0:00:04 > 0:00:08In 1840, one man transformed travel in Britain.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12His name was George Bradshaw
0:00:12 > 0:00:17and his railway guides inspired the Victorians to take to the tracks.
0:00:17 > 0:00:18Stop by stop,
0:00:18 > 0:00:22he told them where to travel, what to see and where to stay.
0:00:24 > 0:00:28Now, 170 years later, I'm making four long journeys
0:00:28 > 0:00:31across the length and breadth of the country
0:00:31 > 0:00:34to see what remains of Bradshaw's Britain.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55I'm embarked on a railway journey
0:00:55 > 0:00:59from Northern England to Lowland Scotland using a guidebook
0:00:59 > 0:01:01that's 150 years old,
0:01:01 > 0:01:05but today I'm making a detour along a railway line
0:01:05 > 0:01:09that wasn't even built when this book was published.
0:01:09 > 0:01:11The Settle to Carlisle railway
0:01:11 > 0:01:14is thought to be one of the most scenic in Britain
0:01:14 > 0:01:19and I feel a very strong personal connection with it.
0:01:22 > 0:01:24When I last visited this part of the world
0:01:24 > 0:01:27British Rail had asked permission to close the line.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29I was the Minister Of Transport
0:01:29 > 0:01:32and the Government had to decide whether to approve the closure.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39On my journey today I'll be finding out what's happened to it
0:01:39 > 0:01:42since I convinced Margaret Thatcher to save it.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45You know, of all the things I did, it's the one that I can still
0:01:45 > 0:01:48point at and say, "Look, that made this difference."
0:01:48 > 0:01:53I'll be discovering how building the route claimed so many lives.
0:01:53 > 0:01:56Of all the chapels along the line
0:01:56 > 0:01:59this, sadly, has got the most number of deaths.
0:01:59 > 0:02:03And I'll be getting the thrill of a lifetime.
0:02:03 > 0:02:06This is a fantastic sight as the steam engine begins
0:02:06 > 0:02:09to go over the Ribblehead Viaduct.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13You'll never see another sight like this on a railway in Britain.
0:02:22 > 0:02:24All this week
0:02:24 > 0:02:28I'm travelling north from Preston to Scotland. Along the way
0:02:28 > 0:02:32I'll be following Bradshaw's guide to the Lake District before
0:02:32 > 0:02:36heading up to Glasgow on the first railway route to cross the border,
0:02:36 > 0:02:40and then on to my final destination, Kirkcaldy.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46On today's journey I'm heading inland from Morecambe Bay to Settle
0:02:46 > 0:02:50to take the historic Midland railway line to Ribblehead and Garsdale.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57I haven't travelled the Settle to Carlisle for 20 years.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59The reason it's so special is that it is a piece
0:02:59 > 0:03:02of magnificent railway architecture.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05It goes through the most stunning countryside
0:03:05 > 0:03:09and it has some of the most remarkable viaducts
0:03:09 > 0:03:13and you don't have to be a railway enthusiast to be blown away.
0:03:16 > 0:03:20Opened in 1876, it's 72 miles long
0:03:20 > 0:03:25with tiny stations in some of the most rugged countryside in Britain.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27And my first stop today
0:03:27 > 0:03:30is at the southern gateway to the line, Settle.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33Settle Station is looking magnificent.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35It's great to be back
0:03:35 > 0:03:39and I am back to reminisce about events 20 years ago.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50This market town was the headquarters for the battle
0:03:50 > 0:03:53to save the Settle to Carlisle line.
0:03:53 > 0:03:59I've come to the Council Chamber to meet two very determined people.
0:03:59 > 0:04:06The formidable campaign was started here by Peter Shore and Mark Rand.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Peter, good to see you again.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12- How are you?- Very well, thank you.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14Hello, Mark.
0:04:14 > 0:04:15When did you first hear
0:04:15 > 0:04:19that there was an official move to close the line?
0:04:19 > 0:04:23In 1983, so we had two years to build up our membership
0:04:23 > 0:04:27and start to build a case before the official announcement.
0:04:30 > 0:04:35In the early 1980s, the line carried just a few trains each day.
