Smardale Gill Viaduct is one of the most striking structures on the Coast to Coast, a graceful 14-arch sandstone railway viaduct striding 90 ft (27 m) above the narrow, wooded valley of Scandal Beck about three miles west of Kirkby Stephen. Designed by the Cumbrian engineer Thomas Bouch (later Sir Thomas, of Tay Bridge fame) and completed in 1861, it carried the South Durham & Lancashire Union Railway over Stainmore, hauling Durham coke to the iron furnaces of Barrow and West Cumberland. The line closed in 1962, the viaduct was threatened with demolition, and the Northern Viaduct Trust was formed in 1989 to save it; after a major restoration it reopened as a footpath in 1992, handed over by Lord Whitelaw. Today the Grade II*-listed viaduct sits within Smardale Gill National Nature Reserve, a limestone gem famous as one of only two English sites for the Scotch argus butterfly. The Coast to Coast itself does not cross the viaduct: walkers descend to cross the old packhorse Smardale Bridge over Scandal Beck, with the viaduct visible a little upstream to the north as a classic Stage 7 view.
Highlights
- The 14 elegant arches, each of 30 ft span, totalling about 553 ft (170 m) long and standing 90 ft (27 m) above Scandal Beck
- Walking out onto the deck for the airy view down the wooded gill — the viaduct is open as a footpath
- The lime kilns and old railway quarry workings beside the trackbed in Smardale Gill
- Limestone grassland flowers in the cuttings: bloody crane's-bill, fragrant and butterfly orchids, bird's-eye primrose, autumn gentian
- The Scotch argus butterfly in August — Smardale Gill is one of only two colonies in England
- Red squirrels, roe deer, and woodland birds (redstart, pied flycatcher, green woodpecker) in the ancient woodland
- The 18th-century Smardale Bridge packhorse bridge over Scandal Beck, which the C2C actually crosses, and the 'Giants' Graves' pillow mounds nearby
At a glance
| Period | Victorian (1861) |
|---|---|
| Stage | 7 — Orton to Kirkby Stephen |
Take care
- Coordinates in the current data place the POI about 2 km too far south of the actual viaduct (grid NY 727069 ≈ 54.4565, -2.3940)
- Do not confuse Smardale Gill Viaduct (1861, footpath, this POI) with the separate Smardale Viaduct on the Settle–Carlisle line (opened 1875, still in railway use)
- The Coast to Coast does not cross the viaduct; the main route crosses the packhorse Smardale Bridge over Scandal Beck, with the viaduct as a nearby view/short detour
- Open moorland navigation either side of Smardale can be boggy and exposed with patchy phone signal — carry map/compass or GPS
- Dogs must be kept on a lead through the nature reserve
History
The viaduct was built in 1861 for the South Durham & Lancashire Union Railway, a Pennine line opened that year (the formal opening ceremony was held on 7 August 1861, with passenger services beginning the following day) to link the Durham coalfield with the iron and steel works of Furness and West Cumberland over the bleak Stainmore summit (1,370 ft). It was designed by engineer Thomas Bouch and built by the Preston contractor Henry Wrigg at a cost of £11,298, using locally quarried sandstone. Though laid with a single track to ease the curve, it was built broad enough for double track. Local passenger services through Smardale (Kirkby Stephen to Tebay) were withdrawn in 1952 and the line closed completely in 1962 after Stainmore steel traffic dried up. Facing demolition, the structure was rescued by the Northern Viaduct Trust (founded 1989); British Rail offered roughly £230,000 — its estimated demolition cost — toward repair if a charitable trust took it on. Restoration (about £350,000) was completed and the viaduct was formally handed over by the late Lord (William) Whitelaw in autumn 1992 to become a permissive footpath, later winning a National Railway Heritage Award. Note: this is the OLD viaduct, distinct from the nearby Smardale Viaduct on the Settle–Carlisle line (opened 1875), which still carries trains.
Myth & legend
Beside Scandal Beck below the viaduct lie the 'Giants' Graves' — long, mysterious mounds that local tradition ascribed to buried giants. Antiquaries still argue over what they really were: monastic rabbit warrens, bracken-drying platforms or prehistoric burial cairns.
Geology
The gill cuts through Carboniferous limestone, and it is this lime-rich rock that makes Smardale so botanically special. The viaduct itself was built of locally quarried sandstone. Where the old railway sliced cuttings and threw up embankments, thin limestone soils have been colonised by species-rich grassland, while two limekilns and an inclined plane survive from the quarrying that exploited the same stone. Scandal Beck has carved the steep, sheltered ravine the viaduct leaps across.
Wildlife & nature
The viaduct stands within Smardale Gill National Nature Reserve (also an SSSI and part of a Special Area of Conservation), managed by Cumbria Wildlife Trust as part of a roughly 49-hectare complex along a disused railway. Habitats are a mix of ancient woodland and limestone grassland. It is best known for the Scotch argus butterfly — one of only two English sites — alongside dark green fritillary, northern brown argus, common blue and dingy skipper. Lime-loving flowers include bloody crane's-bill, fragrant and butterfly orchids, globeflower, marsh helleborine and bird's-eye primrose. Red squirrels, roe deer and brown hare are present, and birds range from redstart and pied flycatcher to green woodpecker, treecreeper, raven and buzzard.
