Lynton and Barnstaple - Operations and Development

The tearoom plans from the website do indeed show a sympathetic addition to Woody Bay station:
https://www.lynton-rail.co.uk/news/new-tea-rooms-planning-approved
If the standard of the snacks and meals is maintained, as I would expect it to be, then it will be an excellent upgrade welcomed by all.

Furthermore, let's hope that the planning amendment for the initial extension to Parracombe is granted, then we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

 

As some of you may be aware via EA's 'trackbed trails' the little Ruston locomotive that was at Lynton station and in a slightly sorry state was rescued last summer and on 13 July began its long journey via Barnstaple to Norfolk for restoration, it was planned that some volunteers at Snapper would do the work (a big challenge and very ambitious) but two brothers whose passion is diesel locomotives stepped in and offered their services for free so off 'Rusto' went off into the sunset.It should be noted that by this time 'Rusto' had been given to EA and a few shareholders kindly made donations towards any materials. By Christmas the little loco was looking very different thanks to the brothers and a couple of other volunteers, although a few little jobs remain to be done the brothers asked if it could be put forward for the HRA awards having themselves won an award for a previous locomotive restoration. Unfortunately 'Rusto' didnt get 1st prize but was runner up in two categories, an amazing achievement, so a heartfelt thanks and congratulations to all involved. Once run in 'Rusto' will be kept in storage until such a time that she can return to Devon

 

Well done - "Rusto" certainly looks like a different engine!

 

Well done lads!!!!!

 

The Coiley award is named after Dr Coiley who was Director of the National Railway Museum in 1978 when the idea of the NRM acquiring L & B Coach No 2 was put to him, hoping he would respond to being reminded that the organisation he headed was 'The National Railway Museum' and it had saved no exhibits from UK passenger NG Railways. Which, bless his cotton socks, he did. The Museum asked the owner to let us talk to him about it, and Dr Coiley, David Jenkinson, an Officer at NRM, Andrew Dow and Yours Truly were invited to tea. Luckily Mr Mitchel was prepared to consider letting it go to a good home. Other organisations were after it, probably including the Festiniog who had acquired No 15 nearly 20 years before. If they had succeeded it would have had the same treatment as that one. The coach had been in a garden 15 miles north of Exeter for over 40 years since being bought at the auction by what would probably have then been called a 'railwayac' for £13.10.0, and had suddenly started to badly deteriorate and was rapidly heading towards there be nothing to save. It took 5 years to arrange, but it was on Dr Coiley's initiative that the coach went to the Museum and was put under cover to dry out and saved for future generations. We have a lot to thank him for. It has to be remembered that at the time - 1978 - the L & B Association was a pipe-dream, and saving any coaches or bits of coaches was pie in the sky (where would you put them ? Towyn had turned down No 2) with comparatively little apparent interest from the Railway Community - the word 'Heritage' wasn't in the vocabulary then, demonstrated by the fact that the L & B Society was disbanded in 1964 after only 3 people turned up at the AGM. - see L & B Association Magazine 61. Restoring the Railway seemed a project doomed to fail (again) - the land was in the hands of 60 or so different private owners and most of the main road bridges had gone in order to get rid of the dangerous S-bends that the railway had created. It was only that year - 1964 - that the Welsh Highland Railway '64 Company was set up hoping to reopen that line, in a situation where all the trackbed was in the hands of one organisation - the Official Receiver.

 

More proof, if proof were needed, that our new General Manager is hands-on! Just as interesting is the background, showing that the timber frame for the new tearoom appears to be almost complete. (Photo by Chris Duffell):


More here: https://www.lynton-rail.org.uk/story/working-weekend-25th-27th-march-friday-photos

 

For those who don't do Facebook (including myself), and to show that Stuart Nelhams is also a pretty handy photographer. I really hope he won't mind me passing this along for wider viewing, but it really is a stunning picture of Woody Bay at sunset:

 

A new broom sweeps clean

 

I have been looking at the L & B website and it is not clear when the line actually opens as it just says "late March", and there is no link to any timetable that I could find on the site...is it me being IT illiterate?....
Correction ......It is Me! When I go direct to the site, the information is there, but on my stored linky thing it is not, for some reason.

 

Does this help at all?

https://www.lynton-rail.co.uk/timetables

 

Thanks Glen .....and today is the first day of public running!

 

yes the 9th

 

There is a picture on one of the facebook pages of the Tea Room roof. The Cedar shingles look really good. I assume if won't be in use yet which is a pity with the line opening today.

 

A very tidy looking job, it is: (Photo by Stuart Nelhams)

At a very rough guess, given the rapid pace of work up to now, we're probably looking at another 4-6 weeks for internal fit-out, external painting, etc, so hopefully not eating too far into the season.

 

I thought eating far into the season was the whole point?

Tom

 

And for many a season to come!
Mike

 

Well done that man - you beat me to it ! I was thinking of bringing my sandwiches and vacuum flask to the gala.

 

Just don't bite off more than you can chew!

 

I dont post often on here anymore but do read a couple of bookmarked threads including this one .

I'd like to volunteer my time more at woody bay but sadly time and a family have stopped me lately but I had the pleasure of meeting Stuart (autotank64) for the first time at woody bay for one of our MIC classes/meetings and it's got to be said that everything positive,neutral and negative seemed to have been taken onboard by him and I honestly think the railway has a new lease of life .

Give him time and I think we'll be pleased to see what happens over the next 6 months to a year .

Everything from rule book upgrades , competence updates , record keeping and so much more have already seen a positive move forward.

10/10 to the bloke.

 

From the website, a nice photo feature on the recent NHRA Hendy/ Pendle Trust award ceremony at Chelfham:
https://www.lynton-rail.org.uk/stor...veiling-ceremony-saturday-2nd-april-more-news

Apart from the completion of the gents, plus some additional SR fencing, and down platform lamp standards, it seems there's not much more which can really be done. But one feature which is so prominent in old photographs is the large fir tree at the Barnstaple end of the up platform, which formed a kind of exclamation point between the station building and the viaduct. I wonder, are there any plans to plant a replacement? It just works so well in the composition of the station in the landscape. Who knows- by the time trains return, it may well have already achieved a decent height: