Highdyke Branch

[Bryan]

Just received latest Heritage Railway today.
Inside the back cover is a heads up for next issue and there is going to be a feature on the Highdyke Branch and its failure to become a preserved line.

[R. pike]

Hopefully there will be a lovely close up picture of the point machine at Skillington Road. I wait with baited breath. I know a lot more about it now. I just need that picture.

[strang steel]

Presumably you have looked at these? -

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 169910951/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 420020389/

[R. pike]

Yes indeed. I have left a comment on this photo..
http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 169910951/

[Mickey]

Deleted

[Hatfield Shed]

How I wish, as I live just a twenty minute walk from Ayot station site, but it would have needed a really wealthy sponsor or three. At least much of the route is still to be seen preserved as a cycleway, I take my constitutional walk on it most days.

Also with the A1(M) burying the route no main line connection at WGC - although there would to this day be no platform capacity there. Would perhaps have had to go back to the old branch platform site on the curve as the route diverges from the ECML North of the present station. Dreams...

[Mickey]

Deleted

[DaveF]

I've just come across a lot more photos of the High Dyke branch taken by Dad and I (several hundred) so I've started a fourth set of them on my flickr site.

The are at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 274215250/

The set is called "High Dyke branch again".

I'll add more when I get time.

By the way, the point motor at Skillington Junction is not shown but the wiring to it can be clearly seen in some of the photos.

Having looked at several hundred photos of the branch and iron ore lines this morning I am now just about certain I do not have a photo of it!

David

[2002EarlMarischal]

Presumably you have looked at these? -

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 169910951/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 420020389/

Some interesting shots - never seen the one of Ellerman Lines being sectioned for the NRM before. Thanks for posting!

[strang steel]

I've just come across a lot more photos of the High Dyke branch taken by Dad and I (several hundred) so I've started a fourth set of them on my flickr site.

The are at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/davidwf200 ... 274215250/

The set is called "High Dyke branch again".

I'll add more when I get time.

By the way, the point motor at Skillington Junction is not shown but the wiring to it can be clearly seen in some of the photos.

Having looked at several hundred photos of the branch and iron ore lines this morning I am now just about certain I do not have a photo of it!

David

Thanks very much David, and for sharing the other local photographs such as the Grantham - Skegness views. There is so much nostalgia there, which for me covers my teenage years.

[Bryan]

Article in current Heritage Railway concentrating on 1970s preservation era.

[Brush53Falcon]

In my continuing research for my proposed book on the branch I have a query regarding the 'new bridge' built over the A1 by-pass in 1961-3. Whilst walking the area a few years ago after the bridge had been removed following road junction improvements at Colsterworth, it seemed as if the line originally took a slightly more northernly route immediately after the old A1 road bridge had been crossed going towards High Dyke. It puzzled me at the time but now occurs to me that when the new A1 by-pass was being built in 1961, the then new road bridge would of had to be put in whilst the line was still being used and thus the formation got altered at this time in order to keep things running. Does anybody have any recollections of this and what actually took place. I assume that the A1 by-pass construction was fairly obstrusive to the branch so could hardly have been ignored. The evidence I came across was an old ballasted deviation which geographically fits in with what I am trying to describe. If anybody can help me with this it would solve my mystery.

[AndyRush]

From bridge records, I can offer the mileages of the old and new bridges, however the bridge book was silent as to whether there had been a deviation of the line. New bridge No.1A constructed in 1959 was at 2m 78ch and Great North Road bridge (No.2) was at 3m 05¼ch.

Hope this helps

Andy

[Brush53Falcon]

From bridge records, I can offer the mileages of the old and new bridges, however the bridge book was silent as to whether there had been a deviation of the line. New bridge No.1A constructed in 1959 was at 2m 78ch and Great North Road bridge (No.2) was at 3m 05¼ch.

Hope this helps

Andy

Thanks for the info Andy, at least now I know it was called Bridge 1A

I have had another look at this today via Google Earth (1999) and I think what I saw when I walked the branch was the makeshift 'farmers' approach roads for access over the disused bridge to avoid having to cross the A1 dual carriageway junction, which is why of course they rebuilt the junction and demolished the bridge five years ago.

I would have assumed then that they just slewed the track over a few yards whist they built Bridge 1A, with such a large span it must have taken quite some time. It would be nice to see if there are any photographs taken during this engineering reconstruction. Certainly most of the ex.Grantham enginemen I have spoken to can't remember much about it but I suppose with all the other earthworks involved with the ironstone extraction, this probably seemed insignificant. I would be surprised also if there wasn't ironstone to be extracted where the by-pass was actually built, perhaps there was and it was shifted by lorry to the North Pit loading dock.

[52D]

Yes the extraction of Ironstone wouldnt suprise me. Fireclay encountered whilst excavating tunnels has been recorded as brick making material ISTR one of the tunnels at the southern end of the GCR was a supplier of first class fireclay.