Ascending The Heights Of Abraham
The Heights of Abraham is a tourist attraction at Matlock Bath, close to the station.
I walked down, as I needed to get a train back to Derby. I did it in sensible trainers and don’t do it in anything less!
I’m sure this attraction would benefit from a better train service from Derby and Nottingham.
How Times Change
Several hundred years ago, those living in the North of England, would have waited with fear and trepidation at the thought of invasion from those living across the Border.
But not anymore!
According to this article in the Cumbria Crack, which is entitled Settle-Carlisle groups welcome Scottish rail study.
This is said.
Putting this into historical context, Mark Rand, Joint Vice Chairman of the 3500-member Friends of the Settle-Carlisle Line said: “People often ask why did the Victorians build a railway line from tiny Settle to the border city of Carlisle. It was part of a much greater whole – the Midland Railway’s main route from London St Pancras to Scotland via Leeds and Carlisle, from where what is today called the Borders Railway continued to Edinburgh. What opportunities the full Edinburgh-Carlisle re-opening would enable! The Friends of the Settle-Carlisle Line welcomes this study with open arms.”
Further, the full re-opening would give a railway offering world-class scenery for much of the 211 miles from Leeds to Edinburgh, attracting huge numbers of international tourists, as happens in countries such as Norway and Switzerland, an industry so vital to the UK economy.
Unlike many railway projects, this project only needs the railway to be built, as the trains that would be ideal for Leeds to Edinburgh via Caelisle, were built forty years ago.
What better route would there be to serve with refurbished examples of Terry Miller‘s masterpiece, the InterCity 125?
Would I Go Back To The Harz Narrow Gauge Railways?
The Harz Narrow Gauge Railways is not a small system and if I was in the area again, I would certainly pay the railways a visit.
The trip I took from Nordhausen to Wernigerode between two Deutsche Bahn lines is possible on almost an hourly basis througthtout most of the year, although it would be a better trip in sunny weather.
I didn’t do the trip up the Brocken, which is a peak of over a thousand metres high. That is best accessed from Wernigerode, if you only have a short amount of time available.
Wernigerode Station
Wernigerode station is the Northern terminus and main depot of the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways.
It has an interchange with the Deutsche Bahn, that runs between Goslar and Magdeburg.
This Google Map shows the layout of the station.
It appears to me that the station has a common layout for this part of Germany, where there is a loop that serves the platform closest to the station building.
Trains on Deutsche Bahn seem to be about every hour and although the local diesel services seem to link together fairly well, the information isn’t as good as it might be.
I certainly think that if the weather had been better, it would have been a more interesting town to visit.
Drei Annen Hohne Station
Drei Annen Hohne station is a junction station on the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways.
We stopped on our way to Wernigerode to change locomotives, so that our locomotive could be replenished with water.
By Steam Between Eisfielder Talmühle And Drei Annen Hohne Stations
At Eisfielder Talmühle station, we changed from the diesel rail-car to a steam-hauled train.
Note.
- I sensed that the train climbed quite a bit.
- There were a lot of level crossings.
It’s certainly a spectacularly railway.
By Diesel Rail-Car Between Nordhausen Nord And Eisfielder Talmühle Stations
I travelled between Nordhausen Nord And Eisfielder Talmühle stations in a vintage diesel rail-car.
I got the impression that this train was used by locals to come into town for work or shopping.
Note the rather unusual hybrid tram that duplicates part of the route.
Nordhausen
Nordhausen has two stations close together.
- Nordhausen is the main Deutche Bahn station.
- Nordhausen Nord is the Southern terminus of the Harz Narrow Gauge Railways.
These pictures show the two stations, the Bahnhofsplatz that connects them, the trams and the town.
It’s certainly not difficult to get between the two stations.
I was hoping I’d find something to eat, but I couldn’t find a food shop, so had to be content with a good coffee and a banana. Although, since I’ve looked on the map and find that there is a Lidl in walking distance of the stations. I have struck lucky for gluten-free food in the former East Germany before, as I wrote about in Lunch In Chemnitz, but on this visit I wasn’t very lucky.
Why Aren’t More High Streets Like Liverpool?
These pictures were taken early on a sunny morning in Liverpool’s main shopping street.
No buses, cars and taxis, only a few deliveries and little street clutter.
Imagine Oxford Street like this. Except you can’t as it’s not wide enough!
Both my local High Streets; Angel and Dalston are even main routes for trucks.
Borders Railway Tourist Impact Revealed
The title of this post is the same as this article on the BBC web site.
This is said.
New data has shown a “significant improvement” in tourism levels after the opening of the Borders Railway.
The Scottish Tourism Economic Assessment Monitor (STEAM) statistics compared the first half of 2016 to the same period the year before.
It is the first time in 10 years that every category saw improvement.
The company which produces STEAM data said the most likely source for the rise in tourism activity in the Borders and Midlothian was the railway.
Perhaps now the Department of Transport and the Treasury will believe that funding well-designed schemes is very much worthwhile.
The Anonymous Widower 