Special Stations to Visit

Berneylegs · 18 Jun 2018

I am looking at some special stations to visit over the next few weeks. What I mean by special is Ghost stations, intriguing stations as such also.

I count a visit to a station as either leaving or boarding a train, not jumping on or off to touch the platform or where the train makes a passenger stop and I don’t get off or passes through non-stop.

I understand this maybe an issue with some stations such as Teesside Airport.

So far I have come up with:

Lympstone Commando

Redcar British Steel - is this accessible?

Coombe Junction Halt

Denton and Reddish South - now with a return trip

Teesside Airport - catch train to Dinsdale and walk up

Longcross

Chathill

Berney Arms

Any other ideas or advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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bramling · 18 Jun 2018

Berneylegs said:
I am looking at some special stations to visit over the next few weeks. What I mean by special is Ghost stations, intriguing stations as such also.

I count a visit to a station as either leaving or boarding a train, not jumping on or off to touch the platform or where the train makes a passenger stop and I don’t get off or passes through non-stop.

I understand this maybe an issue with some stations such as Teesside Airport.

So far I have come up with:

Lympstone Commando

Redcar British Steel - is this accessible?

Coombe Junction Halt

Denton and Reddish South - now with a return trip

Teesside Airport - catch train to Dinsdale and walk up

Longcross

Chathill

Berney Arms

Any other ideas or advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

The general consensus with Redcar British Steel is that it’s permissible to arrive and depart by train, albeit requiring a very long wait on the station between trains, as well as taking the risk that the departing service might be disrupted. However people have arrived by train and then made their way off site without apparent issue.

EDIT just noticed that the new timetable appears to offer the opportunity to visit Redcar British Steel in both the morning and afternoon with a much lesser wait than hitherto.

Lympstone Commando should also be possible in the same way, albeit with less of a wait, however if planning to take photographs then this might attract attention from the camp security, however I seem to remember it being said that if one contacts the site first then there shouldn’t be any issues.

Another unusual station which could be added to the list is Heysham Port, which has a minimal service.

Berneylegs · 18 Jun 2018

bramling said:
The general consensus with Redcar British Steel is that it’s permissible to arrive and depart by train, albeit requiring a very long wait on the station between trains, as well as taking the risk that the departing service might be disrupted. However people have arrived by train and then made their way off site without apparent issue.

EDIT just noticed that the new timetable appears to offer the opportunity to visit Redcar British Steel in both the morning and afternoon with a much lesser wait than hitherto.

Lympstone Commando should also be possible in the same way, albeit with less of a wait, however if planning to take photographs then this might attract attention from the camp security, however I seem to remember it being said that if one contacts the site first then there shouldn’t be any issues.

Another unusual station which could be added to the list is Heysham Port, which has a minimal service.

Thanks for the information, Redcar British Steel seems a good shout now.

themiller · 18 Jun 2018

How about the stations on the Windermere line?

Easy to get to by car but....

DarloRich · 18 Jun 2018

I used British Steel Redcar and Teesside Airport when they were open for their proper purpose. sigh. If i am honest I don't really see the point of this obsession with pointless stations but each to their own.

Chathill is a nice station but there is nothing there. I called in on the way to Holy Island. Lympstone Commando seems to generate all kinds of interest but it is accessible like all others. Berney Arms is a nice little station and there are some good walks nearby but I think the pub is closed.

I would go to really special stations like Weymes Bay or Dawlish or Rannoch or Ribblehead

swt_passenger · 18 Jun 2018

I don’t think Longcross is very special nowadays, although it isn’t an all day service it isn’t exactly minimal either, there’s 28 calls per day.

AlterEgo · 18 Jun 2018

Lympstone Commando is a public station but the only way out of it is directly into the Royal Marines Base.

Expect a bit of attention from RN Regulators (salty seamen police force) if you hang around, particularly if taking photos and particularly if you don't have a standard issue Marines 'tache.

pemma · 18 Jun 2018

You could look at the Helsby to Ellesmere Port line or Sheffield to York via Pontefract Baghill.

causton · 18 Jun 2018

I think Lympstone Commando has a public exit onto a path between the station and the camp - as shown by Geoff Marshall:

twpsaesneg · 18 Jun 2018

Shippea Hill!

Kite159 · 18 Jun 2018

Berneylegs said:
I am looking at some special stations to visit over the next few weeks. What I mean by special is Ghost stations, intriguing stations as such also.

I count a visit to a station as either leaving or boarding a train, not jumping on or off to touch the platform or where the train makes a passenger stop and I don’t get off or passes through non-stop.

I understand this maybe an issue with some stations such as Teesside Airport.

So far I have come up with:.

