Only came across your videos because I bought a dvd a couple of years ago on the old Ringwood to Christchurch line for my dad who lives close to Avon Castle Halt. It just happened to be from Dumpman films who subsequently sends out irregular emails with updates on what he's up to. I read through his latest email a few days back, clicked on your link, and have since watched 10 or so of your wondeeful videos. Excellent editing, great music and fabulous use of the drone. Don't know how you cram so much into a single day with all those different shots you set up. Keep up the great work, I'm hooked.
Good to see the three of you joined up , nice and local to me like Chris not walk that old line for about 15 years so interesting to see it now. Great job all round
Well that's a line which I didn't know about, good to see Dumpman is still up to his usual tricks, a little bit of trespassing goes a long way when you're trying to find an old railway line
In the early 1970s, as part of a school local history project, a few of us researched all we could find about the ill-fated Ouse Valley Railway. We tramped along its entire northern section from the skew bridge off the Brighton main line just south of the Balcombe Viaduct, through a rubbish tip that had been a cutting (complete with a few sleepers that still showed the screw holes for their bullhead chairs, and even a few oak keys for them!), past a house next to the Ardingly - Haywards Heath road that had a curiously long pond that had also been a cutting for the OVR, and as far as a bridge near Lindfield that marked the limit of the northern construction in 1868. We also searched old county records at the records office in Lewes, but found little additional information there. It was a fun project for a few train-obsessed teenage boys who liked to explore the local railway history, and we felt very pleased with ourselves until we realized that we weren't the first to have researched the OVR! No matter, it was still a good excuse to tramp around the local countryside.
I was born and grew up in this area. I left before they built the Uckfield Bypass. Never thought I'd see an EDS video that made me feel homesick. Great stuff.
In my opinion, one of the best films you have ever made. Historically, brilliant. Factual, amazing. Remains, unbelievable. Camera work is exceptional. Well done you guys and thanks to Chris
Another great and very interesting video. I believe there were also plans to build a line down the Ouse Valley to Horsham but they never got off the drawing board.
WOW! Really enjoyed this. Chris (Dumpman) is a very interesting bloke. On his website is a proper treasure trove of stuff. There’s even a free dvd of his films. As it says at the start (like his tee shirt!🤣) he’s a proper analogue bloke, going to the places you looked at and thought “Nah!” 😂 really enjoyed this collaboration and I will be subscribing to Dumpman! Thanks Whitewicks! 😁👍🤘👊😎
The Whitewicks thanks I already have! One on the volks stilt tram thing (the video looks awesome) and one on my other passion ROC bunkers. I’ve been down one and grew up a few miles from another! They’re everywhere when you know what to look for! Keep your vids coming I enjoy them immensely. 😁👍👊
One better than abandoned stations, never built stations! I have definitely seen Chris somewhere before in my video watching. Some fascinating local knowledge!
Brilliant video thanks P & R (and Dumpman) the line was one of my childhood mysteries it was only shown on the large scale OS maps. Amazing how nature has reclaimed the old Uckfield station site used to go down there a lot in the 80s even once behind a class 33 from London Bridge, which caused even more traffic disruption than the DEMUs as it had to run round the train over the level crossing!
Marvellous video, and very interesting and informative. I do love the Ouse Valley Viaduct by the way, and I am pleased you included the classic shot down the gaps in the supporting arches. I travel over the viaduct several times a day, and may well have been working on the Gatwick Express train (masquerading as a Southern train) you filmed going across.
It does seem very busy at the moment. I think lockdown has led people to discover great entertainment on their doorstep, and a walk around that viaduct and in the surrounding countryside is a nice way to spend some time.
Great video Paul and Rebecca,what a great walk, great to see some of the old hardware left,Ouse valley viaduct is a piece of amazing engineering isn't it, oops mind where your going 😂,love it👍😀👌
Well, you learn something new every day, often wondered why that bridge had such big abutments. I think we've all done that classic shot through that viaduct!!! Nice one, good explore. 👍👍👍
Nice vlog. All your stuff is good. I remember back in the very early 80's as a kid, going to Barcombe mills for the little rowing boats they hired. And playing in an old building attached to the closed railway station. Went back a few years later and the building had gone. I assume you have a third person with you to drive the car to pick you up at the end of your walks.🚘😄
Been a subscriber for a little while now and I live in Haywards Heath and it's good to see you both exploring this area. As bit of additional information on the Ouse Valley line, I believe that as well as the Ardingly branch not being opened if it had been built, it's said that the Lewes to East Grinstead line which the Ardingly branch connected onto at Horsted Keynes, would also have not been built and there wouldn't have been the Bluebell Railway today, although a station around Sheffield Park would still have been built at the request of the Earl of Sheffield.
