Bicton And Bazalgette ...

... Sun And Sewage!

Bicton House and Park was the ancestral home of the Rolle Family (as in the street in Exmouth) ...

... who sold the house to Devon Council where it became their Agricultural College.

Before that disposal, however, the ancestral family had developed the park as a tourist attraction and what better an attraction than a miniature railway.

A search for suitable stock coincided with the disposal of stuff  from the once extensive narrow gauge system that service the vast Woolwich Arsenal site.

A diesel loco, named Carnegie ...

... the last loco to be delivered to Woolwich, was acquired. More importantly a steam loco (also from Woolwich), languishing unloved and rusting in a yard at Brackley ...

... was rescued and restored. Track and other useful bits and pieces were also acquired. The two locos became the mainstay of the line with opened in 1963.

The original line also had working ex Southern Railway signals, now purely decorative.

Both locos eventually reached a crisis point where boiler repair (steam) and a new gearbox (diesel) would have proved prohibitively expensive for a line which had become a purely commercial operation within the privately owned Park.

But the railway still runs, although when the fbb's visited yesterday, the timetable was decidedly limited.

So, meet up with Family Fearnley, a quick bevvy in the caff; and off to join the 1145.

The 18" gauge line  trundles round the grounds in  large loop (click to enlarge the graphic below)  ...

... with the spur to the Hermitage station, upper right. Here the loco swaps ends ...

... and hauls you back to the start. Each passenger is given a guide card as demonstrated by young Miss F ...

... who was not grumpy (honest!) but merely exerting massive mental effort into spotting the large numbers beside the track which accompanied the guide. The young lady's literary skills were perhaps inadequate for reading out the "useful information" but spotting the numbers was fun! Assistance was provided by one older brother.

The autumnal colours were delightful, of course - enhanced by a sunny but chilly day.

Back at base, a chance to examine the modern motive power ...

... a rather boring diesel loco with cosmetic steam engine appurtenances; but much easier to manage than live steam!

Apart from lovekly scenery, there is a nice little museum, mainly filled with heritage agricultural stuff like this very early 1917 Fergy ...

... and a fine collection of Mamod steam powered models.

Then to lunch (splendid), gazing over the Sunken Italian Garden ...

... to the obelisk, erected in 1746.

But Sewage? Come with fbb to Crossness sewage works at Abbey Wood, stuck on thee eastern end of Thamesmead estate.

It is hard to believe that this glorious interior is ...

... a pumping house for human effluvium in very large quantities. It was created by Joseph Bazalgette ... 

... as part of his massive engineering project to rid London of the likes of the Great Stink of 1858.

But to get to this noble pile, you have to take a half mile walk alongside the modern sewage works. Wouldn't it be a spiffing idea to run a lovely little narrow gauge railway from gate to pumping station?

We are excited to announce that planning permission has been granted by the London Borough of Bexley for "the installation of a Narrow Gauge Railway and modifications to an existing building for use as depot facilities for the railway".

Ahead of us we have a major fundraising challenge to cover the purchase of track materials including 1400 metres of rail, 600 timber sleepers, drive screws, fishplates, and the track bed preparation and ballast, before the track laying can commence.

We need to recruit able volunteers for the exciting and challenging task of constructing a new build 18 inch narrow gauge railway, so close to the track of the iconic Royal Arsenal Railway.

And the locos? Well, now; here's one of them ...

... arriving for Crossness, Kent via a slightly circuitous route from Bicton Park in Devon! Carnegie (the diesel) is currently at the Royal Gunpowder Mills at Waltham Abbey.

Here, also, an 18" gauge railway is being re-created.

Once upon a time, Bicton Woodland Railway was the only 18" gauge railway operating in UK. Soon there will be two more, all linked with the historic lines that traversed the Woolwich Arsenal yard.

As it turned out, just one of today's bits and pieces blog became a fully-fledged production - so there is some "stuff" to postpone until tomorrow.

 Postponed variety blog : Monday 20th November