I was up in North Yorkshire recently being shown a few locations, and this beauty of a tunnel was on the agenda. It's pretty standard as abandoned railway tunnels go, although it does have a very nice looking air vent, not as good as the ones in Kelmarsh and Oxendon though. The main appeal is what lies deep within...
I'll also throw a few shots of the chalk works in as it doesn't warrant a report of its own, but it is linked with the railway making it somewhat relevant here.
The History
The Malton Driffield Junction Railway (MDJR) was proposed as part of a route to create a Main Line between Newcastle and Hull. The route needed to pass under a hill between Burdale and Wharram with this being facilitated through the construction of the 1,767 yard Burdale Tunnel.
Work began on the tunnel in 1847 with work occurring from the southern portal and working faces from 4 construction shafts. Difficulties were encountered in the construction, with flooding and rock falls being a major problem resulting in only 150 yards having been dug after a year. The MDJR soon ran into financial difficulty with the company being on the brink of bankruptcy, resulting in work grinding to a halt.
The route was later resurrected at a more modest scale. The southern portal had already been built, with it being large enough for double track, but it only ever carried a single line. The bore shrinks 30 yards from the portal, but opens out again at numerous points along the length of the tunnel.
Four additional construction shafts were dug to expedite tunnel construction, each being 9ft in diameter with three being retained for ventilation. The tunnel was finally completed in 1853.
The line remained open to passengers until 1950, and remained operational until 1958 when it was closed. The portals were sealed three years later to prevent the public from using the tunnel.
In the late seventies a collapse occurred just beyond the second ventilation shaft. Another collapse in the mid eighties created a blockage to the south of the first, creating a sealed section in the middle. Source I'm using suggests water levels can reach 12ft after long periods of rain. This is either an understatement, or the levels were particularly bad on my visit.
Wharram Chalk Works
High quality chalk was extracted from the quarry adjacent to the site for use in agriculture and cement making. The site opened near the Wharram station on the Malton - Driffield line in 1916 with operations initially continuing until 1930. Chalk for cement making was taken by rail to the Casebourne & Co. cement works in Billingham.
After a few years of little activity, quarrying resumed at the site and continued until 1966 with chalk being taken away from the site by lorry after closure of the railway line.
The Explore
We approached the tunnel initially from the Wharram Percy end, which has the remains of a plate layers hut not far from the portal.
The trackbed is very moist here, and remains so all the way to the portal, making approach a bit of a pain.
The portal at this end of the tunnel is a plain brick affair. Presumably this is due to financial issues during construction, with this end being constructed as cheaply as possible. The other portal is a tad more ornate in construction.
We were surprised to find this end open, but you need to be a good climber to reach the access without a ladder, best not slip either or you're getting soaked in stagnant water and mud.
We sought out the nearest vent next (number 3 from the South Portal), encountering a hunt which I'm assuming was illegal on the other side of the valley in the process. An insane number of hounds went past us, and the leader of the hunt on the other side of the small valley definitely clocked us. We heard the rest coming up from behind, so ducked out of sight to avoid them.
We located the vent which has a lovely convenient ladder next to it, so climbed up for a gander. You'd be forgiven for thinking it was a mineshaft with the view down it... Water looks to be within around a foot of the base of the shaft.
Only grabbed a couple of quick shots unfortunately, as we heard quad bikes approaching from the direction the hunt went. Maybe they were looking for us, maybe they weren't, but we chose not to hang around, few blokes with cameras and some potential illegality aren't exactly a good combination.
Wandered down to the chalk works next, it's a shame there's no way up to the higher levels of the main building. Mostly just shells remaining, although there are the remains of the mechanisms for depositing chalk into railway wagons from the hoppers above either side of the remains of a little control room.
The kilns are in a pretty dire state too, there appears to be four, with one no longer even resembling a kiln. Very waterlogged in front of them, so didn't bother getting close. Didn't bother with the Quarry either as I grabbed a couple of quick shots of that with the drone before walking down from the car park.
The Silo by Drone -
The Quarry -
Interior of one of the remaining buildings -
Rail Bridge to the Silo -
Hopper Chute for wagon loading, these would drop 3 tons of chalk at a time into passing wagons -
The remains of the worst two Kilns -
Jumped in the car to drive to the South Portal, making a quick stop to look down shaft 1. I didn't grab any photos here though, and we didn't bother walking to number 2 as it's collapsed anyway. We parked as near to the tunnel we could and scrambled down into the valley, hoping it hadn't been sealed up by pesky farmers... We were in luck as it was also wide open, so in we went!