Really enjoyed that. Everywhere so lovely and green. In Australia it is brown during summer love to see the green. You lovely man going to via duck and there was a train going across. Thanks so much for taking me along. Stay safe
Great vid, great guest! ... but you were just a few hundred metres from Lywood Tunnel! Hiding in plain sight between Ardinly and Lindfield! Massive twin track abandoned tunnel, hugely impressive and ornate. Dumpman has done videos of this in the past.
Another excellent video from my favourite train related couple, the viaduct near the end of the video is a beauty, "Man Down" made me chuckle but hope you did not hurt yourself to much, look forward to seeing your next video 😊
This has to be one of my favourite instalments to date! Love the still shot through the viaduct at the end! Thank you Paul, Rebecca and Chris. Keep up the good work
hey paul and rebecca , another great fun video , oh wow i love seeing those old buffers still there , and tracks of course lol , really interesting and oops hope you enjoyed your trip paul lol , well done guys :)
Thanks all three , for a great informed and enlightened video . Have to say being from the local area and interest in the Bluebell Heritage Line I found the detail of the location and association with the Ardingly spur fascinating 👍Ps I did as suggested and went on Chris’s eBay site and spent some cash 💰
I was at the viaduct a week before you filmed there - just a few days after lockdown finished and the arches were unfortunately packed with inconsiderate (trespassing) visitors. There's a great walk down to the viaduct from Ardingly Reservoir and School where, on a normal weekend, as you near the viaduct you can hear the Bluebell Railway steam engines in the distance.
Great video, interesting bloke, have to hunt out his vids. I was going to say poor old Rebecca but then watched you take a tumble, hope you're okay. Need to get to that viaduct too, very interesting construction.
Im not into trains as such but im quite into history . And trains , canals and mills and factories are all a part of History . That and the engineering that went into these structures is amazing . So Consider me a Historical railway buff LOL . Thanks for your video's :-)
@@pwhitewick in wigan we have a fantastic disused viaduct called twenty bridges . in you have a moment check it out on youtube . once again thank you for letting us all escape to beautiful places for just a while , all the very best from wigan lancashire
Great to see Chris on your channel (I was wondering how long it would be before you discovered him!). Great guy, and great DVDs. He is also an ex-poacher. I know because I bought his egg-poaching pan from him a few years ago!
wow... I live close to the River ouse which I believe runs to the Wash ( King Llyn }. whover would have thought of an Ouse way down south..Upon investigation I find that near me is the Great River Ouse and down south it is simply River Ouse..I am led to believe that there is another river Ouse in C anada.However The river Ouse in Northamptonshire Is associated with the Northampton- Market Harborough Railway. Now disused except for a cycle way and the trackbed. there are two tunnels one of which you can walk/cycle through. It is hoped that the Northampton and Lamport Railway which runs trains along nearly a mile of the track bed will be able to extend north towards Market Harborough. I have cycled the full track a few times. You may find it interesting as it criss x's Ouse..Enjoyed your video very much and what a fantastic viaduct
I grew up cycling through those tunnels, also had the odd ride on the steam train while it was running (worth stopping at the Brampton Halt pub if you're up that way). It would be great to see an episode in my home county, and I'd love to see that line restored in its entirety.
Great to see you guys with Dumpman - it’s his fault I discovered the Bald Explorer! Thank for the really interesting video about this never completed line. And the Ouse valley viaduct is instagram central these days!
Never knew about the Ouse Valley Railway, When you think of Uckfield, it's more of the Uckfield to Lewes which a little bit does survive as part of the Lavender Line at Islip (which I have been to, lovely line which trains only travel about 10mph due to it's not a huge heritage Railway). but they are plans to try and bring that line back as part of the 'Brighton Main Line 2' for years. Brilliant Video and hope you're okay after your fall at the end.
The Uckfield to Lewes line provided a useful link between London and the Sussex Coast, whenever the main Brighton line was blocked. It made little sense to close it.
I used to live at borde hill near copyhold lane. I used to walk the road and look over the bridge and watch all the trains go by. I was only about 6 at that time.
Somehow i managed to miss the annoucement for this, much like you missed that hole/tree root at the end ;) No damage to yourself or the camera thankfully, walking and talking and holding the equipment is complicated, thats why camera crews exist. Nice episode, very interesting how they got the permission to stop anyone else invaiding their "turf" .
The Ouse Valley viaduct is around where the uppermost part of the Ouse Navigation ended. There are quite a few of the old locks still in place and they have been restoring that at Isfield. The Ouse Valley Railway was supposed to have gone in from Uckfield via Framfield to Hailsham. That part if the line was never started.
