© Geoff’s Rail Diaries 2011
These brief visits were a bonus - we were on our way to the
ferry at Portsmouth for a short (no railways..) visit to
Brittany, and having left home much earlier than we really
needed, found ourselves with time to kill...
The Exbury Steam Railway is a 1¼ mile, 12¼" gauge out-and-
back line opened in 2001 in the gardens near Beaulieu in the
New Forest. We had intended to take a ride - but that's only
possible with entry to the gardens, although the station and loco
shed are just beside the main car park. It was late in the
afternoon, and there was no way we could do
justice to the gardens in the time we had, so we
contented ourselves with watching the arrival
and departure of the 4.30pm train, in the
capable hands of "Naomi", a 2002 Exmoor-built 0-
6-2 tender and tank locomotive in attractive blue
livery. There are two other resident steam
locomotives, twin sister "Rosemary" and newly-
built 2-6-2 "Mariloo". They must have been deep
inside the shed - we saw neither of them. "We'll have to come
again" suggested the household authorities...
It's not far from Exbury to Hythe, on the
western shore of the Solent, more-or-
less at the confluence of the Test and
the Itchen. A simple pier, about 1/3
mile in length, provides access to a
foot-passenger ferry service across to
Southampton - and a railway runs the
length of the pier for the convenience of those
passengers. And what a railway! Three coaches
and a luggage wagon are propelled (out) or hauled
(back) along the 2' gauge line by a diminutive third-rail electric
locomotive*, while a spare locomotive of the same type sits in
the siding beside the workshop. These Brush-built locos were
originally provided, battery-powered, for a mustard gas factory
at Avonmouth during the first world war, being converted to
third-rail operation for the opening of
the passenger service on the pier in
1922. Yes, this is the world's oldest pier
train (apparently).
We took a ride out to the pier head,
where a ferry service had just arrived,
and detrained to have a look around and take a
photograph or two. I'd intended to get a photo of
the train from the locomotive end, as it trundled back along the
pier - but when I turned around, it had gone, silently and
without warning! By now it was time to head for Portsmouth, so
perhaps another time...
*Power is supplied at 220v, stepped down on the locos to 100v
It's not far from Exbury to Hythe, on the
western shore of the Solent, more-or-
less at the confluence of the Test and
the Itchen. A simple pier, about 1/3
mile in length, provides access to a
foot-passenger ferry service across to
Southampton - and a railway runs the
length of the pier for the convenience of those
passengers. And what a railway! Three coaches
and a luggage wagon are propelled (out) or hauled
(back) along the 2' gauge line by a diminutive third-rail electric
locomotive*, while a spare locomotive of the same type sits in
the siding beside the workshop. These Brush-built locos were
originally provided, battery-powered, for a mustard gas factory
at Avonmouth during the first world war, being converted to
third-rail operation for the opening of
the passenger service on the pier in
1922. Yes, this is the world's oldest pier
train (apparently).
We took a ride out to the pier head,
where a ferry service had just arrived,
and detrained to have a look around and take a
photograph or two. I'd intended to get a photo of
the train from the locomotive end, as it trundled back along the
pier - but when I turned around, it had gone, silently and
without warning! By now it was time to head for Portsmouth, so
perhaps another time...
*Power is supplied at 220v, stepped down on the locos to 100v
