where are we well we're in our bedroom obviously well i know that but we don't normally film in
our bedroom no admittedly we don't but the acoustics are amazing because they've got
all these wonderful pillows in our bedroom fair enough welcome to our 2021 top 10 which this year
is abandoned transportation explores from the last year kindly sponsored by nordvpn
so let's cut straight to the chase in number 10 Cauldon tramways the caldon tramways which we went
with martin zero we did indeed roads or tramways or plate ways are early railways pre-passenger
with industry in mind moving limestone from coward and low to the canal at frog hall
was a vital industry here so much so that over the period of 100 years
they built four separate tram roads here all showing off different evolutions of the railway
with the wood and the cast iron plate on top were pretty rubbish in terms of their quality
and durability they decided to go with the new method of building tramways it's a fascinating
landscape and it houses a rich railway history not least the troubleshoot tunnel sitting here
three feet deep in mud so that's that alone there is a foot and a half say
that's deeper i can't feel the bottom yet
yeah two feet fair enough
that's a real
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below all the pin comments okay the real number nine hayling island haley island is wonderful
because it was the first explore we had post lockdown and had the wonderful langston bridge
in it more importantly than anything though we are now back on the every disused station trail
so hailing island was indeed our first spring explore after the winter lockdown the sun was
shining and we headed south with the drone and we were treated to some stunning views of this bridge
the centerpiece here showing the location of the old swing bridge
this line really is a tree and by and large can be walked in its full length
in at number eight now there isn't a lot left to see along the salisbury and dorset junction
railway perhaps a couple of short pathways and a few embankments here and there still leaving
their mark on the landscape even the tunnel has long since been buried just north of downton
but there is one little station tucked away behind the village of bremore or bremer
a little while back not only did the landowners want to restore the old station and waiting
room here but they wanted to go a bit further and make it accessible for everyone to enjoy
it's a real treat on the line that has so many stories to tell
in at number seven is the Wey and Aron canal and the lordings lock
possibly one of the wettest explores we have had this year that's for sure it
was horrendous and we use the gopro the vast majority of the time because it's waterproof
the wey in aron canal like so many other lost canals really lost out to the coming of the
railways but it did leave behind so much for us to enjoy today one specific feature
was the lordings lock now at first glance it looks like any other but on closer inspection
there is a lot more going on here a water wheel lifts water from the river below into the lock and
aqueduct all within the same area the lording site now we've been invited to film here again in the
summer for a detailed look and a chat with some of the volunteers but currently it's underwater
in at number six mapperley tunnel oh the one i didn't go to you didn't and that was probably a
wise decision so mapperley was the first tunnel on today's top 10. and what a tunnel it was
i'm always nervous about entering a tunnel that only has one entrance so the the northern entrance
to maple tunnel had been completely infilled so there's only one way in here and one way out
but knowing that this might not be here soon i didn't want to miss the opportunity of going
inside and having a look so after what seemed like an age when in fact with just 600 yards
you come across possibly one of the most bizarre structures but actually nicknamed the crap stack
60 years of dumping here have taken place and leaving this rather precarious structure here
mapperley tunnel however was really quite enjoyable and we did take the opportunity
to discuss the whole safety aspect of going into tunnels so in at number five it's another
tunnel the garndyffs tunnel me too and i'll probably pronounce that wrong but hey ho um
up on the branch mountain and this is the third time we've been to gandev's tunnel
if you've been watching our little channel for a while it is no secret
that this landscape here in south wales is one of my favorite places one of our favorite places
the hills tram road the feldu tunnel the blanaveon ironworks all leaving
such an impression on us and perhaps one in particular the garn diffuse forward and tunnel
likely built to protect the tram road from the forward workings it's hidden within the landscape
and it still survives two centuries on each time we visit i get a little bit braver and in the
summer of this year just gone well we mapped the entire tunnel as best we possibly could
oh look at that rebecca oh wow oh yeah that was amazing it is amazing isn't it
oh yeah but that that tells you that's not a tunnel but that tells you we're on the right track
in it number four the elite the elite now going back a year or so i probably never even considered
the word leet i may have had an idea what it was but i've never considered one considered
one as an explore that was at least until we visited the tamar north of plymouth and looked
at a short canal called the tavistock canal now i noticed looking at a current os map and an old
national library of scotland map a very steep hill section here had a couple of old tunnels
having no context to the surrounding landscape with regard to transport we set about doing
some research and then the subsequent explore and my goodness me im pleased we did it turned
