The Ribblehead Viaduct or Batty Moss Viaduct carries the Settle–Carlisle railway across Batty Moss in the Ribble Valley at Ribblehead. The viaduct, built by the Midland Railway, is 28 miles (45 km) north-west of Skipton and 26 miles (42 km) south-east of Kendal. It is a Grade II* listed structure. Ribblehead Viaduct is the longest and the third tallest structure on the Settle–Carlisle line.
The viaduct was designed by John Sydney Crossley, chief engineer of the Midland Railway, who was responsible for the design and construction of all major structures along the line. The viaduct was necessitated by the challenging terrain of the route. Construction began in late 1869. It necessitated a large workforce, up to 2,300 men, most of whom lived in shanty towns set up near its base. Over 100 men lost their lives during its construction. The Settle to Carlisle line was the last main railway in Britain to be constructed primarily with manual labour.
By the end of 1874, the last stone of the structure had been laid; on 1 May 1876, the Settle–Carlisle line was opened for passenger services.
After the 2018 Yorkshire Mega event held here at the viaduct I got to witness and steam strain going over this iconic structure
Beware Falling Masonry
Although fully restored between 1988 and 1991, the limestone used in the construction of the viaduct has a natural tendency to flake. There is a continued risk of falling masonry. Please take care when walking at the foot of the viaduct.
How to log this virtual:
- Take a picture of you or your GPS with the viaduct visible in the background from the published coords and include this with your log. If you can do it while a train is passing the viaduct...good for you!
- Locate pillar 13, then only looking at the side with the number plaque on it, send me the answer to the following two questions, either via the messaging centre or email, Please do not include your answers in your log.
- How many circular anchor plates
- How many square anchor plates
Don't worry about waiting for a reply before you log, in the very unlikely event that your answers are wrong I'll let you know so you can revise your answers or turn your smiley to a note.
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.