0:04:35 > 0:04:37Passenger numbers were low,
0:04:37 > 0:04:41intermediate stations had closed and the route was losing money.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44The line was falling apart
0:04:44 > 0:04:47and British Rail argued that it would cost too much to repair.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53Its request to close it caused a storm of protest.
0:04:53 > 0:04:56We were very determined that one of the things that we should do,
0:04:56 > 0:05:00as well as shouting from the rooftops, was to increase passengers
0:05:00 > 0:05:03and thereby increase revenue which would have some effect
0:05:03 > 0:05:08- in Whitehall, we hoped.- But the really critical thing that you did
0:05:08 > 0:05:11was to get more people to use the railway, and I remember the summer
0:05:11 > 0:05:14I had to make the decision 300,000 people used the railway,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17so then it was possible to argue that it had revived
0:05:17 > 0:05:19and was going to be an economic proposition.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24The campaign raged for six years
0:05:24 > 0:05:29generating huge publicity for the line. As a result,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33ever more people began to use it, strengthening the case for
0:05:33 > 0:05:38keeping it open and it was my job to get the Prime Minister on side.
0:05:38 > 0:05:42I did feel quite emotional about it because I felt emotional about
0:05:42 > 0:05:47a line which is so important in our heritage and, by the way, I thought
0:05:47 > 0:05:51Margaret Thatcher would understand that argument, too, you know?
0:05:51 > 0:05:54Of course, she was the Iron Lady, with the handbag,
0:05:54 > 0:05:59balancing the books, but she really cared about British history, too,
0:05:59 > 0:06:02- so I thought I had a line in there, as well.- Was that the case?
0:06:02 > 0:06:06- Oh, yeah.- One of the things that you required, you actually wrote to us
0:06:06 > 0:06:08on 11 April 1989, do you remember signing that?
0:06:08 > 0:06:12This was a stressful decision for me, so I remember it pretty well.
0:06:12 > 0:06:16"You'll be pleased to hear that the Secretary of State is today
0:06:16 > 0:06:19"announcing that he's refusing consent for British Rail
0:06:19 > 0:06:21"to close the Settle to Carlisle railway line."
0:06:21 > 0:06:24- That's great.- They flew the flags in Settle that day.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26I think I drafted this sentence myself.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30"I look to the Friends Of The Settle To Carlisle Line Association
0:06:30 > 0:06:33"to cooperate vigorously in supporting and promoting the line
0:06:33 > 0:06:35"as you have promised."
0:06:35 > 0:06:38- And I hope we can say we've kept our promise.- You have!
0:06:38 > 0:06:44Since being saved, the line is being used by even larger numbers of people making it profitable again.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48You mentioned a figure of 300,000 passengers.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52It's now something like 750,000 a year and rising.
0:06:52 > 0:06:57And, of course, that's only the start of it because the amount of freight
0:06:57 > 0:07:05that uses the line is absolutely tremendous, anything up to 40 heavy freight trains 24 hours a day,
0:07:05 > 0:07:10so it's an absolutely remarkable change of fortune for the line.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14I read somewhere that you had said, and perhaps you were misquoted,
0:07:14 > 0:07:17as saying that the saving of the Settle To Carlisle railway line
0:07:17 > 0:07:19was the best thing you did in politics.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21Oh, yeah. No, I did say that.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25Somebody said, "What's your greatest achievement in politics?"
0:07:25 > 0:07:28And I said, "Saving the Settle to Carlisle railway."
0:07:28 > 0:07:32Of course, the interviewer said, "What? Never even heard of that!"
0:07:32 > 0:07:36But it is because, you know, of all the things I did it's the one that
0:07:36 > 0:07:40I can still point at and say, "Look, that made this difference."
0:07:44 > 0:07:48I'm heading off on the next part of my journey,
0:07:48 > 0:07:51ten miles along the line to Ribblehead.
0:07:51 > 0:07:54I'm so pleased to see the route thriving.
0:07:54 > 0:07:56It's thronged with tourists
0:07:56 > 0:08:00who help to generate the income that pays for the line.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05So, the Settle to Carlisle railway, have you worked on it long?
0:08:05 > 0:08:06- About 18 months.- How do you enjoy it?
