I’ve not been on the Romney Hythe & Dymchurch Railway (RHDR) since I was a wee lad, in other words, many decades ago. I went the whole hog and ventured into what is now being called the “Dungeness Desert”. Not my description – see the link here.
Another beautiful sunny day, blue skies but not hot, just nicely warm. I’d only packed two pairs of shorts and NO sun tan lotion, Good weather was turning out to be an extra bonus.
This may be classed as a light or minature railway (rail gauge is only 15 “/381 mm), but it has all the right ingredients, as far as I’m concerned, ie fire, water, steam pressure, coal, smell……..
I would call the driving position compact, although two did squeeze in – one a trainee. Apparently, you can ride in the loco – presumably for a fee ! Not the most comfortable ride in the world, but must be quite an experience – now where’s my credit card…….
Out at Dungeness I went for a bit of a wander, my train back was an hour away. From what I remember, the station itself has been considerably updated with proper toilets and a reasonably priced self service restaurant. The two lighthouses are still there, although the old one seemed no longer to be open to the public. Then there was the ever-present nuclear power station, now in the process of being decommissioned, apparently.
Several “ broadwalks” lead down to the shoreline, on this day complete with the obligatory rod fishermen.
It really is quite bleak down here, nice in the sun, but probably not so nice in the winter. There’s still a quirky collection of housing, varying from the old original shacks up to more modern units, presumably second holiday homes.
Amongst them was a house owned by Derek Jarman, an English experimental film director, stage designer, diarist, artist, gardener, author and gay rights activist. Somehow, he’d established a garden of sorts in this seemingly barren landscape.
On the return journey, it was a loco named Winston Churchill. The driver told me he just came down for a holiday some years back and just had to get involved….. Beautiful.
Back at “base camp” Hythe, I had a walk into town along the Royal Military Canal, built in case of invasion from a certain Napoleon, in the day. Very well maintained and a decent walk.
