The Belfast and County Down Railway.
An Irish Gauge railway opened in 1848 and had lines from Belfast to Bangor, from Belfast to Donaghadee via Comber and Newtownards. There was a line ran from Comber via Ballygowan, Saintfield, Crossgar to Downpatrick.
At the Junction just outside Saintfield trains carried on to Ballynahinch.
From Downpatrick there was a branch to take passengers to Ardglass via Killough and Coney Island.
Another branch from Downpatrick to Newcastle, and finally a branch from Newcastle to Castlewellan.
The Railway was closed in 1948.
As the years go on less and less of the Railway is left. The huge, and not so huge edifices that are the bridges deserve to be seen by everyone.
To build these bridges today would be an achievment.
To have done it in the mid Nineteenth Century with only Horse drawn transport to move Ton after Ton of masonary from God knows where to a windswept field God knows how far from the nearest civilisation, was a feat and a half!
Remember, no cars, no motorcycles, not even bicycles (The first "Modern bike" didn't appear 'til 1885) so the workers either walked or used horse drawn transport to get to work!!
We have the cheek to gripe about a fifteen minute commute in a warm comfortable car with the radio blaring!!
Maybe they used the train!
So.
A series of Caches to mark these monuments..............
A few weeks ago, on a day of very changable weather, I put out Geocaches on most of the BCDR Bridges between Comber and Downpatrick. As I arrived here the heavens opened.
Hailstones on top of the previous showers had turned this road into a quagmire!
I waited, but the Hailstones continued. Even had the shower subsided there was an inch of mud and water everywhere.
So it was left for another day.
Well. Today's the day.
A Micro.