# Cannington Viaduct traversed – Nr Uplyme – Dec 2010



## Munchh (Dec 16, 2010)

Explored with Foxylady

I usually explore alone these days but I figured that if I didn’t team up with Foxy soon, I wouldn’t get the opportunity to see her excellent film photography skills displayed alongside my digital efforts. The other pressing reason for the second visit to this fantastic place was that the traverse up top had become, at least temporarily, possible. A big thank you to JT 1965 whose info turned out to be spot on.

There was mutual enthusiasm for the subject at hand. This imposing Viaduct quite literally looms up in front of you as you approach from either direction and is both passive and exciting in turns.

I must say at this point that you have to have a fair degree of respect for anyone who is absolutely terrified of heights clambering onto a Viaduct trackbed.. This structure is very old at 105 or so years and made largely from un-reinforced concrete. Foxy suffers from acrophobia and her initial unease was palpable, which only makes her achievement of completing the traverse in both directions more admirable. 

Simple fact is that, once she was up there and making her way along it, she was even more of a kid in a sweet shop than I was, except on the odd occasion when I leaned over the parapet to get a shot and it became more obvious where we were. 

If you need a full history fix for this place, visit my original thread posted in July this year.

[ame]http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=15844[/ame]

For those of you who prefer not to flick around forums, some info taken from said thread – sourced from Kent Rail;

The viaduct was required to span a valley 5½ route miles from Axminster, and at the time became an engineering project of some note, for it was one of few such structures to be made entirely of concrete, rather than brick. Building work was subcontracted to ‘’Baldry & Yerburgh’’ of Westminster, London (a partnership between one Henry Osborne Baldry and one John Eardley Yerburgh), and cement for the concrete was shipped in by sea to Lyme Regis Cobb. The concrete itself was the product of flint extracted from cuttings in the local area. A 1000-foot-long cableway was suspended above the valley, supported on either side by wooden pylons, and was used to move materials in place for construction. The viaduct’s design comprised ten elliptical arches of 50-foot span, the tallest of which rose to a height of 92-feet. Overall viaduct length and width were 606-feet and 16-feet respectively, and the Light Railway Order meant that the foundations were not required to penetrate deeper than 10-foot below the ground. These foundations would permit a pressure of 3½-tons per square foot to be exerted on the structure. The arches were formed using sections of pre-cast concrete, whilst the remainder of the viaduct was built using mass concrete that had not been reinforced. Unfortunately, the nature of the terrain, coupled with the need to keep construction costs low, saw Cannington Viaduct become problematic early on in its existence. The structure was built upon a surface of sandstone and clay, and before completion, the western extremity of the viaduct began to suffer from subsidence. As a result, a permanent supporting jack, also of concrete construction, had to be built within the third viaduct arch from the western embankment.

The branch line opened to traffic on 24th August 1903, and thereafter the viaduct led an unproblematic life, despite the initial incidents of subsidence. The nature of the route’s construction ensured that it was restricted to operation by small tank engines from the outset. The branch was closed completely on 29th November 1965, under Western Region auspices, when the lines west of Salisbury had entered the nadir of their fortunes. The Lyme Regis service had been operated by WR diesel multiple units since 4th November 1963. The viaduct is now protected with a Grade II listing.

On with a few pics from me, Foxy will add her account of the explore to the thread later.

Ground shot.







The Viaduct’s own ‘tag’ at the east end.






And the chav additions a bit further in.






Hmmnn, wonder what they’re doing here.






A most pleasing sun shot made itself aware to us.






When I started taking shots like this one below, there were audible groaning noises coming from the structure. At least I think that’s where they were coming from.






The valley floor, and the stream that trickles through it.






Mid-point west to east.






Close to the west end looking east.






West end valley shot, stunning.






At the west end a very rare sight was just visible among the undergrowth, not often glimpsed this high up.







All in all a great day and full of achievements. Make sure you see Foxy’s report later in this thread. If you’ve got this far, I think your gonna like it.

Thanks for looking.


