Steam Railways in Yorkshire
An amazing morning was spent at the National Railway Museum. Once inside, we looked at the huge steam locomotives. The oldest being the ‘Rocket’ which was the first ever steam train.
We learnt that this year is the 100th anniversary of the steam locomotive the ‘Flying Scotsman’, which was the first steam locomotive to reach 100 miles per hour in the year 1934. The museum in celebration of this, were providing a virtual tour of the train. We all wore special headsets and stepped into the virtual world. Here we got to experience station platforms, people dressed from that period, and were given a history of the development of the train. We were even taken through the train engine itself, feeling the heat from the coals,forced through the tubes which then came out as steam.
We headed to the famous Wensleydale Cheese Factory to learn about how cheese is made. We went straight into the tasting area where we sampled the many different types of Wensleydale cheeses that were made on sight and watched a step by step demonstration on how it is made. After this we went to have photographs taken with the iconic, cheese loving characters Wallace and Gromit.
A must see was a trip to Aysgarth Falls and we took a peaceful walk through beautiful woodland down to the falls themselves. As we got closer, we could hear the roar of the water crashing down before actually seeing them. The water looked so pretty dancing in the sunlight. It was a bit of an uphill climb back, but we all managed it.
There were smiles on all of our faces as we set off for our first steam ride of the week. We drove through some stunning countryside which was bathed in sunlight making everything look so green. On arrival at Halworth station, we eagerly bought our rail tickets which gave us access to a journey on the Flying Scotsman celebrating its 100th anniversary.
The platform was full of rail enthusiasts all hoping for a glimpse of the Scotsman. We managed to look around the station and viewed all the vintage memorabilia, posters, weighing scales, old lamps, milk churns, metal advertising signs and lots more. Suddenly we heard a whistle as the Flying Scotsman came steaming towards us in its coat of green. It was so big and powerful, just like the pictures we’d seen in the railway museum. We eagerly clambered aboard to find our seats in the carriages and waited patiently for it to pull away.
When it did it was making the chuff, chuff, chuff sound that is familiar with all steam locomotives. All of us enjoyed and hour and a half of listening to the engine, smelling the scent of coal and looking out of the window. At the journey’s end we disembarked elated from a once in a lifetime experience.
A tasty ice cream treat was a must.....we were on holiday after all.
It was time to set off for Bolton Abbey. This is where we were to pick up our 3rd steam locomotive of the holiday. We arrived with plenty of time to look at the engine and its carriages as they were preparing ‘steam up’ ready for the off. We met station masters and guards and looked in the shops at all the memorabilia for sale. Then it was time to board the train. We chose a couple of old fashion compartments to sit in and settled down to be gently pulled along sedately. It was lovely looking out of the window, looking at the passing scenery and waving to passers-by, sheep and cattle.
We drove through the beautiful dales into the the moors. Steep hills were driven, and it was all rather exciting as we headed through the moors to the village of Goathland, where the TV series Heartbeat was filmed. The village is also famous for its railway station which is where they filmed the Harry Potter films. There was lots to see and plenty of shops for us to visit. Everyone managed to buy some great souvenirs to take home for their friends and family. We visited Scripps Garage which also featured in the tv series. Inside, up on ramps was an old Austin car and all the old petrol and oil cans were scattered around the inside alongside old mechanic's tools. It was like stepping back in time.
The sun was shining as we made our way to the seaside town of Whitby. We strolled around the harbour and treated ourselves to another holiday ice cream.
Our wonderful lodges were the perfect place to relax after our busy days. Our very own hot tub was a real treat and we loved the warm, bubbly water.
It was straight to 
Sheringham station for our ride on the North Norfolk steam railway to Holt. It wasn’t long before we heard our beautiful old steam train huffing and puffing its way down the track into the station. We hopped on board and took our seats in the old fashioned carriages then purchased some drinks and snacks for our journey along the scenic Norfolk coast. The train pushed on down the track to Holt whistling as it went and steam billowing past our windows. 
We took in some fantastic sea views and before we knew it we had arrived at Holt station. As soon as we had disembarked, we spent some time checking out the model railway exhibitions on show and also the fascinating railway museum. Some purchases were made from the gift shop then we sat outside and enjoyed some lunch in the sun. 
We were super excited as today we would be getting our first taste of fun and adventure on Norfolk’s famous waterways. Christopher and David our lovely trust volunteers were ready to take us out on one of the cruiser boats. We stepped on board and made ourselves comfortable and we were soon sailing up the river enjoying the beautiful countryside all around us. 
We had a fascinating afternoon at Norfolk Aviation Museum as we had some big aeroplane enthusiasts in the group. We had a great time checking out the huge collection of decommissioned aeroplanes and exhibits and even got to look inside a former Royal Mail Plane which was really cool.