0:08:06 > 0:08:09It's very good. It's lovely. It's a lovely place to be.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13Do you still take in the scenery or is it all nothing to you now?
0:08:13 > 0:08:16- Oh, yeah. It's always breathtaking. - Are you pleased the line was saved?
0:08:16 > 0:08:18Yes, yes. Well, aren't we all?
0:08:18 > 0:08:22A really, really important bit of railway heritage.
0:08:22 > 0:08:24Definitely, yeah, definitely.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27I mean, such a lot of people rely on it as well, you know?
0:08:27 > 0:08:30So it would have been a terrible shame. So, yeah, there's a lot...
0:08:30 > 0:08:33A lot of nice things to see. It's always a pleasure.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35And everybody just loves it.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42- Hello.- I've always been a big fan of yours when you were a Minister
0:08:42 > 0:08:45- when we were trying to save this line.- Oh, thank you.
0:08:45 > 0:08:46My father worked on this line.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50It's an amazing engineering achievement, this line, isn't it?
0:08:50 > 0:08:53- Absolutely so, yes. - I'm very, very pleased it got saved.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56- Thank you very much for what you said.- That's OK.
0:08:56 > 0:09:02This railway is valued, both for what it is today
0:09:02 > 0:09:05and for the ambition of those Victorian engineers.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09When you look out at this terrain, you have to wonder how they
0:09:09 > 0:09:13could have ever dreamt of building a railway line through it
0:09:13 > 0:09:15and particularly because, apart from steam engines,
0:09:15 > 0:09:19they had very little machinery so the boring of the tunnels,
0:09:19 > 0:09:23the building of the viaduct had to be done by vast numbers of navvies
0:09:23 > 0:09:27working in very difficult conditions with a very heavy death toll.
0:09:27 > 0:09:31It must have seemed madness to build a railway straight across
0:09:31 > 0:09:35the weather-beaten Yorkshire Dales, but the Midland Railway Company
0:09:35 > 0:09:40wanted a high-speed link to Scotland to compete with its rivals
0:09:40 > 0:09:43and desperate needs generate heroic solutions.
0:09:43 > 0:09:506,000 men built 14 tunnels and no fewer than 20 viaducts,
0:09:50 > 0:09:53including one of the longest in Britain at Ribblehead.
0:09:55 > 0:09:57An unusual station, Ribblehead,
0:09:57 > 0:10:00because the two platforms are separated by quite a distance,
0:10:00 > 0:10:02but just beyond that platform
0:10:02 > 0:10:05is just the top of the Ribblehead Viaduct.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08You get no impression from here of how very tall it is.
0:10:08 > 0:10:13You can just see the tops of the arches on this very glowering day.
0:10:17 > 0:10:21It took four years and a third of the workforce to build the viaduct.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27It's one of the Victorians' greatest achievements.
0:10:29 > 0:10:31As I come round this last brow
0:10:31 > 0:10:34I get my first full view
0:10:34 > 0:10:38of the Ribblehead Viaduct for 20 years.
0:10:38 > 0:10:4424 magnificent arches spanning the valley. And even from here
0:10:44 > 0:10:47it's difficult to get the sense of scale
0:10:47 > 0:10:51because the highest of these arches, I know, is 100 feet tall
0:10:51 > 0:10:55and even though I'm almost, it seems, within touching distance of it,
0:10:55 > 0:11:00it's difficult to appreciate the vastness of this
0:11:00 > 0:11:04and to think that just hundreds of men, hundreds of men had to pile
0:11:04 > 0:11:07these immense blocks on top of each other
0:11:07 > 0:11:10to create that incredible, beautiful structure.
0:11:17 > 0:11:19By the 1980s,
0:11:19 > 0:11:24this Victorian feat of engineering was in danger of falling down.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29The thing completely dwarfs him! He looks... He looks like a speck.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31- Hi, Tony!- Hello.
0:11:31 > 0:11:33Long time no see!
0:11:33 > 0:11:3620 years, nearly.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39Tony Feschini was the man sent to inspect it.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42Now, when I met you, you were a British Rail engineer.
0:11:42 > 0:11:46- Yes.- And we were being told that this viaduct needed
0:11:46 > 0:11:50seven or nine million pounds spending on it, in those days,
0:11:50 > 0:11:52but you had a different view, didn't you?
