silvermachine
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I noticed the landscape sculpture of the woman lying on her back the other day.
Where is it and what is the story? And can you visit it?
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Things to see on the ECML
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I noticed the landscape sculpture of the woman lying on her back the other day.
Where is it and what is the story? And can you visit it?
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That's quite a detour between Newark and Edinburgh.
There's one of those large white horses on a hillside somewhere between Darlington and York.
mildertduck
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You will be able to - http://www.northumberlandia.com/ - it's a land regeneration scheme on a former opencast site (which at the moment is still an opencast site, though it will be opening soon.
Waverley21
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Penmanshiel gets me every time.
silvermachine
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many thanks - I will schedule a visit.
Sitting on a giant head to watch the trains going past will be novel.
DarloRich
Veteran Member
I always find the ECML great for spotting stuff and keeping the kids amused (my nephew is 6 and i take him to visit our family ("up north") and I do exactly the same thing for him! Location of “objects” are for a journey north to south I will try and keep it non railway based if I can:
1) Footballif they like that!) you can see the following grounds:
Doncaster (Keepmoat Stadium) right hand side just south of Doncaster station. You can just see the stand roofs when you get near the big railway complex south of the station)
York – (Kit Kat Crescent) right hand side of the train, over the river straight after the station ( you should see the floodlight pylons)
Middlesbrough’s training ground right hand side, immediately after you cross the river Tees at Croft south of Darlington
Darlington (Northern Echo arena) right hand side of the train just before Darligton station. Whole ground is visible and is perhaps the greatest sporting arena known to man
Newcastle – (sports Direct Arena HAHAHAHAHA!) left hand side of the train on top of the hill immediately before Newcastle station
Berwick Rangers ground (Shielfield Park) Left hand side of the train on the big curve just before the Royal Border Bridge and Berwick station. (Bonus point for guessing if they play in Scotland or England!)
Hiberinan Ground (Easter Road) Right hand side of the train just before Edinburgh station)
2) History/Culture/Misc
York Minster - right handside of the train on approach and departure form York
York City Walls – a good spot on the right hand side of the train just as you pull into York station
York Wheel – right hand side of the train after departure form York station
National Railway Museum – left hand side immediately on departure form York
White Horse of Kilburn – right hand side of the train just south of Thirsk station
Durham Castle & Cathedral – right hand side of the train just before Durham station. There is not a better view of these two buildings form any other spot.
Angel of the North – right hand side of the train as you pass the mess that is Tyne Yard
Bridges over the Tyne – left and right as you approach Newcastle (Bonus points for counting them and naming them! There are 7 l-r Redhuegh Bridge, King Edward bridge (which is the one you should be going over) The Queen Elizabeth II (Metro bridge) High Level bridge, Swing Bridge, Tyne Bridge & Millennium Bridge)
The “New” castle – right hand side as soon as you leave Newcastle Central Station
Byker Metro Bridge – a Curved, concrete, I think futuristic looking bridge ( extra points for seeing a metro train!) on the right hand side just after passing through Manors station
Byker Wall – 1970’s built council flats (same as the above entry for the spotting list) my nephew loves them and thinks they are made out of lego!
First one to spot the sea - start them looking sometime after Morpeth on the right hands side (that fills in a good 10-15 minutes!)
Alnmouth Bay is always a nice view - right hand side of the train after you pass /stop at Alnmouth
Alnwick Castle – left hand side after Alnmouth station – it is a good spot as it quite a distance away!
Dunstanburgh Castle – Right hand side midway between Alnmouth and Chathill stations
Bamburgh Castle – right hand side of the line just before Belford level crossing. About 5minutes north of Chathill Station
Lindisfarne – just after Belford Level Crossing. (extra points if they can tell you how you get there!) About 5minutes north of Chathill Station
The Royal Border bridge – you should get a view from the right hand side just before Berwick station
Running along the cliff tops around Berwick (sit on the right hand side!)
