Railway Walks with Julia Bradbury episode 4
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00:00Britain is a country that owes a great deal to its rail empire. For a hundred years the
00:24railways dominated the development of this country, the network that supported a global
00:29superpower. But today our island is home to 10,000 miles of disused lines, a silent
00:39network of embankments, platforms and viaducts. For me and many others they've become a
00:49perfect platform for exploring the country on foot.
01:09Welcome to the banks of the River Spey, Scotland's second longest river and certainly one of
01:13its most famous. People flock from far and wide to fish for salmon in these pure waters.
01:20And this is where the Fiddock meets the Spey, two rivers at the heart of one of the world's
01:25great drinks. My railway walk has a very distinct flavour to it. With the river and the Scottish
01:34hills for company, it promises to be a very scenic day out. But this is fundamentally
01:41a walk through the core of a very Scottish industry.
01:55This is Whiskey Territory and today I'm going to find out how a scenic riverside railway
02:00helped turn a wee local industry into big business on a global scale.
02:06By the mid-1800s the River Spey already featured a number of distilleries along its course.
02:12But as railway mania took hold in North East Scotland, there was an obvious opportunity
02:17for expansion. The cities of Aberdeen, Inverness and Perth were slowly becoming better connected
02:24and for the whisky industry it was the arrival of the Strathspey Railway in 1863 that really
02:30made a difference. New distilleries soon opened up next door to the railway which offered
02:35great access to Glasgow and Edinburgh. This is where single malts could be blended and
02:41distributed across the UK and far beyond.
02:48Starting from the remains of Craigelachie Station, I'm going to be following part of
02:52the Speyside Way, one of Scotland's great walking trails. And through this section the
02:58trail sticks firmly to the path of the Strathspey Railway. But even at this early hour of the
03:06day there's the prospect of trying out some of the local tipple.
03:11550! It would take me, ooh, two hours to get through those.
03:18But with 12 miles still to go it's best not to get distracted too early. So let's take
03:22a look at the route I'll be following.
03:31From Craigelachie, the Strathspey Railway headed south, taking as straight a line as
03:35possible while the river meanders its way up the valley.
03:42The only sizeable town on route is Aberlour, a name well known to whisky lovers.
03:50Upstream the railway crossed open farmland and passed close to the oldest distillery
03:55on my route at Dal Ewan.
04:01Crossing the Spey, I'll reach the village of Caron, once a bustling community beside
04:05the railway, but now a rather quiet spot, sat beside the boarded up buildings of the
04:10old Imperial Distillery.
04:16But whisky certainly hasn't gone away from these parts. Nokandu and Tamdu are both alive
04:21and well, despite the ghostly nature of their stations.
04:28The river and the railway both turn due south for a final long run to Ballindaloch Station.
04:35This takes me into the estate of the McPherson-Grant family. They've been connected with whisky
04:40since the railway first opened.
04:47There's one more crossing of the Spey to reach the station of Ballindaloch.
04:53This is where the local populace arrive by train to party long into the night at the
04:57Granary Ball.
05:10Now Craigalochie Station was just over there, but no visit to Craigalochie is complete without
05:15a visit to this bridge, built by one Thomas Telford, before anyone had even dreamt of
05:20a railway.
05:29When this bridge was built, Napoleon was still tearing up Europe and Beethoven was still
05:33composing.
05:39Looking down from above is like a window into the transport history of this country.
05:45Materials for the revolutionary cast-iron bridge were brought in by river and canal,
05:50the great transport arteries of their day.
05:53But since 1812, Telford's bridge, the railway and most recently the new road bridge have
05:59all enjoyed their period of dominance.
06:07Since the arrival of the railway, there's been no escaping the influence of whisky in
06:11Craigalochie.
06:13Surrounded by the Spey and the Fiddick, the village has two distilleries and the distinctive
06:18site of Scotland's biggest cooperage.
06:24A hundred thousand oak barrels are processed here every year. Most of them acquired second
06:29hand from the American bourbon industry.
06:38As I reach my first great bend in the Spey, there's also a very rare tunnel, one of only
06:43four on the whole great north of Scotland network.
06:47I'm still right under the main road, but you can barely hear the traffic anymore. You can
06:53hear the whisper of the river.
07:03They really had to squeeze the railway in here. They cut through the hill and then used
07:06this massive wall to hold it back. This wall now acts as a support wall for the main road
07:11as well.