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## Foxylady (Dec 16, 2010)

Big, big thanks to Munchh for the invite to join him on this visit, as I'd never have contemplated walking across the viaduct on my own. To be totally honest, I wasn't sure that I could do it all when we reached the entrance onto the span. It was scary and freeze-making at times, but enjoyable too. Fab day with great company.

I took a few photos from below, as we'd approached the viaduct from an angle that I hadn't seen before. Sadly, due to a cock-up at the printers I'd lost most of them, and the only decent view that came out from below was this one of the arch with the brick reinforcement. 






Bridge sign for maintenance identification purposes. 






Weathering and age has caused cracks in the parapets. A frozen moment for me!  






My favourite pic of the day; viewing the opposite grid through the trees growing on the bridge.






Looking back towards the Eastern end and entrance. Have we only got that far? Can we go back now?  











Amazing view over the lane...all silvery in the low winter sunlight. 






A look forward then another back.











And another view through a grid, with a tiny stream below.






More trees near the Western end. Nearly there. 






Made it! What do you mean we've got to walk back across it again!!! 








Hope you enjoyed.


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## hydealfred (Dec 16, 2010)

Great report the pair of you. One of the types of engine used on the route was the Adams Radial Tank. A single example still exists on the Bluebell Railway.


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## devonian42 (Dec 16, 2010)

Nice report and with history etc. up to the usual standard for those not knowing the explore site. Cannington Viaduct is a special place for me as its one place I remember visiting with my father when I was but a nipper (the line had already closed at that point - I'm not that old  ). In fact, it was FL's original report found in a general google search that got me to this site to join up !

The Radial Tank 4-4-2T mentioned on the Bluebell line is exactly the one that ran on this line until 12th July 1961 (see this entry for pics etc.). Sadly however, according the the wiki page on this [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LSWR_415_class"]LSWR engine[/ame], it is currently on static display as it needs an extensive overhaul before it can return to active use again.

Glad to hear you are up and about again FL


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## Andymacg (Dec 17, 2010)

Munchh and Foxy what fantastic peice of teamwork between the pair of you, a great report and even better pictures

loved the picture of the lane looking all shimmery


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## Black Shuck (Dec 17, 2010)

Well done Munnch and especially you Foxy, as I know how scared you are of heights, a phobia I can really sympathisize with. You must have had a real sense of achievement having walked that beauty. Great set of pics.


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## Munchh (Dec 17, 2010)

Andymacg said:


> Munchh and Foxy what fantastic peice of teamwork between the pair of you, a great report and even better pictures
> 
> loved the picture of the lane looking all shimmery



Thanks Andy, the teamwork element worked really well and we hoped we were achieving different but complimentary shots. I tried 5 or 6 shots of the lane and had the slight advantage of standing above the refuge grill but my digital compact was struggling with the strong sunlight. Should have taken my OM10 as well in hindsight but I needn't have worried, Foxy saunters over, takes one shot and there you have it, job done! 



Black Shuck said:


> Well done Munnch and especially you Foxy, as I know how scared you are of heights, a phobia I can really sympathisize with. You must have had a real sense of achievement having walked that beauty. Great set of pics.



Thanks Shucky from me. I'll leave Foxy to answer for just how tough this was for her. All I can say is that's one seriously ballsy lady!


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## Foxylady (Dec 18, 2010)

hydealfred said:


> Great report the pair of you. One of the types of engine used on the route was the Adams Radial Tank. A single example still exists on the Bluebell Railway.


Cheers, Alf.  Whilst there I was thinking what a terrific view it would be whilst travelling over on the train. It amazed me how narrow it seemed too, although plenty of room for a single track.



devonian42 said:


> Glad to hear you are up and about again FL


Thanks Devonian.  I think I've had my share of karmic retribution this year, lol, and life seems to be moving forward again. Cheers for the extra info and I'm glad that you enjoyed it. 



Andymacg said:


> Munchh and Foxy what fantastic peice of teamwork between the pair of you, a great report and even better pictures...


Thanks, Andy.  It turned out that we're both meticulous...or just downright picky, lol...so we took our time getting it right, as it were. All part of the fun though. 



