Crooked Spire and Tramway Village

As I mentioned in my last couple of posts, we went off to Chesterfield yesterday on a courier run. This is also Tigger’s first day back at work after the holiday and she is spending it doing what she enjoys - travelling!

Although I didn’t mention it in my blog, we picked up the package on Sunday night from the building’s security staff. It had to be delivered by noon, so Tigger took an early train in case of train delays and other problems and I followed later train on the 9:25 from St Pancras. Both journeys went according to plan and by the time I arrived in Chesterfield at 11:30, Tigger had delivered the package and was awaiting me on the platform.

We decided to put off exploring Chesterfield until later and the photo on the left of the famous Crooked Spite was taken in the evening, as you might be able to tell from the lighting. We caught the number 17 bus to Matlock where we had lunch in a small cafe called The Elizabethan.

Matlock is a pretty town in beautiful surroundings, and well worth a visit, but it still wasn’t our final destination. This was the Crich Tramway Village.

It is impossible to do this place justice in a few words. In brief, a group of enthusiasts have managed to buy and rebuilt a collection of old trams, lay track and run the trams. Visitors can ride the trams, attend various exhibitions and get a close-up view of numerous trams in various states of repair. The tram in the photo is the first of two that we rode.

The second tram we rode was open-topped. We had a long talk with the “conductor”, who was a very knowledgeable enthusiast with a wealth of knowledge about trams and their history. I very much enjoyed riding the trams and admiring the word that has gone into their restoration.

Trams are not the only exhibits. Some buildings have also been rescued, like this pub. The “village” presents like the high street of a small town at an indeterminate time in the past. There are shop fronts with displays of old products (these are currently under development), a printing shop and an ice-cream kiosk.

The pub, incidentally, operates as a pub when the village is open and there is a restaurant on the upper floor though we did not try this ourselves. (Unlike us, eh? )

Here are a few more items that caught my eye:

 

Goldfish in the horse trough	Splendid lion on top of the pub	The Herbert Slack 87 Gavioli Military Band Organ

Leaving the Tramway Village, we had to return to Matlock by bus.

I thought you might like this picture of us waiting at the bus stop.

Here are some photos taken in Matlock, showing what a picturesque town it is, well worth a visit on its own account.

We returned to Chesterfield, took some photos and then went to the bus station. At that time of day (after 7 pm), the frequency of buses was diminishing. We realized that if we waited for a bus, we would miss the next train so we hailed a cab and returned to the station in style.

To conclude, here are a few more pictures of Chesterfield. The most difficult part is deciding what to leave out because the whole area is very beautiful and there are picturesque views everywhere you look. We shall return!

Tags: Chesterfield, Crich, Matlock