Interesting unknown engineering landmarks in the uk

No one has said Emly Moor transmitter. Or the dams on the derwent in derbyshire, Howden, Derwent and Lady Bower. Humber Bridge, Tinsley Viaduct.

North of Northampton on the Brampton valley cycle way there are two long old rail tunnels you can cycle through, unlit they are great. The phrase, can't see your hand infront of your face definately applies. Group rides in there no lights are manic fun. Ride untill your bars scrape the Walls then correct.

The Churchill barriers are impressive but are not built out of ships! They were built to replace the sunken ships which were proved to be ineffective.

They were constructed by Italian prisoners of war during world war 2 out of 10 ton concrete blocks to join some islands in Orkney together and to block entrances to Scapa Flow where the home fleet was moored. They are still used by residents today to travel between islands.

Not exactly unknown, but…..Jodrell Bank Radio Telescope……

What a fascinating thread! I never cease to be amazed at the subjects discussed on here.

So … how about a bike ride to visit these? Can it be done as a Forum Ride? Would be awesome 😀

Well I really like this:

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But I can't possibly tell you where it is . . .

I also find the things on here[/url] fascinating sometimes. 🙂

Cant believe no one has mentioned the Welland viaduct http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welland_Viaduct

It is three-quarters of a mile long and has 82 arches, each of which has a 40 ft span. It was completed in around 1878, and is the longest masonry viaduct across a valley in Britain.

Scotlands Secret Bunker near Anstruther (signposted for miles around…) shhhhhhh

A fascinating insight into the Cold War, loads of red telephones and big red buttons.. was going to be the seat of government if it all went off….

Best viewed with German relatives as I found out….

Actually I think I need to get out off my bike a bit more 😉

Someone please stick a pic of the wooden structure on the tyne. Near blaydon? Its pretty impressive……………

Dunston Staiths!

The view from my front room 🙂

So … how about a bike ride to visit these? Can it be done as a Forum Ride? Would be awesome

I've tried to persuade people on group rides in the Wyre Forest to explore a bit more, but most people are reluctant to leave the main part of the forest and ride as far as the river.
If anyone's interested, I'd be prepared to lead a forum ride from Bewdley to Bridgnorth and back, about 35-40km round trip.
Only problem is, most of the river bank path is a footpath if you worry about that sort of thing. 😉
We could take in…
Bewdley flood defences
The Pipeline Bridge
Victoria Bridge
…which I have already mentioned, plus…
Hampton Loade Ferry. I think it's the only current driven ferry in the country. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tivedshambo_2004-07-24_Hampton_Loade_Ferry.jpg
Hampton Loade waterworks bridge. Unusual in that the pipes form the arches to support the deck. http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/1417969
Bridgnorth Cliff Railway. The UK's only inland funicular railway. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:BridgnorthCliffRailway-looking-down.jpg
Most of the route is within sight of the Severn Valley Railway, so there'll be steam trains too. 🙂

Local to me (and not that well known) is the Millenium Walkway in New Mills, Derbyshire. The town sits on top of a deep gorge where 2 rivers join and there have been mills down there for years (derelict now) along with all the accompanying weirs and dams and 2 huge viaducts over the gorge.

In 2000 a bridge was finally built to connect the two ends of the footpath (previously walkers had had to go up into the town and round to the other side to continue their walk).

The bridge won a design award but the architect was killed in the London bombings of 7/7, there's a plaque on the bridge in his memory.

Stan Brewster was his name, he wasnt the architect but the Engineer that oversaw the construction. He was also immensly proud of the finished walkway
I worked with him on a job in Derby, it was my first job as a young Engineer straight out of university and Stan helped me alot and instilled in me alot of the values that I try and practise to this day. I only knew him for a relatively short 18 months but he made more of an impression on my education and career than anyone before or since
If I can have even a quarter of the life that man had then I will know I have done my best. In my eyes the man was a legend and for that reason the Millenium Walkway has a special place in my own personal list of Engineering greats

Winter Hill TV Transmitter

there are taller in the UK but none in quite such a demanding location
Its not called Winter Hill for no reason!

Blimey, just looked at the 28dayslater forum that paul4stones linked. And I thought us bikers were eccentric, they go down storm drains taking photos!
But, undeniably fascinating! Where's me wellies & torch……..

The Severn Bridge.
The bridge itself is famous enough, but it's not so well known that there's a cycle path along both sides of the motorway.

Barmouth Bridge is impressive… but well known.

One of the most impressive, and little known structures that I have come across is the County Adit / Great County Adit in Cornwall. A network of tunnels excavated in the 1700s to drain a large part of the mining area between Redruth and Truro – a massive feat of engineering, all driven to a grade to ensure gravity drainage, and still working today – albeit some collapse have rendered some branches inaccessible and less effective in draining workings….

Amazingly, I can't find any representative photos on the net!

