A wander around Whitchurch, Hampshire (the former Didcot, Newbury and Southampton railway)

So first things first, this is not one of my usual urban, or even rural, wanders. These pictures were in fact taken midway through a bike ride where I happened to be cycling through Whitchurch. I've been through plenty of times before but never really stopped to admire the former Didcot, Newbury and Southampton (DNS) railway line bridges, and I'd certainly never found the former Whitchurch Town station before. This first picture is of the bridge towards the northern part of the town.

Bridge carrying the former Newbury to Winchester railway, Whitchurch, Hampshire

I must have cycled past this pedestrian walkway which runs beneath the track several times but had never noticed it before.

Pedestrian walkway under the former railway line, near Whitchurch Town station 

Pedestrian walkway under the former railway line, near Whitchurch Town station 

And once I'd got to the other side, there was the former Whitchurch Town station in all its glory. I'm pretty sure this is now a private residence, but it was nice to see that it was steeped in railway nostalgia.

The former Whitchurch Town railway station, on the Newbury to Winchester line 

The former Whitchurch Town railway station, on the Newbury to Winchester line  

 The former Whitchurch Town railway station, on the Newbury to Winchester line 

If you look closely, in the very distance of this next photo you can just make out the bridge carrying the A34, which for much of its route actually uses the former railway line, but fortunately not here where the bridge towards the southern end of the town is still in place.

Bridge carrying the former Newbury to Winchester railway, Whitchurch, Hampshire

As i continued my ride south from Whitchurch, I came across a few more glimpses of the old railway line, but these were far too overgrown to take any decent pictures. Maybe I'll return in the winter or spring when there is less foliage.

    

Rural Wandering: a cycle along the old Newbury to Winchester railway

With just a short period of time on my hands before I had to drive off to a family birthday party yesterday, I decided to take myself off on a more modest bike ride than my 57 mile epic of last week, and head out to the disused Newbury to Winchester railway for both some cycling and some rural wandering. Closed to passengers and then freight in the 1960's, much of this old railway has now been used to for the Newbury bypass, but there are some sections remaining which have been converted into footpaths and cycle paths, and fortunately some of these sections are close to where I live. This set of photos comes from the section of the line between Burghclere and Old Burghclere.

 

Approaching Old Burghclere station from the north

Platform at Old Burghclere station

 Looking north through Old Burghclere station

In this shot the platforms can still both be clearly seen, and the station building itself, now converted into a house. As I cycled past I caught a glimpse of people, presumably the owners, sitting at a table on what once was the platform, having a coffee.

Old Burghclere station

Just to the south of Old Burghclere station is an abandoned signal box. When I've cycled along here previously, the signal box has largely been obscured by bags of some sort of farm produce, but today these had been cleared away, giving a near perfect view. This signal box would presumably have been used to ensure safe movement of trains through the station and also into and out of the goods yard.

Abandoned signal box just south of Old Burghclere station

Abandoned signal box just south of Old Burghclere station

I even managed to sneak inside briefly.

Abandoned signal box just south of Old Burghclere station

This next picture is again of Old Burghclere station itself, but this time from the front.

The front of Old Burghclere station

 

And further along the bike ride, we have the somewhat confusingly named Highclere station, which is actually in Burghclere. This is also a private residence now and only the front can be seen from the road. A great place to live I should imagine.

The front of Highclere station

    

A wander around the Edgelands of Newbury

With forty minutes to spare before kick-off for my son's football match this afternoon, I decided to go on one of my usual walks out the back of the Northcroft Recreation Centre car park. Heading westwards along Moor Lane which, after changing from town to countryside along the way, eventually comes out on to a beautiful footpath, just after where the Lambourn Valley railway used to run. Moor Lane is classic Edgelands territory, representing "those familiar yet ignored spaces which are neither city nor countryside", according to Michael Symmons Roberts and Paul Farley in their excellent Edgelands book. It starts on the outskirts of Newbury, just past the Leisure Centre, and heads out into the countryside, passing a few isolated houses, a water pumping station, an enclosed area full of road works signage, and a crumbling brick bridge carrying a disused railway. The more observant of you will of course notice that the first picture was taken in a different time of the year when there was a bit more greenery around, and in fact it was also included in a previous blog entry for this walk, an unexpected weekend treat on the River Kennet.

Brick bridge carrying the former Lambourn Valley railway line over Moor Lane, Newbury

The next two photographs however were taken today. These were both taken on the return leg of the journey along the Kennet and Avon canal, and feature all that's left of the bridge which carried the Lambourn Valley railway across the canal. There is no sign of the railway at all on the other side of the canal, and what would have been Newbury West Fields Halt has been covered over by houses.

 Supporting wall of brick bridge carrying the former Lambourn Valley railway line over the Kennet and Avon Canal, Newbury

So, this really is the end of my week off, and tomorrow I have to set the alarm for stupid o'clock to catch the early train into London. All is not lost however as I'm hoping that the warmer weather is now here to stay, for a while anyway, and that I'll be able to continue my Urban Wandering around London, on the look out for mews and ghost signs.

    

An unexpected weekend treat on the River Kennet

What a great weekend we've just had here in the southern UK. More spectacular weather, and fortunately I found the time to enjoy it. My original plan on leaving work in London on Friday afternoon was to pay a visit to Harrow-on-the-Hill, but on leaving the office and heading towards the tube, I could not bear the thought of squeezing myself in, even for the relatively short distance, and then having to get a later, busier train home to West Berkshire. So, my plans changed and I left my search for space to Saturday and Sunday.

On the Saturday I managed a 35 mile mountain bike ride down to Whitchurch, where I was forced to stop and seek comfort in coffee and cake after having managed to fall of my bike earlier in the ride.

After having eaten myself better, although sore and bruised, I continued my ride down towards the staggering beautiful Long Parish (which has a couple of excellent looking pubs that I need to make a note to visit some time), and then headed back up through The Wykes, St. Marybourne and Crux Easton.

So Saturday was my planned space but I had some bonus space on the Sunday when I managed to fit in a walk along the River Kennet, looping back along the Kennet and Avon canal before watching one of the boys playing football. This particular walk west from Newbury is one of my all time favourites. I love the way the transition from road, to rough road, to gravel track, to muddy lane, to footpath happens. It always reminds me of the line in the Neil Young song, Thrasher, "Headed out to where the pavement turns to sand". The only thing that spoilt the image was the sound of the traffic thundering along the A34 bypass. If only the railway line that used to run over this bridge was still running (admittedly it only went as far as Lambourn, but the sentiment is the same).

Disused railway bridge on the Newbury to Lambourn line

River Kennet, just west of Newbury

 River Kennet, just west of Newbury

River Kennet, just west of Newbury 

River Kennet, just west of Newbury

So that's it for this week I suspect. I am going to be finding some space in Kent later in the week so check back on or after the weekend to see what I found there.