P

P

His

tory

from

the

Rod

wel

l Tra

il

The s

outhe

rn se

ction

of th

e Rod

well T

rail ru

ns al

ongs

ide P

ortlan

d Harb

our o

ne of

the

grea

t con

struc

tion p

rojec

ts un

derta

ken b

y Vict

orian

Eng

ineers

to en

close

the

anch

orage

at P

ortlan

d Roa

ds to

mak

e the

fines

t dee

p wate

r harb

our in

Euro

pe.

This

was a

chiev

ed by

plac

ing 6,

000,0

00 to

ns of

Port

land s

tone o

n the

sea b

ed

from

the Is

le of

Portla

nd ea

st an

d nort

h tow

ards W

eymo

uth fo

r a di

stanc

e of

11 ⁄2 miles. The foundation stone w

as laid 

on the 2

5th Ju

ly 18

49 an

d com

pleted

 on 

29th July 1872.    

With

the a

dven

t of th

e torp

edo a

s a st

anda

rd na

val w

eapo

n the

re wa

s a w

orry

that s

hips i

n the

harbo

ur wo

uld be

vulne

rable

to att

ack f

rom W

eymo

uth B

ay an

d so

it wa

s dec

ided t

o com

pletel

y enc

lose t

he ha

rbour

by bu

ilding

two m

ore ar

ms

to the

north

to lin

k with

the s

hore

at W

eymo

uth. T

he ne

w arm

s were

comp

leted

in

1903 an

d the original south entrance b

locked in 1

914 b

y scuttling the redundant 

battle

ship

HMS

Hood

. At

the s

outh

end o

f the R

odwe

ll Trai

l the “

fathe

r” of

the un

derw

ater to

rpedo

, Rob

ert

Whitehead, built his

 facto

ry in 

1891 whic

h continued t

o make those fears

ome 

weapons u

ntil 1

993 w

hen it w

as closed to make w

ay fo

r harb

our side

 housing

.

The R

oyal Na

vy do

minated

 the h

arbou

r for 150 ye

ars be

fore leavin

g in 1

996 

makin

g way

for it

s tran

sition

to a

busy

civil

ian po

rt and

wate

r spo

rts ce

ntre.

In 2012 it will b

e the ve

nue f

or the

 sailing e

vents

 of the 2

012 O

lympic

 Gam

es an

d Pa

ralym

pic Gam

es.

Loca

tion

The R

odwe

ll Trai

l runs

from

Abbo

tsbury

Roa

d, ne

ar the

centr

e of W

eymo

uth,

south

to Fe

rrybri

dge w

here

the la

goon

behin

d Che

sil B

ank,

The F

leet w

ith its

nature reserv

e, joins Portlan

d Harb

our. F

or part o

f the w

ay it follow

s the Ju

rassic

 Co

ast a

nd an

area

of S

pecia

l Scie

ntific

Inter

est.

Car park

s with pu

blic toilets

 and refreshm

ents are

 close b

y just 6

-7 minutes

 walk

 fro

m eit

her e

nd. B

uses

trave

l freq

uentl

y betw

een F

erryb

ridge

(sou

th en

d of th

e Ro

dwell

Trail

) to ce

ntral

Wey

mouth

.Th

ere is

also

a toi

let an

d a

café

in the

garde

ns of

Sa

ndsfo

ot Ca

stle.

From

Swa

nnery

car p

ark go

unde

r Sw

anne

ry Br

idge,

along

the B

ackw

ater,

right

over

Wes

tham

Bridg

e, thr

ough

the

unde

rpass

to th

e Abb

otsbu

ry

Road

entra

nce.

From

Che

sil B

each

ca

r park

turn

left

toward

s Wey

mouth

, ov

er Fe

rrybri

dge a

nd

you w

ill fin

d the

entra

nce

on th

e opp

osite

side

of th

e roa

d from

the F

erryb

ridge

Inn.