"Ouse Valley viaduct"??! I grew up knowing it as the Balcome viaduct. Loved to drive past it, was always a highlight for 8 year old me... PS: hope you do all the dead bits of bluebell soon. Also, 3 months earlier and it would have been FULL of bluebells in those woods there :)
@@dumpman1 My Mum came from Balcombe and to all the locals it was called Balcombe Viaduct, both my Dad and myself was British Rail staff from the track maintenance side of the railway and the BR called it The Ouse Valley Viaduct so it's a reversible A.K.A
WOW what an absolutely stunning place to finish on.... a real work of art .When you say where the tunnel used to be surely it's still there , blocked perhaps but still there ? Have you heard of the " 3 little words " system which allows you to highlight the smallest of areas with pinpoint accuracy which would allow any fans to find anything of interest you highlight ? And last I've always thought you were a pretty unique channel and tonight you confirmed that ......... it's the 1st time I've ever seen somebody take a "TRIP " on a long abandoned railway . BOOM BOOM
@@pwhitewick I wasnt trying to teach you to suck eggs regarding " 3 little words " it's a fantastic system and worth 5 minutes of your time to research . No need to reply I appreciate your time is limited THANK YOU
Interesting video as always! But I kept waiting to see what a "sexy, white, polo" was. Every time you said that, you showed a picture of Rebecca, but she wasn't wearing a white polo shirt! Chris was wearing a white Tee shirt, so that doesn't count, and no one was riding a horse, soooo? Anyway, enjoyed the video, too bad the company never finished the line, it would have had an interesting history before the Beeching crew were finished with it.
I was wrong, thought it was going to be the branch that leads to the lavender line. Oh, and that river Uck sign's shape went right over the top of my head.
The sign is deliberately shaped like that to prevent anyone adding a extra letter before the UCK, a D - L or M for example, another letter would fit but I'll leave that one to your imagination !!!!
Aah I live just down the road from the tunnel that never was on the Uckfield end! How did you get into Uckfield old station? Always wanted a look in there.
@@pwhitewick Brilliant, thanks! Its also weird watching your videos around Salisbury and the nadder/way,ye valleys, as thats where I grew up! Keep up the great work!
The River Ouse was adapted for navigation as far as Sheffield Park, I think. There was an article on it in one of the railway magazines a few years ago, as people had expressed an interest in trying to restore it. The Bluebell Railway pumps water from the river up into the water tank at Sheffield Park station to supply the engines. In the past, this sometimes had extra benefits for loco crews because fish would get pumped up into the tank as well, and they could easily be caught there! Yesterday, I sent you some information on the Penicuik Railway Walk in case you were interested in meeting up there while you are in Scotland. Did you receive it OK?
@@pwhitewick It was some information on the Penicuik branch line, which was part of the network of lines which branched off the Waverley Route between Eskbank and Melrose. This group of lines served Peebles, Biggar and Broughton among other places, but all were closed in the 1960's. The Penicuik line is now a footpath and cycleway, with clear remains of several stations, 2 tunnels, a spectacular stone-arched viaduct, intact bowstring girder bridge over the river and a haunted castle ruin at Old Woodhouselee. Rosslyn Chapel - of Da Vinci Code and vampire legend fame - lies close to one of the stations. After swapping notes with you for so long now, and having video/film-making training, it would be great to meet you in person while you are up in Scotland? If you would be interested in that, please let me know.
When I was at school in that area we were taught that the section at Lindfield was going to be the main line to Brighton. I think it was originally supposed to have gone through Cuckfield, but the local land owner said no. They then started to build via Lindfield, but again the local landowner said no, so they went through between then creating Haywards Heath.
Great video. Chris is a mine of information. It always amazes me how much of this stuff is lying about, undiscovered to most. Hope you didn't hurt yourself.
@@pwhitewick Yes that sometimes happens! The fact you showed us it suggests you left your ego on the forest floor. That's the best place for it. Looking forward to the next video.
The old signal box was not destroyed by yobs, it was deliberately removed and is now on the site of the old railway sidings at Lewes being used as a bird hide.
That was quite some costly progress before abandonment during construction. Perhaps the financial crash prevented the other company from expanding too which forced the companies to rationalise. Tactical railway building seems like a very dodgy practise but there had clearly been money somewhere when something a beautiful as the Ouse Valley viaduct could be built witch embellishments like ornamental ballustrading. That sets it off and at 13:27 there's an amazing take on it. It looked like the picture was upside down. It couls surpas the Leaderfoot viaduct. 6:04: That sign's asking for trouble. But we're all above that sort of thing :) Ouse been naming Ouses? That's the third: Yorks, Norfolk and East Sussex so far.
Great video.... thank you! If you haven't covered this already (?) how about, as a sequel, the dead bits = most off The Lavender Line from Uckfield to Lewes?
Also very interesting about how / if the line crossed the Ardingly branch. Essentially all the lines East and West of the Brighton main line (with the possible exception of the Arun Valley which is now worth its weight in gold especially when the main line is shut) were built to keep other companies out of the area and specifically Brighton rather than provide a viable service. Although of course now if Haywards Heath to East Grinstead and also Christs Hospital to Shoreham were still part of Southern they would be very busy!
