1st December 2019

Dawlish Delights 3
​Dawlish Delights
Paul Barlow

Having just passed through Dawlish we see 47847 on the 10.15 Manchester to Paignton the 1V44. 29th June 2002. Copyright Paul Barlow.

Now and then
Holsworthy
Colin Burges

On the 19th November 2019 Colin Burges took a drove to Holsworthy to collect two wheelbarrows, he also took along his faithful bicycle to explore sections of the Bude branch and other stations. To see his record of a good and lengthy day out please click here and look for article 31.  Many thanks Colin.

Holsworthy station on the 19th November 2019. We are looking towards Halwill Junction. Copyright Colin Burges.

Looking back to happier days, or perhaps they weren't happier as it was the last day of the Bude branch and indeed of much of the withered arm - they all closed on the 3rd October 1966. There being no Sunday service the last day was 1st October.

Holsworthy on the 1st Otober 1966, last day of the Bude branch. Here we see the North Cornwall Farewell Railtour on its way to Bude. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

A query - an Isolated bit of track at St Ives
St Ives
Paul Stewart

Several days ago we received a query from Paul Stewart - the editor of the esteemed Branch Line News.

Good Day,
My name is Paul Stewart and I edit Branch line News for the Branch Line Society.
A member has sent me this recently taken picture of what appears to be standard gauge track on the shore end of West pier at St Ives (first attachment)
I have located it on a 1906 OS 25" to the mile map (marked with my crude freehand yellow arrow above - second attachment), if so its probably was just as it is now - very short. It is not shown on the 1876 25" map, but appears consistently after the 1906 revision. It doesn't show on any 6" to the mile maps so good job we can access the 25" maps. I have found:  https://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/40697-rail-lines-on-st-ives-harbour-wall/

Below is another view from Google Earth (and third attachment).
The Industrial Railway Society have no information about it, do you please?
Was this the full extent of this isolated railway or was it intended to be longer, and does anyone know what it was used for please?
Any information received with gratitude and interest.
All the best -- Paul Stewart (Great Malvern).

The Isolated Railway Smeatons Pier. St Ives. Copyright Ian Loveday

Courtesy of the National Library of Scotland. An extract of the map showing the location of the track.

The above letter from Paul Stewart justified a little more research and a trip to St Ives - this was on a superb day.

A view across St Ives Harbour from Malacoft Bus station showing Smeatons Pier. It's very near low tide and it is receding. The track referred to is at the landward end of this pier. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

The land end of the original pier. 29th November 2019. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

A close up of the land end of the pier. there are three arches here each with a span of twelve feet. The section above the arches is completely level and it is here that the track is laid. Looking through the arches one can see they are blocked by a now permanent timber bulk barrier. 29th November 2019. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

A view of the track from the opposite end to that from Ian Loveday. As can be seen the track gauge is being checked with a tape measure in the foreground - it is four feet eight and a half inches. The section of track is approximately seventy feet long. When required timber bulks about thirteen feet long would have been lifted over the right hand wall and lowered into prepared slots in masonry piers beside the arches. 29th November 2019. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

A view from the seaward side of the three arches. The hefty bulks of timber are in evidence - the timbers have been bolted together using vertical metal straps. Quite why the opening have been left in the centre and left hand arch barricades is not known, but it is assumed have been carefully calculated by somebody in authority. 29th November 2019. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

The final picture taken from above clearly shows the slots in the breakwater piers which house the timbers. 29th November 2019. Copyright Keith Jenkin.

We do not have any pictures of the crane though it is possible that St Ives museum could have - this is unfortunately closed until Easter.  
However there is a sketch in Cyril Noall's book 'The book of St Ives' which does show a very distant view of what is possibly the jib of a crane - it looks quite long - perhaps 30' with the body of the crane at the seaward end of the track. 
​It seems that the arches were constructed at considerable expense, more than that of the pier, to encourage scouring of the sand from the harbour - at this they don't seem to have been very successful!
Engineering details of the piers construction can be found at  http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=425

This also a YouTube video of the replacement of the timber barriers  - this can be found at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lpp2-rzMtIQ and other views of the pier at :-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w-ItFxM-kNg

A plug for the
Branch Line Society
and why not.

We would be very grateful if you might include a link to our website please:    branchline.uk  

Our latest newsletter (last week) featured the two RNLI funicular railways in Cornwall, which we recently visited one being the most southerly railway in mainland Britain. The whole newsletter is 85 pages (there are 24 a year)  so I have created a special PDF of the report - for highest quality it is best downloaded
 and viewed in full screen  as there is a landscape page. 
If anyone is interested in joining us for a possible repeat of the day next year they can email me per the PDF,
due to the access roads and lack of parking everyone has to travel on the minibus/es.
All the best - Paul.
Seems like a very good read - a chance to join a countrywide organisation.