Rod

wel

l Tra

il C

ode

No do

g fou

ling,

litter,

horse

s or

motor

cycle

sPl

ease

soun

d bicy

cle be

lls w

hen n

ear w

alkers

Enjoy

a his

toric

trip al

ong W

eymo

uth’s

green

trail

Print

ed by

Epic

Qua

lity P

rint

Prod

uced

by Fr

iends

of R

odwe

ll Trai

lFo

r furth

er inf

ormati

on &

local

cycle

route

s co

ntact

Weym

outh

and P

ortlan

d Boro

ugh C

ounc

il Tourist Inform

ation Centre (01305) 785747

Webs

ite: w

ww.w

eymo

uth.go

v.uk/le

isure/

open

spac

es/ro

dwellt

rail

w

ww.ro

dwellt

rail.o

rg.uk

The Rodw

ell TrailThe Rodwell Trail is a popular green link used by cyclists and walkers between W

eymouth and Ferrybridge following the course of the old Weymouth to Portland

Railway with links to the South West Coast Path and the Isle of Portland.

Stretching for 3.4 km it is an hour’s level walk each way. W

heelchair and pushchair friendly, it is suitable for all ages, although some access points can be steep except at Ferrybridge, Parr W

ay and Dover/Dundee Roads. Please note that Newstead, W

yke and Buxton Road entrances are not suitable for wheelchairs.

Weym

outh and Portland Railw

ay

The Rodwell Trail follows the track of the old railway built in 1865 to carry passengers and Portland stone between W

eymouth and Portland. It was extended in 1878 into the Royal Navy Dockyards and later in 1891 to serve W

hitehead’s torpedo factory at Ferrybridge complete with it’s own siding and a 1,000 foot pier with its own narrow gauge railway track out into Portland Harbour. The line was a mixed gauge worked jointly by the London & South W

estern Railway and the Great W

estern Railway until 1874 when it was converted to standard gauge.

In 1870 the first intermediate station at Rodwell was opened. The line continued to improve with the addition of new halts at W

estham and W

yke Regis in 1909  and a new stop at Sandsfoot Castle Halt in 1932. The railway continued to serve the community until 9 April 1965.

Nature on the R

odwell Trail

Westham

Halt to R

odwell Station

In the spring and autumn watch out for migrating birds passing through, such as whitethroats and warblers. The Small W

hite butterfly can be seen in numbers in early summer and again in the

autumn. The brambles are a favourite place for Gatekeeper butterflies. In the autumn you can hear the Great Green Bush cricket chirping in the undergrowth.

Rodw

ell Station to Sandsfoot H

altThis area is darker and enjoyed by the more secretive animals, such as frogs, badgers and foxes. You may spy a wren flitting

around in the undergrowth. In the more open area past Buxton Road bridge look out for butterflies such as Red Admiral and Peacock nectaring on the buddleia flowers.

Sandsfoot Halt to W

yke Regis H

altIn winter look across Portland Harbour, you may

well see Merganser ducks, Slovenian grebes and Great Northern Divers.  In the plant “Little Robin”, that grows along the track, you may also be

lucky and see the female

“Wasp Spider” with its

distinctive yellow and black abdomen.  On the concrete around the old W

yke Regis Halt you may see common lizards basking in the sun on a summer’s day.

The

Rodw

ell T

rail

From

Rai

l to T

rail

Step

bac

k in

tim

e al

ong

a hi

stor

ic21 ⁄4

mile

Wal

k/C

ycle

Way

bet

wee

nW

eym

outh

and

Fer

rybr

idge

HM

S H

ood

prio

r to

sinki

ng in

191

4

Whi

tehe

ad’s

Tor

pedo

Fac

tory

FRIENDS of RODWELL TRAIL

WEY

MO

UTH

POR

TLA

ND

POR

TLA

ND

HA

RB

OU

R

i

i

FRIE

NDS o

f RO

DWEL

L TRA

IL

P

P

His

tory

from

the

Rod

wel

l Tra

il

The s

outhe

rn se

ction

of th

e Rod

well T

rail ru

ns al

ongs

ide P

ortlan

d Harb

our o

ne of

the

grea

t con

struc

tion p

rojec

ts un

derta

ken b

y Vict

orian

Eng

ineers

to en

close

the

anch

orage

at P

ortlan

d Roa

ds to

mak

e the

fines

t dee

p wate

r harb

our in

Euro

pe.

