Lynton & Barnstaple Railway 10th Anniversary: Looking To The Past & Future

I agree - better than the plain green, and has an L&B original feel to it, even tho of course, not an original loco from the line.

 

She may not be an original loco from the original line, but she is the loco who brought the L&B back to life. As such, just an important part of the story...

 

An article in the Western Morning News regarding plans for the future.....
http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk...y-build-head/story-26313840-detail/story.html

 

The L&B website now has details of the public consultation on 18 April: http://www.lynton-rail.co.uk/story/lynton-barnstaple-railway-public-consultation-saturday-18th-april

Time maybe for all L&B supporters who aren't yet members to send in their application forms and cash!!

 

What's likely to be running on the L&B this coming week? Trying to decide which direction to head for my day off and haven't seen Isaac or Charles Wytock working yet. No offence whatsoever to Axe, lovely engine, but had plenty of rides behind it and pictures of it in the last few years.

 

Charles Wytock should be running with full vacuum and steam brake for the May gala, but not before then except for test runs. Both Isaac and Axe are available for service. The fourth heritage coach arrives tomorrow evening (21st April) from Essex. So this week the passenger loco could be Axe or Isaac (but tomorrow and on Saturday both will be in steam with Axe on a driver experience train and Isaac on the passenger set). In theory, Axe will be the service loco on Weds and Thursday but subject to last minute changes.
On the subject of the extension, last Saturday there was an exhibition of the plans at Blackmoor, attended by around 350 people including many of the critically important landowners. See this local newspaper report:
http://www.northdevonjournal.co.uk/...tory-26359944-detail/story.html#ixzz3XqgU3eaY

 

Thanks for the reply Buzzard, I'll probably head to a different part of the south-west for this week's day off but I hadn't realised there was a gala as soon as May so I've added that to my diary.

 

The Gala (which is on 9 - 10 May) will now have the added attraction of FOUR heritage carriages!

See http://www.lynton-rail.co.uk/page/latest-news-pilton-east and http://www.lynton-rail.co.uk/story/carriage-11-returns-home-updated-photos for details.

If any readers have yet to book accommodation in North Devon for that weekend then I suggest you do so asap!

Mike Pearce

 

The updated planning / public consultation documents are also now available online - http://www.lynton-rail.co.uk/story/lynton-barnstaple-railway-public-consultation-saturday-18th-april (still being updated on the website)

Points of note (from my perspective) are:

• Blackmoor Gate original station to be re-used (as pub / restaurant / station), although railway alignment shifted to avoid the extension to the building, allowing continued usage (and I guess, a much larger platform area)
• Parracombe station and new dwellings
• Parracombe Bank to be reinstated with a large culvert

Exciting times!

 

Very exciting times indeed, great news to hear, fingers crossed then the planning application gets through okay.

Quite surprised to learn they plan on using the original station at Blackmoor Gate though, as they'd been stating for a long time their intention to build a whole new one from scratch nearby, be curious to know what's changed this. Has the owner of the original station shown willingness to sell it to railway perhaps? Not that I hold any issue with the idea though, I just really want to see this project succeed, so that one day I can take a steam train from Barnstaple to Lynton.

 

Fourth heritage coach now arrived at Woody Bay - pictures on the website!

 

http://www.northdevonjournal.co.uk/...xtend-Lynton/story-26391555-detail/story.html

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/3342564/Pioneers-who-blazed-a-trail-to-the-West.html

more information on the Grobs

 

Their farm is on the market..

Why don't 'Exmoor Associates' buy it?

 

The Grobs' reaction is decidedly odd. First, much of the criticism reported seems wildly inaccurate: the "many homes" that are to be demolished (= one), the inadequate consultations (= 4 separate consultations, 500 letters, and 3 offers of individual meetings with them). Second, now it seems they're selling anyway!

One does wonder in cases like this if the reaction is deliberate bloody-mindedness from people who know well they are propagating half and un-truths, or whether it is a psychological condition that has led to their inhabiting a fantasy world of their own invention...?

 

just like politicians....

 

Absolutely true - except for the ones I support of course

 

The Telegraph article is date stamped nearly 10years ago.

 

As a rule, people who seek to derail something because their own selfish ideology doesn't agree with it generally have to propagate half or un-truths to get the message across. This is because facts that back up their point of view are thin on the ground. Just look at the kind of guff the likes of Britain First come out with. Most of the points expressed by Mrs Grob could be dismissed by reading the planning documents. I wonder what exactly her "on going nightmare" is? Pure speculation of course but could it have anything to do with the value of the farm and the effect the railway will have on it.

Tim

 

The pleasing thing about the L&B,s future is that it has a lot of local support, including local authorities.