Historic train stops on the Great West Way

Making tracks on the Great West Way can point you at endless amounts of history and fun facts to be discovered along its length from London to Bristol.

Taking to the tracks is certainly one way to explore locations and the history of the Great West Way. In one go the journey is just 1hr 40min, but stopping en route to explore the route in your own time is 'slow travel' at its best.

One of England’s great long-distance railway lines, the Great Western Railway runs along the full distance of the Great West Way – from London’s Paddington station to Bristol Temple Meads. It’s chief engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel and you’ll travel the course he plotted back in the 1830s, including his Box Tunnel, infamously said to be impossible to build. Before he built it.

Setting out west from Paddington, how about making the first stop at Windsor and Eton Central? It was here where a race to impress a real Royal took place just outside her castle in the town. Two opposing rail companies ‘The Great Western’ and ‘The London and South Western Railway’ set out to be the first to provide the monarch with a rail service.

In 1840 Queen Victoria encouraged by Prince Albert took a trip from Slough - which was then the nearest station to the castle - to Paddington. And today parts of the original elegant façade can still be seen indicating its former short lived Royal connection.

The GWR line extension was built to almost within touching distance of the castle walls. With the two companies frantically making progress to Windsor it was the Great Western that finally won the race.

Although they had to build a massive curving brick arch viaduct over the ‘playing fields of Eton’, plus bridge the Thames in order to get into the centre.

For the London and South Western Railway, a bridge failure disrupted their attempt to win and still the town has two stations within 600 metres of each other. Windsor and Eton Central and Windsor Eton Riverside.

GWR’s central station has an expansive metal and glass roof that almost mimic’s Paddington’s. This was to allow the Queen’s mounted soldiers to wait undercover before escorting her back to the castle.

Today, you can enjoy an alfresco cocktail in the stations All Bar One restaurant and bar, the exact location where in March 1882 the last (of eight) assassination attempts on Queen Victoria took place.

The Great Western Railway built the grand Windsor & Eton Railway Station in 1897.

Trains from London Paddington also call at Twyford, changing onto the line to Henley-on- Thames, home to the famous regatta.

Disembark in Reading and enjoy a cruise on the River Thames, a stroll through Caversham Court Gardens and the chance to watch a professional football match at Reading FC’s Majedski Stadium.

Here you have a choice, you might like to take the south-west route (see opposite page), or travel the route via Swindon, home to STEAM, the Museum of the Great Western Railway. Here you’ll see famous locomotives from throughout the railway’s history, drive a train simulator and work the signals in the interactive GWR signal box. Right next door is the McArthurGlen outlet shopping village, where more than 100 brands are on sale at up to 60% off.

Armed with your new skills – and perhaps a souvenir or three to take home – next stop on the line is Chippenham, a historic market town in the rural county of Wiltshire.

On the banks of the River Avon, Chippenham is a flourishing small town, with an enticing market to explore on Fridays and Saturdays on the High Street and plenty of proper English pubs.

It’s just 15 minutes by bus from here to Lacock, seen on screen more often than Judi Dench!

This picturesque village has been the backdrop to film and TV titles such as Harry Potter, Pride and Prejudice and Downton Abbey – see if you recognise Lacock Abbey and the High Street from your favourite scenes.

Heading further west passing Chippenham on the train to Bath there is the renowned ‘Box Tunnel’. Here the rail line dives underground through Box Hill for nearly two miles. Another of Brunel’s great feats on the GWR. Located on the outskirts of Corsham the tunnel project was thought to be impossible to build by fellow engineers of the time. However, after starting in December 1838 the one mile and three quarters long subterranean construction was completed by Brunel in June 1841.

The entrance to it on the Bath side is ornate and built of Bath Stone in a grand classical style but the eastern entrance quite austere.

The tunnel itself also hides, adjacent to its dank darkness, a Cold War secret. Constructed alongside underground is a series of subterranean roads and passages. Complete with communication bunkers, offices, food and fuel storage, the complex was designed in the 1950’s and 60’s to house the Prime Minister and the Government plus military officials in case of a nuclear attack.

It might be possible that Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed his two-mile long Box Tunnel with his own birthday in mind! It is claimed that onthe 9th April, the sun shines directly down the length of the tunnel - atheory which was tested a few years ago by Great Western Railway andNetwork Rail when a rare chance to observe it came about due to the linebeing shut on the date because of upgrade work.

There was talk that this huge bomb proof selfsufficient complex was in fact a ruse to fool the Russians, and that the real contingency plan had the Government spread around England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland under the code name Python!

The final stop on this route before reaching Bath is the glorious Bradford-on-Avon. This small town sits on the edge of The Cotswolds and straddles the River Avon. Cross the waters in ancient footsteps, on the 13thcentury town bridge, and stand dwarfed in the 14thcentury Tithe Barn, its lattice of timbers soaring for over 50 metres far above your head.

