Description
After the railway closed in 1935 bridges were demolished and cuttings infilled. The railway was erased from the landscape with only the major earthworks and station buildings left remaining. Bringing any part of it back seems like an impossible dream, but the railway stubbornly refused to be forgotten.
This film chronicles the amazing achievements that have been made over the last 47 years - station restorations, trackbed acquisitions, rebuilds of locos and rolling stock and the amazing time capsule which is Woody Bay. See how momentum is building. I am certain that the stage is set for even greater triumphs over the next few years.
Red sections owned by L&BR Trust
Green sections owned by Exmoor Associates or B&YVRT
Purple sections owned by statutory bodies
00:22 A potted history of the line (1898 - 1935)
02:13 Perchance it is not dead
03:24 Reawakening (1979)
04:07 The LynBarn Railway at the Milky Way Adventure Park (1993)
04:53 Woody Bay Station is purchased (1995)
05:49 Chelfham Station is purchased (1999)
06:54 A new kid in town - Exmoor Associates (2003)
07:20 The first train for almost 70 years (2004)
08:59 Extension to Killinton Lane (2006)
09:52 Snapper Halt acquired (2010)
10:05 Lyd - a replica Manning Wardle (2010)
10:25 Rebuilt coaches 7 and 17 arrive at Woody Bay (2013)
10:42 Trackbed ownership tops 20% (2013)
11:55 Lyn - the 'Yankee' (2017)
12:57 Another Station - Bratton Fleming (2020)
13:59 Another Station - Blackmoor Gate (2023)
14:15 Trackbed ownership tops 40% (2026)
15:04 Joining the dots
15:56 Trackbed percentage owned by year
Music used in this video:
Satya Yuga Jesse Gallagher
Spring Migration The Great North Sound Society
Rolling Hills Sir Cubworth
Borderless Aakash Gandhi
All available from the YouTube Audio Library.