{"id":22981,"date":"2020-03-07T18:35:52","date_gmt":"2020-03-07T23:35:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.howderfamily.com\/blog\/?p=22981"},"modified":"2022-08-02T06:13:05","modified_gmt":"2022-08-02T11:13:05","slug":"bermuda-4","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.howderfamily.com\/blog\/bermuda-4\/","title":{"rendered":"Bermuda Shorts, Part 4 (Bermuda Railway Trail )"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Bermuda Railway Trail surprised me in a pleasing way. I saw it on a map before I arrived and I thought it sounded interesting. Actually, it far exceeded my expectations, becoming one of the most memorable parts of my visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/a>
Bermuda Railway Trailhead at the Fairmont Southampton (in background)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A Little Context<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Residents and tourists alike used horsepower or their own feet to get around Bermuda for most of its history. The British government didn’t even allow private automobiles there until after World War II. However, they did build a railway<\/a> stretching the entire length of the archipelago that operated for most of the 1930’s and 1940’s. Trains and tracks disappeared ages ago but much of the path formed the basis of Bermuda Railway Trail National Park.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

My Routes<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I traveled large parts of the trail over a couple of different days. My wife and I walked the entire St. George’s Parish portion from the outskirts of the Town of St. George to the tip of Ferry Point Park and back during one morning stroll (route<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another day, my wife had to work<\/a> from her base at the Fairmont Southampton hotel. I rented a bicycle and headed to the trailhead just down the hill (map<\/a>). The guys at the bicycle shop suggested riding west for the best scenery so I did that just like probably 90% of the other tourists. I went out as far as Scaur Hill and came back for lunch with my wife at the hotel (route<\/a>). Then for grins I headed east to the segment’s end in Paget Parish and returned home once again (route<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I didn’t get a chance to try any of the North Shore segments. I’ll be sure to finish those if I’m lucky enough to return to Bermuda someday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Mastering the Terrain<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Construction required tremendous effort. Trains need relatively gentle grades and smooth curves, even for the small one- and two-car trains used in Bermuda. This didn’t mesh well with undulating terrain. Builders had to use a variety of techniques to deal with that. I guarantee the railway trail is a lot straighter and more level than any of the modern roads that parallel it, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Road Cuts<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
Narrow Passages<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Construction crews simply dug through hillsides that rose too sharply. I rode past impressive road cuts at many places along the trail. I stopped at this memorable instance in Southampton Parish (map<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My rented bicycle appeared in this image. I chose a Trek mountain bike with nice wide treads that day. It might have been overkill for most of the trail although it did save me from having to dismount a couple of times. A hybrid probably would have been fine although I’d avoiding using a road bike here. Also, stay to the left in Bermuda, even on a trail!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tunnels<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
One of the longer tunnels conveniently lighted<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I love tunnels, for example those on the Great Allegheny Passage<\/a> in Pennsylvania or the Whittier tunnel<\/a> in Alaska. I found several tunnels along my path including a nice occurrence west of the Fairmont trailhead (map<\/a>). Most seemed to be road cuts with lids instead of genuinely bored tunnels. Nonetheless, that didn’t matter. I enjoyed riding through them all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bridges<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
Old Bridge Pilings at Ferry Point Park<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Some of the stretches along North Shore Road featured lovingly restored bridges. Unfortunately I didn’t get to visit any of those segments. I did see a former<\/em> bridge though, long since abandoned and reduced to pilings. I considered the ruins at Ferry Point Park (map<\/a>) to be particularly scenic. It would be lovely if they ever restored this one. The current causeway connecting the eastern end of Bermuda to the rest of the archipelago is way too dangerous for pedestrians.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Remnants<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Rails and ties disappeared from the roadbed a long time ago. I’m sure they became scrap and someone probably carted them away once service ended. Nonetheless, certain historic artifacts remained in place, including some of considerable size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stations<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
The former Riddell’s Bay Station<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

For example, even some of the original stations still existed. Riddell’s Bay Station in Warwick Parish (map<\/a>) served as an excellent case in point. Passengers used to ride to this station and then catch a horse-drawn cart down to a local golf course. Similar arrangements existed at other stations. Tourists could get fairly close by rail. From there, owners of various attractions used traditional horsepower to carry them the rest of the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mileposts<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
2 miles to the town of St. George’s \/ 6 miles to Devonshire<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Many of the original mileposts existed too. I saw several of them including the one above located in St. George’s Parish (map<\/a>). They seemed to mark distance between larger towns rather than individual stations. A number of stations existed between St. George’s and Devonshire, both referenced on the marker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Historical Markers<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/a>
Learn about the trail as you go<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I particularly appreciated the frequent historical markers such as this one at the Paget Parish trailhead (map<\/a>). I didn’t have any particular deadline or agenda. That let me stop at a bunch of signs as I cruised the trail. My photos of various historical markers gave me a pretty good sense of the place:<\/p>\n\n\n\n