Ayton Castle – North of Berwick right hand side after the train bends in land away form the coast. (not convinced you can see this one TBH but my brother says you can see it!) It looks like a mini Glamis Castle
Torness Nuclear Power Station – right hand side of the line just before you get to Dunbar
The Isle of May – In the middle of the Firth of Forth – Right hand side of the train around Dunbar
Edinburgh Castle
3) Railways
Doncaster Works
York Depot
Heaton Depot
Craigentinny Depot
Various metal LNER marker signs. There is one after York, (right hand side near the sidings ) one on the border between Durham and Yorkshire at Croft opposite side to the Boro training ground) and the border one north of Berwick. There will be more but I cant recall them!
Play count the number of train companies you see and where you first see them. Furthest south wins in the event of a tie! For a full house:
East Coast, Cross Country, East Midlands Trains, Northern, Grand Central, Hull Trains, Scotrail, TPE,DBS (EWS will do!),GBRF,DRS
The flat crossing just north of Darlington Station which is the route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. Left hand side is best, just after you see the Bishop Auckland Line curve away to the left. A good excuse for a History lesson
Count the number of stations you pass through is also good fun
You can play race the cars on the A1 section near Grantshouse
1) Footballif they like that!) you can see the following grounds:
Doncaster (Keepmoat Stadium) right hand side just south of Doncaster station. You can just see the stand roofs when you get near the big railway complex south of the station)
York – (Kit Kat Crescent) right hand side of the train, over the river straight after the station ( you should see the floodlight pylons)
Middlesbrough’s training ground right hand side, immediately after you cross the river Tees at Croft south of Darlington
Darlington (Northern Echo arena) right hand side of the train just before Darligton station. Whole ground is visible and is perhaps the greatest sporting arena known to man
Newcastle – (sports Direct Arena HAHAHAHAHA!) left hand side of the train on top of the hill immediately before Newcastle station
Berwick Rangers ground (Shielfield Park) Left hand side of the train on the big curve just before the Royal Border Bridge and Berwick station. (Bonus point for guessing if they play in Scotland or England!)
Hiberinan Ground (Easter Road) Right hand side of the train just before Edinburgh station)
2) History/Culture/Misc
York Minster - right handside of the train on approach and departure form York
York City Walls – a good spot on the right hand side of the train just as you pull into York station
York Wheel – right hand side of the train after departure form York station
National Railway Museum – left hand side immediately on departure form York
White Horse of Kilburn – right hand side of the train just south of Thirsk station
Durham Castle & Cathedral – right hand side of the train just before Durham station. There is not a better view of these two buildings form any other spot.
Angel of the North – right hand side of the train as you pass the mess that is Tyne Yard
Bridges over the Tyne – left and right as you approach Newcastle (Bonus points for counting them and naming them! There are 7 l-r Redhuegh Bridge, King Edward bridge (which is the one you should be going over) The Queen Elizabeth II (Metro bridge) High Level bridge, Swing Bridge, Tyne Bridge & Millennium Bridge)
The “New” castle – right hand side as soon as you leave Newcastle Central Station
Byker Metro Bridge – a Curved, concrete, I think futuristic looking bridge ( extra points for seeing a metro train!) on the right hand side just after passing through Manors station
Byker Wall – 1970’s built council flats (same as the above entry for the spotting list) my nephew loves them and thinks they are made out of lego!
First one to spot the sea - start them looking sometime after Morpeth on the right hands side (that fills in a good 10-15 minutes!)
Alnmouth Bay is always a nice view - right hand side of the train after you pass /stop at Alnmouth
Alnwick Castle – left hand side after Alnmouth station – it is a good spot as it quite a distance away!
Dunstanburgh Castle – Right hand side midway between Alnmouth and Chathill stations
Bamburgh Castle – right hand side of the line just before Belford level crossing. About 5minutes north of Chathill Station
Lindisfarne – just after Belford Level Crossing. (extra points if they can tell you how you get there!) About 5minutes north of Chathill Station
The Royal Border bridge – you should get a view from the right hand side just before Berwick station
Running along the cliff tops around Berwick (sit on the right hand side!)
