1. The History
Haddon Tunnel is located in the English county of Derbyshire. It was built by the Midland Railway in 1863 as an extension of its Buxton branch-line, into the Peaks, linking the afore-mentioned Buxton with Matlock. The line was born out of the Midland Railway’s rivalry with the London & North Western (LNW) to secure a strategic rail route between London and Manchester. The first section was the 15-mile extension of the Rowsley line into Buxton, authorised in May 1860. The 1,058-yard long tunnel was constructed to hide the railway from the view of the Duke of Rutland where the line passed Haddon Hall. The tunnel is close to the surface and was, in the main, built by the 'cut and cover' method. So much so that towards its southern end, it is now possible to walk alongside the tunnel at track level, such is the shallowness of the fill and gradient of the slope. It included five ventilation shafts with one being the full width of the double-track tunnel. Shortly after the headings met on Tuesday 2nd July 1861, an arch collapsed killing three men and a boy, wounding another so seriously that he died the following day (see picture below). John Millington, George Buckley, James Bird, James Clarke and the young Alfred Plank are honoured by a simple memorial in the churchyard at Rowsley. The railway paid £100 (equivalent to £8,781 in 2016) compensation to each of their families.
haddon-5
Unsurprisingly the 1963 Beeching Report saw the withdrawal of the local Matlock-Buxton/Manchester services. The line’s complete closure to through traffic was determined by a confidential 1964 study into ‘duplicate’ trans-Pennine routes (April 1966, saw the introduction of electric haulage for Manchester-Euston services on the West Coast Main Line). From October that year freight and parcels were diverted instead via the Hope Valley line. The announcement about the cessation of passenger expresses followed soon after and on Saturday 29th June 1968 the last passed through Haddon Tunnel. The Up line was lifted just a year later in June 1969 and the recovery of the Down line the following summer. Following closure, the track-bed and tunnel was reincorporated into the Haddon Estate.
A southbound ‘Peak’ Class 45-hauled passenger train emerges from the tunnel in August 1961 (photo credit: J R Morten).
haddon old pic
A long campaign by Peak Rail and others culminated in a feasibility study by Derbyshire County Council in 2004, the Haddon Estate being a major opponent of the plan.
Peak Rail still plans to extend their heritage rail services via both "Rowsley railway station" and a proposed "Haddon" Halt towards Bakewell. This would require additional restoration of the old tunnel itself and both Rowsley and Coombes Road Viaducts, plus reinstating the Bakewell station site to its original condition by the year 2016.
2. The Explore
I have had this place on my radar for a while so I headed over to this beautiful corner of God’s county in the excellent company of @tarkovsky and his multiple torch assault (hope the finger has healed up now mate). . It's a superb tunnel that's got everything: length, open sections, portals. The only thing it doesn’t have is the grand entrances some other tunnels offer.
Entry has always traditionally been from the Northern portal, so this is where we headed. Having parked up it was a pleasant mile-long walk from the viaduct at Coombe’s Road along the former track bed. We spent a good hour-and-a-half in the tunnel itself. When we reached the end, much to our surprise, the iron door on the south portal was wide open, affording us a view of the southern tunnel’s façade.
Overall a superb explore in the good company in beautiful countryside.
3. The Pictures
The viaduct that heralds the start of our adventure:
It’s a lovely walk along the course of the former track-bed:
This old track-side worker’s hut was worth a quick shufty:
There’s also what appears to be an empty estate house too:
And just for good measure, there’s a bit of farm abandonment:
The northern portal comes into sight:
View towards the north-west direction:
One of the many drainage windows:
Onward we push:
A square worker’s recess:
Portal no.1:
A hint of Autumn through the same portal:
One of the only sleepers still in situ in the whole tunnel:
A very wet portal number 2:
Portal No. 3 – but more of an open-air section:
Where nature has been able to get a grip:
The famous tree in the open section:
And more than a hint of Autumn here:
A brick-lined worker’s recess:
Onward we go:
Trying out a bit of black and white:
And out we pop!
A track-side hut outside the southern portal:
Now for the long walk back!