I realise how much you rate rail architecture, and viaducts. One day, several years back, after a visit to Jodrell Bank, leaving, I turned right in error... Some couple of miles down the road, again on my right, suddenly a brick viaduct, massive and broad, vista style and ¿?, seemingly unused. Jic you happen didn't know, or if you've covered it and I've missed it, sorry for wasting your time.
The Doomed Ouse Valley line from Uckfield to north of Haywards Heath line yes what about the Blue Bell Line ? May be in would have gone over or connect at Sheffield Park? I use to live near Uckfield and in then days I could go to Lewes or Brighton and to this day they are still going on about reopening the line.
its book written by an enthusiast after the Beeching cuts, detailing when the various lines stations closed to to passengers, goods and finally closed for good, I use it for work, not currently published, but can be found on amazon etc for around £50.00 @@pwhitewick
Do you fancy visiting our very charming old railway in North Wales ?? Partly now restored after having slept for the last 70 years. You will be amazed by the spectacular views and very interesting history. One part having been converted into a footpath up to old slate quarries.Its called The Welsh Highland Railway opened in 1877 as the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railway up to a village called Rhyd ddu the extended to Porthmadog and changed name to Welsh Highland Railway.
Good video, but if you walked down a bit futher on thhe Buckham hil part, accessible rom the By ways, you would have got to the brick bridge end that the train would have come over.
We were there just the other day. (the viaduct). Iiiiincredible place. I've also filmed a music video for my Doctor Who rap track there. Also - i have a mutual friend with Chris! I've seen his Kemptown Tunnel vid! :)
a sexy white polo? WHOOOSH! NOBODY expects a sexy white polo - to be up that early. and 'So, some people say' that they didn't expect to lose their footing, either.
Good knowledgeable content. Will be having a look at the DVD's. Haven't see the scores recently. Are you counting never used stations from today? PS. Watch out for those tree roots. ;0)
Don't forget to check out Chris's DVD's here: www.dumpman.co.uk
I definitely recommend Chris’s DVD’s
Another thumbs up for Chris's DVDs
Only came across your videos because I bought a dvd a couple of years ago on the old Ringwood to Christchurch line for my dad who lives close to Avon Castle Halt. It just happened to be from Dumpman films who subsequently sends out irregular emails with updates on what he's up to. I read through his latest email a few days back, clicked on your link, and have since watched 10 or so of your wondeeful videos. Excellent editing, great music and fabulous use of the drone. Don't know how you cram so much into a single day with all those different shots you set up. Keep up the great work, I'm hooked.
Excellent piece of work. Your enthusiasm is the perfect foil for Chris's laid-back delivery. Super presentation!
Ah thanks Colin. His laid back delivery works very well I feel.
Good to see the three of you joined up , nice and local to me like Chris not walk that old line for about 15 years so interesting to see it now. Great job all round
Cheers.
Well that's a line which I didn't know about, good to see Dumpman is still up to his usual tricks, a little bit of trespassing goes a long way when you're trying to find an old railway line
In the early 1970s, as part of a school local history project, a few of us researched all we could find about the ill-fated Ouse Valley Railway. We tramped along its entire northern section from the skew bridge off the Brighton main line just south of the Balcombe Viaduct, through a rubbish tip that had been a cutting (complete with a few sleepers that still showed the screw holes for their bullhead chairs, and even a few oak keys for them!), past a house next to the Ardingly - Haywards Heath road that had a curiously long pond that had also been a cutting for the OVR, and as far as a bridge near Lindfield that marked the limit of the northern construction in 1868. We also searched old county records at the records office in Lewes, but found little additional information there. It was a fun project for a few train-obsessed teenage boys who liked to explore the local railway history, and we felt very pleased with ourselves until we realized that we weren't the first to have researched the OVR! No matter, it was still a good excuse to tramp around the local countryside.
I was born and grew up in this area. I left before they built the Uckfield Bypass. Never thought I'd see an EDS video that made me feel homesick. Great stuff.
In my opinion, one of the best films you have ever made. Historically, brilliant. Factual, amazing. Remains, unbelievable. Camera work is exceptional. Well done you guys and thanks to Chris
Thank Michael.
You both just got colum in the swindon advertiser for your wonderfull video on youtube about the tunnel under old town. Well done guys.
Thanks Jon. Very odd indeed. All helps though.
Very good as always.. yes it is easy to get distracted and not watch the ground.. careful sir....
Thank you both for another great day out. These adventures take me away from the day to day trials,
Excellent little exploration. Love it when you end on (under) a viaduct, the proverbial cherry, on the icing, on the cake!
Big thanks for a great video. That Ouse Valley Viaduct is tremendous.
Another good one! Thank you all.
Another great and very interesting video. I believe there were also plans to build a line down the Ouse Valley to Horsham but they never got off the drawing board.
