Last updated on April 25th, 2024 at 11:45 am
Imagine a simpler, hate-free, monochrome world, where you know your doctor, civil servants are both civil and servile, politicians benign and dogs only ever bark happily. You are secure in the womb of grim, factory-stained, buildings. There’s a footbridge over a railway and a train is coming. You gaily dash to cross just as the locomotive chugs through beneath your feet, enveloping you in comforting, billowing, clouds of pungent, damp, steam. You emerge soot-specked, choking and exultant, oblivious of the lung-damage. Then you wake; it has all been a wonderful dream.
Thankfully, you can experience some of that romance and evocative wet coal smell, and in full colour, at scores of wonderfully preserved heritage railways all over Britain. One of these, the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway, is located in England’s Lake District and runs between Lakeside, close to the southern tip of Lake Windermere, through Newby Bridge, and Haverthwaite. It’s not an enormous distance – just over 3 miles – but it’s a pleasant trip through agreeable, rather than spectacular, countryside. It takes less than 20 minutes each way. If you plan it right, you can combine the railway journey with a boat trip on a Windermere launch to or from Ambleside, or Bowness, across England’s largest lake. The cruise between Ambleside and Lakeside takes about an hour and a half; the voyage between Bowness and Lakeside is around 40 minutes. Great in good weather – and the scenery is beautiful. The Aquarium of the Lakes, a handy wet day option for children, is situated at Lakeside but, apart from that and the station café, that’s about it.
Haverthwaite railway station is a congenial little place, though. The a station café advertises All Day Railwayman’s Breakfast (for All Day Railwaymen), and Afternoon Tea, both of which are served with capital letters. There is a shop selling all those essential railway souvenirs and a collection of locomotives in an engine shed. To be fair, unless you linger too much over your specially-brewed Fairburn Ale, get lost on the woodland walk, or stuck on the zip wire in the adventure playground, a visit won’t require more than an hour or two. Rail enthusiasts might need a little longer: “Ohh – just look at the bogies on that!” (spoken in a slightly nasal, Kenneth Williams style, voice). While you’re in the area, however, do make time if you can to see the Lakeland Motor Museum just down the road.
Judging by a previous version of its website, the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway is, or was, popular with visitors from China. Sounds good to me; I guess they don’t have railways in the People’s Republic.
The railway started life as a branch line of the Furness Railway in 1869, mainly carrying industrial freight – coal, iron ore, sulphur and saltpetre on the way in and locally-produced gunpowder, pit-props, bobbins and ultramarine laundry blue on the journey out. In 1872, the Furness Railway Co displayed a grasp of tourist potential by purchasing the United Windermere Steam Yacht Co and, by the turn of the century, was carrying holiday makers and day trippers. Passenger services were suspended during the Second World War, though the line was occasionally used to transport captured Germans to and from the POW camp at Grizedale Hall. Passenger services resumed in 1946, but ceased in 1965; freight services stuttered on until 1967, when the line eventually closed. It’s easy to forget that some of Britain’s railways had relatively short lives.
After years of negotiation, in 1970 The Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway Co was formed and, since 1973, has run the show as a tourist attraction.
Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway is a nicely preserved piece of Britain’s industrial heritage and, along with the displays in the Lakeland Motor Museum about the local manufacture of Dolly Blue and gunpowder, sheds a respectful light on the not widely known historic industrial activity in this part of the world.
You can visit the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway website for more information, including details of various special events; it is rumoured that even Thomas the Tank Engine pays a visit sometimes.
If you enjoy visiting heritage railways, the excellent UK & Ireland Heritage Railways website lists more than 180 railway and tramway attractions.
A little bit of nostalgia in the English countryside. I love your evocative Black & White photograph 🙂
I blame the camera! 🙂
This area is one of Eddie and my favourites … heaven on earth 🙂
All the best Jan
Except in the rain 🙂
I missed out on this treat when I was last in the Lakes. Must remember to check it out on my next visit.
It makes a nice trip by boat first. The nearby motor museum is fascinating too.
that looks like a fun and educational way to tour the British countryside
Well, a tiny part of it anyway! Thanks for dropping in!
When we were in London last year, we took a bus to the Cotswolds and a train to Edinburgh. We got to see a bit of the beautiful countryside!
Well, in that case you probably saw quite a lot! Hope you come again.
We hope so as well. We loved our time in London!
That’s good to hear.
Real trains! Different than the sleek Amtrack things I’ve been on over here, with the smaller windows. I mean, the windows are big enough, but steam trains seem to be all window and that adds to the drama.
A steam train thundering through the countryside certainly looks dramatic!
This was a lovely visit. Thank you, Mike. My Dad has made steam engines since he was twelve and he and Mum have visited all of them around our fair isle. Whenever you mention one of them to him, he’ll turn to Mum and say ‘We went on that in such and such.’ The smell of steam and wet coal takes me back to my childhood. I haven’t done this trip, but I bet they have and I love the combination of the boat ride. Hugs Xx
Reckon your dad would get on with my brother!
