THE SHERBORNE CHRISTMAS CAROL RAILTOUR

The Sherborne Christmas Carol

Thursday 15th December 2016

This special train will be hauled by two former London Midland & Scottish Railway Black 5's steam locomotives. It starts from London Victoria Station and picks up more passengers along route at Staines, Woking and Basingstoke.

Departure from London Victoria Station is scheduled for around 08:45 behind our splendidly restored steam locomotives. We pass through Clapham Junction, crossing the Thames at Barnes Bridge, and continue to a stop at Staines to pick up more passengers. We then join the South Western Main Line (SWML) at Byfleet Junction, and then stop for further passengers at Woking and Basingstoke. 

Leaving the SWML at Worting Junction and take the West of England Main Line to Andover and Salisbury. At Wilton Junction the line becomes single track. We cross the edge of Salisbury Plain and pass through an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at Tisbury and Gillingham in Dorset. We cross Gillingham Viaduct and pass through Buckhorn Weston Tunnel before Templecombe, where once the iconic Somerset & Dorset Railway passed beneath our line.

The main destination for our train is Sherborne, one of the most beautiful towns in England. The historic market town, where King Alfred was educated, will be decorated for Christmas. It has much to offer visitors with its abundance of medieval buildings, superb Abbey, picturesque Alms house, the ruins of a 12th-century fortified palace, and the 16th-century mansion known as Sherborne Castle. It has a delightful shopping centre with a large choice of handcrafted goods and elegant fashions and has become an important town in the region for Art and Antique Dealers. Whilst at Sherborne, why not join in the traditional Christmas Carol Service held in the splendid surroundings of its ancient Abbey.

Passengers have the choice of alighting at Sherborne or continuing with the train to Yeovil Junction where the steam locomotive will be turned and serviced at Yeovil Railway Centre. Here there is excellent viewing of these operations, which use one of the few remaining turntables in the country. There is also a variety of rolling stock and an exhibition of railway artifacts and pictures in the Engine Shed. A shop on the platform provides a large range of railway related goods and souvenirs.

Train Timings
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