Immediately greeted with a healthy looking tunnel, but with a good enough torch, you can see the collapsed section in the distance.
Not far in, the tunnel lining narrows although it soon widens again, and you can see some soot accumulation where smoke would have been caught at the point where the brickwork changes.
These changes occur multiple times along the length of the tunnel. With the project being scaled back to a single line during construction, I would presume the wider sections were dug out during the initial works on the tunnel, with each wide section accounting for the working faces of the original construction shafts.
The tunnel is mostly soot free due to the level of water ingress. Makes for some lovely shots with the mix of colours.
There is a tablet on the left wall with the number 5 on it, looks like there would have been another number also, but this is long gone.
Curiously there are no refuges along the entire walkable length of the tunnel. There are numerous relics to be found, primarily bolts for track chairs, although there are a couple of sleeper remnants underneath some discarded hardwood sections that I'm assuming were discarded either after construction of the tunnel, or after some repair work.
Hardwood Sections -
Fish Plate -
Chair Bolts -
Insulator -
As you approach vent number 1, the collapse can be seen clearly in the distance -
Almost time for the collapse, but first we have air vent number 1 -
Certainly the deepest tunnel I've been in, which made it a lot easier to light
Was awesome to watch water droplets fall the length of the shaft in the torchlight.
Moved on to the collapse, traversing a particularly moist section to reach it.
You can see some sections of brick lining intact which have only partially come away from the walls, as well as more buried under the mounds of chalk.
Looking back towards the portal -
Looking North -
It was pretty disconcerting knowing that somewhere beyond what we could see was a wall of water being held back by one of the collpases. There are further layers of chalk starting to break away from the rock face, so there's bound to be further rock falls in the future.
Started to make our way back, finding a can of Skol dating from 1990 en route. Reminded my companions about the adverts for it from the 80s.
It was starting to get dark as we left the tunnel. We made the steep scramble back to the car and called it a day.
We headed back the next morning to reattempt the north side, but unfortunately we were inadequately equipped to explore it. Turns out the water is around 2ft deep by the portal, and it'll only get deeper as you head further in, so waders are a necessity. We didn't fancy swimming it 😂
Thanks for looking 👍🏻
I'll also throw a few shots of the chalk works in as it doesn't warrant a report of its own, but it is linked with the railway making it somewhat relevant here.
The History
The Malton Driffield Junction Railway (MDJR) was proposed as part of a route to create a Main Line between Newcastle and Hull. The route needed to pass under a hill between Burdale and Wharram with this being facilitated through the construction of the 1,767 yard Burdale Tunnel.
Work began on the tunnel in 1847 with work occurring from the southern portal and working faces from 4 construction shafts. Difficulties were encountered in the construction, with flooding and rock falls being a major problem resulting in only 150 yards having been dug after a year. The MDJR soon ran into financial difficulty with the company being on the brink of bankruptcy, resulting in work grinding to a halt.
The route was later resurrected at a more modest scale. The southern portal had already been built, with it being large enough for double track, but it only ever carried a single line. The bore shrinks 30 yards from the portal, but opens out again at numerous points along the length of the tunnel.
Four additional construction shafts were dug to expedite tunnel construction, each being 9ft in diameter with three being retained for ventilation. The tunnel was finally completed in 1853.
The line remained open to passengers until 1950, and remained operational until 1958 when it was closed. The portals were sealed three years later to prevent the public from using the tunnel.
In the late seventies a collapse occurred just beyond the second ventilation shaft. Another collapse in the mid eighties created a blockage to the south of the first, creating a sealed section in the middle. Source I'm using suggests water levels can reach 12ft after long periods of rain. This is either an understatement, or the levels were particularly bad on my visit.
Wharram Chalk Works
High quality chalk was extracted from the quarry adjacent to the site for use in agriculture and cement making. The site opened near the Wharram station on the Malton - Driffield line in 1916 with operations initially continuing until 1930. Chalk for cement making was taken by rail to the Casebourne & Co. cement works in Billingham.
After a few years of little activity, quarrying resumed at the site and continued until 1966 with chalk being taken away from the site by lorry after closure of the railway line.
The Explore
We approached the tunnel initially from the Wharram Percy end, which has the remains of a plate layers hut not far from the portal.
