Seaton Tramway Experience

On a very wet Wednesday, 29 September, twenty-two Rotarians and friends enjoyed a day out on the Seaton Tramway in Devon.

The Tramway runs on part of the old trackbed of the Seaton to Seaton Junction branch line of Southern Railways which was closed in the Beeching cuts of 1966. The three-mile route follows the river Axe from the station at Seaton to its terminus at Colyton, a journey of some 45 minutes, and was opened as a passenger service in 1970.

Along the route our tram driver, Chris, stopped our tram at a number of Halts to tell us interesting facts about the history of the Tramway and the scenery around us. Much of the route is through wetlands, the habitat of a wide variety of waterfowl. The comment from one of the group, “Lovely weather for ducks!” was received with the contempt it deserved.

The open sides to our tram provided no shelter from the rain and on arrival at Colyton Station we alighted quickly from the tram and made our way to the Tramstop Café for an excellent lunch and the chance to dry out.

On the return trip to Seaton Station we stopped at the Depot to learn more about the fleet of trams and their maintenance.

Although it rained the whole time the group was on the Tramway, an excellent time was had by all. Our tram driver, Chris, was thanked for the good-humoured way he imparted his knowledge, even though he was getting wetter than most of is. It is easy to see why Seaton Tramway is one of Devon’s major tourist attractions, welcoming over 100,000 visitors every year.

This fascinating visit to Seaton Tramway was organised by Rotarian Paul Brunsch, who was thanked most enthusiastically, even though he couldn’t organise the weather!