07:16The old railway then enters one of those familiar long straight sections, an avenue of trees
07:22that seems to go on and on.
07:26The undergrowth at this time of year is dense, and in this enclosed world, there's just the
07:30odd surviving piece of railway history to keep you company.
07:36The mileposts tell you how far you are from the local hub of Aberdeen, a fact probably
07:40more useful to train drivers than to me.
07:46The long straight brings me to the outskirts of Aberlour, a town that balances its whisky
07:51credentials with a quite different consumable product, shortbread.
07:59It was here on the main street that Joseph Walker opened his local bakery. For well over
08:05100 years, the business has expanded, now being managed by a fourth generation of Walkers.
08:11But one thing has remained constant. It's the local residents who get to test any new
08:16biscuit products.
08:22That was Aberlour train station. Now it's a visitor centre for the Speyside Way, and
08:26a tea room.
08:33But this is the building I'm interested in, the pub. Now once upon a time, this place
08:37was called the Station Bar, and there's a chance, just a chance, that one day it may
08:42be called the Station Bar again.
08:45The Mashtun is named after a vessel used in the whisky making process, which seems
08:49like a thoroughly suitable name for a Speyside pub.
08:53Now it's called the Mashtun, but I know it used to be called the Station Bar. What's
08:57the story behind the change of the name?
09:00The previous owner renamed the bar from the Station Bar to the Mashtun, purely because
09:05we're in the middle of whisky country. So what's been said is, if, when the next train
09:10pulls into the platform here, it will revert back to the Station Bar.
09:14Now, it's very rare for me to get the opportunity to come inside on any of my walks. It's certainly
09:19very rare for me to come inside a pub and have a drink or two, but I think you guys
09:23are probably the best people here to talk me through some whiskies?
09:26Well, as you're in the area, it would be a good idea to have a dram or two.
09:29OK.
09:30What would you recommend?
09:31Well, as you're in Aberlour, I would say the ideal drink would be to have an Aberlour.
09:35Of course.
09:36And this is a typical Speyside whisky, in that it's done in sherry casks, it's very
09:41sweet, very typical of a Speyside sort of dram.
09:44Right, let me give it a taste and see what it's like.
09:47So the nose in it first, what you should maybe do is just take it, and if you open your mouth
09:50you can actually feel the vapours flow across.
09:52Oh, you can?
09:53Yeah, and you can actually get a taste for it. And if you try it without water first...
10:03Oh, that's very smooth.
10:04Yeah.
10:05But it is strong, Aaron, isn't it?
10:06Very definitely. It's just a drink to sip, I think. Sip and enjoy.
10:10How do the ingredients differ from one whisky to the next? And I know single malt is meant
10:15to be the best.
10:16It's supposed to be the best, indeed. The thing is, the key ingredients remain the same
10:20regardless throughout the process. What actually changes the whisky is the size of the stills
10:26can make a difference to the whisky. The actual barrels that it's kept and aged in make a
10:31difference, predominantly sherry bodegas around the Speyside area. But there are certain people
10:36who use Chardonnay casks, which would give a totally different whisky.
10:41So that would be, Chardonnay wine would have been prepared and served in it, and then they
10:44would use those old casks.
10:45Kept in the casks for a minimum of three years in Scotland to be called Scotch whisky.
10:50Now I notice this very fine collection of whisky up here. It looks very special, is it?
10:55It is indeed. I mean, there are only two of these collections that we're aware of that
10:59are for sale by the dram anywhere in the world.
11:01Wow.
11:02And the other one is Bar Nemo in Tokyo. Now, it's also the only collection of whisky in
11:07the world that can run consecutively from 1952 up to 1994.
11:11That is incredible. So if I was going to go for the top one, 1952, top left-hand corner,
11:16what would that cost me?
11:17That would cost you £224 a dram.
11:21Can we go with that? Director, can I have a taste of that?
11:25Let's know. Anyway, I really like this Abelow, a ten-year-old. It's lovely, it's nice and
11:31sweet.
11:32It's got good flavours to it.
11:33Indeed.
11:34Thank you very much.
11:35I've got to walk after this.
11:44As you leave Abelow, the railway passes close to an elegant footbridge, officially the Victoria
11:49Bridge, but known locally as the Penny Brig, which was the price once charged to cross
11:54the Spey at this point.
11:58My way out of Abelow is via a different bridge, once a solid railway structure, now a rather
12:04less stable suspension bridge for walkers.
