| Beck Houses
Written by Mark Bearton - 22 Feb 2010 |
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From the M6, junction 37: At the top of the slip road head east on the A684 towards Sedburgh. There is a minor road on the left signposted Lambrigg. Follow this road for 1 mile parallel to the M6 and turn left again onto another road signposted Lambrigg Head and Docker. You will cross the motorway and follow this lane for about another mile until you come to a lane on your right hand side. To help you identify the correct turning there is a bench tucked away on the right hand side bank directly opposite. Go down this single track lane and where the a crossing lane forms a X shaped crossroads take the left hand fork and this will bring you down to a railway bridge. Park in the parking area on the left before the bridge.
Take the public footpath over the style on the opposite side of the road to the parking area. At the top of this field you will see the location with the southbound shot being from this side of the valley and the northbound shot from the other.
There is a reasonably large parking area on the left hand side immediately before the bridge.
The nearest public transport is an irregular bus service that runs between Kendal and Penrith along the A685. It would be about a 20-25 minute walk from the bus stop in Grayrigg village to the location.
There are no amenities in the area.
As the line runs east-west at this point it is one of the few places on the West Coast Main Line where shots can be had of northbound trains until dinner time.
The location is straddling a valley so unless you know what is coming next it is only possible to shoot in one direction at once, it will take you a minute or two to get from one side to the other. However recent pruning of the forestation has left it possible for now an ineteresting shot of southbound workings from the east side of the valley with a range of tree stumps included.
There is little noise hear, depending on the wind a slight amount of sound can be heard from the M6 about a mile away, but this should not intrude on videos significantly.
The light is generally best for northbound trains until around dinnertime after which it will be OK for southbound workings until late afternoon.
