Embsay Railway

Author's product rating:   

Frequency of trains	Good
Reliability of trains	Mostly on time
Comfort of trains	Comfortable
On-board facilities	Good

Advantages:	nice scenery
Disadvantages:	bad access to both main stations

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The historic Bolton Abbey in West Yorkshire is once again accessabile by rail after the Embsay & Bolton Abbey steam railway ( lovingly known as the Yorkshire Dales railway ) managed to reconnect the tracks to this scenic part of the world in 1999.

Bolton Abbey is an historic 12 century ruin , from which the tiny village takes it's name.
If anyone wishes to drive to Bolton Abbey you could leave the car there and do the journey in reverse if you prefer . The route is situated very close to the A59.

I managed to ride the route on only it's second day of operation to Bolton Abbey as previously the line only went as far as Stoneacre loop.

This railway is a scenic preserved mainly steam line similar to the North Yorks Moors railway and Keighley & Worth Valley railway which I've written on earlier.
I had a picnic on the banks of the river on one of the few days when the sun shone that year in Yorkshire!

I don't think this route is quite as good as the other two I've just mentioned though , but it is still well worth going on for a day out for all the family.
The nearest mainline station is Skipton in North Yorkshire . This is reachable from Leeds in forty minutes by two trains an hour or likewise from Bradford.
The problem is the railway dosen't run into Skipton station so you have to make your own way one and a half miles to the start of the line at Embsay.
This is a pretty big irritent if you go by train to Skipton as the bus service to Embsay is poor.
I overcome this by walking to the Embsay village , but the problem is not everyone wants to or is able to do this.
The line is five miles in length .
The trains depart Embsay and call at Holywell Halt , Stoneacre loop ( sometimes ) and finally Bolton Abbey.

Another slight problem is that Bolton Abbey station is a mile or so away from the village and Abbey itself so again you are faced with a short walk or taxi ride if you wish to explore these areas.

The Bolton Abbey station still has the original station buildings in use from when the line was part of the former BR network . The station surrounds are also home to a number of rare plants including the Bee orchid . There is also an interesting wetland area - well worth a look .

The trains do not run all year round or even regularly in summer weekdays but they do run every weekend during April - October
The journey time is twenty minutes in each direction and the trains are reliable despite their advancing years !

As is typical with railways such as this the average speed is slow , around twenty miles an hour , but the steam engines themselves more than make up for this with their character and wonderful nostalgic values .

The railway also own a diesel heriage unit which they rather cleverly use at of peak times to provide a service , but keep the running costs down . I reckon this is smart and other steam railways that don't do this should take note .
The staff mainly volunteers are friendly and jolly and it is great that the line exists to take cars off what is a heavily gridlocked part of Yorkshire in the tourist season

Ticket prices vary throughout the year with reductions at off peak times which is a good idea I feel.
Return fares per adult are £6 on typical days.
Obviously special event days such as santa specials cost more , but the kids love it !

All in all not the best steam railway around , but worth going along for the novelty value, and these type of enterprizes should be encouraged I feel.

The railway can be contacted on tel 01756 710614
Or there is a taking timetable with the latest info on it . Ring 01756 795189 for this.

© copyright of Lee Senior