This

was a

chiev

ed by

plac

ing 6,

000,0

00 to

ns of

Port

land s

tone o

n the

sea b

ed

from

the Is

le of

Portla

nd ea

st an

d nort

h tow

ards W

eymo

uth fo

r a di

stanc

e of

11 ⁄2 miles. The foundation stone w

as laid 

on the 2

5th Ju

ly 18

49 an

d com

pleted

 on 

29th July 1872.    

With

the a

dven

t of th

e torp

edo a

s a st

anda

rd na

val w

eapo

n the

re wa

s a w

orry

that s

hips i

n the

harbo

ur wo

uld be

vulne

rable

to att

ack f

rom W

eymo

uth B

ay an

d so

it wa

s dec

ided t

o com

pletel

y enc

lose t

he ha

rbour

by bu

ilding

two m

ore ar

ms

to the

north

to lin

k with

the s

hore

at W

eymo

uth. T

he ne

w arm

s were

comp

leted

in

1903 an

d the original south entrance b

locked in 1

914 b

y scuttling the redundant 

battle

ship

HMS

Hood

. At

the s

outh

end o

f the R

odwe

ll Trai

l the “

fathe

r” of

the un

derw

ater to

rpedo

, Rob

ert

Whitehead, built his

 facto

ry in 

1891 whic

h continued t

o make those fears

ome 

weapons u

ntil 1

993 w

hen it w

as closed to make w

ay fo

r harb

our side

 housing

.

The R

oyal Na

vy do

minated

 the h

arbou

r for 150 ye

ars be

fore leavin

g in 1

996 

makin

g way

for it

s tran

sition

to a

busy

civil

ian po

rt and

wate

r spo

rts ce

ntre.

In 2012 it will b

e the ve

nue f

or the

 sailing e

vents

 of the 2

012 O

lympic

 Gam

es an

d Pa

ralym

pic Gam

es.

Loca

tion

The R

odwe

ll Trai

l runs

from

Abbo

tsbury

Roa

d, ne

ar the

centr

e of W

eymo

uth,

south

to Fe

rrybri

dge w

here

the la

goon

behin

d Che

sil B

ank,

The F

leet w

ith its

nature reserv

e, joins Portlan

d Harb

our. F

or part o

f the w

ay it follow

s the Ju

rassic

 Co

ast a

nd an

area

of S

pecia

l Scie

ntific

Inter

est.

Car park

s with pu

blic toilets

 and refreshm

ents are

 close b

y just 6

-7 minutes

 walk

 fro

m eit

her e

nd. B

uses

trave

l freq

uentl

y betw

een F

erryb

ridge

(sou

th en

d of th

e Ro

dwell

Trail

) to ce

ntral

Wey

mouth

.Th

ere is

also

a toi

let an

d a

café

in the

garde

ns of

Sa

ndsfo

ot Ca

stle.

From

Swa

nnery

car p

ark go

unde

r Sw

anne

ry Br

idge,

along

the B

ackw

ater,

right

over

Wes

tham

Bridg

e, thr

ough

the

unde

rpass

to th

e Abb

otsbu

ry

Road

entra

nce.

From

Che

sil B

each

ca

r park

turn

left

toward

s Wey

mouth

, ov

er Fe

rrybri

dge a

nd

you w

ill fin

d the

entra

nce

on th

e opp

osite

side

of th

e roa

d from

the F

erryb

ridge

Inn.