0:11:52 > 0:11:58Well, I was fortunate enough to be allowed to do a trial repair here
0:11:58 > 0:12:04which allowed me to understand fully the important parts of the structure.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06And what did you find?
0:12:06 > 0:12:11I found that it would cost between 2.75 and 3.25 million.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15- And why? - And we achieved it in the end.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21With the cost of repair revised down to a third of previous estimates,
0:12:21 > 0:12:25the case for closure weakened and rebuilding began.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27So, as you began to research it,
0:12:27 > 0:12:30were you impressed by what the Victorians had done?
0:12:30 > 0:12:34Absolutely. The first thing that catches you here is the weather
0:12:34 > 0:12:37and we're pretty well clad today even though it's...
0:12:37 > 0:12:39it's...we're getting wet,
0:12:39 > 0:12:43and I could imagine people living on this moor throughout the year -
0:12:43 > 0:12:45in winter it will be pretty daunting.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47It's bad enough living here in summer.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50What kind of difficulty would it have been building this?
0:12:50 > 0:12:55Oh, tremendous difficulty. If you can imagine the site
0:12:55 > 0:13:00in the 1870s, the whole of the area would be wild countryside.
0:13:00 > 0:13:06To come here and set up a site, to build a structure of this size
0:13:06 > 0:13:08and magnitude in an area like this
0:13:08 > 0:13:11would have been a formidable task in any age.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16Many of the navvies who built the viaduct
0:13:16 > 0:13:18came here with their families.
0:13:18 > 0:13:22Shantytowns appeared all along the route to house thousands of people
0:13:22 > 0:13:26working through the gales and snow to build the line by hand
0:13:26 > 0:13:28for years on end.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31It was backbreaking work.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33They're pretty big blocks of stone, aren't they?
0:13:33 > 0:13:38Extremely big blocks, sort of two cubic metres. They're massive.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42It's built in groups of six arches for safety.
0:13:42 > 0:13:45Every sixth pier is a wider pier.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48That gives stability to the structure.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51If you lost one arch you could lose six, but no more.
0:13:51 > 0:13:53- But no more. - It would be better than 24.
0:13:53 > 0:13:55Even with modern machinery,
0:13:55 > 0:13:59Tony still faced a huge challenge to restore the viaduct.
0:13:59 > 0:14:03So, tell me this, if you've got to take a block of stone out
0:14:03 > 0:14:06and replace it, how on Earth do you do that?
0:14:06 > 0:14:11We used like a mining technique. What you have to do is,
0:14:11 > 0:14:16a man will start to nibble away the stone bit by bit,
0:14:16 > 0:14:20but you work in and prop it, prop the ones above from the one below
0:14:20 > 0:14:26and carefully work your way in, so you don't disturb the ones above you.
0:14:26 > 0:14:28One thing I didn't want to be was
0:14:28 > 0:14:32the man who demolished Ribblehead Viaduct while I was working here!
0:14:34 > 0:14:35Are you still inspired by it?
0:14:35 > 0:14:39I am. It's a super structure, really.
0:14:39 > 0:14:42It is truly magnificent.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46Remarkably, it's still possible to find descendants
0:14:46 > 0:14:48of those hard-working navvies.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52James Rickson's family helped to build the line 140 years ago.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56I'm taking the seven-twenty, so I've got quite a long time, yet.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58- Can I buy you a drink? - That's fine, thank you.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01- What will you have?- I'll have half a bitter, please, Michael.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03Two halves of bitter, please.
0:15:03 > 0:15:05Thank you very much.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07They tell me you're the great-grandson
0:15:07 > 0:15:10of one of the people who built the viaduct?
0:15:10 > 0:15:13My great-great-grandfather was Robert Rickson
0:15:13 > 0:15:17and he was the manager of what was called the Sebastopol Brickworks.
0:15:17 > 0:15:22We've checked the censuses for 1871 and, believe it or not,
0:15:22 > 0:15:26there were 14 members of his family up here working on the railway
0:15:26 > 0:15:31in various jobs, ranging from adults working as pure navvies,
0:15:31 > 0:15:36to being in a managerial position and just children.
