Quarry Line To Cruden Bay
Returning to the mainline trackbed I continued towards Buller's. It
looked as if the trackbed would go on forever and the railway easily reopened if
the thought was there. However, I was stopped from getting there on the trackbed
by a garden fence and the line being blocked on the other side of
the railway bridge by a Sawmill that had taken over the ground right up to the
railway perimeter. Walking this section of trackbed was quite comfortable and a
real pleasure in the sunny conditions of the day, but with so much long grass it
really needs to be nice and dry, as it was in this instance. You do need to
tread carefully as there is some rough ground and the odd pothole that could
catch you out.
An attractive
treelined edging to the wide trackbed as it goes towards Cruden Bay
A long righthand curve
led me up to the deadend where the owner of the house up ahead has fenced off
the railway
From the same spot,
looking back towards Boddam. Is that a train whistle I hear!
The 'road' block. The
only way out was to climb over the fence on the right and walk along the edge
of the field, where thankfully a break in the fencing by the railway bridge
allowed me to get out
The bridge looks quite
good from this side. The well-groomed garden probably helps to keep people at bay
The view from the
bridge towards Boddam shows a neat scene and a very pleasant modern house.
The garden has been extended by back-filling the low cutting towards the bridge
Behind the house on
the left you can see the stone structure by the quarry trackbed and to the right
the quarry area
The view towards
Cruden Bay. The sawmill has blocked my progressing towards Bullars. The only
thing
was to walk around the main road, which is a fair little walk compared to the
direct distance on the trackbed
The western side of
the railway bridge tells a different story. Both stone and metal work are badly
corroded. Again, I asked permission to enter the grounds
Ditto
Back on the main road
with the railway embankment running towards Bullars where it comes to
another abrupt end
An interesting culvert
below the embankment with the North Sea just ahead. There is an interesting mix
of dressed
granite and red brick used for the tunnel. I tried to get up onto the trackbed
but it was just to difficult on both sides
At the road junction
for the Buller's O'Buchan the railway has virtually been wiped away for about
half
of a mile. The buttment is in quite good condition but some of the outer stones
are getting to a stage where
they could fall from their settings.
The embankment from
the north west side, looking towards Boddam. You can see the Sawmill, and there
is also a fence blocking the trackbed, but which doesn't look impossible to pass
Buller's
Halt stood a little way to the left of this scene, where the trackbed has
been completely demolished.
The trackbed runs towards Boddam. The Sawmill is seen in the background.
to the Bullers and Slain's Castle. This is where the halt should have been.
The walk from Buller's O' Buchan
Halt and into Cruden Bay
Looking back at the
remains of the road bridge, with the quarry in the background. A lot of railway
embankment has been
removed at this spot. The power station chimney at Boddam can be seen in the
distance, as well as the Sawmill chimney.
The trackbed is seen
winding its way into the distance. The quarry link can just be made out as it
runs to the quarry to the far right. Again, the Power Station chimney at Boddam
is seen
The railway trackbed
is found again towards Cruden Bay. I have wondered where Bullar's Halt stood as
there is no sign of it being at this spot. The line climbed steeply from here to
the main road bridge and
it would have been difficult to built a station, let alone a halt.
As I approached the
railway bridge it suddenly became clear that this must have been the sight of
Bullar's Halt. I reached
the site by a side road up to where you see the gate ahead. This would have been
the entrance to the station
I would have expected
the halt to be closer to the removed bridge as that is where the side road goes
off
to the Bullars, but perhaps the station was sited here both for railway
convenience and also allowing a
visit to Slain's Castle, which is nearer this point. Perhaps too, back in those
days there may have been
a horse & cart or a Charabang taking vistors to the sites!
This sight has all
the feel of a railway station
Looking back towards
Boddam. The path by the gate, running up to the main road by the house must have
been
the station entrance, with passengers and traffic crossing the track and coming
in by the left of this scene
The bridge is in quite
good condition but some of the ground on the right is crumbling. There is
no road or path link to the bridge. The station entrance had to have been at
the opposite end
Central view, looking
towards Cruden Bay
A view from the
bridge, towards Boddam
A view from the
bridge, looking towards Cruden Bay, seen in the distance. The trackbed is clear
enough
to walk up to the treeline but from a previous visit to that end of the
line I knew that there was no
easy way out, therefore Idecided to walk the main road to the outskirts of the
village.
A view of the bridge on the
Cruden Bay side. The bridge is gated and locked, which meant another scamble
A
telephoto view of the bridge from along the main road. The line ran in a cutting
then on an embankment on the
approach to Cruden Bay. This is looking towards Boddam. I have seen this bridge
numerous times but never
connected it with Buller’s Halt.
A culvert close to the
trees that blocks the way from walking the trackbed, as mentioned
On the opposite side
of the Fraserburgh Road Junction the railway ran on the embankment seen here
on the right,
right with an overgrowth of trees blocking the view towards Buller's Halt. I made
the right decision not to try
walking
the trackbed
up to this point
Remains of the bridge
and the embankment by the Fraserburgh-Peterhead road junction, which runs left
to right
between the two mounds of grass. This is looking towards Boddam. Behind me
is the remains of the
brickworks, which was linked to the railway
