A rather unusual railway, running through a unique stretch of English countryside, is 80 years old in 2007. Sometimes called the world’s smallest public railway, the Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch traverses 13½ miles of Kent coast, using one-third full size steam engines dating from the 1920s, which gallop along at high speed.

Anniversary events include a Celebration Weekend of special trains and entertainment (July 14-15); a Day Out with Thomas the Tank Engine (Sept. 1-2) and Double Header Day (Oct. 6). Trains run daily until October 14.

Passengers journey along the Kent coast from Hythe to the wide-open landscapes of Dungeness, one of the largest expanses of shingle in the world. Over 600 different types of plant are found here: a third of all the kinds of plant in Britain. The railway skirts Romney Marsh, an area reclaimed from the sea in ancient times, dotted with historic churches, and rich in stories of smugglers and the ‘lookers’ – hardy souls who once kept a watch on the marsh’s 225,000 Romney sheep in all weathers. For further information visit  http://www.rhdr.org.uk/ and  http://www.lookersheritage.co.uk/

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