0:15:36 > 0:15:41Out of all the family members who worked here, did they all survive?
0:15:41 > 0:15:43No, they didn't all survive.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46There was a severe smallpox outbreak in the hutments, in the encampments,
0:15:46 > 0:15:52in 1871 and three of the five children that had come up with the family
0:15:52 > 0:15:56died in that epidemic within the space of six weeks.
0:15:56 > 0:15:59- How dreadful.- Yes, it was not good news for the family,
0:15:59 > 0:16:03and those children were all buried in the little chapel
0:16:03 > 0:16:05down the road at Chapel-le-Dale.
0:16:05 > 0:16:11The railway work camps were plagued by repeated outbreaks of smallpox,
0:16:11 > 0:16:15starvation and violence, leading to many deaths.
0:16:17 > 0:16:19You can get an idea of the dreadful toll
0:16:19 > 0:16:22at the chapel closest to the viaduct.
0:16:24 > 0:16:26And this is a lovely little church.
0:16:26 > 0:16:30It's the parish church of St Leonard's, Chapel-le-Dale,
0:16:30 > 0:16:33very historic, dates back to the 15th century,
0:16:33 > 0:16:37and it helps to tell the very terrible story of the building
0:16:37 > 0:16:40of the Settle to Carlisle railway.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44- Gerald, good morning.- Good morning.
0:16:44 > 0:16:45I'm Michael.
0:16:45 > 0:16:50'Historian Gerald Tyler has pieced together what happened all those years ago.'
0:16:51 > 0:16:58The importance of the chapel is that of all the chapels along the line
0:16:58 > 0:17:02this, unfortunately, sadly, has got the most number of deaths.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04There were something like,
0:17:04 > 0:17:11between 1870 and 1875, 201 deaths.
0:17:11 > 0:17:15Now, some of those were, in fact, obviously the navvies themselves
0:17:15 > 0:17:18who suffered the most appalling accidents.
0:17:18 > 0:17:23And, of course, because there were so many families
0:17:23 > 0:17:26then there was a shantytown settlement.
0:17:26 > 0:17:31I mean, there's one report of the health doctor coming round and being
0:17:31 > 0:17:36appalled by what he saw, that there were overcrowding in the huts.
0:17:36 > 0:17:41There were three rooms in these standard huts and you might have
0:17:41 > 0:17:44a family with, say, half a dozen children and then they take in
0:17:44 > 0:17:46lodgers for another eight single men.
0:17:46 > 0:17:50- That must mean there was disease rampant.- There was indeed.
0:17:52 > 0:17:57Of the 200 or so that died in that particular period,
0:17:57 > 0:18:02110 of those were children under the age of 13.
0:18:06 > 0:18:08So many people lost their lives here
0:18:08 > 0:18:11that the railway company paid for the graveyard to be extended.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16But even that wasn't enough.
0:18:19 > 0:18:25Down there, there are dozens of bodies of people who lie in unmarked graves.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28- Under all this bracken? - Yeah, that's right.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31And there appears to be one particular mound that suggests
0:18:31 > 0:18:34there may have been a mass grave.
0:18:36 > 0:18:40- It's very moving actually, isn't it? Very moving.- It is. It is indeed.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50With that dark history playing on my mind,
0:18:50 > 0:18:55my emotional attachment to this railway is strengthened further
0:18:55 > 0:18:57as I move on to Dent.
0:18:58 > 0:19:03Even when the railway was completed, the job still continued
0:19:03 > 0:19:07because in some of the worst weather conditions in Britain
0:19:07 > 0:19:10the line had to be kept open, a particular problem
0:19:10 > 0:19:13as we approach Dent, the highest railway station in England.
0:19:17 > 0:19:22Maintaining the line proved almost as difficult as building it.
0:19:22 > 0:19:2815 men lived up here in the most isolated conditions all winter
0:19:28 > 0:19:30to keep the line free of snow.
0:19:33 > 0:19:35That's where I'm staying.
0:19:35 > 0:19:40Workers were packed like sardines into these small snow huts
0:19:40 > 0:19:42for six weeks at a time.
0:19:44 > 0:19:46Hello!
