HIKING AND EXPLORING THE OLD ALSTON TO HALTWHISTLE RAILWAY LINE, OVER THE GREAT LAMBERERLY VIADUCT.

The line was constructed in the early 1850s by the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway, opening in stages.The line was completed in November 1852, following the opening of Lambley Viaduct. In March 1851, the 4½-mile section from Haltwhistle to Shaft Hill (which was later renamed Coanwood) was opened to goods traffic, with passenger services commencing in July 1851. The 8¼-mile section of the line between Alston and Lambley opened to goods traffic in January 1852, along with a short branch to Lambley Fell, with passenger services commencing in May 1852. At Slaggyford, the line is 8½ miles from Haltwhistle. Following the station's reopening in June 2018, Slaggyford now serves as a terminus of the South Tynedale Railway. From Slaggyford, the South Tynedale Railway serves two intermediate stations at Lintley Halt and Kirkhaugh, both of which were purpose-built for the narrow-gauge railway. In the 1950s, freight services were withdrawn from Coanwood, with most stations on the line being downgraded to unstaffed halt status by the early 1960s. After the line's goods services were withdrawn in the early 1960s, the line ran as a siding - a simple railway with no signals other than those at the junction with the Newcastle and Carlisle Railway at Haltwhistle. . The line was originally marked for closure in the 1960s, under the Beeching plan, however the lack of an all-weather road kept it open. Following improvements to the road network, including a temporary level crossing over the branch at Lambley, the line was closed on 3 May 1976 by the British Railways Board, with the last train working two days earlier.[10] The line was replaced in part by a bus service, which was operated by Ribble Motor Services.

[@wendylinsdell3681]

That's the kind of walk we like , nice and flat . Happy Easter and thanks .

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Thank you Wendy 🙂

[@catherinebamford237]

Nice walk, scenic and flat, perfect for me must add to my list.

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Yes its a lovely flat walk apart from the viaduct section. Thanks for watching. 🙂

[@christopherbamford4151]

Great walk.

[@elvenacharlton2449]

Great walk

[@stevesdaysoff2759]

Nice walk mate. Enjoyed watching. Thanks Steve

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Cheers Steve 👍

[@sirsamfay99]

Great walk. I would like to see the old railway walk from Scotsgap to Rothbury sometime ?. Nice to hear you mention Wansbeck as I was born in Ashington and grew up in Pegswood !.

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Hi Tom. Yeah thats another good one to explore. I feature a bit of it on my Rotheley video. Thanks for watching. 👍

[@highlandexplorer990]

Nice walk. Some of the best hikes on old railways or alongside existing ones. Have a great Easter weekend 😀

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Thank you 🙂

[@asg698]

I dont know if you noticed but on the other side of the river is a caravan park and I own one of them caravans. We try to go up every 2-3 weekends and it is a lovely place to hang out by

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Wow your very lucky to have a caravan there. Thank you for watching. 👍

[@jimmy.mccutcheon.1961]

Nice one Phil 👍

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Cheers Jim 👍

[@MALLY_DAGS_TV]

Nice walk mate
Great to see

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Cherrs Mally. 👍

[@mediaabboxx812]

If you want to know more about the tea trail check out northern wayfarer on YT. Might be in the back catalogue as it was a good while ago. Nice walk thanks for posting. Its a good long while since I was at Alston, I should plan a walk over that way (too many places not enough time). Gan canny bonny lad.👍

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Excellent i will thanks for watching 🙂

[@mediaabboxx812]

@@thebackingpackinggeordie The grand tour of Northumberland is essential viewing.

[@benhadler9221]

Interesting video, thanks for sharing. One small technical point, hope you don't mind me mentioning it, when talking with background music keep the volume of the music down, as in places you couldn't be heard.

[@thebackingpackinggeordie]

Thanks Ben that's great feedback, I appreciate it. Thanks for watching 🙂