12:11It crosses the Bern of Abelow, the chief source of water for the distillery here, and water
12:16that makes it this far has escaped spending years ageing slowly in a sherry cask.
12:46This set of tanks that resembles a huge chemistry experiment is where they deal with all the
12:53leftover liquids after the distilling process, because if they just put all the burnt ale
12:57and the spent grain back into the local river, then the oxygen levels in the Spey would be
13:01reduced and that would not be good news for the little trout in the salmon.
13:06The treatment plant services the waste produce of the Dal Ewan distillery, a site that's
13:11been in operation since 1851.
13:14When the railway arrived some 12 years later, it slowly became apparent that the two industries
13:19could be of real benefit to one another, and eventually Dal Ewan received its very own
13:24railway station.
13:26It's an ideal place for me to meet a man who knows all about the relationship between steam
13:30and scotch.
13:31Hi Ian.
13:32Hello, hello.
13:33Good to see you.
13:34And you.
13:35Now it's not much of a station, is it?
13:39It's one of the tiniest you could ever find.
13:42It was built about 1933 for the distillery owners and their families.
13:48Now this is quite a hill, so how did they manoeuvre the barrels and the whisky and all
13:51the big stuff?
13:52That was done in the best possible way, with its own little puggy railway.
13:56Ah, a sneaky little puggy.
13:59Yes, yes.
14:00But if we go round this way, round the other side of the hill, we can find this little
14:04distillery hidden in the glen.
14:06Let's go and have a look.
14:08Ian Peaty may not be a local man, but he certainly knows a thing or two about Scottish whisky.
14:13He's up in Scotland finalising details for a book on local whisky and the Speyside Railway.
14:19Where does the name puggy come from?
14:21Well, it's one of the affectionate terms which Scots people give to the most hardworking
14:27of little locomotives.
14:28Little puggy?
14:29Yes, they're saddle tank locomotives, that means the water tank sits on the top.
14:35They work very, very hard indeed, and in fact, they used to come through here and then sharply
14:40into the distillery.
14:42Pugging away?
14:43Yes.
14:44Chugging away and pugging away?
14:45Yes, yes.
14:46Until the best efforts of Dr Beeching in the mid-60s, the puggy used to run all the way
14:51into the heart of the distillery.
14:53Today the work is done by a succession of lorries and tankers, but the old workings
15:02of Dal Ewan have been captured by Ian in a painting for his new book.
15:07This particular one was built in 1936.
15:10It's the third one they had at this distillery.
15:13And they owned them, didn't they?
15:14They owned them, yes.
15:15The distillery owned their engines.
15:16And it was in their own livery, which I've depicted here.
15:20And then, of course, behind it we've got the little engine shed where it would stay overnight
15:24and be serviced and so on.
15:29The idea of a puggy line for Dal Ewan was first mooted by distillery owner William Mackenzie
15:34in the 1880s, but it took well over a decade for any track to be laid.
15:39The final motivation was the opening of another distillery by Mackenzie's son.
15:44The branch line could now serve both sites, the only complication being that the new distillery
15:50was on the other side of the river.
15:54And so the puggies joined the larger locomotives, as both branch and mainline shared the track
15:59across the rather elegant Carron Bridge.
16:03This was also a rare example of road and rail sharing the same infrastructure.
16:07Look at this lovely view.
16:11It's amazing, isn't it?
16:13Yes.
16:14Because that's flowing all the way down to the Morayshire coast, where they grow a lot
16:19of the barley made in whisky.
16:23Yeah.
16:24Carron Bridge is just a few hundred yards from the village of the same name, once the
16:29site of a major stop on the Strathspey Railway and the home of the Mackenzie family's second
16:34distillery.
16:35Now, Ian, this is a more substantial station, isn't it?
16:41It's a bit more substantial than the last halt we were at, certainly, but it's horribly
16:47run down, unfortunately, even the clock stopped ticking.
16:52With the railway and the distillery at its heart, Carron Village once bustled with life.
17:06Thomas Mackenzie's distillery, seen here in its pomp in one of Ian's paintings, was opened
17:12in 1897, Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee year.
17:19It was duly named Imperial, but today only the buildings remain, and Carron has become
17:27an altogether different community.
17:33It's become a silent distillery, and that's how the people in the trade describe it.
17:43The railway and the whisky industry were really a dream team, weren't they, for one another?
17:49They certainly were.
