Cycling along and over the route of the disused Cambridge to Mildenhall Railway Line

Yesterday was another grey day in the Fens, not just grey but also very dull which makes it difficult to take pictures. Even mid-afternoon, when taking a series of exposures for the Photomatix software to combine later, the longer exposures were between 0.25s and 0.4s. I was always told that you should not take hand-held pictures at less than 1/60 (0.017s). It is also said that having image stabilisation extends the slowest shutter speed down to 1/15 (0.067s). (If the camera moves while taking the picture then it makes the picture blurred. In hindsight I was probably using too small an aperture, but it did mean that some of the pictures used to create the HDR pictures were blurred and so blurred the overall result.

As the afternoon wore on even the standard exposure was 0.625s and the longest exposure around 1.6s - so that is my excuse for some of the less than crisp photography. All the talk of the CBG in the press and the announcement of the Luton-Dunstable Busway project got me thinking about a disused railway line I come across on the Fens on my route around Wicken Fen - the Cambridge to Mildenhall Railway Line . The line was opened (as far as Fordham) in 1884 and then completed (to Mildenhall) in 1885. It was finally closed in 1965 - forty five years ago. Bits of it are still very much in evidence, whilst other bits have disappeared. It also seems that the ownership has become more patchwork - probably in line with the fields alongside the route.

My first encounter (yesterday) was on the Sustrans 51 cycle route between the Newmarket Road Park and Ride site and Fison Road on the outskirts of the Cambridge. The route is somewhere behind these trees. Although it is not a public right of way the path appears to lead down to the route of the disused line.

The cycle path, where it meets Fison Road.

I then cycled down Ditton Lane and back east along High Ditch lane where the road still rises over the old line with the bridge still intact. The road is ramped up on either side to rise above the railway line as the land round here is pretty flat. It is probably cheaper to keep the whole construction rather than knock it all down. I wonder who retains ownership/responsibility for the safety of the bridge? This view is looking North towards the A14 - it looks as if there is a path - clearly the graffiti painters have been active.

This is the route looking back from the bridge towards Cambridge - it seems to be well used. This would make a great addition to the cycle routes out of Cambridge - although at the moment it is completely blocked by the A14.

As it has been quite dry round here for at least a week I then set of along some bridleways rather than use the roads. Whilst the route of the railway line has been blocked by the A14 there is a little used bridge around 0.5m down the road - Lower Fen Drove Way. It starts as a tarmacked road over the bridge, but turns into a gravel track where it heads to Gate House which appears to be a kennels. The track crosses the route of the old railway line at Gate House. Here is the Old railway track looking towards Lode - as you can see it is now signed as a private road.

At the same point, looking back towards Cambridge, with the garden of Gate House on the left. This track is now a dead end where it meets the A14 - it is now a farmers path to the surrounding fields.

I carried on across the Old Railway Line towards Snout Corner on a byway - it was hard work although I stuck to the edges my tyres still picked up quite a bit of mud and caused a lot of drag on the front wheel. I was also a bit worried about running over thorns from the recently slashed cut hedgerow. The bike had to lie down for a rest!

My route took me back to Fen Ditton Lane, although now called the Horningsea Road through Horningsea (where Ben Haywards Cycles have a large shop and Workshop. Fortunately there is an off-road route back to the Fens just after Horningsea which is called the Harcamlow Way. It starts as a gravel path before the Bridle way becomes a grass route, not muddy though and then improves as it passes Alicky Farm where the route crosses the Old Railway Line again. There are other paths around Stow cum Quy Fen that are also worth exploring.

Here is the Railway Line looking back towards Cambridge - the track looks in good condition, but it has been barred by a gate and looks to now be part of the field.

Looking the other way there is rubble from what I presume were buildings associated with the old railway line (perhaps a signal box?). At this point I have to admit I am not totally sure of the rights of way along this piece of track. Looking at the OSM it appears as a track and after a short while as a Bridleway, where it crosses, what I presume is National Trust Land. There are gates with low barriers for horses and it is marked as a Permissive path.

As you might expect the route is straight and this is taken looking back from Lode towards the Cambridge direction. The previous photograph was taken around 1 mile/1.5Km down the track.

Nearby I also took a photograph of a recently ploughed field to show how much the soil dries out around here. It does not take much imagination to realise how this can quickly turn to dust and get blown away if crops don't grow to bind it together.

The old Railway Station at Lode - you can make out the platform along the right covered in brambles. It was called the Bottisham and Lode Railway Station in the way things used to be with railway lines running along the most cost effective routes rather than convenient for the people travelling on the railways. Perhaps that is why some many had to be closed?

The route then switched to the bit of Connect 2 Sustrans route through white Fen before hitting the road again - only the single track Upware Road. I had to stop to take this picture of a recently ploughed field. I presume that leaving the plough behind saves carrying it back to the farm and then back when a nearby field is next to be ploughed. I think the smudges on the picture are rain drops.

I could not resist taking this picture of High Bridge with a fellow cyclist sitting on the steps for a breather. The Lode was very still as well. He then headed in the Ely direction of Sustrans 11 and I headed down Sustrans 11 to Burwell when it magically became Sustrans 51.

the Sustrans 51 route through Burwell does not pass the route of the old railway line but the road from Reach to Swaffham Prior does cross over the old route which is still visible as a cutting. By this time it was getting dark and I had to switch on my front and back lights. I propped the camera on the Railway Bridge wall - the exposures were pretty long though - 0.625s rising to 1.6s. This view looks up towards Burwell where the track cuts through the Devil's Dyke.

When looking the other way it was not so clear where the railway line went.

I would have explored Swaffham Bulbeck and Swaffham Prior to check out what remnants of the railway line were still visible - but it was too dark to take pictures so I headed back home.