Haddon Tunnel is located in the English county of Derbyshire. It was built by the Midland Railway in 1863 as an extension of its Buxton branch-line, into the Peaks, linking the afore-mentioned Buxton with Matlock. The line was born out of the Midland Railway’s rivalry with the London & North Western (LNW) to secure a strategic rail route between London and Manchester. The first section was the 15-mile extension of the Rowsley line into Buxton, authorised in May 1860. The 1,058-yard long tunnel was constructed to hide the railway from the view of the Duke of Rutland where the line passed Haddon Hall. The tunnel is close to the surface and was, in the main, built by the 'cut and cover' method. So much so that towards its southern end, it is now possible to walk alongside the tunnel at track level, such is the shallowness of the fill and gradient of the slope. It included five ventilation shafts with one being the full width of the double-track tunnel. Shortly after the headings met on Tuesday 2nd July 1861, an arch collapsed killing three men and a boy, wounding another so seriously that he died the following day (see picture below). John Millington, George Buckley, James Bird, James Clarke and the young Alfred Plank are honoured by a simple memorial in the churchyard at Rowsley. The railway paid £100 (equivalent to £8,781 in 2016) compensation to each of their families.
Unsurprisingly the 1963 Beeching Report saw the withdrawal of the local Matlock-Buxton/Manchester services. The line’s complete closure to through traffic was determined by a confidential 1964 study into ‘duplicate’ trans-Pennine routes (April 1966, saw the introduction of electric haulage for Manchester-Euston services on the West Coast Main Line). From October that year freight and parcels were diverted instead via the Hope Valley line. The announcement about the cessation of passenger expresses followed soon after and on Saturday 29th June 1968 the last passed through Haddon Tunnel. The Up line was lifted just a year later in June 1969 and the recovery of the Down line the following summer. Following closure, the track-bed and tunnel was reincorporated into the Haddon Estate.
A southbound ‘Peak’ Class 45-hauled passenger train emerges from the tunnel in August 1961 (photo credit: J R Morten).
A long campaign by Peak Rail and others culminated in a feasibility study by Derbyshire County Council in 2004, the Haddon Estate being a major opponent of the plan.
Peak Rail still plans to extend their heritage rail services via both "Rowsley railway station" and a proposed "Haddon" Halt towards Bakewell. This would require additional restoration of the old tunnel itself and both Rowsley and Coombes Road Viaducts, plus reinstating the Bakewell station site to its original condition by the year 2016.
2. The Explore
I have had this place on my radar for a while so I headed over to this beautiful corner of God’s county in the excellent company of @tarkovsky and his multiple torch assault (hope the finger has healed up now mate). . It's a superb tunnel that's got everything: length, open sections, portals. The only thing it doesn’t have is the grand entrances some other tunnels offer.
Entry has always traditionally been from the Northern portal, so this is where we headed. Having parked up it was a pleasant mile-long walk from the viaduct at Coombe’s Road along the former track bed. We spent a good hour-and-a-half in the tunnel itself. When we reached the end, much to our surprise, the iron door on the south portal was wide open, affording us a view of the southern tunnel’s façade.
Overall a superb explore in the good company in beautiful countryside.
3. The Pictures
The viaduct that heralds the start of our adventure:
It’s a lovely walk along the course of the former track-bed:
This old track-side worker’s hut was worth a quick shufty:
There’s also what appears to be an empty estate house too:
And just for good measure, there’s a bit of farm abandonment:
The northern portal comes into sight:
View towards the north-west direction:
One of the many drainage windows:
Onward we push:
A square worker’s recess:
Portal no.1:
A hint of Autumn through the same portal:
One of the only sleepers still in situ in the whole tunnel:
A very wet portal number 2:
Portal No. 3 – but more of an open-air section:
Where nature has been able to get a grip:
The famous tree in the open section:
And more than a hint of Autumn here:
A brick-lined worker’s recess:
Onward we go:
Trying out a bit of black and white:
And out we pop!
A track-side hut outside the southern portal:
Now for the long walk back!