The view
The set-piece view is the viaduct itself, its arches framing the steep green ravine of Scandal Beck — a sublime piece of Victorian engineering in a wild, flowery setting. From the deck you look down into the wooded gill; from below, on the C2C's descent to Smardale Bridge, the viaduct stands on the skyline a little upstream as one of the trail's signature images. Wider views from Smardale Fell take in the Howgills and the distant Pennines.
Photography
Shoot the viaduct from the path along the old trackbed for a clean side-on of all 14 arches, or from down by Scandal Beck and the packhorse bridge to set the arches against the ravine. Morning light from the east lifts the sandstone; late summer adds butterflies and flowers in the cuttings. The skyline view on the C2C descent toward Smardale Bridge is the classic walker's frame.
When to visit
Open and free all year. Late spring brings orchids and bird's-eye primrose to the cuttings; August is peak for the Scotch argus butterfly and the floral grassland. Autumn brings fellwort (autumn gentian) and devil's-bit scabious, plus woodland colour. Winter is atmospheric but the gill can be muddy and the surrounding C2C moorland exposed; check daylight, as Stage 7 is a full day.
Getting there
There is no public transport to the viaduct itself. The Smardale reserve car park (NY 742 083, ///crispier.quench.snack) lies near Newbiggin-on-Lune. Coast to Coast walkers reach the viaduct on foot mid-way through Stage 7 from Orton. The stage ends at Kirkby Stephen, which has a market town's services and a railway station (Kirkby Stephen, on the Settle–Carlisle line) on the edge of the town, plus regional bus links.
Where to stay
The natural base is Kirkby Stephen at the end of Stage 7, with B&Bs, guesthouses, pubs with rooms, a hostel/bunkhouse and nearby campsites; Ravenstonedale and Newbiggin-on-Lune also offer accommodation nearer Smardale. Book well ahead in peak season (May–September). Most C2C walkers use a baggage-transfer service, widely available along the route, so you can walk the viaduct stretch with a daypack.
Food & water
No drinking water at the viaduct. Scandal Beck runs below but should be treated. Fill up in Orton at the start of the stage and reach reliable supplies, shops and cafes in Kirkby Stephen at the end; the high limestone moor in between is largely dry.
Safety
The viaduct deck is fenced with modern safety handrails (upgraded and re-opened in December 2019) and is safe to walk. On the Coast to Coast line, the hazards are the moorland either side: open, sometimes boggy navigation across Ravenstonedale/Smardale Fell, a steep descent to Smardale Bridge, and patchy mobile signal. Carry map and compass or GPS. In an emergency dial 999 (or 112) and ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue; for non-urgent health advice call NHS 111.
Accessibility
Unusually for a C2C feature, the viaduct and reserve are partly accessible: a level, surfaced section of the old railway runs from the Smardale car park (grid NY 742 083, near Newbiggin-on-Lune) and is usable by wheelchairs and pushchairs with ramps, giving step-free access along the trackbed toward the viaduct. The C2C approach itself, however, involves a steep descent to Smardale Bridge and rough fell paths, so on-foot thru-walkers do not get the easy access. Dogs are welcome but must be kept on a lead through the nature reserve.
Visitor tips
It is worth the few extra minutes to walk out onto the viaduct rather than just crossing Smardale Bridge — the view down the gill is the highlight of the day. Don't confuse it with the Settle–Carlisle 'Smardale Viaduct' a little to the north, which still carries trains. There are no facilities at the viaduct itself: water, toilets, pubs, cafes, shops and cash machines are in Kirkby Stephen at the end of the stage. Time an August visit for the Scotch argus butterfly.
Listen: the audio guide
The full narration of this stop's audio guide, in text.
