So today say another stunning bank holiday Monday. Two beautiful bank holidays in one month, what is going on with the weather? I have recently moved jobs and for the first time in about six years I get bank holidays off and what a couple of bank holidays they have been. The weekend started off as a normal Saturday, Gymbobs and swimming. Sunday was different as the little man went to see Nana and Grandad whilst I went and did the Yorkshire Three Peaks. Eight and a half hours later it was done, not a bad time. Lyns has been on nights so she slept Saturday and Sunday. This left us with Monday to go out and do something.
I asked James what he would like to do and he said go on a train. If you are familiar with York, you will know that the North York Moors Railway is the place to go for steam trains. I looked on their website and unfortunately their morning train to Whitby was sold out. Not wanting to risk it and arrive without being guaranteed a seat I had to find another railway for the little man.
A quick google later and I had found the Wendsleydale Railway. Now, this is a different kettle of fish to the NYMR and I imagine they are tired of being compared. They only run diesel engines, apart from the odd occasion, running from Leeming Bar to Redmire. That being said, the reviews on trip advisor looked good so 10 o'clock saw us standing on the platform, tickets in hand.
It was very quiet on the first train of the day, maybe twenty people or so. It was a very pleasant train ride and once you got into the dales the views were spectacular. If you were to compare it to the NYMR then you would say it was no where near as polished, the stations were not as nice and the carriages needed a little more tlc. That being said, all the staff were very pleasant and the trip was very enjoyable.
Lynsey wishing I would not take photos when she is post nightshift, when I say wishing, I mean threatening violence
Lyns finally having a go with the camera and me really needing a shave, I wish I could grow that much hair elsewhere on my head
The trip through to Redmire takes about an hour. When you get there, you have the option to stay and get a later train home, or to take the train back. The return ticket allows you to ride the train for as long as you like on any given day. There are a lot of nice walks to do from Redmire, including to Castle Bolton. Neither Lyns or I felt like a walk today and we had not brought the buggy so it was back on the train, for the fifteen minute ride into Leyburn.
The excitement was all too much for them
Any excuse for a cuddle, when I drool on Lyns, all I get is grief
After the short trip / nap back to Leyburn, we jumped off the train, or staggered as was my case, as my legs are like jelly today. Nana and Grandad lived in Leyburn for a few years after following me up to Yorkshire once they realised I was not going to return after uni, so we know the town reasonably well.
As it was almost lunchtime and James was getting hungry we had to find somewhere for lunch. We had a look in a few places in the town square and settled on the Posthorn. The food was very nice and the service very quick, especially as we had been told in several other places the wait would be around an hour. If I had to say something negative about the food it would be that they had used cold beef with warm gravy in my hot beef sandwich, however nothing worth complaining about. Lyns had a tuna sandwich and James had sausage and chips. All in all very nice, with three meals and three drinks coming to £25 which I did not think was too bad.
Hot chocolate with a spoon
After we had had lunch we took a stroll to the Inspired Chocolate Factory as well as the Teapottery. The chocolate factory is a chocolate lovers dream with every possible flavour and combination of flavours that you could ask for. There is a cafe there and they run chocolate workshops. The chocolate is more expensive that your usually chocolate, £3.50 for a 100g bar, but that is what you would expect for its artisan nature and it is very nice. James had a lolly and Lyns and I had a bar of the milk chocolate with fudge inclusions to share. After this, it was round the corner to the ceramics place. I have never seen tea pots like it, there was every possible shape, size and design. I am not going to try and describe them as I will not do them justice, but have a look on their website, truly amazing.
After this it was back to the train for the 45 minute trip back to Leeming Bar.
Our trusty steed arriving into Leyburn station
The journey home was done in brilliant sunshine, the trip out having been done in mist, and James spent most of the time looking out of the window. Lyns on the other hand slept most of the way back, catching up from night shifts.
All in all it was a lovely day out, a very different experience to other heritage railways as this felt more like a normal train service but nonetheless it was enjoyable and we would definitely do it again.