Tracing the Somerset & Dorset Railway from Templecombe to Wincanton

In this 30 minute video I walk from Templecombe to Wincanton to discover what remains can still be found of the Somerset and Dorset Railway, between Bridge Nº 154, which carried a minor road over the S&D just south of Templecombe, to a point, as close as I could get, to where the trackbed ends at the A303, Wincanton Bypass, which severed the former trackbed, immediately to the south of the town. As I found out in one of my earlier walks, no trace of the railway remains through Wincanton and there is very little in Templecombe, to be honest. The S&D's lower platform is still there, I believe, but is now well hidden beneath 60 years of undergrowth. The entire Lower Yard has also been taken over by Thales and the spur that S&D trains once used to reach Templecombe station now forms an access road to the site. Beyond Templecombe much of the trackbed does still exist and is used by farmers to reach their fields. I did actually walk along a part of this as there was no locked gate preventing me nor a sign saying 'Keep Out'. This was extremely poignant for me since, as I mention in the video, it was the first time that I had travelled along that section of line since doing so on the last service train from Wincanton to Templecombe and back on Saturday 5 March 1966. The entire walk was very enjoyable and, next time, I will be covering the section between Templecombe and Stalbridge.