The trackbed is very moist here, and remains so all the way to the portal, making approach a bit of a pain.
The portal at this end of the tunnel is a plain brick affair. Presumably this is due to financial issues during construction, with this end being constructed as cheaply as possible. The other portal is a tad more ornate in construction.
We were surprised to find this end open, but you need to be a good climber to reach the access without a ladder, best not slip either or you're getting soaked in stagnant water and mud.
We sought out the nearest vent next (number 3 from the South Portal), encountering a hunt which I'm assuming was illegal on the other side of the valley in the process. An insane number of hounds went past us, and the leader of the hunt on the other side of the small valley definitely clocked us. We heard the rest coming up from behind, so ducked out of sight to avoid them.
We located the vent which has a lovely convenient ladder next to it, so climbed up for a gander. You'd be forgiven for thinking it was a mineshaft with the view down it... Water looks to be within around a foot of the base of the shaft.
Only grabbed a couple of quick shots unfortunately, as we heard quad bikes approaching from the direction the hunt went. Maybe they were looking for us, maybe they weren't, but we chose not to hang around, few blokes with cameras and some potential illegality aren't exactly a good combination.
Wandered down to the chalk works next, it's a shame there's no way up to the higher levels of the main building. Mostly just shells remaining, although there are the remains of the mechanisms for depositing chalk into railway wagons from the hoppers above either side of the remains of a little control room.
The kilns are in a pretty dire state too, there appears to be four, with one no longer even resembling a kiln. Very waterlogged in front of them, so didn't bother getting close. Didn't bother with the Quarry either as I grabbed a couple of quick shots of that with the drone before walking down from the car park.
The Silo by Drone -
The Quarry -
Interior of one of the remaining buildings -
Rail Bridge to the Silo -
Hopper Chute for wagon loading, these would drop 3 tons of chalk at a time into passing wagons -
The remains of the worst two Kilns -
Jumped in the car to drive to the South Portal, making a quick stop to look down shaft 1. I didn't grab any photos here though, and we didn't bother walking to number 2 as it's collapsed anyway. We parked as near to the tunnel we could and scrambled down into the valley, hoping it hadn't been sealed up by pesky farmers... We were in luck as it was also wide open, so in we went!
Immediately greeted with a healthy looking tunnel, but with a good enough torch, you can see the collapsed section in the distance.
Not far in, the tunnel lining narrows although it soon widens again, and you can see some soot accumulation where smoke would have been caught at the point where the brickwork changes.
These changes occur multiple times along the length of the tunnel. With the project being scaled back to a single line during construction, I would presume the wider sections were dug out during the initial works on the tunnel, with each wide section accounting for the working faces of the original construction shafts.
The tunnel is mostly soot free due to the level of water ingress. Makes for some lovely shots with the mix of colours.
There is a tablet on the left wall with the number 5 on it, looks like there would have been another number also, but this is long gone.
Curiously there are no refuges along the entire walkable length of the tunnel. There are numerous relics to be found, primarily bolts for track chairs, although there are a couple of sleeper remnants underneath some discarded hardwood sections that I'm assuming were discarded either after construction of the tunnel, or after some repair work.
Hardwood Sections -
Fish Plate -
Chair Bolts -
Insulator -
As you approach vent number 1, the collapse can be seen clearly in the distance -
Almost time for the collapse, but first we have air vent number 1 -
Certainly the deepest tunnel I've been in, which made it a lot easier to light
Was awesome to watch water droplets fall the length of the shaft in the torchlight.
Moved on to the collapse, traversing a particularly moist section to reach it.
You can see some sections of brick lining intact which have only partially come away from the walls, as well as more buried under the mounds of chalk.
Looking back towards the portal -
Looking North -
It was pretty disconcerting knowing that somewhere beyond what we could see was a wall of water being held back by one of the collpases. There are further layers of chalk starting to break away from the rock face, so there's bound to be further rock falls in the future.
Started to make our way back, finding a can of Skol dating from 1990 en route. Reminded my companions about the adverts for it from the 80s.
It was starting to get dark as we left the tunnel. We made the steep scramble back to the car and called it a day.
We headed back the next morning to reattempt the north side, but unfortunately we were inadequately equipped to explore it. Turns out the water is around 2ft deep by the portal, and it'll only get deeper as you head further in, so waders are a necessity. We didn't fancy swimming it 😂
Thanks for looking 👍🏻
