East Lancashire Railway Steam Gala

In Brief.

The East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway running over 12 miles of track with 7 stations, one of which is a hub at Bury, where there is also a transport museum. The railway, which is kept going at least in part by an army of volunteers, has a large collection of engines and rolling stock, and runs a wide variety of events; my visit was to one day of a Steam Gala that runs over three days with a variety of impressive and compact engines pulling the trains. 

A London-Midland-Scottish Locomotive from 1936.

What's Here?

At the risk of stating the obvious, there are stations, trains and tracks:

  • The stations include a sizeable hub at Bury that provides a bar, a cafe and shops, and there are also catering facilities at either end of the line, at Heywood and Rawtenstall. This regular supply of catering reflects the fact that a visit is expected to include a certain amount of pottering about, the occasional visit to places that travellers might not otherwise visit, and some self indulgence.
  • The trains consist of carriages that have features that you no longer see on modern trains. These may be undramatic, but if you are old enough you will recognise them.  My first seat started off with an open window, through which water flowed in significant quantities from the roof. The window also had an inside gutter for catching condensation, and small drains for taking the condensation outside. The locomotives on different days may be powered by diesel or steam, and the Steam Gala brochure had 8 engines, built from 1881 to 1949.
  • The track meanders through urban and rural areas, over bridges and through tunnels.  However, don't expect the actual journeys to be especially exciting; for the most part one is moving slowly past scrub.
On my weekday visit to the Steam Gala, the railway was certainly popular, largely with elderly males, who were also a good portion of the volunteers; the travellers are likely more varied at weekends and in the school holidays. Anyway, elderly males need to do something, and supporting this local enterprise through engagement or volunteering seem like positive things. I was pleased to see that there was a box of Quality Street being passed round some of the volunteers! 

Arriving at Bury.

I didn't head into many of the places the trains visit, and it is worth planning your destinations ahead of time as the trains are not very frequent.  However, thematically consistent, there is a transport museum in Bury, with assorted road vehicles and a history of transport in the North West. 

Practicalities.

Distance from Manchester Town Hall: 10 miles

Drive Time: 40 mins

Price: $$/$$$ (Trains). $ (Museum - certain types of train ticket provide free access to the museum).

Parking: There are carparks at several of the stations, including Heywood, Bury and Rawtenstall.

Food and Drink: There are cafes at the stations at the start and end of the line and at the main station in Bury, and typically the trains have buffets. There are also events that involve meals or afternoon teas.

Retail Therapy: There are some shops at the Bury station, which will be of particular interest to train geeks and people with model railways.

Child Friendly: Trips on unusual trains likely hold some interest, but there are also special events that clearly target younger passengers. 

Toilets: Yes - in the stations and on the trains.

Do it justice in: The journey from one end of the line to another is one hour, so a minimum visit is 2 hours end-to-end.  The Transport Museum at Bury is typically going to be less than an hour.

Inside-Outside: 80:20

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