Redlake Tramway
The Redlake Tramway was a railway built to carry supplies and workers between Bittaford and the clay workings at Redlake, near the centre of the southern part of Dartmoor, Devon, England. It was built in 1911 to a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge, and ran for a circuitous 8.3 miles (13.4 km).
Remnants
The track bed remains today. It can be followed from Bittaford Moor Gate providing access to several tors and hills such as Hangershell Rock, Sharp Tor, Piles Hill, Three Barrows, Eastern and Western White Barrows and Quickbeam Hill.
The trackbed is lined at various points with marker posts, disused quarries and earthworks. Towards the top of the ascent are Leftlake and Redlake itself. Both are abandoned pits that have been flooded, creating lakes (the word "lake" in both names derives from the streams flowing through the areas, not the artificial lakes, which are recent features). There is a robust stone bridge at Leftlake, with a rudimentary name plaque engraved in mortar. At Redlake there are the remains of a demolished pumphouse, along with other ruins.
Sources
- Harris, Helen (1992). The Industrial Archaeology of Dartmoor. Newton Abbot: Peninsula Press. ISBN 1-872640-21-4.
- Wade, E A. The Redlake Tramway & China Clay Works. Twelveheads Press. ISBN 0-906294-56-8.
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Coordinates: 50°24′N 3°53′W / 50.4°N 3.89°W