Ayton Castle – North of Berwick right hand side after the train bends in land away form the coast. (not convinced you can see this one TBH but my brother says you can see it!) It looks like a mini Glamis Castle
Torness Nuclear Power Station – right hand side of the line just before you get to Dunbar
The Isle of May – In the middle of the Firth of Forth – Right hand side of the train around Dunbar
Edinburgh Castle
3) Railways
Doncaster Works
York Depot
Heaton Depot
Craigentinny Depot
Various metal LNER marker signs. There is one after York, (right hand side near the sidings ) one on the border between Durham and Yorkshire at Croft opposite side to the Boro training ground) and the border one north of Berwick. There will be more but I cant recall them!
Play count the number of train companies you see and where you first see them. Furthest south wins in the event of a tie! For a full house:
East Coast, Cross Country, East Midlands Trains, Northern, Grand Central, Hull Trains, Scotrail, TPE,DBS (EWS will do!),GBRF,DRS
The flat crossing just north of Darlington Station which is the route of the Stockton and Darlington Railway. Left hand side is best, just after you see the Bishop Auckland Line curve away to the left. A good excuse for a History lesson
Count the number of stations you pass through is also good fun
You can play race the cars on the A1 section near Grantshouse
Kryten2340
Member
and Berwick Ranger's ground.
Apart from that, Arsenal's, The Sports Direct Area and Peterborough United's ground what other grounds can you see from the ECML?
oh and when you are crossing the Ouseburn you can see Gateshead Stadium, the home of mighty Gateshead across the river, and I forgot Darlo's ground
I know I'm cheating as it's technically the WCML but as EC and XC trains use it I'll chip in with these two. Celtic Park on the approach to Glasgow Central and Murrayfield just after leaving Haymarket. I'm cheating again as that of course is Rugby but it is Rugby Football
. Having said that I'm not sure if Murrayfield is visible from the line that goes down to Carstairs but it might just be visible. Fir Park Stadium home of Motherwell shoud be visible too.
Also Bass Rock near North Berwick/Dunbar. It's normally black, but goes white in the summer. Not a strange snow, but Gannets, thousands of them. You can see Ayton Castle, but it's a long way off. Also loads of coal-burning power stations, and I've never been quite sure which is which apart from Drax (the biggest, ten cooling towers).
All the X00 miles to > ... boards (most of which are now 40 chains out because of the Selby Diversion) and the Half-Way board (now 20 chains out). On that subject, at Temple Hirst Junction, you can watch where the old line keeps straight on and the new one swings away to the west. There's also the flat crossing at Newark (but you probably know about that).
I've also seen cars playing Race the Train, at 125!
hock:Anon Mouse
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I know I'm cheating as it's technically the WCML but as EC and XC trains use it I'll chip in with these two. Celtic Park on the approach to Glasgow Central and Murrayfield just after leaving Haymarket. I'm cheating again as that of course is Rugby but it is Rugby Football
you missed out Tynecastle visible around Haymarket too
DaveNewcastle
Established Member
There's several smaller curiosities along the way to add!
Just north of Carlton (church to the west, Great Northern pub east) is an occupied windmill to the east, with rooms on 5 floors. From here, you can see Lincoln Cathedral on its ridge in the far distance.
The remaining blue mass of the abandoned Harwoth Colliery stands high in the west, just before . . .
The line round the village of Bawtry is on a viaduct. A very low viaduct, but quite unusual.
4 miles before Doncaster, there is Potteric Carr nature reserve and lake on the east, but oddly, the bird-watcher's hide is on the west. (Seems odd that big noisy trains thunder through between the hiding twitchers and the birds).
On the approach to Doncaster station (from the s.) the line passes under a road bridge (Balby Bridge aka Tunnel) where the brickwork on the east side has an opening through which a ragged piece of red sandstone pokes through (looks very odd)!
Look for the white belltower on top of the former railway works on the west side of the station (southern end).
At Temple Hirst Junction, as well as watching 5 power stations (Drax & Rawcliffe to the east, Eggbourgh to the west, and Castleford and Ferrybridge far west) there's also the Temple which gives the junction its name, on the site of a former Knights Templar outpost (now a rest home!).