The path leads you into a hidden, wooded gorge, where Scandal Beck tumbles far below and wildflowers crowd the limestone banks — and then, through the trees, a great line of stone arches steps across the whole valley in front of you. This is Smardale Gill Viaduct: fourteen elegant arches, striding some ninety feet above the beck, a Victorian masterpiece now given over entirely to butterflies, birdsong and the quiet passage of walkers. The viaduct was built in 1861, at the height of the great railway age, for a line with a very particular purpose. The South Durham and Lancashire Union Railway needed to carry coke — a fuel baked from County Durham coal — westward across the high Pennines to feed the hungry iron furnaces of Cumbria. It was an ambitious route through demanding country, and the deep, wooded cleft of Smardale Gill was one of its great obstacles. To bridge it, the engineers raised this graceful sweep of arches in local stone, a bold and beautiful solution to a hard problem of terrain. For a century the trains rumbled over it, laden and smoking, part of the industrial lifeblood of the north of England. Then, in 1962, the line closed, the rails were lifted, and the viaduct fell silent. It might have crumbled and been lost — many such structures were — but instead it was rescued and lovingly restored, and today the gill around it is a protected nature reserve, rich in limestone flowers and butterflies, one of the loveliest quiet corners on the whole walk. Cross slowly, and look about you. First, the arches themselves — count them as you go, all fourteen, and admire the even rhythm of the stonework and the graceful curve of the whole span. Second, look down, carefully, to Scandal Beck threading along the floor of the gorge far below, and feel the airy height at which you are walking. Third, notice the limestone underfoot and in the banks — pale, flower-loving rock that gives this valley its particular richness of plants. Fourth, in the warmer months, watch the air around you for butterflies, for this reserve is famous for them, and for the wildflowers that draw them among the grass. And fifth, look along the old trackbed running level and true toward and away from the viaduct — the ghost of the railway, now a green ribbon of a path, its purpose utterly changed. Here is the quiet marvel of this place. The viaduct was built for coke and iron, for profit and industry, for the roar and smoke of Victorian trains hauling their heavy loads across the hills. Everything it was made to do has vanished — the furnaces cold, the coalfields worked out, the trains long gone, the whole industrial world that raised it swept away. And yet the structure itself endures, patient and unhurried, and in its second life it has become something its builders could never have imagined: not a servant of industry but a sanctuary of nature, where rare flowers grow in the old cuttings and butterflies drift on the summer air where the coal wagons once thundered. It is a rare and gentle thing — a great monument to one age, quietly and beautifully repurposed as a treasure of another. Pause in the middle of the span, feel the stillness, and let that transformation settle in your mind. From Smardale Gill the Coast to Coast presses on eastward, down out of the limestone country toward the market town of Kirkby Stephen, the gateway to the great crossing of the Pennines that lies ahead. Take one last look back at those fourteen arches, holding their line above the wildflowers, and walk on into the valley. Walk safe.
Common questions
How old is Smardale Gill Viaduct?
Smardale Gill Viaduct dates from the Victorian (1861) period.
How do I get to Smardale Gill Viaduct?
There is no public transport to the viaduct itself. The Smardale reserve car park (NY 742 083, ///crispier.quench.snack) lies near Newbiggin-on-Lune. Coast to Coast walkers reach the viaduct on foot mid-way through Stage 7 from Orton. The stage ends at Kirkby Stephen, which has a market town's services and a railway station (Kirkby Stephen, on the Settle–Carlisle line) on the edge of the town, plus regional bus links.
Is Smardale Gill Viaduct accessible?
Unusually for a C2C feature, the viaduct and reserve are partly accessible: a level, surfaced section of the old railway runs from the Smardale car park (grid NY 742 083, near Newbiggin-on-Lune) and is usable by wheelchairs and pushchairs with ramps, giving step-free access along the trackbed toward the viaduct. The C2C approach itself, however, involves a steep descent to Smardale Bridge and rough fell paths, so on-foot thru-walkers do not get the easy access. Dogs are welcome but must be kept on a lead through the nature reserve.
When is the best time to visit Smardale Gill Viaduct?
Open and free all year. Late spring brings orchids and bird's-eye primrose to the cuttings; August is peak for the Scotch argus butterfly and the floral grassland. Autumn brings fellwort (autumn gentian) and devil's-bit scabious, plus woodland colour. Winter is atmospheric but the gill can be muddy and the surrounding C2C moorland exposed; check daylight, as Stage 7 is a full day.
Is there food and water at Smardale Gill Viaduct?
No drinking water at the viaduct. Scandal Beck runs below but should be treated. Fill up in Orton at the start of the stage and reach reliable supplies, shops and cafes in Kirkby Stephen at the end; the high limestone moor in between is largely dry.
Where can I stay near Smardale Gill Viaduct?
The natural base is Kirkby Stephen at the end of Stage 7, with B&Bs, guesthouses, pubs with rooms, a hostel/bunkhouse and nearby campsites; Ravenstonedale and Newbiggin-on-Lune also offer accommodation nearer Smardale. Book well ahead in peak season (May–September). Most C2C walkers use a baggage-transfer service, widely available along the route, so you can walk the viaduct stretch with a daypack.
What should I know before visiting Smardale Gill Viaduct?
It is worth the few extra minutes to walk out onto the viaduct rather than just crossing Smardale Bridge — the view down the gill is the highlight of the day. Don't confuse it with the Settle–Carlisle 'Smardale Viaduct' a little to the north, which still carries trains. There are no facilities at the viaduct itself: water, toilets, pubs, cafes, shops and cash machines are in Kirkby Stephen at the end of the stage. Time an August visit for the Scotch argus butterfly.
Is Smardale Gill Viaduct safe to visit?
The viaduct deck is fenced with modern safety handrails (upgraded and re-opened in December 2019) and is safe to walk. On the Coast to Coast line, the hazards are the moorland either side: open, sometimes boggy navigation across Ravenstonedale/Smardale Fell, a steep descent to Smardale Bridge, and patchy mobile signal. Carry map and compass or GPS. In an emergency dial 999 (or 112) and ask for Police, then Mountain Rescue; for non-urgent health advice call NHS 111.
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