News of the STEAM RAILWAY@ RUDYARD(recent news in red)

boiler from steam engine waverleysteam engine Merlin exits Rudyard station

Trains are running daily at half term April 14-21st

Snow arrived again in large amounts on 21st of February and so regretfully the trains were cancelled for the day. We have a number of our popular steam engine driver experience courses booked in for the next few weeks so the trains will be steaming up the tracks.

 The steam engine Waverley is dismantled at the moment and is about to be fully professionally repainted in Apple Green. On Sunday the 14th Feb. the boiler was washed out and the cladding removed as a first step. Merlin was in service and the trains were busy.

The main news in December and January was the very cold weather and snow. Despite this and frozen water supplies we have managed to run all the planned trains. Improvements to Rudyard station are in hand ready for the new season.

Work on the track took a back seat in December due to the weather but work on clearing the site has continued and started again in mid January with the track blown clear of leaves. Work to the drainage by the track has had welcome effects so the path is drier and there are fewer trespassers on the track.

The steam engines are having their annual boiler tests and King Arthur and Pendragon successfully passed on January 27th. Waverley and Excalibur passed on February 3rd ready for the main 2010 season. All our steam locomotives will be in use in 2010.

Waverley (Curwen Atlantic) is partially dismantled as its to have a repaint again to a new variation of LNER Apple Green.

The local community payback team are working at the station to tidy up the site and path to the lake and are doing a very good job. Its hoped that the County Council will do some work to the car park soon.Santa Special train plows through the snow

We have lots of learn to drive a steam train driver experience courses booked so the railway will have trains running most days over the next couple of weeks. We are running daily public trains at half term February 14-21st

For the inside information log onto our blog @  Rudyard News

Updated February 8th , 2010

NEWS OF Events in 2010

King Arthur with Jo's party steam train ready to departsteam engine Merlin helps the track repair

Birthday Party train ready for departure in November 2009 & Merlin pulls a ballast train

  • Macmillan Charity Day March 27th - All proceeds to the charity and lots of special features
  • Easter Egg Specials - April 2-5th - Free Easter eggs for all the children
  • Lollipop Specials May 1-3rd - Free Lollipops for kids
  • Lollipop Specials May 29-31 -Free Lollipops for kids
  • Lake Festival Date to be announced - activities on the lake and the railway in full swing
  • Lollipop Specials August 28-30th - Free lollipops
  • Steam Gala September 25 & 26 - All our engines running plus several visiting steam engines
  • Halloween October 30 & 31st
  • Santa Trains December 12, 18, 19th

    • The Railway

    Trains are now running every Sunday from 11.00am to 3pm.

    The Rudyard Lake Steam Railway is in the North Staffordshire Peak District and our steam trains give a great 3 mile return trip along the side of the lake. The railway uses coal fired narrow gauge steam engines to pull its trains. The railways 5 steam engines all have names linked to the tales of King Arthur. The lake railway is just North of Leek in Staffordshire close to the borders of Cheshire and Derbyshire.

    Rudyard Lake is a historic site where Rudyard Kipling's parents met and named their son after the spot they met.