05/07/2026
South Tynedale Railway is just a short walk when your staying at Old Bakery Townhouse Alston it’s a lovely train ride x
Howard getting ready to head off along the South Tynedale Railway.
This little line is one of the loveliest survivors in the North Pennines, running along part of the old Haltwhistle to Alston branch. The original railway closed in the 1970s, but volunteers brought steam back, rebuilding it bit by bit from Alston and eventually returning trains to Slaggyford.
Did you know? The South Tynedale Railway is England’s highest narrow gauge railway, and the long-term dream is still to push the line further back towards Haltwhistle. Not bad for something that could so easily have disappeared into memory and old timetables.
Northern Perspectives documenting the preserved railways, rural stations and stubborn little survivors still keeping the North’s stories moving.