Stop at Stow

With just 19 days to go until passenger services begin on the new Borders Railway, I thought I'd take the opportunity on a wet day off (no walking today!) to write a blog post sharing the progress of the railway in the village of Stow.

I moved to Stow almost two years ago, and although at that point the 6th of September 2015 seemed a long way off, the time has flown by and the railway has progressed so quickly. Looking back at photos from the last two years, the transformation is incredible.

This was the first photo I took from the road bridge at what will be Stow station, in August 2013:

Then a few months later, after heavy rain:

May 2014, no track yet but progress at the station:

 

 Early November 2014 on the Fountainhall road, almost ready for track laying:

24th November 2014, track laying day arrives! I was very excited to be free this day to take photos of this historic moment:

 

 

 

 

 16th December 2014:

7th June 2015, the 'proving train' travels the route on the day before driver training began. I was again so chuffed to be off work this day and in the right place at the right time! I hadn't known this would be happening on this day, I just got lucky whilst out on a walk:

 

Stow station, 7th June 2015

This will soon be a normal sight!

Although my photos are pretty sporadic, the gaps between the photos really emphasise the progress made in between! 

I've been surprised at how excited I've felt watching this progress. Most of my photos have been taken whilst on local walks; I didn't go out to take photos of the railway but I often struck lucky with my timing! 

We didn't move to Stow because the railway was coming. Stow without the railway is a fantastic place to live - Stow with the railway will be even better! 

All I hope is that people do stop at Stow. Although a small village, it offers so much to visitors - there's a great local arts and craft scene (some of this can be viewed and purchased at the fantastic Cloudhouse Cafe - where there is plenty of yummy cakes and homebaking on offer!), plenty of sporting activity including a football team and bowling club (I'm partial to the Zumba class myself!) as well as an annual sports day, lots of local walks, and best of all, our very own music festival - Stowed Out!

Opening of Sports Day 2013

 

Stow is very easy on the eye too - with its iconic church, striking town hall, the 'bridge to heaven' over the Gala Water, and it even has a Holy Well! 

 

Hogmanay fireworks over the church!

Stow Town Hall

Stow's 'bridge to heaven', built in 1655

The Gala Water

Our Lady's Well

We have been very happy in Stow and are looking forward to making use of the railway. We'll use it to travel to Edinburgh, but we're also excited about the Borders being open to visitors who may never have considered the area before. I hope that people will stop at Stow and explore the variety of activities and walks in the area.

 

The Stow community has a fantastic website: www.stow-borders.co.uk
Find out more about the Borders Railway project: www.bordersrailway.co.uk
Book your ticket to Stow here: www.scotrail.co.uk