Lympstone Commando - Semi-private, there is a footpath between the station and the base but the gate could be locked. One probably not to hang around and try and catch it on a Sunday where there is likely to be folk from the base using it to head to Exeter.

Redcar British Steel - Since the new timetable, there is a potential of getting off & back on again with a 25 minute wait, however that is in the mornings and requires an overnight stay. Easier to exit the former steel works than it will be to enter.

Coombe Junction Halt - ~15 minute walk from Liskeard, easier to go from Liskeard to Coombe as it a steepish hill.

Denton and Reddish South - now with a return trip, depending on your location might need an overnight stay in the rough area, get a GM Wayfarer and catch a bus to Denton from Piccadilly.

Teesside Airport - catch train to Dinsdale and walk up - pretty much the only way to do it these days, roads are mostly pavemented apart from near the airport itself, but I suspect traffic will be low.

Longcross - Depending on your location, not really hard to do, you just need to time it to alight from a train and board another train. Not a lot around the station as the main exit is into the old MOD area, with a long footpath.

Chathill - Not really a lot around the station itself, but again depending on your location might require an overnight stay.

Berney Arms - A lot easier to do on Sundays, as IIRC there is a couple services from Norwich - Yarmouth which gives a reasonable ~15 minutes wait for the same train back. Not a lot around the station itself (it really is in the middle of nowhere), IIRC the pub nearby is closed.

----

Some of the stations you need to walk to/from due to their limited service, I've put some notes in the quote

DarloRich · 18 Jun 2018

AlterEgo said:
Lympstone Commando is a public station but the only way out of it is directly into the Royal Marines Base.

I thought there was a public footpath now?

Kite159 said:
Chathill - Not really a lot around the station itself, but again depending on your location might require an overnight stay.

I don't think there is a bus service from there anymore

PHILIPE · 18 Jun 2018

Dyfi Junction which has no road access.

AlterEgo · 18 Jun 2018

DarloRich said:
I thought there was a public footpath now?

You might be right.

bramling · 18 Jun 2018

DarloRich said:
I used British Steel Redcar and Teesside Airport when they were open for their proper purpose. sigh. If i am honest I don't really see the point of this obsession with pointless stations but each to their own.

Chathill is a nice station but there is nothing there. I called in on the way to Holy Island. Lympstone Commando seems to generate all kinds of interest but it is accessible like all others. Berney Arms is a nice little station and there are some good walks nearby but I think the pub is closed.

I would go to really special stations like Weymes Bay or Dawlish or Rannoch or Ribblehead

From a personal point of view I’m not particularly bothered as to what service the station does (or in these cases doesn’t) have, however over time having been going round visiting and photographing every station in Britain including disused ones there will naturally come a time when these more obscure ones crop up. In the case of Redcar BS I skipped this station at the time I went round everything else in the area as it wasn’t really worth bothering spending a whole day there, and hoping the timetable might change in the future to something more amenable, however seeing the timetable has now changed to make an evening visit quite easily feasible I will probably pay a visit next time I’m in the area, whenever that may be.

I tend to agree that I can’t entirely see the fascination with purely obscure services, however different people have different hobbies and interests and all that.

Kite159 · 18 Jun 2018

DarloRich said:
I thought there was a public footpath now?

I don't think there is a bus service from there anymore

Easiest way to visit Chathill station is to arrive & depart on the same train (once it returns from reversing further up the line).

I mentioned that depending on location, it might require an overnight stay is the train from Chathill in the evenings doesn't get back into Newcastle until 20:15 (on a weekday) or 20:33 on a Saturday by which time options to return to the south are a tad limited

bramling · 18 Jun 2018

AlterEgo said:
You might be right.

I believe there’s still a locked gate between the platform and footpath. The platform is of course railway property so in theory there should be no issue taking photos, provided you’re on the platform and not obviously taking pictures of the camp, however if you phone the camp security first then this should completely avoid problems.

DarloRich · 18 Jun 2018

Kite159 said:
Easiest way to visit Chathill station is to arrive & depart on the same train (once it returns from reversing further up the line).

I mentioned that depending on location, it might require an overnight stay is the train from Chathill in the evenings doesn't get back into Newcastle until 20:15 (on a weekday) or 20:33 on a Saturday by which time options to return to the south are a tad limited

the easiest way to visit is to drive

swt_passenger · 18 Jun 2018

bramling said:
I believe there’s still a locked gate between the platform and footpath. The platform is of course railway property so in theory there should be no issue taking photos, provided you’re on the platform and not obviously taking pictures of the camp, however if you phone the camp security first then this should completely avoid problems.

There is no longer a locked gate since a new path was put in. Geoff Marshall explains the reality in the video linked earlier.