WOW! Really enjoyed this. Chris (Dumpman) is a very interesting bloke. On his website is a proper treasure trove of stuff. There’s even a free dvd of his films. As it says at the start (like his tee shirt!🤣) he’s a proper analogue bloke, going to the places you looked at and thought “Nah!” 😂 really enjoyed this collaboration and I will be subscribing to Dumpman! Thanks Whitewicks! 😁👍🤘👊😎
Thanks Ant. Definitely go buy a DVD or two.
The Whitewicks thanks I already have! One on the volks stilt tram thing (the video looks awesome) and one on my other passion ROC bunkers. I’ve been down one and grew up a few miles from another! They’re everywhere when you know what to look for! Keep your vids coming I enjoy them immensely. 😁👍👊
One better than abandoned stations, never built stations!
I have definitely seen Chris somewhere before in my video watching. Some fascinating local knowledge!
Brilliant video thanks P & R (and Dumpman) the line was one of my childhood mysteries it was only shown on the large scale OS maps. Amazing how nature has reclaimed the old Uckfield station site used to go down there a lot in the 80s even once behind a class 33 from London Bridge, which caused even more traffic disruption than the DEMUs as it had to run round the train over the level crossing!
Amazing channel. I have only been watching a few weeks but allways been interested in abandoned railways. You guys have been some great places.
Welcome aboard!
Nice video and really interesting 👏🏻
Many thanks for sharing guys.
😃🍻🥂👍🏻
Was at the Ouse Valley Viaduct a few days ago. I hadn't been for a few years, and forgot how beautiful it was!!!!
Marvellous video, and very interesting and informative.
I do love the Ouse Valley Viaduct by the way, and I am pleased you included the classic shot down the gaps in the supporting arches.
I travel over the viaduct several times a day, and may well have been working on the Gatwick Express train (masquerading as a Southern train) you filmed going across.
Thanks Nigel, we had to queue to get that shot.
It does seem very busy at the moment. I think lockdown has led people to discover great entertainment on their doorstep, and a walk around that viaduct and in the surrounding countryside is a nice way to spend some time.
As usual another excellent video loved the viaduct at the end stunning bit of energenring very interesting with Chris with his local knowledge
I live a few minutes drive away from Uckfield, and I never knew there were still buffers and tracks still there!
Great video Paul and Rebecca,what a great walk, great to see some of the old hardware left,Ouse valley viaduct is a piece of amazing engineering isn't it, oops mind where your going 😂,love it👍😀👌
Well, you learn something new every day, often wondered why that bridge had such big abutments. I think we've all done that classic shot through that viaduct!!! Nice one, good explore. 👍👍👍
Nice vlog. All your stuff is good.
I remember back in the very early 80's as a kid, going to Barcombe mills for the little rowing boats they hired. And playing in an old building attached to the closed railway station. Went back a few years later and the building had gone.
I assume you have a third person with you to drive the car to pick you up at the end of your walks.🚘😄
Thanks for doing this one . I walked some of it a few years back and keep meaning to do the rest . Good video , i like Chris's t shirt
Been a subscriber for a little while now and I live in Haywards Heath and it's good to see you both exploring this area.
As bit of additional information on the Ouse Valley line, I believe that as well as the Ardingly branch not being opened if it had been built, it's said that the Lewes to East Grinstead line which the Ardingly branch connected onto at Horsted Keynes, would also have not been built and there wouldn't have been the Bluebell Railway today, although a station around Sheffield Park would still have been built at the request of the Earl of Sheffield.
Really enjoyed that. Everywhere so lovely and green. In Australia it is brown during summer love to see the green. You lovely man going to via duck and there was a train going across. Thanks so much for taking me along. Stay safe
What an excellent explore, thank you. So many nice remnants there!
Thanks Lewis, much more to come with Chris
Great vid, great guest! ... but you were just a few hundred metres from Lywood Tunnel! Hiding in plain sight between Ardinly and Lindfield! Massive twin track abandoned tunnel, hugely impressive and ornate. Dumpman has done videos of this in the past.
Yup indeed we saved this for another day with Chris.
The Whitewicks - I think it has a drainage problem - bring your wellies!
Another excellent video from my favourite train related couple, the viaduct near the end of the video is a beauty, "Man Down" made me chuckle but hope you did not hurt yourself to much, look forward to seeing your next video 😊
I'm liking that random Buffer-stop which seems to be in the middle of no-where in that little wood!!! 🚂🚂🚂😊😊😊
Yes, without the local Knowledge we would never have found that.
This has to be one of my favourite instalments to date! Love the still shot through the viaduct at the end! Thank you Paul, Rebecca and Chris. Keep up the good work
Thank you. We enjoyed this a lot too.
hey paul and rebecca , another great fun video , oh wow i love seeing those old buffers still there , and tracks of course lol , really interesting and oops hope you enjoyed your trip paul lol , well done guys :)
Excellent vid guys. Thanks muchly. This is more my area of the country. Thanks once again!!! Pete A :)
I remember the Ouse Valley Viaduct of when I travel on a Southern services from Clapham Junction to Brighton and Hove.
My daily drive to work under the beautiful Balcome Viaduct. Stunning.
Thanks all three , for a great informed and enlightened video . Have to say being from the local area and interest in the Bluebell Heritage Line I found the detail of the location and association with the Ardingly spur fascinating 👍Ps I did as suggested and went on Chris’s eBay site and spent some cash 💰
Awesome vid! I love seeing your passion for the subjects you show and teach us about!
Excellent guys. Never even knew this line existed (or not as the case may be).
You both got a mention in The Swindon Advertiser for your wonderfull video on youtube. Well done guys.
I was at the viaduct a week before you filmed there - just a few days after lockdown finished and the arches were unfortunately packed with inconsiderate (trespassing) visitors. There's a great walk down to the viaduct from Ardingly Reservoir and School where, on a normal weekend, as you near the viaduct you can hear the Bluebell Railway steam engines in the distance.
Great video, interesting bloke, have to hunt out his vids. I was going to say poor old Rebecca but then watched you take a tumble, hope you're okay. Need to get to that viaduct too, very interesting construction.
a pleasure to watch as usual stay safe both of you and keep up the good work
I love your guest's T-Shirt!
All he needs now is a Motorshed - Place of Spades.
Haha....
Dumpman , brilliant . well done guys and hes a mine of info , fantastic..
Great video!!! 👍❤️ nice discovering things that are still there and no one else would really know!
That's brilliant - close to me, but I had never heard of it before. Also, such a cool Motorhead t-shirt...!
Blimey guys - you're in my backyard! I was walking that area only last week. And yes the 1 million brick of the viaduct is well worth seeing.
Superb tumble paul😂👍
Im not into trains as such but im quite into history . And trains , canals and mills and factories are all a part of History . That and the engineering that went into these structures is amazing . So Consider me a Historical railway buff LOL . Thanks for your video's :-)
Cheers Nathan.
Nice walk! You could have looked for the disused canal under Balcombe viaduct.
Yes someone else said that. Missed that completely
loved it . best wishes from lancashire
Thanks Tracey
@@pwhitewick in wigan we have a fantastic disused viaduct called twenty bridges . in you have a moment check it out on youtube . once again thank you for letting us all escape to beautiful places for just a while , all the very best from wigan lancashire
Great to see Chris on your channel (I was wondering how long it would be before you discovered him!). Great guy, and great DVDs. He is also an ex-poacher. I know because I bought his egg-poaching pan from him a few years ago!
I have no memory of that, how long ago was that Steve ?
This is only up the road from me, will have to visit it all now!
wow... I live close to the River ouse which I believe runs to the Wash ( King Llyn }. whover would have thought of an Ouse way down south..Upon investigation I find that near me is the Great River Ouse and down south it is simply River Ouse..I am led to believe that there is another river Ouse in C anada.However The river Ouse in Northamptonshire Is associated with the Northampton- Market Harborough Railway. Now disused except for a cycle way and the trackbed. there are two tunnels one of which you can walk/cycle through. It is hoped that the Northampton and Lamport Railway which runs trains along nearly a mile of the track bed will be able to extend north towards Market Harborough. I have cycled the full track a few times. You may find it interesting as it criss x's Ouse..Enjoyed your video very much and what a fantastic viaduct
I grew up cycling through those tunnels, also had the odd ride on the steam train while it was running (worth stopping at the Brampton Halt pub if you're up that way). It would be great to see an episode in my home county, and I'd love to see that line restored in its entirety.
Great to see you guys with Dumpman - it’s his fault I discovered the Bald Explorer!
Thank for the really interesting video about this never completed line.
And the Ouse valley viaduct is instagram central these days!
Ah yes. Mr Bald, we will be seeing him one day soon we hope.
The Whitewicks - that would be a good collab :)
Enjoyed that, keep them coming please :)))
I can definitely recommend Chris’s DVD’s - they’re very detailed and very interesting
Never knew about the Ouse Valley Railway, When you think of Uckfield, it's more of the Uckfield to Lewes which a little bit does survive as part of the Lavender Line at Islip (which I have been to, lovely line which trains only travel about 10mph due to it's not a huge heritage Railway). but they are plans to try and bring that line back as part of the 'Brighton Main Line 2' for years. Brilliant Video and hope you're okay after your fall at the end.
The Uckfield to Lewes line provided a useful link between London and the Sussex Coast, whenever the main Brighton line was blocked. It made little sense to close it.
I used to live at borde hill near copyhold lane. I used to walk the road and look over the bridge and watch all the trains go by. I was only about 6 at that time.
Somehow i managed to miss the annoucement for this, much like you missed that hole/tree root at the end ;) No damage to yourself or the camera thankfully, walking and talking and holding the equipment is complicated, thats why camera crews exist. Nice episode, very interesting how they got the permission to stop anyone else invaiding their "turf" .
Yay! Have quite a few of Chris' DVDs :-)
The Ouse Valley viaduct is around where the uppermost part of the Ouse Navigation ended. There are quite a few of the old locks still in place and they have been restoring that at Isfield. The Ouse Valley Railway was supposed to have gone in from Uckfield via Framfield to Hailsham. That part if the line was never started.
"Ouse Valley viaduct"??! I grew up knowing it as the Balcome viaduct. Loved to drive past it, was always a highlight for 8 year old me... PS: hope you do all the dead bits of bluebell soon. Also, 3 months earlier and it would have been FULL of bluebells in those woods there :)
I always knew it as the Balcombe viaduct too, but it is also known as the Ouse Valley viaduct.
@@dumpman1 My Mum came from Balcombe and to all the locals it was called Balcombe Viaduct, both my Dad and myself was British Rail staff from the track maintenance side of the railway and the BR called it The Ouse Valley Viaduct so it's a reversible A.K.A
The viaduct is amazing. hope you'd the camera were Ok after your tumble Thanks for the video
Hope you're OK after your *trip! Nice video, as usual.
WOW what an absolutely stunning place to finish on.... a real work of art .When you say where the tunnel used to be surely it's still there , blocked perhaps but still there ? Have you heard of the " 3 little words " system which allows you to highlight the smallest of areas with pinpoint accuracy which would allow any fans to find anything of interest you highlight ? And last I've always thought you were a pretty unique channel and tonight you confirmed that ......... it's the 1st time I've ever seen somebody take a "TRIP " on a long abandoned railway . BOOM BOOM
🤦🙄🤪
The tunnels were planned but never built Mei.
@@dumpman1 Thanks so much for taking time to reply
@@meichong8278 my pleasure.
@@pwhitewick I wasnt trying to teach you to suck eggs regarding " 3 little words " it's a fantastic system and worth 5 minutes of your time to research . No need to reply I appreciate your time is limited THANK YOU
You could call this episode " Ouse Line is it anyway ? " 😉
Interesting video as always! But I kept waiting to see what a "sexy, white, polo" was. Every time you said that, you showed a picture of Rebecca, but she wasn't wearing a white polo shirt! Chris was wearing a white Tee shirt, so that doesn't count, and no one was riding a horse, soooo? Anyway, enjoyed the video, too bad the company never finished the line, it would have had an interesting history before the Beeching crew were finished with it.
We lent on the Polo very early on in the film when we looked at the Map.
I was wrong, thought it was going to be the branch that leads to the lavender line. Oh, and that river Uck sign's shape went right over the top of my head.
The sign is deliberately shaped like that to prevent anyone adding a extra letter before the UCK, a D - L or M for example, another letter would fit but I'll leave that one to your imagination !!!!
Constantly an"F" added!
That is one superbly elegant viaduct!
Extremely elegant indeed.
Aah I live just down the road from the tunnel that never was on the Uckfield end! How did you get into Uckfield old station? Always wanted a look in there.
Very nice area indeed. To get to Uckfield you need to go through the industrial estate.
@@pwhitewick Brilliant, thanks! Its also weird watching your videos around Salisbury and the nadder/way,ye valleys, as thats where I grew up! Keep up the great work!
I love seeing your videos, how do you find all these very interesting places.?
Thank you, generally lots of research and recommendations
The River Ouse was adapted for navigation as far as Sheffield Park, I think. There was an article on it in one of the railway magazines a few years ago, as people had expressed an interest in trying to restore it. The Bluebell Railway pumps water from the river up into the water tank at Sheffield Park station to supply the engines. In the past, this sometimes had extra benefits for loco crews because fish would get pumped up into the tank as well, and they could easily be caught there! Yesterday, I sent you some information on the Penicuik Railway Walk in case you were interested in meeting up there while you are in Scotland. Did you receive it OK?
Thanks Christopher. We get quite a few emails so I'm may have missed it as it doesn't Spring to mind
@@pwhitewick It was some information on the Penicuik branch line, which was part of the network of lines which branched off the Waverley Route between Eskbank and Melrose. This group of lines served Peebles, Biggar and Broughton among other places, but all were closed in the 1960's. The Penicuik line is now a footpath and cycleway, with clear remains of several stations, 2 tunnels, a spectacular stone-arched viaduct, intact bowstring girder bridge over the river and a haunted castle ruin at Old Woodhouselee. Rosslyn Chapel - of Da Vinci Code and vampire legend fame - lies close to one of the stations. After swapping notes with you for so long now, and having video/film-making training, it would be great to meet you in person while you are up in Scotland? If you would be interested in that, please let me know.
‘Southern Railway - 1941’ - One year before my late father joined the Southern Railway. He retired from BR in 1989.
When I was at school in that area we were taught that the section at Lindfield was going to be the main line to Brighton. I think it was originally supposed to have gone through Cuckfield, but the local land owner said no. They then started to build via Lindfield, but again the local landowner said no, so they went through between then creating Haywards Heath.
Great video. Chris is a mine of information. It always amazes me how much of this stuff is lying about, undiscovered to most. Hope you didn't hurt yourself.
Just a sore ego lol
@@pwhitewick Yes that sometimes happens! The fact you showed us it suggests you left your ego on the forest floor. That's the best place for it. Looking forward to the next video.
The old signal box was not destroyed by yobs, it was deliberately removed and is now on the site of the old railway sidings at Lewes being used as a bird hide.
Nice shirt Chris
Great stuff. I’m local and found stuff out that I didn’t know.
That was quite some costly progress before abandonment during construction. Perhaps the financial crash prevented the other company from expanding too which forced the companies to rationalise. Tactical railway building seems like a very dodgy practise but there had clearly been money somewhere when something a beautiful as the Ouse Valley viaduct could be built witch embellishments like ornamental ballustrading. That sets it off and at 13:27 there's an amazing take on it. It looked like the picture was upside down. It couls surpas the Leaderfoot viaduct.
6:04: That sign's asking for trouble. But we're all above that sort of thing :)
Ouse been naming Ouses? That's the third: Yorks, Norfolk and East Sussex so far.
Great video.... thank you! If you haven't covered this already (?) how about, as a sequel, the dead bits = most off The Lavender Line from Uckfield to Lewes?
We definitely haven't covered that as yet
I did do that in its entirety about 12 years ago, but it's not so easy to access now I don't think.
Great Video both ,that viaduct is superb ! try not to do any of them falling down clips nearly fell out of my chair in sympathy !
Also very interesting about how / if the line crossed the Ardingly branch. Essentially all the lines East and West of the Brighton main line (with the possible exception of the Arun Valley which is now worth its weight in gold especially when the main line is shut) were built to keep other companies out of the area and specifically Brighton rather than provide a viable service. Although of course now if Haywards Heath to East Grinstead and also Christs Hospital to Shoreham were still part of Southern they would be very busy!
I realise how much you rate rail architecture, and viaducts.
One day, several years back, after a visit to Jodrell Bank, leaving, I turned right in error... Some couple of miles down the road, again on my right, suddenly a brick viaduct, massive and broad, vista style and ¿?, seemingly unused. Jic you happen didn't know, or if you've covered it and I've missed it, sorry for wasting your time.
Chris was informative and easy to listen too! That viaduct was amazing at the end! How many portals does it have? I tried to count!
We didn't think to count but oddly had to queue up to take those shots!
37 I think.
The Doomed Ouse Valley line from Uckfield to north of Haywards Heath line yes what about the Blue Bell Line ? May be in would have gone over or connect at Sheffield Park? I use to live near Uckfield and in then days I could go to Lewes or Brighton and to this day they are still going on about reopening the line.
Great video, Trespassing for Pleasure would make a great you tube channel name, shame i have already picked one.
See if you can find a copy Clinkers, very useful for investigating the status of closed railway stations.
What's Clinkers ?
its book written by an enthusiast after the Beeching cuts, detailing when the various lines stations closed to to passengers, goods and finally closed for good, I use it for work, not currently published, but can be found on amazon etc for around £50.00 @@pwhitewick
@@taffman1 ok I'll take a look. A little steam and I are about to produce our own!
@@pwhitewick from memory it was last published in the mid 198o's. You also might get info from Historic Railways Estate. part of Highways England.
And there was me thinking you were coming to Yorkshire ☹️
Haha... Scotland is booked!
Great video as usual. Actually I haven’t watched it yet I just wanted to comment first! 🤪 ok I’m paying attention will get back to you. 👍
Do you fancy visiting our very charming old railway in North Wales ?? Partly now restored after having slept for the last 70 years. You will be amazed by the spectacular views and very interesting history. One part having been converted into a footpath up to old slate quarries.Its called The Welsh Highland Railway opened in 1877 as the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railway up to a village called Rhyd ddu the extended to Porthmadog and changed name to Welsh Highland Railway.
Good video, but if you walked down a bit futher on thhe Buckham hil part, accessible rom the By ways, you would have got to the brick bridge end that the train would have come over.
We were there just the other day. (the viaduct). Iiiiincredible place. I've also filmed a music video for my Doctor Who rap track there. Also - i have a mutual friend with Chris! I've seen his Kemptown Tunnel vid! :)
Cool video guys
a sexy white polo?
WHOOOSH! NOBODY expects a sexy white polo - to be up that early.
and
'So, some people say' that they didn't expect to lose their footing, either.
Good knowledgeable content. Will be having a look at the DVD's. Haven't see the scores recently. Are you counting never used stations from today?
PS. Watch out for those tree roots. ;0)
We've not seen the scores lately too!
@@pwhitewick it's about time you got a grip them. ;0)