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  "description": "We went from the Scottish Borders to Northumberland to finally ride a light railway we’d been trying to visit for the past three years.\n\nThe station felt real and alive. We could smell engine oil and the sharp scent of sulphur from burning coal.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n0:00\n\n/0:12\n\n\n1×\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nWe bought our tickets from an employee who is a big Metallica fan. The ticket office was a large wooden shed filled with toy shelves.\n\nTheir love for the children’s TV series Thomas the Tank Engin",
  "path": "/heatherslaw-light-railway/",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-24T08:03:20.000Z",
  "site": "https://leoniecooper.online",
  "tags": [
    "exploring the picturesque village",
    "Home | Heatherslaw Light Railway | Heritage Railway | Northumberland |The Heatherslaw Light Railway is a 15 in (381 mm) gauge passenger carrying railway near Ford, Northumberland, England, close to the border with Scotland. Founded by Neville Smith and Sid Ford, the railway opened in 1989 on the Ford and Etal estate. It operates over a route from Heatherslaw to Etal Village, a return trip of 4 miles. The passenger coaches include facilities for transporting wheelchairs and buggies, and a typical summer season eight-coach train can carry up to 90 passengers.Heatherslaw Light Railway"
  ],
  "textContent": "We went from the Scottish Borders to Northumberland to finally ride a light railway we’d been trying to visit for the past three years.\n\nCharlie waits in front of the station, and you can see how eager he is.\n\nThe station felt real and alive. We could smell engine oil and the sharp scent of sulphur from burning coal.\n\nI asked a train operator if I could take his picture. He said yes, and his colleagues were polite and helpful too.\n\n0:00\n\n/0:12\n\n1×\n\nWe bought our tickets from an employee who is a big Metallica fan. The ticket office was a large wooden shed filled with toy shelves.\n\nI rarely share panoramic photos with flaws, but this ticket office was simply too captivating to keep to myself.\n\nTheir love for the children’s TV series Thomas the Tank Engine shines through in their collection of toys for sale. Like the show, they even give each train its own name.\n\nBunty is a steam locomotive, a 2-6-0 tender tank, named after Neville Smith's wife, Bernice.\n\nWe had an hour to wait before our train to Etal. Charlie called me from across a nearby bridge and asked me to join him on the other side of the river for some refreshments.\n\nGrade II listed cast iron and steel truss bridge constructed in 1877 and the River Till.\n\nThis year, blossoms unfurled and a tree shimmered with beauty beneath the sunlight.\n\nSent my drone soaring to capture sweeping aerial views of Heatherslaw Corn Mill, visitor centre, and the Heatherslaw Light Railway.\n\nThe Heatherslaw station was constructed on the site of the former Ford and Etal sawmill, which was damaged by a fire in the mid-1980s.\n\nThe train moves slowly, which lets me enjoy the journey even more.\n\nMost of the carriages were empty. Only two families chose to sit in different ones.\n\nWe reached Etal after a half-hour journey.\n\n0:00\n\n/0:17\n\n1×\n\nWe spent about an hour exploring the picturesque village before heading back to Heatherslaw.\n\nBinky\n\nNeville Smith, a British engineer renowned for constructing small-gauge locomotives (5-inch and 7 1/4-inch), envisioned building a railway capable of carrying passengers.\n\nDoes this commemorate Derek, who was affiliated with the Stainmore Railway Company at Kirkby Stephen East?\n\nDrawing on his experience, he established the 15-inch narrow-gauge Heatherslaw Light Railway in Northumberland. This railway is recognised as the most northerly steam railway in England.\n\nWe thoroughly enjoyed our journey on the light railway. Although the cafe by the River Till was somewhat expensive, the food and coffee were enjoyable.\n\nHome | Heatherslaw Light Railway | Heritage Railway | Northumberland |The Heatherslaw Light Railway is a 15 in (381 mm) gauge passenger carrying railway near Ford, Northumberland, England, close to the border with Scotland. Founded by Neville Smith and Sid Ford, the railway opened in 1989 on the Ford and Etal estate. It operates over a route from Heatherslaw to Etal Village, a return trip of 4 miles. The passenger coaches include facilities for transporting wheelchairs and buggies, and a typical summer season eight-coach train can carry up to 90 passengers.Heatherslaw Light Railway",
  "title": "Heatherslaw Light Railway",
  "updatedAt": "2026-04-26T12:14:32.825Z"
}