Now That The Weather Is Getting Better A Trip On A Train Can Be Extremely Good Fun, In Particular If You Choose One Of The Many Historical Train Lines
The sunshine at the weekend inspired my best friend to suggest that we should go out for the day and do something out of the ordinary. She had read a magazine piece about the Watercress Line heritage railway line which was taken on by volunteers in the 1970’s and has over the years become a big tourist attraction in the area. It runs via four stations covering about ten miles of Hampshire countryside, and you can buy a ticket which lets you hop on and off as many times as you choose during your visit.
After we got to bed exceptionally late the night before, we decided to depart by twelve o’clock so that we could get the train that was scheduled to depart at one o’clock. A variety of trains are pulled by steam locomotives and the others by diesel engines, and we wanted to be sure that we got tickets for one of the steam trains.
We set off from the station in Alresford. The station building has been beautifully done out in pre-second world war design, and all of the helpful staff are kitted out in smart uniforms. In reality, the majority are not contracted staff, but are some of the volunteers who are so passionate about trains and railways that they spend their spare time being a supporter of the team who look after the hundreds of individuals who visit each day.
The train gets going and we leave the station en route to the next stop at Ropley. The building here is decorated as a Southern Region station from about 1948. The platforms themselves are perfectly kept and also feature some amazing topiary. Near to the station is an engineering area, where employees and volunteers as a team are dealing with the renovation of a number of locomotives and carriages. The selection of carriages on the train we’re travelling on are various different styles and have already been renovated. It’s good to see that the work is still taking place so that even more of a variety of historic carriages can be used in the years to come.
After Ropley, the next stop is Medstead And Four Marks, which is also designed in a post-war style. Medstead is the highest stop on the Watercress Line and is also the railway station which is the furthest above sea level in all of the south of England, and back in the days when steam was the only type of train transport, the drivers and train crew used to mention going over the top at Medstead as ‘going over the Alps’. Nowadays there is a sign at the highest point which details this.
We depart from Medstead and we arrive in Alton, the end of the line, although this station also accommodates South West Trains, so you can get the mainline train for London from here. We have a brief stretch of the legs on Alton station platform and then rejoin the train for the journey back the other way which departs about twenty minutes later.
The journey back to Alresford is a little more eventful as the steam engine leading our train has been having problems all through the day and so gives up completely despite the best endeavours of the crew to keep it moving. In the end a diesel engine is deployed to take both the steam engine and its carriages back to Alresford. So we were part of the rather unique experience of going, not just on a steam train or a diesel train, but by both types of engine on the same trip!
The Watercress Line does a brilliant job of reminding us of the old fashioned railway network, and to be truthful, the old trains have a lot of charm when held up against the sleek rolling stock that we use these days. But then sentimentality is always great fun to those who yearn for the ‘good old days’.
To be honest, I can understand both views. A steam train is wonderful fun for a leisurely afternoon out with friends, but if I have to go into London in a hurry for my job, I’d much sooner rely on the high speed train link that can take me to St Pancras in not even twenty minutes at speeds of over one hundred miles per hour. Also, I’d choose to hold on to my automatic washing machine instead of having to rely on a washboard and a mangle, given the opportunity I’d opt for Laser eye surgery rather than using glasses which are constantly getting dirty and can break easily, and I would definitely much rather send updates to people by email than have no choice than to hand write all of my mail.
But obviously, there are many people who lived through the days of steam and quite possibly wish for the friendly service they got in those days. They wouldn’t wish to use a computer to keep in contact with friends because it will not seem personal to them and they couldn’t agree to Laser eye treatment because they are anxious that it could go wrong, all of which is perfectly understandable for individuals who were born years before computers and Laser eye treatments were thought of.
All in all I would thoroughly recommend a trip on the Watercress Line. They also do lunch trips, evening meals and themed visits for both adults and children, and if you really would like to treat a loved one, you can purchase for them a day volunteering on the trains or as a signalman. (That may be where the Laser eye surgery would be useful. At least you wouldn’t find yourself with soot all over your glasses!)
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