The South Devon Railway - A Vintage Heritage Line (Friday 14th June 2024)

Welcome to this video ‘The South Devon Railway - A Tranquil Branch Line’ - Filmed on Friday 14th June 2024 (Running Time 27 minutes 33 seconds).
The South Devon Railway recreates the golden age of travel between the 1930’s and 1960’s with a journey along a traditional Great Western Railway branch line running from Buckfastleigh to Totnes Riverside.
The line was opened in 1872 originally from nearby Ashburton but never made a profit and closed to passengers in 1958. It was predominantly used for transporting goods such as coal, wool, cider and agriculture. Freight operations ceased in 1962 after which it was acquired by the Dart Valley Railway as a heritage line. Services between Buckfastleigh and Totnes started in 1969 but in 1971 the section between Buckfastleigh and Ashburton was lost due to the widening of the A38 Devon Expressway.
By 1991 the line was taken over as a registered charity and renamed the South Devon Railway.
The railway runs alongside the beautiful River Dart for much of its length and I will be stopping off at each of the stations as well as taking a look at some of the rolling stock on display in the railway yard at Buckfastleigh.
A journey along this railway transports you back to a by-gone age of rail travel. The staff and volunteers that I met were immensely proud of the railway and each of the 3 stations were beautifully recreated, presented, and maintained.
As a proud Devonion and having not previously travelled along this railway a visit was high up on my bucket list. All in all it was a truly memorable experience and I would thoroughly recommend a visit.
I hope you enjoy watching the video.