Sheddyone · 18 Jun 2018

causton said:
I think Lympstone Commando has a public exit onto a path between the station and the camp - as shown by Geoff Marshall:

Yes, there is a cycle/walkway along the side past the station. Ive cycled it and there were no issues at all.

Berneylegs · 18 Jun 2018

bramling said:
From a personal point of view I’m not particularly bothered as to what service the station does (or in these cases doesn’t) have, however over time having been going round visiting and photographing every station in Britain including disused ones there will naturally come a time when these more obscure ones crop up. In the case of Redcar BS I skipped this station at the time I went round everything else in the area as it wasn’t really worth bothering spending a whole day there, and hoping the timetable might change in the future to something more amenable, however seeing the timetable has now changed to make an evening visit quite easily feasible I will probably pay a visit next time I’m in the area, whenever that may be.

I tend to agree that I can’t entirely see the fascination with purely obscure services, however different people have different hobbies and interests and all that.

I don’t collect train numbers so need something to keep the hobby going

Berneylegs · 18 Jun 2018

DarloRich said:
I used British Steel Redcar and Teesside Airport when they were open for their proper purpose. sigh. If i am honest I don't really see the point of this obsession with pointless stations but each to their own.

Chathill is a nice station but there is nothing there. I called in on the way to Holy Island. Lympstone Commando seems to generate all kinds of interest but it is accessible like all others. Berney Arms is a nice little station and there are some good walks nearby but I think the pub is closed.

I would go to really special stations like Weymes Bay or Dawlish or Rannoch or Ribblehead

I didn’t write train numbers down so need something to keep me in a Rail hobby, been to Wemyss Bay, cracking station!

ainsworth74 · 18 Jun 2018

With regards to Redcar British Steel I did the morning move just the other week so it's very easy to visit these days. As far as I'm aware the old advice otherwise still applies. You're very unlikely to be able to talk your way past site security to access the station but on the other hand if you leave the station and walk directly to the exit you're equally unlikely to have much bother. Therefore my recommendation would definitely be to do the now much easier morning or evening visit when the trains call and never even have to worry about leaving Network Rail property.

On the wider point of visiting stations "because they're there" I'm not much for station scratching but I'll make exceptions for those that pique my interest such as Redcar British Steel. I have no strong desire, otherwise, to visit every station on the network or even every "unusual" station. Visiting Shippea Hill or Denton for example holds no interest to me whatsoever.

bramling · 18 Jun 2018

ainsworth74 said:
With regards to Redcar British Steel I did the morning move just the other week so it's very easy to visit these days. As far as I'm aware the old advice otherwise still applies. You're very unlikely to be able to talk your way past site security to access the station but on the other hand if you leave the station and walk directly to the exit you're equally unlikely to have much bother. Therefore my recommendation would definitely be to do the now much easier morning or evening visit when the trains call and never even have to worry about leaving Network Rail property.

On the wider point of visiting stations "because they're there" I'm not much for station scratching but I'll make exceptions for those that pique my interest such as Redcar British Steel. I have no strong desire, otherwise, to visit every station on the network or even every "unusual" station. Visiting Shippea Hill or Denton for example holds no interest to me whatsoever.

I'll give Redcar British Steel a go some time. It's my only Northern station left to visit apart from Dunston (raining at the time!).

As regards Lympstone Commando, I hear the message that it now seems to be more accessible - however can we rely on the gate always being open, and can we rely on not getting challenged by the camp staff if taking photos? GM's video didn't really cover these points, and it's notable there's a blank at the point where he actually exited the station.

M28361M · 18 Jun 2018

bramling said:
GM's video didn't really cover these points, and it's notable there's a blank at the point where he actually exited the station.

I believe he had to delete the original video and upload a re-edited version.

Peter Mugridge · 18 Jun 2018

M28361M said:
I believe he had to delete the original video and upload a re-edited version.

Did the MoD lean on him to do that?

Parallel · 18 Jun 2018

Portsmouth Arms and Chapelton on the Tarka line get s minimal service but are in a beautiful part of the country. The former also has a pub! Not a lot at the latter, but it is a lovely spot by the river.

I also recommend Avoncliff, due to its location.

adrock1976 · 18 Jun 2018

South of the mighty Thames, I would recommend having a try with Doleham which is on the Eastbourne - Ashford (Kent) line.

According to the timetable, there is an irregular service here, but is reasonably walking distance to and from Three Oaks station. This is my intention for July when I am next on a big trip.

vidal · 18 Jun 2018

Manchester United? Passed it hundreds of times, never been to the station.

53703 · 19 Jun 2018

Stanlow & Thornton

Special Stations to Visit

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