ONE OF THE FINEST DEVELOPMENTS in the Island's transport scene in recent years, has been the re-establishing of the diminutive Groudle Glen Railway. The voluntary run 2 ft (610 mm) gauge railway north of Douglas operates on summer Sundays May to September and Wednesday evenings in July and August. It is also host to a number of annual special events. The line originally opened on 23 May 1896, operating more or less until its closure in 1962.
It was the hostility of the 'big' steam railway's then management towards the eager and enthusiastic volunteers of the Steam Railway Supporters' Association, frozen out of their popular Volunteer Work Parties and evicted from their highly profitable souvenir shop in Douglas Steam Railway Station, that lead to a series of moves that resulted in the re-opening of the line at the end of 1983. Money which had been raised to restore IMR loco No.9 Douglas by the Association - a scheme likewise shunned by the IMR management and finally scuppered by the sale by them of the engine to a Midlands-based group - was re-directed towards Groudle. Today, the line is an established part of the Island's tourist infrastructure, blending beautifully into the environment and bringing joy to young and old alike.
Despite its idyllic setting, in common with many other preserved transport schemes in the UK, Groudle has recently hit the headlines because of vandalism - with "broken lights, signs removed and glass bottles smashed on the platform." (The remote location of what is now the National Tramway Museum in Crich, Derbyshire was originally chosen, in part, owing to its remoteness from urban areas and likely immunity to attack.)
Speaking on Manx Radio last week, Groudle Railway's Trevor Nall said: "What's been happening over the last few weeks is that you arrive down the Glen on Sunday when the trains are operating ... to find that you've got vandalism, broken bottles, signs missing, benches missing. It's not the kind of start to the day that you are looking for." "We will have to take care of all that, and obviously do our very best t make sure that all signs of vandalism are long gone before the public arrive. So far we have been able to do that, but if it gets to a more serious level we could have a very embarrassing start to a running day on a Sunday."
That said, the railway appears to be in fine fettle, as these pictures taken in mid-May indicate. For opening times, prices and more go to the line's own website HERE.
ABOVE: Hunslet diesel "Dolphin" (1952), originally built to run in a sand and gravel pit in Twickenham, later sold to Doddington Park near Chipping Sodbury in Gloucestershire, it was acquired along with second hand rail and sister loco "Walrus" (formerly "Doddington Dragon") by the newly fledged Groudle concern in 1983. It is seen here Sunday 17th May 2015 at "Lime Kiln Halt", approximately the midway point between Sea Lion Rocks and the Lhen Coan terminals.
ABOVE: "Walrus at Sea Lion Rocks, Sunday 17th May 2015. The loco was built by Hunslet for Robert Hudson Ltd a major international supplier of light railway materials, based in Gildersome, near Leeds, England, hence the name cast onto the radiator.
ABOVE: The remarkable "Annie" built by Steam Railway Supporter's Association Director Richard Booth to the design of a Bagnall class 'E' 0-4-2T tank locomotive named Annie which was built in 1911 and shipped to New Zealand to operate the Gentle Annie Tramway near Napier. The loco is seen at Lime Kiln Halt, Sunday 17th May 2015.
ABOVE: The railway's latest addition to the steam fleet 'Steamplex', a four-wheeled machine is basically a vertical steam boiler mounted on the frames of a former Simplex diesel loco, hence the name 'Steamplex'. The boiler powers a single cylinder, which in turn operates the drive shaft powering the wheels. It is privately owned by a volunteer on the railway, built by the Alan Keef Works of Ross-on-Wye and delivered to the railway in early 2013.
MERS would like to hear your views. If you have any comments or further information on this story, please email the Manx Electric Railway Society at [email protected]