The Peak Forest Tramway was an early rail system (1794) used to convey limestone from quarries in Dove Holes Dale down to the Peak Forest Canal.
Some of the limestone was burnt to quicklime, and the rest shipped onwards. Limestone of course was used to make mortar, cement and soda ash - all part of the industrial revolution.
The aim of this outing was to walk the path of the old tramway and also to have a look at the Stodhart Tunnel - undocumented, but supposedly the second oldest rail-related tunnel in Britain.
The first part of the walk, shown in white below, is a tourist trail, so only a couple of pictures from here. The rest of the tramway route shown in red is mostly walkable except for the section through Chapel-en-le-Frith which has been built on.
The route is a mixture of wasteland, woodland, fields and public paths, and pictures are a mixture of camera and phone.
First a rock cart on display in the Buxworth (Bugsworth) Basin where the tramway terminates.
This was before the age of steam power, so while carts loaded with limestone could run down from the hills under gravity, horses had to haul the empty carts back up.
The rails rather than the wheels were flanged and attached to separate anchor stones as shown - lines of these stones can still be seen in many parts of the tramway route.
The start of the red section has been covered over for a brake testing track by Federal-Mogul, who have a large factory nearby.
The Chapel-Minton viaducts.
Beyond the viaduct is a water treatment plant…
…and just beyond this is the filled-in northern portal of the Stodhard Tunnel - it’s somewhere in the leaf litter on the right.
Teleporting into the tunnel, a view back of the blockage. It’s warm and misty in here - Federal-Mogul apparently used part of the tunnel to test the effects of humidity on brake components.
Looking forwards, the tunnel is not in great shape - someone has sunk a pipe across at roof level and a made a little diagonal wall from the fallen rocks.
A side chamber.
The southern portal - just visible on the floor is a piece of wood aligned along the tunnel, with pairs of wheels. I don’t know what this is - if it’s original it could have been trodden on by horses.
Rematerialising outside the gates which are still as locked as ever.
Heading into Chapel-en-le-Frith…
…then picking up the trail again on the other side…
…we come to the ‘inclined plane’- it’s the overgrown strip on the left under the telegraph poles.
This is a relatively steep section of hillside where the horses were given a break - descending loaded carts instead hauled up empty ones via an endless pulley system.
The tramway now turns left into a valley and carries on, sandwiched between a railway and the Buxton Road.
The route goes round a little hill while the railway goes through, then carries on parallel into farmland.
OMG SAVAGED BY WILD KILLER BULLS ALMOST DIED
Wiping away the friendly cow slobber we then head under another bridge, through a boggy section, and past some of the old worked-out quarries.
It was now getting late, so I finally climbed up further to admire the huge holes the CEMEX people have made in the top of the hill.
Although I doubt many others would want to do this walk, the best approach is probably to go on a nice autumn day when the vegetation has died back a bit, get someone to drop you at the top, and walk down to finish at the Navigation Inn in Buxworth.
Plenty of information about this area and the tunnel can be found online e.g.
http://archive.bugsworthbasin.org/pages/pft.htm
http://www.pittdixon.go-plus.net/pft/stodhart-tunnel.htm
Some of the limestone was burnt to quicklime, and the rest shipped onwards. Limestone of course was used to make mortar, cement and soda ash - all part of the industrial revolution.
The aim of this outing was to walk the path of the old tramway and also to have a look at the Stodhart Tunnel - undocumented, but supposedly the second oldest rail-related tunnel in Britain.
The first part of the walk, shown in white below, is a tourist trail, so only a couple of pictures from here. The rest of the tramway route shown in red is mostly walkable except for the section through Chapel-en-le-Frith which has been built on.
The route is a mixture of wasteland, woodland, fields and public paths, and pictures are a mixture of camera and phone.
First a rock cart on display in the Buxworth (Bugsworth) Basin where the tramway terminates.
This was before the age of steam power, so while carts loaded with limestone could run down from the hills under gravity, horses had to haul the empty carts back up.
The rails rather than the wheels were flanged and attached to separate anchor stones as shown - lines of these stones can still be seen in many parts of the tramway route.
The start of the red section has been covered over for a brake testing track by Federal-Mogul, who have a large factory nearby.
The Chapel-Minton viaducts.
Beyond the viaduct is a water treatment plant…
…and just beyond this is the filled-in northern portal of the Stodhard Tunnel - it’s somewhere in the leaf litter on the right.
Teleporting into the tunnel, a view back of the blockage. It’s warm and misty in here - Federal-Mogul apparently used part of the tunnel to test the effects of humidity on brake components.
Looking forwards, the tunnel is not in great shape - someone has sunk a pipe across at roof level and a made a little diagonal wall from the fallen rocks.
A side chamber.
The southern portal - just visible on the floor is a piece of wood aligned along the tunnel, with pairs of wheels. I don’t know what this is - if it’s original it could have been trodden on by horses.
Rematerialising outside the gates which are still as locked as ever.
Heading into Chapel-en-le-Frith…
…then picking up the trail again on the other side…
…we come to the ‘inclined plane’- it’s the overgrown strip on the left under the telegraph poles.
This is a relatively steep section of hillside where the horses were given a break - descending loaded carts instead hauled up empty ones via an endless pulley system.
The tramway now turns left into a valley and carries on, sandwiched between a railway and the Buxton Road.
The route goes round a little hill while the railway goes through, then carries on parallel into farmland.
OMG SAVAGED BY WILD KILLER BULLS ALMOST DIED
Wiping away the friendly cow slobber we then head under another bridge, through a boggy section, and past some of the old worked-out quarries.
It was now getting late, so I finally climbed up further to admire the huge holes the CEMEX people have made in the top of the hill.
Although I doubt many others would want to do this walk, the best approach is probably to go on a nice autumn day when the vegetation has died back a bit, get someone to drop you at the top, and walk down to finish at the Navigation Inn in Buxworth.
Plenty of information about this area and the tunnel can be found online e.g.
http://archive.bugsworthbasin.org/pages/pft.htm
http://www.pittdixon.go-plus.net/pft/stodhart-tunnel.htm
Thank you!
