The Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway is a minimum-gauge heritage railway in Cumbria, England. The line runs from Ravenglass to Dalegarth Station near Boot in the valley of Eskdale, in the Lake District. At Ravenglass the line ends at Ravenglass railway station on the Cumbrian Coast Line.
thumb|right|The old building at Dalegarth Station near Boot, with Ravenglass-built diesel loco Lady Wakefield
thumb|River Esk, with her driver, Peter van Zeller, on the [[Railway turntable|turntable at Ravenglass station]]
Intermediate stations and halts are at Muncaster Mill, Miteside, Murthwaite, Irton Road, The Green, Fisherground and Beckfoot. The railway is owned by a private company and supported by a preservation society. The oldest locomotive is River Irt, parts of which date from 1894, while the newest is the diesel-hydraulic Douglas Ferreira, built in 2005.
The line is known locally as La'al Ratty and its gauge predecessor as Owd Ratty.
Nearby attractions include: the Roman Bath House at Ravenglass; the Hardknott Roman Fort, known to the Romans as Mediobogdum, at the foot of Hardknott Pass; the watermills at Boot and Muncaster; and Muncaster Castle, the home of the Pennington family since 1208.
History
Original railway
The original Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway was authorised by the (36 & 37 Vict. c. xlviii). It was a line opened on 24 May 1875 to transport hematite iron ore from three mines near and around the village of Boot to the Furness Railway standard gauge line at Ravenglass. There has previously been a dispute about the gauge the railway was built to. It is shown as 3 feet in records but is quoted as in some books such as the ABC of Narrow Gauge Railways. This figure was believed for many years until the present company discovered a sleeper from before the line closed, with spacings between holes made by track spikes confirming the gauge was the wider one. The confusion probably stems from the fact that the line was built under the condition that it was "of a gauge not less than 2' 9" ". All but one of the iron ore mines closed within 10 years of the railway opening, and there was not enough traffic from other sources (local goods and passengers from the villages and farms of the valley) to sustain the railway. The railway "struggled on" by carrying granite from local quarries and became popular with summer tourists. By 1908 the track-work was in such poor condition, it was declared unsafe for passengers by the Board of Trade. The railway closed to passengers that year. Goods trains continued to run whilst attempts were made to raise money to rebuild the railway. These attempts failed, and the railway closed completely in April 1913. It was also announced that if a buyer could not be found for the line as a whole, then the railway would be closed and sold off as 60 separate lots.
Preservation
Locals and railway enthusiasts formed the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway Preservation Society to save the line, with financial backing by Sir Wavell Wakefield, Member of Parliament (MP) for Marylebone and owner of the Ullswater Steamers, and Colin Gilbert, a stockbroker. These efforts were successful, and at the auction in September 1960, the society made the winning bid and saved the railway from closure. Control of the railway passed to a new private company, with the backing of the preservation society, an arrangement that is still in place. later converted again from tank to tender configuration; Synolda, (renamed Prince Charles) a twin to the original loco Sans Pareil, built in 1912,
In early 2020, the railway was forced to temporarily suspend all trains due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent UK-wide lockdown. This was the first time since the Second World War that passenger trains had been forcibly suspended for such a prolonged period. Following the relaxation of lockdown restrictions in July 2020, passenger trains resumed on 30 July.
Gilbert's Cutting
After passing Spout House Farm the line reaches Gilbert's Cutting. Until 1964, trains were forced to follow a sharp curve along a contour in order to avoid steep gradients. Using "opencast gelignite" to blast through the rock, the cutting was constructed to a 300-foot radius ten feet wide at rail level with steep sides exposing Eskdale pink granite on the inside curve. Its construction alleviated the sharp curve at Holling Head of 145 foot radius which caused excessive wear and tear on the locos and track. 3,000 tons of rock and earth was removed and about 700 feet of track was re-laid. By diverting the line through the new cutting the length of the line was reduced by feet making the total length 6.91 miles.
On Friday 27 March 1964, the 11:20am train from Ravenglass hauled by River Irt and driven by the managing director of the Railway Company Colin Gilbert, stopped at the Western entrance to the cutting. Mr Patrick Satow, the Chairman of the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway Preservation Society, who was travelling in the cab with Mr Gilbert and Mr Postlethwaite the landowner, cut the ribbon and formally named the cutting "Gilbert's Cutting" in honour of Colin Gilbert.
Present operations
thumb|right|A RANDER board, issued to a train's driver and guard by the duty controller.