Black Shuck said:


> Well done Munnch and especially you Foxy, as I know how scared you are of heights, a phobia I can really sympathisize with. You must have had a real sense of achievement having walked that beauty. Great set of pics.


Cheers Shucky...I knew you'd understand because you have the same problem. I have to say that when I went to sleep that night I kept waking up from height nightmares. The worst one was standing on top of Aswan Dam!  Munch was great though, and really helped to keep my mind off what wasn't beneath me...except when he leaned over to get shots!


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## Black Shuck (Dec 18, 2010)

Indeed I do know what it's like. Did you have to climb a rather steep embankment for this Foxy?


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## Foxylady (Dec 18, 2010)

Black Shuck said:


> Indeed I do know what it's like. Did you have to climb a rather steep embankment for this Foxy?


Walkwise, it's a gentle slope some distance from it but is very high each side by the time you reach the entry...which was hairy in itself. One edge of the bridge entrance is hanging over nothing due to soil erosion. My toes are still curling at the thought of it!


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## devonian42 (Dec 20, 2010)

Want to see the Radial Tank in action on the line? There is a 9 minute video here which shows the route from Axminster through to Lyme Regis.

The viaduct can be seen at these points in the film.


There is a brief glimpse of the viaduct at 02:10.

The return journey at 04:45 shows the train crossing the viaduct at track level, followed by a distant shot. There are also some good shots of a pillbox when the train approaches Axminster.

At 06:50 there is a prolonged shot of the viaduct with the camera at track level on the west side, and the train heading towards Lyme Regis. There's also a thrush which seems to be in the background on every shot on the outward journey after this point!

At 07:18 on the return journey to Axminster we have a ground level shot looking North and up at the train.

Hope this helps readers get a view of this area at a time when steam trains ran through it. The viaduct now stands alone and decaying, the last remnant of a bygone age.

Once again, Munchh and FoxyLady, thanks for the chance to reminisce back to the 60's, hope this reference and dialogue compensates for your efforts in some way. You make a good team. Can DL look forward to further adventures of this type?


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## Munchh (Dec 20, 2010)

Wow, that's staggering! I've just watched the whole 9 minutes and 14 seconds and didn't want it to end. The shots of the viaduct are just fantastic. You try to picture these sort of places when they were live during an explore and there's always a feeling of what it would have been like. To actually see it in action was an absolute treat, thank you so much devonian42. 

As for future team- ups, there are plans afoot and both of us want to visit Worthy Down with Hydealfred when the weather improves. The positive feedback to this thread is very encouraging, thank you all.


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## skeleton key (Dec 20, 2010)

*My name is*

Munchh,youre quality & no thank you.
Cant wait to meet up 

SK


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## hydealfred (Dec 20, 2010)

Looking forwards to the WD visit


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## Foxylady (Dec 21, 2010)

Really enjoyed watching the video, Devonian. What a fantastic tour of the Lyme, Seaton, Sidmouth & Exmouth branch lines that was shown at the end...would have loved to have been part of that. As the narrator said, the Axminster/Lyme run could well have made a great heritage line. Cheers for that. 

Me too, Alf.


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## tonyque2 (Dec 21, 2010)

Thanks Devonion for the link to the video - absolutely brilliant ! and to Munchh and Foxy for their orriginal posting, well done for conquering the viaduct.


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## Munchh (Dec 21, 2010)

skeleton key said:


> Munchh,youre quality & no thank you.
> Cant wait to meet up
> 
> SK



Likewise mate 



hydealfred said:


> Looking forwards to the WD visit



Yeah same here alf  I'll pack the rope ladder just in case FL wants to go climbing again


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## hydealfred (Dec 21, 2010)

Munchh said:


> Likewise mate
> 
> 
> 
> Yeah same here alf  I'll pack the rope ladder just in case FL wants to go climbing again



It could be underground this time


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## Foxylady (Dec 21, 2010)

Cheers Tony. 



Munchh said:


> I'll pack the rope ladder just in case FL wants to go climbing again


Sod that for a game of soldiers! 



hydealfred said:


> It could be underground this time


Underground's good. I don't do enough but have really enjoyed the ones I've done.


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