out that this elite and its tunnels were in existence to serve some of the local mills
we couldn't quite make it across the gap that was just in front of us here
and then we tried again from above the tunnels but unfortunately the edge was too steep and we had
the same issue a couple of months later however a chap got in touch and provided us with these
pictures he'd made it all the way across the elite using some rope and climbing gear and got right
to the edge of the tunnels frustrating for us he was scared of going in the tunnels frustrating
for us we're scared of heights so between the two of us we didn't get in the tunnels but he did get
there and it did prove that you can get there so our goal would be to go again next year perhaps
go with the gentleman that kind of supplied us with these pictures we'd be brave enough to go
into tunnels he'd be very helpful in getting us across some of the the cliff edges there
in it number three the fossils landscape it's getting really exciting now because these were
somewhat i mean obviously the number three means it's gonna be pretty high up there on my list
it's gonna be pretty cool right yeah i suppose it is the fossils landscape
we went with elliott and joe we did didn't we yeah and a very crazy pair
yes very rainy day i do feel this video could just be the four of us larking around
i'm down so we often make videos about old railways old canals and the landscaping
how people interacted with the landscape but today we're going to go a little bit
further back in time so step back into the industrial revolution window
and in particular the window of a family called the fossils
james fussell is largely credited with inventing the sprocketed chain he and his family before him
took our lease here in the wadbury valley to use the water essentially for turning wheels
now even here in the late 1700s they were managing to export goods to the united states that still
staggers me to this day if you could harness the power of water here you could power wheels and if
you could power wheels well you can then do so many different things you can use hammers you
can grind stones and essentially you can make stuff the fossils landscape here is a maze of
tunnels underground workings sluice gates water channels you name it now we visited on a very
wet day which in my opinion made it even more beautiful in terms of the the aesthetics of it
in it number two ooh the granite railway yes the granite railway
up on a dart mall it's called the haitor tramway it was really good utterly utterly bizarre
uh looking at a railway made out of stone but nevertheless that was what we found high up on
the dart mall the hate or granite railway was constructed to move granite down the hills to
the stova canal now if you want to build a railway and you have an abundance of granite well i guess
it was an obvious step to build your railway out of granite built in 1820 it left some beautiful
examples of early railway ingenuity the line here also had many branches and subsequently they even
built points or switches out of the granite stone railway you can explore here for hours
and thankfully much of the route down to bobby tracy is a pathway it makes for an idyllic explore
in number one it's boat lifts i mean you sounded really excited about that but
they were quite excited to be fair it was amazing it was yeah
so the grand western canal and the boat lifts along the section of that canal the abandoned
section were just incredible for so many reasons that's why they are number one
back in the heyday of canal building the age-old problem
was conservation of water james green was in large part responsible for building the
engineering works on the ground western canal and he decided that boat lifts for the way forward
the nine head lift is largely there for all to see aside the metal wheels that would lift the
boats up and down it's signposted and displayed here and all very much there for you to see
most of the other lifts along this route however are gone but there was
a significant surprise in store for us when we got to the aliford lift
yes yes yes yes here we are wow
to my mind this is find of the day forget nine head this right here is fine of the day it's
so well hidden in this hedge you've got the oh my goodness me you've got the water below there and
you've got just hidden away here this uh crevice this what doesn't you wouldn't even take a second
glance at this but it's this masonry line hidden by nature which is slowly reclaimed right in front
of me is a straight drop down into goodness knows what so need to tread very carefully
okay so now we're at the we're at the top of the boat lift we're at the bit where the boats would
have come into it um just there in front of me to the right you'll see where the boats would have
come in here and they've gone down here and they'd have gone um left there and they've gone into
two casans here two boat lifts here and use your imagination because right up here by my hand would
be a huge great wheel and it would have chains on it and maybe two or three of these probably three
or four actually and they would hold the cast ons and the boats and they would be lifted up and down
certainly that was the principle of course thanks for watching the video folks and
thanks for supporting us through 2021 whether you are an old subscriber or a new subscriber don't
forget to click in the link in the doobly do for the nord vpn special holiday offer
indeed do check that out because it would help us and help the channel grow other than that um happy
holidays merry christmas and a happy new year to you we'll see you in 2022. see you next year
we might actually see them a bit sooner that because it's potentially
a video like new year's eve maybe i don't know or might see this might be next
yeah goodbye
you