Ribblehead Viaduct, Yorks and Tiddy Viaduct

The M62 across the Pennines
Scammoden Bridge and Dam – largest rockfill dam in UK
The Pennine Way footbridge (actually two self supporting cantilevers, there was originally a small gap in the middle)
Ken Wildes Farm (popular belief has it he refused to sell up and move – not the case it sits in the middle of the two carrageways for Engineering reasons)
All built during the worst winters and wettest summers on the moors for years, even the dumptruck bodies had to be heated so the peat could be transported away from the site
A true understated Engineering marvel
http://www.motorwayarchive.ihtservices.co.uk/m62bounpole.htm

It doesn't look like much now, but the idea of spending much of the early 1800's sailing to and fro to dump 4 million tonnes of rock out in the sea seems like quite an undertaking! It's a mile long and has a 1 in 5 gradient slooping into the water at the seaward side, so is far bigger under the water than it looks from the top.

Wind farms you cannot beat them.

And it's called…:?:

Got turfed off that by the MoD Police when we were kids – out fishing and decided to have a look at the western light (pictured)

Managed to find a piccie of the Great County Adit in Cornwall (from my post above)

Doesn't look much at surface – but it's effectively the biggest river in that part of Cornwall!

The Severn Tunnel and the remarkable story of The Great Spring and the divers.
http://www.divernet.com/other_diving_topics/160544/the_strong_man_the_rebreather_and_the_tunnel.html

Is that the Breakwater in Plymouth Sound? Used to kayak out there in the mid 80s when I was at Poly there. The rescue shelter on the other end holds 20 people or more…

the deep level shelters under the Northern Line are great…

…as are the Backbone transmitters (ie Stokenchurch)

oh, the thing in the sea I posted earlier is called the Plymouth Sound Breakwater. It would have been helpful to have mentioned that, really.

Top thread and lost 4 hours last night on the 28 Days Later site!

If you like 28 Days Later site, then try this as well

http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/

What a great thread!

I work in Corsham, so the Burlington bunkers link was fascinating. My office is only about 200m north of Box tunnel and right over tunnel quarry by the looks of things. I'm convinced you can hear noise coming up from the tunnel sometimes.

The tunnel entrances around Box are stunning

There's a nice viaduct at Limpley Stoke just outside Bath as well

The Treffry Viaduct in Cornwall

http://cornwallheritagetrust.org/downloads/schools/sectionone.pdf%5D

Lots of "generic" Victorian railway viaductsmentioned in the thread – but this one pre-dates steam powered railways…

On top was a granite slab deck carrying a horse powered tramway – with an aqueduct beneath carrying a leat to drive a water wheel for a rope powered incline…

+1 for the M62 – it's a thing of beauty.

It's such a shame that we've lost the confidence to build things in this country now.

It's such a shame that we've lost the confidence to build things in this country now.

I don't think that's correct – what has happened is that lots of people don't want the status quo affected, particuarly because they don't understand that they're living in a post industrial, man-made landscape rather than a lovely natural one 🙄

The 40+ miles of underground canals in Greater Manchester

llamafarmer – have you seen the WWII buildings around Farleigh Rise? Lots more underground stuff there. You'll find lots of info if you have a Google, I could do run some sight seeing tours if anyone's interested… surface only!

aP – I don't disagree with you, but I do think something has gone wrong in our culture and we can't see that we can improve things. The optimism that we had in the Victorian era, or in the 50s and 60s has gone. NIMBYism, vested interests, conservation, environmentalism – there are always reasons not to build things, and a lack of belief that something new could be better than what's there now, and that change can be good.

Digswell viaduct, hertfordshire. I was told as a kid the people who died while building it are buried in the piers.

TBF docks, rail, canals all astound me. all built without modern hydraulics. Mad.

What about the Lochaber hydroelectric scheme:

65MW hydro electric plant build in 1929, to power the huge aluminium smelter, and apparently had the longest water carrying pipe in the world until 1970!

http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/scotgaz/features/featurefirst10538.html

Or of course the 400MW Ben Cruachan hydro electric power station, built inside the mountain:

http://www.scotland.org/about/entertainment-and-sport/features/business/ben-cruachan.html

Severnshed Bar in Bristol – the outside an old Brunel-designed boathouse with a great cast iron internal structure. The rather more modern bar itself is actually a hovercraft.

llamafarmer – have you seen the WWII buildings around Farleigh Rise? Lots more underground stuff there. You'll find lots of info if you have a Google, I could do run some sight seeing tours if anyone's interested… surface only!

No I had no idea there was stuff there as well. Can you see much above ground?

Yeah, the Hydro schemes are impressive. Not exactly unknown but my vote would go with the West Highland Line and the Blackwater dam – largest in Europe at the time and effectively built by hand. Also, there can't be many construction sites in the UK with their own graveyards?

WHL famous for it's pioneering use of concrete. The famous 'horse in the viaduct story' (WHL) has now been confirmed as fact.

More here:

http://www.thomastelford.com/books/SampleChapters/Civil%20Engineering%20Heritage%20Scotland%20highlands%20and%20islands.pdf

No I had no idea there was stuff there as well. Can you see much above ground?

There's 4-5 buildings, various big blocks of concrete, pillboxes, etc all next to roads or footpaths so very easy to get to/see. Send me an email if you fancy a tour.