North Yorkshire Moors Railway: window card

About this journey

Pickering is the southern end of the heritage railway, with restored station buildings before the climb towards Levisham. Newton Dale brings a narrow, wooded valley; Goathland adds a moorland village and another historic station. Grosmont is the junction with the scheduled Esk Valley Line and the location of the railway's locomotive facilities. Whitby-bound heritage services continue over the national network. A ticket for the heritage railway and a Northern ticket for the Esk Valley are different products.

From Pickering, follow the route through Levisham and Newton Dale towards Goathland. The national park guide places the railway in its moorland and valley landscape, while the station pages give you ideas for breaking the ride. Keep the sequence in mind and enjoy the changes between stops. A station arrival is part of the scenery here: buildings, platforms and a pause beside the train add scale to the countryside around them.

Goathland is a particularly good stop when you want both railway atmosphere and a village exploration. NYMR identifies the station's film and television connections and describes the village a short walk up the bank. The converted goods-shed tearoom gives a gentler alternative to a longer walk. Let the station be interesting in its own right, even if you have no interest in its screen appearances. A refreshment and time to look around can be a satisfying break.

Grosmont offers a different emphasis, with the engine sheds and the working side of the heritage railway. Its official station guide describes the pedestrian route through the historic George Stephenson tunnel to the shed shop. Choose this stop if locomotives and the railway's maintenance story are what bring you here. Public access is a chance to enjoy the railway from another angle; seeing particular work or an engine in motion is something to appreciate if it happens.

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