They have a language all of their own, Mike! Dad turned 89 in August and Mum, my sister and I, took him to a beautiful model steam club in Daresbury, Cheshire. He was a member for years and they welcomed us for the day. The track is under the trees at the top of a field on a hill. It meanders around fishing lakes and the chaps have built a tunnel and put wooden sculptures by the line. It’s close to the church where Lewis Carroll’s father was a vicar and Lewis grew up. It has a magic feel. There is a lovely log cabin as a clubhouse and Mum brought a picnic and we all had a special day. Xx hugs x
It sounds wonderful!
This sounds like a lovely trip to take. Thank you for this story.
It’s a lovely part of the world round there.
I love steam railways and this is beautiful 🙂
Thank you!
Lung damage aside, it sounds delightful to go by train *and* boat! I don’t know who Kenneth Williams is, but I hear Wallace of Wallace and Gromit fame. Fun post, Mike, and who wouldn’t enjoy one of those heritage railways.
Kenneth Williams was a comic actor and raconteur, Judy. Obviously not well-known across the Pond. He starred in a series of corny movies – the ‘Carry on’ movies. Wikipedia details here.
Richard and I travelled on the railway and then had a trip on Lake Windemere during our honeymoon in 1994. We had a wonderful day! Thanks for the amusing post and all the information therein, Mike.
That is wonderful, Clare! I hope it brought back some lovely memories, though I suspect you didn’t need reminding.
Thanks for another entertaining and superbly illustrated piece of nostalgia.
Thanks, Frank; it’s not what it used to be, is it?
A great trip. You picked a good bogie joke
A classic, Derrick; a classic! 😀
Groan! Thanks, Derrick!!
Nice post and photos Mike. We have a couple of heritage train stations over this side that I’ve visited this year, great fun to ride on the old trains.
I think it’s more fun to see the trains; once you’re aboard, you could be on anything!
I stayed up in the lakes last summer but missed out on the wonderful steam train experience.
I loved your initial description of hanging over the railway bridge, that took me back to my early childhood. The railway ran through the middle of woodland near where we lived, we would lean over the bridge and wait for the trains just like the Railway Children – train spotting with my older brother and his mates was a fun way to spend an afternoon! Though I was always told not to tell our mum where we’d been.
I still enjoy watching the Railway Children! And I still don’t tell Mum what time I’ll be home…
It is indeed a lovely station and railway line to visit. The cakes are excellent in the cafe and we met some owls too the day we visited. For a really lazy day join the friends of Haverthwaite Railway to get a parking permit, ride on the railway and just sail right round the lake and get back here for tea. Perfect.
Sounds good; thanks, Ruth! 🙂
I’ve been meaning to visit one of the steam railways around here all this summer – and now your post is making me regret not having fitted it in. There’s the remains of a trackbed near here which was only operational for 3 years; you can still see the old bridges and occasional overgrown lengths of track. It ran from the village of Great Chesterford to the even smaller settlement of Six Mile Bottom – can’t imagine why it never caught on!
Something to exercise your photographic skills on, John!
We have been to Lakeside, though not on the train. A few years ago we went on the boat with our Aussie relatives and it was a lovely trip, especially as the rain stopped and the sun came out. But most memorable was staying for a week in Grange-over-Sands railway station, no steam trains, but real trains coming through, even in the middle of the night. We took a trip on this line to Barrow-on-Furness. The station is right on the edge of Morecambe Bay – grass rather than sand and sheepdogs rounded up the sheep before high tide.
Ah – so YOU’RE the people who visited Barrow-on-Furness!
Yes, inspired by the diaries of Nella Last!
This post made me cry because just seeing the train made me think of my Dad
Oh – sorry, Joanne!
‘Look at the bogies on that!’. Julian and Sandy or Rambling Syd Rumpo complete with his cordwangle?
I love steam trains….one of the highlights of visiting Guatemala City was to s[end an afternoon in the railway museum…wonderful spidery viaducts in grainy photos…and the discovery that Giatemala and El Salvador had a gauge I had never heard of before.
This looks like a super day out! . Always interesting to see the industries that once flourished in what we now think of as quiet countryside. Thank goodness for those who preserved these lines and their rolling stock.
Glad you enjoyed it, Helen. I suppose I should make it to the Railway Museum in York sometime…perhaps somewhere to mess about…
Beautiful shots!
Thanks, William!
Wow that looks amazing! Talk about a trip back in time 🙂
We try… 🙂
I have to confess that I’m not into steam trains, but one of my favourite pubs is the Railwayman’s Arms at the Bridgnorth station on the Severn Valley Railway. You can’t help but see steam trains when you drink in there.
After a few pints of good ale, can you see other things too?
Usually people dressed as if there were a war on.
Oh dear…
Yes, I am concerned about air quality and what we’re doing to our world…but please don’t shut down the steam trains.
OK – I won’t!
Chuffing looks like fun. I do think it’s possible that Chinese visitors may be looking backwards just as much as you are, given how far ahead of many countries they have gotten with their high speed rail development. Chinese tourism has become a world-wide phenomena.
Very true.