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 s...