0:19:48 > 0:19:50The weather at the moment is grim.
0:19:52 > 0:19:53I just have to imagine
0:19:53 > 0:19:57how much worse it would be if instead of rain this was snow.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02Now, I'm going to live for one night
0:20:02 > 0:20:06as a railway worker would have lived at the end of the 19th century
0:20:06 > 0:20:09ready to go out and clear the snow from the railway line.
0:20:11 > 0:20:13Ha!
0:20:13 > 0:20:18I don't think so! It's been beautifully, luxuriously converted.
0:20:18 > 0:20:20And it's warm!
0:20:36 > 0:20:39The snow huts and nearby station house have been turned
0:20:39 > 0:20:44into luxury accommodation for tourists by owner, Robin Hughes.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46It's just one of the businesses springing up
0:20:46 > 0:20:49as a result of the railway.
0:20:49 > 0:20:50It's fantastic,
0:20:50 > 0:20:54every detail of the station has been beautifully preserved...
0:20:56 > 0:20:59..but Robin's made it into a house.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07- Morning, Robin. - Michael, good morning.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09Wow! What a beautiful place!
0:21:13 > 0:21:17After all the publicity in the 1980s, tourists started to flood in.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21There were more frequent trains
0:21:21 > 0:21:24and the smaller stations reopened, including Dent.
0:21:24 > 0:21:28Although you've bought this building the station is still functioning
0:21:28 > 0:21:31- and has a waiting room?- It's still an operational railway station.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35Being the highest mainline station in England, it's quite appealing.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38It's in the middle of nowhere, but you can get here,
0:21:38 > 0:21:42there are five trains that go from here each day to Leeds or Carlisle,
0:21:42 > 0:21:43so it's quite operational.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47I imagine the railway line is pretty important for the local economy.
0:21:47 > 0:21:51Yeah, very much so. Dent village is four miles from this station,
0:21:51 > 0:21:54but this morning at about 10.15 both platforms were fairly busy
0:21:54 > 0:21:58with people going either north or south for a day's shopping
0:21:58 > 0:22:01or exploring the area and, yes, it is, it's a very important link
0:22:01 > 0:22:04for the community here and for communities up and down the line.
0:22:04 > 0:22:09Because it's a real issue, isn't it, how very remote villages survive?
0:22:09 > 0:22:13But here you seem to have found the answer.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17Yeah, we try and engage a range of local people to run the station.
0:22:17 > 0:22:21I've got a cleaner, housekeeper, we provide Dent ale for people who come,
0:22:21 > 0:22:25a food hamper, as well. So, yeah, there is a lot of enterprise in
0:22:25 > 0:22:28the Dale and we try and use as much of that in our offering as we can.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36The line has kept the nearby village of Dent on the map.
0:22:39 > 0:22:42There are companies hiring bikes to day trippers,
0:22:42 > 0:22:45a brewery and a busy blacksmith.
0:22:45 > 0:22:47- Hello.- Hello, hello.
0:22:47 > 0:22:51Lucy Sands Clark's skills were used in the conversion of the station
0:22:51 > 0:22:54and she's kept in business by thousands of summer visitors to Dent.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56And how is village life now?
0:22:56 > 0:23:00Is it vibrant, do you see it having a future?
0:23:00 > 0:23:03I really hope it will. I think this is a lovely village
0:23:03 > 0:23:08in that it still retains a lot of its traditional ways and a lot of
0:23:08 > 0:23:11the farming families have been here for generations.
0:23:11 > 0:23:14At times of the year it's still very busy and we've just had
0:23:14 > 0:23:17the Dent Dale Show. Lots of people come to that and over the summer
0:23:17 > 0:23:21we get a lot of campers and there are always walkers through here
0:23:21 > 0:23:25because it's on the Dales Way, but it is really hard to afford
0:23:25 > 0:23:28property here because obviously when somewhere is very picturesque
0:23:28 > 0:23:32property prices are driven up by people wanting second homes.
0:23:33 > 0:23:34Without the railway,
0:23:34 > 0:23:39specialist workshops like Lucy's would be cut off from passing trade.
0:23:39 > 0:23:43The line sustains the village's heritage.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46You think this smithy is how old?
