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The 1 in 49 gradient between Goathland and Grosmont is one of the steepest rail gradients in the country. It replaced the 1 in 10 rope worked incline between Beck Hole and Goathland which operated from 1836 to 1865. The new route involved blasting a cutting through the rocks. Rock falls were so frequent that a watchman patrolled the line each night and walked the line between Esk Valley and Goathland Station each morning before the arrival of the 6 a.m. mail train from York, These safety patrols continued every day for over 50 years until grass and scrub stabilized the banks. |
| Darnholm was the 'dark meadow' whilst further down
the valley was 'Sommerholm' - the meadow grazed in summertime. There was
a fulling mill at Darnholm where cloth was spread in the tenter field to
be bleached by the sun but this was before the coming of the railway
with its smoke and soot!
The Murk Esk river is crossed four times in half a mile and there is an almost sheer drop of 100 feet (30m) to the valley floor, The hamlet of Beck Hole, a popular spot for visitors during Victorian and Edwardian times lies in the valley below |
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The 1836 route, to the north of the line, provides one of the most popular walks in the National Park - the Historical Rail Trail. Beyond the track in the fields can be seen the remains of railway sidings mine shafts and the gunpowder store - all that remains of the Esk Valley ironstone Mines of 1860-1875.
From Multimap |
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