SOUTH WEST ROUTE

Rather than taking the north-west route to Swindon from Reading, you might choose to take the southwest route towards Bath via Newbury and Hungerford, travelling through the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The Great Western Railway is far from just one main line – and this line is a perfect example of an alternative rail journey where you can get off the beaten track and out into more rural areas.

There are several short loop walks from Hungerford, an ancient town also known for its antique shops, or you could get off the train a stop earlier and walk the nine miles from Newbury along the canal, stopping first for a flutter – there’s a world-class racecourse here.

At Hungerford a short walk from the station will find you at the Hungerford Wharf. Here the ‘Rose of Hungerford’ operates canal boat trips with dedicated volunteers of the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust with their trips starting May 22nd. Their passenger barge can take around 50 people (in non Covid-19 times) complete with wheelchair lift.

You might enjoy a scenic boat trip to Kintbury or Great Bedwyn gliding through several locks. With an onboard café and toilets too. →

Visiting Bradford on Avon means the visitor gets the best of everything, shopping, accommodation; restaurants and inns; river; canal and most ofall an amazing history that can be found at every turn.

Make time in Great Bedwyn to visit the world’s oldest operating steam driven beam engines, still in their original building. The Crofton Beam Engines are fed by a hand-stoked coal-fired boiler and are still plugging away at the same job they were designed to do more than 200 years ago – pumping water up to the highest point of the canal in order to keep the barges and boats moving and the locks full.

The next stop on this line is Pewsey. From the station it is a half mile walk north to Pewsey Wharf. Take the towpath to the west (left) for a charming easy flat walk to what has become the UK’s crop circle central! Or, The Barge Inn at Honeystreet. A sign at the pub proclaims ‘twinned with Roswell, New Mexico’!

The Barge Inn has been a meeting place for ‘Crop Circle’ enthusiasts as many have appeared in the surrounding valley over the years. The inn plans to open from April 12th. This delightful circular rural stroll will take you back past Lady’s Bridge at Wilcot, a grand stone regency bridge built by the canal engineer John Rennie in order to placate the land owner for letting the canal pass over his land.

Returning to Pewsey, you may spot a series of World War II pill boxes and tank defences on some crossing points like at Church Lane Bridge. This was all part of

what was called the GHQ line where if there had been an invasion in World War 2 a major defensive action was planned.

Today the towpath carries 21st century communication too. Fibre optic cables run along much of it. You may spot the ‘Fibreway ’signs.

Walk along the Kennet & Avon Canal and you'll encounter a surprise - the world's oldest working steam engines. The Crofton Beam Engines fedby a hand-stoked coal-fired boiler are still plugging away at the samejob they were designed to do more than 200 years ago - pumping water upat the highest point of the canal

Change at Westbury and head to Bedwyn, where you can disembark for a stroll along the water’s edge on the towpath of the Kennet & Avon Canal, which runs from Bristol all the way to Reading.

Crofton Pumping Station

Your final calling point en route to Bristol, whichever direction you have taken to get here, is Bath - a city so beautiful its centre has been UNESCO World Heritage listed. You’ll want plenty of time here, for a stroll past honey-hued Georgian buildings and a dip in the natural hot springs that bubble up from the ground.

The Great Western Railway ends in Bristol, a vibrant city where you can climb aboard the last Concorde ever made (built right here in Bristol) and clamber up the rigging of one of Brunel’s other famous creations, the SS Great Britain. His Clifton Suspension Bridge is here too, beckoning you along the River Avon and out to Avon Gorge to set foot atop this world-famous bridge and quietly thank Brunel for the journey he made possible – along the Great West Way by rail.

Passenger on the Avon Valley Railway

STEAM ENGINES

Although England has lost many of its railways over the years, the country has long been ensconced in a love affair with steam and there are passionate volunteers still running heritage steam railways on the Great West Way. Just outside Bristol is the Avon Valley Railway, where you can ride three miles of preserved track from the Victorian Bitton station through the valley, listening to the puff and whistle of the steam train. Reach Bitton by taking the Great Western Railway from Bristol to Keynsham and following the brown signs on foot for 1.5 miles. Near Swindon you’ll see the steam of the Swindon & Cricklade Railway rising above the Taw Valley. Ride the rails for more than two miles from Taw Valley Halt to Blunsdon on a heritage steam train. You’ll need to take a bus to get there, the number 15 from the centre of Swindon stops at the Tawny Owl pub, close to Taw Valley Halt.

Steam train

Swindon and Cricklade Railway

Pictured: It might be possible that Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed his two-mile long Box Tunnel with his own birthday in mind! It is claimed that on the 9th April, the sun shines directly down the length of the tunnel - a theory which was tested a few years ago by Great Western Railway and Network Rail when a rare chance to observe it came about due to the line being shut on the date because of upgrade work.