There's a hill to the east, Brayton Barff, it has a reservoir at the top!
Leaving York with the Ouse to the east, you can see the rotating Hogate windmill to the west.
There's 3 old metal signs (on both sides) within 8 miles, 'Edinburgh 200 miles', 'Edinburgh - London halfway' & 'London - 200 miles'.
There's a similar big old white metal sign, north of Northallerton where you cross the River Tees, there's a fine metal sign announcing 'Yorkshire', but on the other side, its more like a road traffic sign with brown background and small print 'Durham'.
Immediately before crossing the Wear, Croxdale Hall is on the east.
On the approach to Durham City, on the west, there's the grand National Union of Mineworkers building, more like a methodist chapel in style inside, with green copper domes. Arthur Scargill met here often during those difficult years for the mines and miners. Just visible over the trees is the tall pinnacle of an astronomical needle high on a hill overlooking the station. Its slits can be used to line up stellar objects.
Lumley Castle is a mile or so away but very visible on the approach to Chester-le-Street, but on a distant hiltop beyond is the Penshaw Monument, a mini-Acropolis with no roof, is visible maybe only in sillouette on the skyline.
Passing out of Newcastle, a magnificent deco factory once making Wills cigarettes is next to the line on the west, now appartments but retaining its character.
The Morpeth curve sees the slowest speeds other than at stations. Too many trains had come off the line there at speed.
Approaching Alnmouth (and beyond it) you'll see the large white 'golfball' long-distance radar dome at Boulmer, but further away and to the west, there's another, way beyond Alnwick. The combined received data from the two allows distance and angle to be measured more accurately.
Just 2 miles north of Alnmouth, on a hill-top to the west, is a folly, mainly consisting of an elevated observatory with glass on all four sides rasied on an arch. Its owned by the Duke of Northumberland.
The sand dunes nearby to the east are 'protected' and are (or were) the highest dunes in Europe.
North of Berwick, after looking over the precipitous red cliffs to the sea below, is the 90 degree curve west wards and I'll assure you that Ayton Castle (just n. of the Eng-Scot Border) is far from being distant and hard to see! Its red-sandstone and turrets make it radiate a deep red colour in the setting sun!
Mention has been made of the sad loss of life in the Penmanshiel Tunnel. But we can add that this is the highest point in the journey between Edin & London, and the descent from here to the sea at Cockburnspath is the steepet sustained gradient, reaching 1 in 96 for 3 miles!
After Dunbar, there's an old windmill to the west, at the site of the 1650 Battle of Broxburn.
In addition to the Bass Rock (out to sea), there are 2 almost perfect peaks, former mini-volcanos, one inland at Trapain, one seaward at north Berwick.
A few ruins, castles, and standing stones later, you see the last volcano in Edinburgh itself, Arthur's Seat, with the new Scottish parliament complex below.
Just north of Carlton (church to the west, Great Northern pub east) is an occupied windmill to the east, with rooms on 5 floors. From here, you can see Lincoln Cathedral on its ridge in the far distance.
The remaining blue mass of the abandoned Harwoth Colliery stands high in the west, just before . . .
The line round the village of Bawtry is on a viaduct. A very low viaduct, but quite unusual.
4 miles before Doncaster, there is Potteric Carr nature reserve and lake on the east, but oddly, the bird-watcher's hide is on the west. (Seems odd that big noisy trains thunder through between the hiding twitchers and the birds).
On the approach to Doncaster station (from the s.) the line passes under a road bridge (Balby Bridge aka Tunnel) where the brickwork on the east side has an opening through which a ragged piece of red sandstone pokes through (looks very odd)!
Look for the white belltower on top of the former railway works on the west side of the station (southern end).
At Temple Hirst Junction, as well as watching 5 power stations (Drax & Rawcliffe to the east, Eggbourgh to the west, and Castleford and Ferrybridge far west) there's also the Temple which gives the junction its name, on the site of a former Knights Templar outpost (now a rest home!).