Today, the railway is a popular visitor attraction in the Lake District, with the majority of its annual passenger numbers coming during the summer months. The entire single journey takes 40 minutes from end-to-end. Passengers can choose between open and covered seating, with some saloon coaches being fitted with heaters for the winter months. Disabled passengers and cycles can also be conveyed by the trains. The locomotives are scale models of mainline locomotives and are air-braked at 50 psi. There are over a hundred regular volunteers that help with the running of the railways, which include guarding the trains, carriage shunting and selling tickets at the major intermediate stations along the route.
Signalling system
thumb|Signal box, Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway
thumb|Signals and crossover at Ravenglass
The railway uses the Radio Control Train Order signalling system. Outside Ravenglass station, the line is single track with passing loops at Miteside, Irton Road and Fisherground. Trains operate by radio communication between drivers and at Ravenglass signal box. At passing loops and the terminus station, drivers contact the controller, using "RANDER" reporting numbers (even numbers for up trains, and odd for down), to indicate that the train is within the loop and is clear of the preceding single track. To leave the loop, the driver contacts control to gain authorisation to enter the next single track section. No semaphore signals are used outside Ravenglass station. Points at passing loops are weighted with direction indicators, meaning that no human intervention is required and the points reset themselves automatically after the passage of a train when entering the points from a trailing direction when the points are set for the other rail line.
Elements of the operation were used by British Rail to cut costs on remote lines. What became known as Radio Electronic Token Block signalling shared features with the Ratty, such as centralised control, automatic points at loops, and on-train equipment rather than fixed equipment at remote locations.
On peak days in the summer months, two trains depart each end of the line per hour. Capacity on the railway allows for a service run at 20-minute intervals.
Ownership
The railway company is in common ownership with the Ullswater 'Steamers', a company that operates lake cruises on Ullswater in the north-eastern part of the Lake District. Both companies form part of the Lake District Estates group, which also owns various tourist oriented properties in the area, and is controlled by Lord Wakefield's descendants.
Stations on the route
Ravenglass
Ravenglass railway station is the main terminus of the line: the other terminus is Dalegarth for Boot. Ravenglass station is the headquarters of the railway company and houses the railway museum, managerial offices and rolling stock maintenance facilities.
There is a turntable at the western extremity of the station's platforms, which doubles as the datum for mileage markers on the line. Ravenglass houses two locomotive sheds, on the southern side of the track, and a carriage shed on the northern side. There is a carriage & wagon workshop beyond Platform 1, opposite the signalbox. The Turntable Café is situated on Platform 1. The car park has spaces for 100 cars, as well as coaches. There are holiday accommodation facilities for weekly use, which consist of the Pullman camping coaches 135 Elmira and 137 Maid of Kent, and a holiday bungalow, the Hilton Cottage.
Muncaster Mill
Muncaster Mill is from Ravenglass, adjacent to an historic corn mill (no longer open to the public). It is an unstaffed station, formerly known simply as Muncaster.
Miteside Halt
Miteside Halt is from Ravenglass. It is accessible only from a footpath that passes along Miterdale, at the foot of Muncaster Fell. The station shelter is the wooden hull of an old boat, the third such structure at the Halt.
Murthwaite Halt
Murthwaite Halt is from Ravenglass and is also only accessible from a footpath.
Irton Road
Irton Road is from Ravenglass, approximately halfway along the line. It was formerly known as Hollowstones, after the adjacent farm. There is a passing loop within the station and, consequently, two platforms. It has three sidings which branch off from the "up" loop – two of which run into a small shed, and the third of which is used for ballast and log traffic. There is a station building, which dates from 1875.
The Green
The Green, also known as Eskdale Green, is from Ravenglass. It was formerly known as King of Prussia after a local pub, then Eskdale Green, and since has changed between Eskdale Green and The Green several times. Has recently received a new picnic area.
Fisherground
Fisherground is accessible via a public footpath, adjacent to Fisherground campsite. It is from Ravenglass, just east of Fisherground loop.
Beckfoot
Beckfoot is from Ravenglass. Setting down is permitted only from trains travelling from Ravenglass, and picking up is permitted only on trains to Ravenglass.
Dalegarth for Boot
Dalegarth for Boot is a few yards short of from Ravenglass and is the eastern terminus of the railway. It was formerly known as Eskdale (Dalegarth). There are two platforms and a turntable. The facilities at this station include Fellbites Café and the Scafell Gift Shop. A water supply to platform 1 allows topping up of the steam locomotive's tenders.
Rolling stock
Locomotives
thumb|River Mite
The current fleet comprises:
{| class="wikitable"
!No.
