JollyDays Supported Holidays: Steam Railways in Yorkshire with Leo & Netty

Steam Railways in Yorkshire

Off to York, to board our steam train for a very exciting journey. Our beast of a train was built in 1931, The Scarborough Spa Express pulling 12 carriages. We trundled along smelling familiar, wonderful smells of the steam train as the coal burned and the white puffs of smoke blew past us. We travelled through stunning scenery and as we trundled along and it was so relaxing.

What an experience it was being able to watch the hot coals burning, creating the steam needed to power the train.

We spent the morning at Scarborough, the fist seaside resort in the UK. We walked through the very quaint town and stopped for lunch in a cafe overlooking the white sandy beach which stretched for a good mile. It was so lovely to see so many people enjoying the sea.

Next on the agenda was a trip on the Tramway, which was built in 1881 and is now the oldest tramway in the country. Once at the top, the scenery was incredible, and the sea looked so blue!

A fabulous day was spent at the York and The National Railway Museum. The museum was huge and housed so many steam trains, modern trains and carriages of old and new. We saw the Flying Scotsman and The Mallard which was the fastest train in its day. We also saw the Bullet Train, a Japanese train travelling at over 200 miles an hour. One of the best parts of the day was experiencing the thrill of being on the Mallard in an exhilarating simulator ride.

Off to the Wensleydale Creamery set in the village of Hawes where we got to meet our favourite cheese loving characters, Wallace and Gromit. Here they make 4000 tones of cheese a year supplying cheese in the UK and all over the world. We were lucky enough to see the cheese making process and then sample the end result! We couldn’t believe that they make over 50 different fantastic cheese flavours onsite.

We were lucky enough to visit Inspired Chocolate factory. Another fantastic demonstration by the artisan chocolate makers was enjoyed before it was our turn to get creative. We had great fun making chocolate pizzas and chocolate lollies, which we decorated with lots of sweetie goodies as gifts for our friends back home. Everyone was very proud of their chocolaty creation!

Driving through breathtaking views and scenery we made our way to Goathland right in the middle of the National Park. The village is famous for being the setting of the hit TV program Heartbeat which was filmed between 1986-1996. The shops look the same as does the pub and Scripp’s Garage.

Another day, another fabulous steam train ride. Our train The Royal Guards, was built in 1944 and was a magnificent red and black train. We had two carriages all to ourselves and sat in huge comfy armchairs as the train trundled through the stunning Yorkshire countryside. The smell of the coal burning is always one of the most endearing smells as is the trains toot, toot whistle!