17:50One was obviously complementary to the other, certainly in Speyside, and this is a classic
17:56example with the railway being here, and its goods yard behind us, with the Imperial right
18:02on its doorstep.
18:03And they actually put themselves there, didn't they, so that they had the access, and they
18:07were closer to the railway.
18:08Absolutely.
18:09It was absolutely essential, because the Imperial had a very high production level, and they
18:13couldn't have existed without the railway.
18:16So, I'm going to carry on on my walk.
18:19Thank you very much.
18:20Have a safe journey, and enjoy.
18:21Good to meet you.
18:22Bye-bye.
18:26There's something sad, but rather beautiful about the silent distillery and its surrounding
18:30community.
18:33The most lively corner of Carron today is the row of Imperial cottages, built by the
18:38distillery for its workers.
18:41Here and in other places along the railway, local people could make use of a request halt.
18:47Quite literally, they could thumb a lift.
18:56Stroll along a beaching railway, and your thoughts are often focused on the past.
19:01Local stories, local people, a lost age still fondly remembered.
19:07But you can't forget that the Spey remains the focal point of a global industry, and
19:13the neighbouring distilleries of Nokando and Tamdu are very much a part of that.
19:23The beautifully presented Nokando is now under the same ownership as Imperial,
19:28and it's the only distillery in the world that's still operating.
19:32The beautifully presented Nokando is now under the same ownership as Daluan.
19:40A handful of multinational companies dominate the Speyside industry, producing household
19:45names like Johnny Walker, J&B, Grant's and Bell's.
19:51Few distilleries remain in private hands.
19:55Despite the presence of international big business on Speyside, it's remarkably quiet.
20:00I must admit, I was expecting the atmosphere to be contaminated with noise and corporate
20:05throng, you know, articulated lorries coming and going and stuff, but look at this.
20:10It's really peaceful, very well managed.
20:15And there's still a slight reverence for the past at these modern factories.
20:19Tamdu's station is beautifully preserved.
20:23And Nokando shows off the old customs and excise office, home to an important figure
20:28who would log produce at each distillery, and check that not too much of it disappeared
20:32out the back door when no-one was looking.
20:50Three things have shaped my walk today.
20:52The whisky industry, the railway and the river itself.
20:59The whisky wouldn't be what it is without the Spey and its tributaries.
21:05And it's the river that gave the railway its original valley route through the Scottish
21:09hills and mountains.
21:12Through it all, the Spey has retained a totally unaffected character.
21:20This is Scotland's fastest-flowing river.
21:24For 100 miles, it winds a majestic path past the Cairngorms to its mouth next to the moat.
21:32And it's the only river in the world to have a waterway.
21:35For 100 miles, it winds a majestic path past the Cairngorms to its mouth next to the Moray Firth.
21:49The railway, meanwhile, had to negotiate the Spey's main tributaries.
21:56Whoa!
21:59I can see why there's a viewing platform here.
22:03That's quite a drop.
22:06That's quite a drop.
22:15I'm heading into the Ballindalach Estate.
22:17Now, unfortunately, from here you can't see the castle because it's tucked away in the woodlands.
22:21But I do know that since it was built in the 16th century,
22:24it has been the private residence of the Macpherson Grants.
22:28With almost 500 years of history and 23,000 acres to play with,
22:33it's inevitable that the Ballindalach Estate and its castle
22:37should have had a significant influence on the area.
22:43George Macpherson Grant in particular was clearly a forward thinker,
22:47being a key mover in starting up the nearby Cragganmore Distillery.
22:51But the family was also the start of a very different kind of dynasty.
22:56This was where cattle from Aberdeen were brought together with cattle from Angus.
23:01With plenty of spent grains from distilleries, the animals were always well fed.
23:07And 150 years later, the herd is still intact.
23:11The original Aberdeen Angus family.
23:15Back on the other side of the river,
23:17there's just a short walk left to reach Ballindalach Village.
23:21And that's where I want to tackle a final piece of this railway jigsaw.
23:27While the whisky trade made the railway unique,
23:29it was also vital to a local community spread over a sparsely populated area.
23:35One more spade crossing for me.
23:37This time, a rather serious looking steel girder viaduct.
23:41Still looking remarkably sturdy after 140 years.
23:48The bridge brings me straight into the world of Ballindalach Station,
23:51the last stop in my walk.
23:53And the place where I've arranged to meet a couple of likely lads
23:56with a light heart and a keen sense of humour.
