Isle of Wight

My first visit to the island was in the August of 1964. It was like stepping into a time warp - with Victorian locos and Edwardian coaches the system coped with an extraordinary amount of people in the summer but, and this was its downfall, hardly anyone in the winter. With the Cowes and Ventnor branches under "good" doctors axe I revisited the system in September of 1965. My final visit, a week before the end, was in December 1966 - after which the remaining "stub", that between Ryde Espanade and Shanklin, was closed for 3 months - opening with services provided by displaced ex London Underground stock. I have since visited the island many many times and fully recommend you to call in at the IOWSR at Haven Street - where a wonderful recreation of what was lost all those years ago can be witnessed.