Woody Bay
Status: Owned by the L&B Railway Trust
Woody Bay is the main operational base of the revived Lynton & Barnstaple Railway.
The station opened with the line on 11 May 1898, and closed along with the rest of the railway in 1935.
The site was bought by the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Association (now the L&B Railway Trust) in 1995. It opened to the public in 2003. An "out and back" service as far as the missing bridge 67 began in 2004, and the railway was extended to Killington Lane in 2006.
Visitor Access
Visitors to Woody Bay are welcome whenever the site is open. For full details please see our homepage.
History
The station opened with the line on 11 May 1898, and closed along with the rest of the railway in 1935. It was known as Wooda Bay until the name was changed in 1901.
The station was equiped with a passing loop, a siding serving a coal yard, small stable, and a loading dock (which is still in place). There were also a small goods shed, which has now be rebuilt as vistor toilets and a staff mess room.
The coal yard remained open for many years after the railway closed, and the station building was converted to a holiday home. It was not equiped with electricity until taken over by the L&B Association in the 1990s.
The station building was designed by Jones of Lynton in the Swiss chalety style, similar Blackmoor Gate, Lynton Station, and Lynton Town Hall. This tied into the victorian marketing of the Lynton area as "The English Switzerland".
Like Blackmoor, the station included accomodation for the stationmaster and his family, comprising two small upstairs bedrooms, a parlour, and a small kitchen. The parlour is now in use as part of the shop. Visitor faciliies were relatively sparse, but lady passengers were provided with a dedicated waiting room (now our bookshop) and an inside lavatory. Gentlemen had to use the outside facilites, which have survived remarkably unchanged since 1898 - modern facilities are available for those who prefer them!
Restoration
At the end of 1994, Woody Bay Station was put on the market. An appeal was launched to buy the property, and the purchase was completd in 1995. A 1997 agreement to lease more land at Woody Bay lead to an ownership dispute over part of the site, which was eventually resolved in 2001.
In 1996 the Railway was granted planning permission to reopen part of the at Woody Bay. The first tracklaying started in 2002, reaching Bridge 67 in 2004. The site opened as a visitor centre in 2003, and the first passenger train since 1935 left Woody Bay on the 12th July 2004.
2004 also saw the construction of the workshop and the refurbishment of the interior of the station.
Bridge 67, which marks the halfway point between Woody Bay and Killington Lane, was rebuilt in 2005. This work was generously carried out by Edmund Nuttall Ltd, the same company that had built the original railway. Tracklaying to Killington Lane started shortly afterwards, and was completed in 2006.
Train services from Woody Bay to Killington Lane halt started in May 2006.
The old goods sheds were recreated as a visitors toilet block and volunteers mess room in 2008. The original buildings had been constructed of cast concrete and were beyond saving, so the new building was built to the profile.
The new tearoom was opened in July 2022. Whilst this was not an original structure, it was modelled in the syle of similar Southern Railway structures.
A carriage shelter is scheduled for construction in 2025.
Signalling
Details coming Soon