24:00This is where I'm going.
24:02The last stop in my walk.
24:03And the place where I've arranged to meet a couple of likely lads
24:06with a lifelong connection to the area.
24:11And they've known each other a very long time.
24:14So what's that, about 15 years then?
24:161946.
24:171946?
24:18Yes.
24:19Which school were you at?
24:20Aberlour.
24:21Aberlour.
24:23It's safe to say that the old Strathspey Railway
24:26brought these two friends together.
24:28And while Charlie has always lived in Aberlour,
24:30Peter lived here in Ballindalach
24:32and travelled to school every day on the railway.
24:36Years later, Peter was still coming to this station every day.
24:39This time, as stationmaster.
24:44Did you actually, having been here as a 13, 14-year-old lad,
24:47when you actually came back here to work as a stationmaster,
24:50could you believe it, that you were back working?
24:52Not really, but I'm very proud, you know,
24:55to come back here as stationmaster.
24:57I'm sure. It must have been amazing.
24:59Amazing.
25:03And you must have been incredibly sad when the railway's closed.
25:06Well, it should never have closed up here.
25:08Not with the distillery traffic that we had up here.
25:12They made a mistake?
25:13I think they made a mistake.
25:15Charlie, I know you're a whisky man,
25:16and I hear you've got quite a collection, I understand.
25:18I'm a wee collection.
25:20I have a few bottles.
25:21A few.
25:22Can we do a rough guesstimate?
25:24How many do we think?
25:25Oh, maybe in the region of 400.
25:27400?
25:28That would put any pub or bar to shame!
25:33And whisky would have undoubtedly been an ingredient
25:36just next door at the annual Granary Ball.
25:39Peter's predecessors as stationmaster
25:41would have witnessed up to 1,000 fancy-dressed party-goers
25:45arriving from as far as Aberdeen on specially laid-on trains.
25:52In the 20s and 30s, this unlikely spot was the place to be seen,
25:56but accounts suggest that little drink was ever purchased at the balls.
26:00Instead, locals would store their own supply of liquor
26:03in the long grass outside,
26:05and this might have been acquired through a variety of means.
26:09When they used to pinch the whisky...
26:11Yeah, steal the whisky!
26:13..before it got in.
26:14This is just a stave from a bottle.
26:17They used to take the ring that was here, you know,
26:22and they chopped it up.
26:24And that's slag, isn't it?
26:26And they drilled a hole through here.
26:28They all carried a...
26:30Just all carried one of these?
26:32Aye.
26:33And they put it in, drilled a hole...
26:35Yeah.
26:36..into the bottle.
26:37See?
26:38And out came the whisky.
26:40Yes!
26:41And when they filled their pail,
26:44they took a spike, put it in,
26:47chopped it in, and then cut it off.
26:50And then put the ring back over the top.
26:52And then the ring back off,
26:54and the excise men or anybody,
26:56they couldn't see how the whisky got out of the bottle.
26:59That's very naughty, isn't it, Peter?
27:02Very naughty.
27:04I approve.
27:05And what's this thing?
27:06Oh, that was the other thing that they had,
27:09and they knocked the bung out of the bottle.
27:11Yeah.
27:12And they dropped this in.
27:14Plop. Plumper.
27:16Like a little well, a well of whisky.
27:18That's it.
27:19And they had a cork, and they popped it in.
27:21You see?
27:22And then they popped it down the roll pocket.
27:24Ah, so you wouldn't see it.
27:25A nice, flat, long cylinder.
27:27Tuck it in your boot, down the trouser leg.
27:29And they all had one of those.
27:31Most of the story boys.
27:32Sneaky lot.
27:33They never put their name on them.
27:35I bet they didn't.
27:36That's one flask you don't want your name on, isn't it?
27:39That's right.
27:40Just in case.
27:41Now, Charlie, I know this isn't yours.
27:43Peter, this must belong to you.
27:45How long have you had this?
27:47Since 1968.
27:48When the station closed?
27:51That's beautiful, isn't it?
27:53It is, it is.
27:56In the long run, it's people like Charlie and Peter
27:59who miss the railway the most.
28:03I've seen how the railway raised a famous industry
28:06to a whole new level.
28:09But whisky's moved on and continues to prosper.
28:16Journeys to school, though,
28:18they no longer happen by train.
28:22And for my friends and I,
28:24there's just time to head to Ballin Dulloch's own distillery
28:27to sample a wee draught.