0:23:46 > 0:23:50Well, I think from what I understand, it's certainly on the deeds in 1640
0:23:50 > 0:23:52as being a blacksmith shop on this spot.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58It's time for me to leave Dent,
0:23:58 > 0:24:01but before I continue north to Scotland
0:24:01 > 0:24:05there's an opportunity that I cannot pass up.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09Now I'm going to retrace my steps down the Settle to Carlisle railway
0:24:09 > 0:24:12again to Ribblehead because I've got the opportunity
0:24:12 > 0:24:15of crossing the viaduct on a steam train.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22Every week during the summer
0:24:22 > 0:24:28a steam train called The Fellsman powers over the Yorkshire Moors.
0:24:28 > 0:24:32I'll catch the 11.20 to ride just one stop to Garsdale.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35Just now I think I've heard for the first time
0:24:35 > 0:24:37the sound of the engine approaching.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40The sound just is drifting occasionally on the wind,
0:24:40 > 0:24:44but I think it is unmistakably the sound of an engine pulling
0:24:44 > 0:24:47the train up this very steep incline into Ribblehead Station.
0:24:47 > 0:24:52It reminds me of the Thomas The Tank Engine books
0:24:52 > 0:24:53where the train goes up the hill.
0:24:53 > 0:24:57"I think I can, I think I can, I think I can, I think I can."
0:25:04 > 0:25:08The locomotive burns around 80 pounds of coal per mile
0:25:08 > 0:25:10along the route up to Ribblehead.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15It's like stepping back to the Victorian era.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23Now it's thundering towards us.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28The landscape has now been obliterated
0:25:28 > 0:25:29by the smoke of the engine.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32And now, at last, here comes the locomotive itself.
0:25:34 > 0:25:37Masses of black and grey smoke billowing out of it.
0:25:37 > 0:25:41It's a fantastic sight! And now steam appearing at the level
0:25:41 > 0:25:45of the wheels as the train begins to brake coming into our station.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57Feel the heat of the engine as it goes past!
0:26:00 > 0:26:03Lovely to see you. Good morning. Good morning.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06- Jump on here and then just go to the left.- Thank you.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23This is a fantastic sight
0:26:23 > 0:26:28as the steam engine begins to go over the Ribblehead Viaduct.
0:26:28 > 0:26:33You'll never see another sight like this on a railway in Britain.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35This is magical.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48The valleys are full of people waving at the train,
0:26:48 > 0:26:51photographing the train.
0:26:52 > 0:26:57You know, it's really exciting for me, having participated
0:26:57 > 0:27:03in that decision to save this railway, to see now steam trains,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06to see tourists, to see people enjoying it,
0:27:06 > 0:27:08to see it becoming a great success.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11It's very, very exciting. I'd say moving.
0:27:13 > 0:27:17The journey to Garsdale lasts just 20 minutes
0:27:17 > 0:27:20doing an average speed of 55 miles an hour.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23All along the 72-mile line, the historic sight
0:27:23 > 0:27:29of steam locomotive hauling maroon carriages is a joy to behold.
0:27:31 > 0:27:33Brilliant. Thank you.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35We're off to see the driver.
0:27:39 > 0:27:40We're almost out of the station!
0:27:40 > 0:27:43That was one of the great thrills of my life.
0:27:43 > 0:27:46- Thank you very much indeed. - Thank you.- Absolutely fantastic.
0:28:00 > 0:28:05On my next journey, I'll be discovering why Victorian tourists
0:28:05 > 0:28:08flocked to Windermere's famous lake.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12Roger, what a lovely spread, and this is the height of elegance.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15I'll be learning a thing or two about Kendal.
0:28:15 > 0:28:17Kendal Mint Cake, please.
0:28:17 > 0:28:20We don't stock Kendal Mint Cake. It isn't actually a cake.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23- Well, that has thrown me. - Oh, I'm so sorry!
0:28:23 > 0:28:27And I'll be finding out how the railways changed farming life.
0:28:27 > 0:28:31You would bring all that abundance of food to the population to sell
0:28:31 > 0:28:35and I think railways have changed farming considerably.
0:29:00 > 0:29:03Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd