Trains of thought

On a day of diverted Bournemouth main line traffic west of Lymington Junction, Sunday, 3 April 1960, photographer and author Colin Boocock has made his way into the down side goods yard at Wimborne on the so-called ‘Old Road’ and here records Brighton-allocated ‘West Country’ Light Pacific No 34098 Templecombe rounding the curve on approach to Wimborne station with the diverted Brighton to Bournemouth through train. This daily service would never ordinarily pass this way, but the Bournemouth main line was closed at New Milton and so this train from the east will in fact reach Bournemouth from the west. Colin Boocock

Amongst the articles featured in this issue of Steam Days is Colin Boocock’s account of train diversions in 1960 off the Bournemouth main line, and onto, what was colloquially known by local railwaymen, as the ‘Old Road’. I’ve lived in Dorset for more than 40 years, that’s not far enough back to know the route as a railway, although I’ve walked, run and cycled much of the trackbed over that time. The term ‘Old Road’ came into use after the opening of the Bournemouth Direct Line in 1888 which linked Lymington Junction to Bournemouth via Christchurch. With the building of the new railway the ‘Old Road’ endured a steady decline into a twilight zone that saw it survive as a through route for a further 76 years.

These days the original route of the Southampton & Dorchester Railway is probably more widely known by an even older moniker, ‘Castleman’s Corkscrew’. This name is derived from Charles Castleman who was the driving force in getting the railway built, and ‘Corkscrew’ for its somewhat circuitous route. The Castleman name has come to the fore as a 16 mile footpath from Upton House Country Park to Ringwood, known as the ‘Castleman Trailway’, predominantly on the trackbed at the western end of the ‘Old Road’, is a popular and well-used amenity. Inevitably there are a few diversions off the original formation due to post-closure developments, for instance, at Wimborne the bridge over the River Stour has been removed. However, the architectural splendour that is the Lady Wimborne bridge which bore the railway over a carriage road between Canford Manor (now Canford School) and Wimborne, just south of the Stour survives and is a Grade II-listed structure … it’s worth seeking out.

At the Hampshire end of the ‘Old Road’, east of Holmsley, another section of the line is walkable, a stroll along here enables you to appreciate the wonderful views you