There's a hill to the east, Brayton Barff, it has a reservoir at the top!
Leaving York with the Ouse to the east, you can see the rotating Hogate windmill to the west.
There's 3 old metal signs (on both sides) within 8 miles, 'Edinburgh 200 miles', 'Edinburgh - London halfway' & 'London - 200 miles'.
Yes, its on the side of the North Yorkshire moors, visible south of Thirsk, but when there's been snow, the horse becomes lost in the white background.
There's a similar big old white metal sign, north of Northallerton where you cross the River Tees, there's a fine metal sign announcing 'Yorkshire', but on the other side, its more like a road traffic sign with brown background and small print 'Durham'.
Immediately before crossing the Wear, Croxdale Hall is on the east.
On the approach to Durham City, on the west, there's the grand National Union of Mineworkers building, more like a methodist chapel in style inside, with green copper domes. Arthur Scargill met here often during those difficult years for the mines and miners. Just visible over the trees is the tall pinnacle of an astronomical needle high on a hill overlooking the station. Its slits can be used to line up stellar objects.
Lumley Castle is a mile or so away but very visible on the approach to Chester-le-Street, but on a distant hiltop beyond is the Penshaw Monument, a mini-Acropolis with no roof, is visible maybe only in sillouette on the skyline.
Passing out of Newcastle, a magnificent deco factory once making Wills cigarettes is next to the line on the west, now appartments but retaining its character.
The Morpeth curve sees the slowest speeds other than at stations. Too many trains had come off the line there at speed.
Approaching Alnmouth (and beyond it) you'll see the large white 'golfball' long-distance radar dome at Boulmer, but further away and to the west, there's another, way beyond Alnwick. The combined received data from the two allows distance and angle to be measured more accurately.
Just 2 miles north of Alnmouth, on a hill-top to the west, is a folly, mainly consisting of an elevated observatory with glass on all four sides rasied on an arch. Its owned by the Duke of Northumberland.
The sand dunes nearby to the east are 'protected' and are (or were) the highest dunes in Europe.
North of Berwick, after looking over the precipitous red cliffs to the sea below, is the 90 degree curve west wards and I'll assure you that Ayton Castle (just n. of the Eng-Scot Border) is far from being distant and hard to see! Its red-sandstone and turrets make it radiate a deep red colour in the setting sun!
Mention has been made of the sad loss of life in the Penmanshiel Tunnel. But we can add that this is the highest point in the journey between Edin & London, and the descent from here to the sea at Cockburnspath is the steepet sustained gradient, reaching 1 in 96 for 3 miles!
After Dunbar, there's an old windmill to the west, at the site of the 1650 Battle of Broxburn.
In addition to the Bass Rock (out to sea), there are 2 almost perfect peaks, former mini-volcanos, one inland at Trapain, one seaward at north Berwick.
A few ruins, castles, and standing stones later, you see the last volcano in Edinburgh itself, Arthur's Seat, with the new Scottish parliament complex below.
Last edited:
kennythelad
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Don't think anybody else's mentioned it, but the Commonwealth Stadium's on the RHS a minute or two before Waverley, ex home of Meadowbank Thistle.
Marton
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Its at Kilburn near Thirsk. Not a 'real' white horse as its not carved out of chalk or limestone.
It is on the western edge of the Cleveland Hills close by is Sutton Bank, 1in 4 with a hairpin bend on an A road - good fun.
Kilburn is alos known for 'Mousy Thompson' furniture all of which has a mouse carved on it.
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Scotty
Member
I believe Edinburgh City now play there?
DarloRich
Veteran Member
i forgot that one!
scotsman
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I know I'm cheating as it's technically the WCML but as EC and XC trains use it I'll chip in with these two. Celtic Park on the approach to Glasgow Central and Murrayfield just after leaving Haymarket. I'm cheating again as that of course is Rugby but it is Rugby Football
It's Ibrox, home of Rangers (for now...)
You can't see Murrayfield from the Shotts line, but you can see Tynecastle, where Hearts play
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