This grouping is in commemoration of the old Lynton and Barnstaple Railway, which ran through here, long before the reservoir in the background was built. The bench is inscribed with the names of the stations along the route. It is now somewhat worn, but a better view is seen at my previous photo in 2009
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The three strips of wood in the ground are symbolic railway sleepers, inscribed with the opening and closing dates of the railway “Open 1898” “Last train 1935” “Sold 1923” (The railway was bought by the Southern Railway in 1923)
The Lynton & Barnstaple Railway was a 19 mile long narrow gauge railway, which ran across the stunning Exmoor landscape, from 1898, until its closure in 1935. In 2004, after many years of hard work and negotiation, a small section was re-opened. One of the world’s most famous little railways, you can read more of the exciting plans for the coming years at
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