!Name
!Type
!Wheels
!Builder
!Built
!Arrival
!Livery
!Status
!Refs
|-
|align=center|3
|River Irt
|Steam
|align=center|
|Sir Arthur Heywood
|align=center|1894
|align=center|1917
|Heywood Green
|In service
|
|-
|align=center|6
|Katie
|Steam
|align=center|
|Sir Arthur Heywood
|align=center|1896
|align=center|1916, 1982, 2017
|Green
|Owned by the R&ER Preservation Society. Operational, usually displayed in the museum.
|
|-
|align=center|7
|River Esk
|Steam
|align=center|
|Davey Paxman & Co.
|align=center|1923
|align=center|1923
|Blackberry Black
|In service
|
|-
|align=center|9
|River Mite
|Steam
|align=center|
|Clarkson & Sons
|align=center|1966
|align=center|1966
|Indian Red
|Owned by the R&ER Preservation Society. In service.
|
|-
|align=center|N/A
|Synolda
|Steam
|align=center|
|Bassett-Lowke
|align=center|1912
|align=center|1978
|NGR Blue
|Operational, usually displayed in the museum.
|
|-
|align=center|N/A
|Greenbat
|Battery-Electric
|align=center|
|Greenwood & Batley
|align=center|1957
|align=center|1982
|Yellow
|Operational
|
|-
|align=center|ICL 4
|Perkins
|Diesel-Mechanical
|align=center|4w-4
|Muir-Hill
|align=center|1929
|align=center|1929
|Yellow
|In service
|
|-
|align=center|ICL 9
|Cyril
|Diesel-Mechanical
|align=center|
|R.A. Lister
|align=center|1932
|align=center|1985
|Green
|Owned by the Murthwaite Locomotive Group. Station shunter.
|
|-
|align=center|ICL 10
|Les
|Diesel-Mechanical
|align=center|
|R.A. Lister
|align=center|1960
|align=center|1999
|Green
|Workshop pilot
|
|}
Passenger carriages
The operational passenger stock of the railway currently comprises the following –
- 7 20-seat heated saloons (102; 110; 111; 113–115; 136)
- 2 18-seat heated saloons (106; 107)
- 1 14-seat heated brake saloon (112)
- 3 20-seat saloons (119; 121; 122)
- 2 14-seat brake saloons (104; 120)
- 1 16-seat brake saloon (103)
- 1 22-seat heated "maxi" brake saloon (133)
- 1 20-seat heated "maxi" special saloon (130 Eskdale Belle)
- 1 17-seat heated disabled saloon (118)
- 1 14-seat heated disabled saloon (138)
- 2 19-seat disabled saloons (123; 137)
- 7 20-seat semi-opens (101; 108; 109; 116; 117; 124; 125)
- 3 20-seat disabled semi-opens (127–129)
- 8 20-seat opens (166; 269–469; 170–370; 387)
- 5 18-seat brake opens (169; 271; 371; 199; 287)
- 1 14-seat heated observation saloon (131 Joan)
- 1 12-seat heated director's saloon (132 Ruth)
- 1 18 seat heated first class saloon (140)
Open coach 287 is owned by the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway Preservation Society and is hired to the railway.
Other vehicles
thumb|A utility van for use by engineers.
The permanent way department currently utilises nine four-wheeled flat wagons, eight of which have removable tops for ballast carrying, a four-wheeled railbender wagon, a bogie man-rider wagon, two bogie flat wagons, a utilities van, and a mess saloon coach (105).
The line in fiction
The Arlesdale Railway in The Railway Series by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry is based on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway. In Small Railway Engines (1967), Awdry relates part of a holiday he spent visiting the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway with the Rev. Edwin Boston; the two appear in the book as the Thin Clergyman and the Fat Clergyman, respectively. The Arlesdale Railway was also the focus point in Jock the New Engine, with an incident that was inspired by an accident that happened on the Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway, when Perkins crashed in the back of the shed, and with cameos in other books.
The fictional railway's locomotives are each based on Ravenglass locomotives: Bert, Rex, Mike and Jock are the steam locomotives River Irt, River Esk, River Mite and Northern Rock, while the Sudrian diesels Frank, Sigrid of Arlesdale and Blister 1 & 2 are the Cumbrians Perkins, Shelagh of Eskdale and Cyril.
See also
- Duffield Bank Railway
- Eaton Hall Railway
- Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway
- Sand Hutton Miniature Railway
- Shuzenji Romney Railway in Japan
- Bush Mill Railway
References
Sources
External links
- Ravenglass and Eskdale Railway Company Ltd.
- Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway Preservation Society
- Ravenglass Railway Museum
- Photos of the railway in dedicated flickr group
- The Cumbria Directory – Ravenglass Railway Museum