, but also in a large field east of the viaduct itself. In this way the feared parking chaos was averted. Yours truly left his car in the Goodleigh village hall car park, and walked the mile and a half over the hill, and back down the other side to Chelfham, which was quite a struggle on a hot day.

 

 

The steep climb and descent had one advantage though, as it enabled us to access the viaduct from the downhill end, where the line crossed the tiny lane to Goodleigh.

Here is the bridge over that tiny road. This is also not usually accessible, as part of the Highways residual estate. The EA owned part through Budds wood starts behind the camera.

 

 

 

 

This is looking the other way, downhill, with the very steep Goodleigh road just visible on the left.

 

 

 

 

After a few steps uphill, a curve away from the side of the hill begins, and you reach the downhill end of the viaduct.

Then you reach Chelfham viaduct itself. It's unusual as it is straight, but with a curve at the lower end to allow the line to follow the side of the hill.

This is the UK's largest narrow gauge viaduct. It is in generally good condition, having been refurbished in 2000. At that time the parapets (which were missing) were replaced. The bricks from the demolished parapets were dumped in the cutting behind the camera, and are still there.

 

From the viaduct, unusually therefore, you get an excellent overview of the former school site under and around the foot of the viaduct.

During the time the school stood empty it was vandalised, and the admin building (centre) was set on fire.

Grow Forward have now stripped the building down to the blockwork - it is a modern building. Also visible is the normal car park, with the red cars in it. That holds about 30 vehicles. Chelfham station has no practical car parking at all. The railway would like to set up some sort of a lease, in order to formalise a way of sharing the car park there.

 

 

 

 

During the weekend in question, exceptionally, additional car parking was allowed in a field on the eastern side of the viaduct. This was fully utilised ! We heard that at the last minute the event was even mentioned on the BBC...

 

 

 

 

The next picture (below) shows the southern side of the old school site.

On it you can see the river (centre), a water mill (centre left) and the former miller's house, top left. These all need refurbishment.

 

 

 

Looking down the viaduct there is a lovely view of Distant Point, the former stationmaster's house, also in the hands of the railway.

Walking further along the viaduct you enter the level site of Chelfham station itself. This was a crossing point for trains, and a place for a breather after the climb from Barnstaple.

 

 

 

Chelfham station has been beautifully restored. Just look at these signalling instruments.

We spoke to a chap who is building the signal posts, with the unusual and rare Evans O'Donnell spectacle plates and signal finials, both of which he had cast from patterns that he made.

The only thing that is missing here is tracks, and perhaps a working railway on them. This is very frustrating for the local team.

 

 

Only one minor criticism could be made, in that the lamp posts are not Southern Railway, but common street lamp posts. We heard that this is a temporary arrangement, and that contact is being sought with another railway to see if a joint enterprise of casting new barley twist SR lamp posts can be arranged.

 

 

 

 

There is a lovely woodland path along the old trackbed, along which you can walk.

This, the Bratton valley, is probably the most attractive part of the former 21 mile line. 

 

Returning back to the station, we had a chat with a representative of the Highways residual estate, and learned that more restoration work is becoming necessary on the viaduct.

The view across Chelfham viaduct, from the station end.

 

It seems that the cap stones laid on top of the rebuilt brick parapets are allowing water through to the bricks underneath, causing the bricks to spall.

We could see for ourselves that the mortar was failing in several areas. 

In this picture it is either missing, or seems to have shrunk, leaving cracks between the cap stones.

 

 

 

 

The result can be seen in this picture, where the top row of bricks is clearly spalling. Below that top row they are fine.

What struck us as odd was that the cap stones are in two halves, rather than in single blocks, such as on our bridges. This just increases the areas of mortar joints, and worsens the problem. 

 

A view along Chelfham viaduct. There is Heras fencing underneath, because of falling bits of brick.

We then walked back to Goodleigh, another sapping haul up a steep road, and back down the other side.

Let's hope that some sort of a parking lease can be arranged.

This view shows the start of the Budd's Wood section, a long stretch secured by EA not long ago. It is currently being cleared (with permission)

On the way back to our remote Exmoor farmhouse B&B we stopped to 'Look over The Fence' at Bratton Fleming. The station was not open during the weekend, but we heard that quite a bit of money had been spent on it over the last 12 months. 

This concerned the demolition of a damp extension, clearing the yard of surface vegetation, and the laying of 60ft of demonstration track. The construction of a replica goods shed will start later this year.

The house next to and above the station is for sale, and the property includes the next length of trackbed south. Unfortunately it is too expensive for EA to consider, and the owners are currently not willing to split off the trackbed part.

Sunday was spent at Woody Bay, to see what things could look like.

The Baldwin was in service. Its little whistle was surprisingly loud, but we learned that it also had a very much bigger (main line) one, which for understandable reasons is not so often used...

This is the Killington Lane end, which shows the levelling off of the line for the temporary terminus. This legal requirement played a part in the recent refusal of planning consent for the next section of line south.

 

Woody Bay station not only has an attractive new tea room - no Bradstone here - but also a bench at the entrance to the station, from which you can watch the trains arrive every 45 minutes.

What an idyllic place. If only the line was a little longer.