Posted:  Friday 15 May 2009

A Railway Awayday for
North East Associates
- 14th May -

The North York Moors Railway and Whitby beckoned

A face full of steam, eyes full of ash and hair smelling of oil and smoke.
Sooty smuts on the face as well!  Serves us right for acting as we used to way back in the days of steam - we should be older and wiser now.  Maybe so, but we're still kids at heart.  Seriously, people had brought eye protection.

To meet up some came by bus but many of us travelled by train or on the Tyne & Wear Metro - a 20th century system upgrade - to our rendezvous point at Newcastle station.
	Familiarly known as the "Central Station" - 160 years old next year - it is an elegant product of the Stephenson era. Now operated by National Express, who were in the news this week, their ECML stock can be spotted here frequently.

Off we set - by road - in our three coaches, with a short stop to collect a few more people as we headed south.  The ascent of Sutton Bank was on the route, again.

The occasion was an excursion back in time for North East Associates in which a steam-hauled train ride was taken on the North Yorkshire Moors Railway.
Another Stephenson project this was opened as a 'simple' railway in 1836, originally for horse-drawn carriages.  The journey today was from Pickering to Whitby, 24 miles and most within the North York Moors National Park.

The first section took us north to Grosmont on preserved NYMR track in Newtondale and beyond.  It was a "Green Timetable Day" - nothing significant except that this was the colour of the paper on which it was printed.
Green too was the colour of our loco - Southern  Maunsell  4-6-0  Class S15  No. 825  of 1927 - which pulled a rake of BR Mk.1 crimson coaches from across the regions.

A long delay meant we were held at a passing place on the mostly single track, apparently as the approaching loco needed coaling on its journey - the work having to be done by hand.  The reason became obvious at Grosmont shed.

The new goliath steam "star" Peppercorn A1 4-6-2 60163 "Tornado" was blocking the road through the coaling plant.

We then continued to Whitby along part of the Esk Valley Line, this under Network Rail control.  This latter section is apparently the only national network route on which trains can be operated by "amateur" crews.  Some amateurs!

Nearing Grosmont with a good head of steam

The excellent picnic lunch provided on the train was considered only a snack, as there would be an opportunity in Whitby to sample real 'fish 'n' chips' at the Magpie Café, which is described by Rick Stein as "the best fish and chip shop in Britain".
We did enjoy the scenic ride, as most of it is through lush countryside without any roads running alongside.
Many bridges though, as the River Esk is crossed nine times on the Grosmont to Whitby journey alone.

Approaching Whitby the guard gave us a brief history of the line.

Our 117-strong party then spent the afternoon in scenic Whitby, primarily a fishing village.  There are now very few boats operating from the port, and a news item earlier in the week reported that all the trawlers here were up for sale.
Something to do with EU quotas.

There's a harbour here and the Esk estuary, which both have strong links to Captain Cook and the Bark Endeavour, and similarly the town with early Christianity in Britain.  Some "seaside" attractions here also, and the opportunity to sightsee from an open-top bus.  Maybe the enclosed cabin on the vintage Sentinel Steamer from Shrewsbury is safer, considering the uncaring behaviour of some of the locals!

North of the river there's a large sandy bay with easy-ish access in the form of a lift built into the cliff, saving a 120ft descent, or ascent, on foot.  However, there's a seventy-yard walk in a tunnel to use it!  There's a large arch here too - made from the jawbone of a whale.

South side there are the remains of 11th century St. Hilda's Abbey, built over 500 years after the death of the Saint.  There are 199 steps to climb to reach St. Mary's Parish Church - this area of the town taken for the setting for Bram Stoker's novel 'Dracula' - with a little further to walk to the abbey site.  Well worth the effort, but pity that EH didn't tell us of the £5 abbey entry fee until we were at the top.

We said our farewells to Whitby as we boarded our coaches to enjoy more of the scenery of the North York Moors National Park - although some of us nodded off - on our journey back to Newcastle.  Then another train ride home.

Footnote

A little out of place this, and not appropriate in its use on the NYMR. The nearest known location for this type of electric system was the Tyneside area, but that was over fifty years ago!

pictures:  ph

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