Rod

wel

l Tra

il C

ode

No do

g fou

ling,

litter,

horse

s or

motor

cycle

sPl

ease

soun

d bicy

cle be

lls w

hen n

ear w

alkers

Enjoy

a his

toric

trip al

ong W

eymo

uth’s

green

trail

Print

ed by

Epic

Qua

lity P

rint

Prod

uced

by Fr

iends

of R

odwe

ll Trai

lFo

r furth

er inf

ormati

on &

local

cycle

route

s co

ntact

Weym

outh

and P

ortlan

d Boro

ugh C

ounc

il Tourist Inform

ation Centre (01305) 785747

Webs

ite: w

ww.w

eymo

uth.go

v.uk/le

isure/

open

spac

es/ro

dwellt

rail

w

ww.ro

dwellt

rail.o

rg.uk

The Rodw

ell TrailThe Rodwell Trail is a popular green link used by cyclists and walkers between W

eymouth and Ferrybridge following the course of the old Weymouth to Portland

Railway with links to the South West Coast Path and the Isle of Portland.

Stretching for 3.4 km it is an hour’s level walk each way. W

heelchair and pushchair friendly, it is suitable for all ages, although some access points can be steep except at Ferrybridge, Parr W

ay and Dover/Dundee Roads. Please note that Newstead, W

yke and Buxton Road entrances are not suitable for wheelchairs.

Weym

outh and Portland Railw

ay

The Rodwell Trail follows the track of the old railway built in 1865 to carry passengers and Portland stone between W

eymouth and Portland. It was extended in 1878 into the Royal Navy Dockyards and later in 1891 to serve W

hitehead’s torpedo factory at Ferrybridge complete with it’s own siding and a 1,000 foot pier with its own narrow gauge railway track out into Portland Harbour. The line was a mixed gauge worked jointly by the London & South W

estern Railway and the Great W

estern Railway until 1874 when it was converted to standard gauge.

In 1870 the first intermediate station at Rodwell was opened. The line continued to improve with the addition of new halts at W

estham and W

yke Regis in 1909  and a new stop at Sandsfoot Castle Halt in 1932. The railway continued to serve the community until 9 April 1965.

Nature on the R

odwell Trail

Westham

Halt to R

odwell Station

In the spring and autumn watch out for migrating birds passing through, such as whitethroats and warblers. The Small W

hite butterfly can be seen in numbers in early summer and again in the

autumn. The brambles are a favourite place for Gatekeeper butterflies. In the autumn you can hear the Great Green Bush cricket chirping in the undergrowth.

Rodw

ell Station to Sandsfoot H

altThis area is darker and enjoyed by the more secretive animals, such as frogs, badgers and foxes. You may spy a wren flitting

around in the undergrowth. In the more open area past Buxton Road bridge look out for butterflies such as Red Admiral and Peacock nectaring on the buddleia flowers.

Sandsfoot Halt to W

yke Regis H

altIn winter look across Portland Harbour, you may

well see Merganser ducks, Slovenian grebes and Great Northern Divers.  In the plant “Little Robin”, that grows along the track, you may also be

lucky and see the female

“Wasp Spider” with its

distinctive yellow and black abdomen.  On the concrete around the old W

yke Regis Halt you may see common lizards basking in the sun on a summer’s day.

The

Rodw

ell T

rail

From

Rai

l to T

rail

Step

bac

k in

tim

e al

ong

a hi

stor

ic21 ⁄4

mile

Wal

k/C

ycle

Way

bet

wee

nW

eym

outh

and

Fer

rybr

idge

HM

S H

ood

prio

r to

sinki

ng in

191

4

Whi

tehe

ad’s

Tor

pedo

Fac

tory

FRIENDS of RODWELL TRAIL

WEY

MO

UTH

POR

TLA

ND

POR

TLA

ND

HA

RB

OU

R

i

i

FRIE

NDS o

f RO

DWEL

L TRA

IL

KnightsdaleRoad Newstead Road

bridge opens 2011

Whitehead Drive

P

Access PointsA Abbotsbury RoadB Ilchester RoadC Salisbury RoadD Newstead RoadE Prince of Wales RoadF Wyke Road G Buxton RoadH Clearmont Road I Old Castle Road J Parr WayK Rylands Lane L Douglas Road M Dundee/Dover Road N Osprey RoadO Whitehead Drive P Ferrybridge

Plan of the Rodwell TrailApproximate scale = 1: 8,000 or 2 inches = 1⁄4 mile

View of Weymouth Harbour from the Rodwell Trail

Wyke Tunnel

Rodwell Station

Looking out across Portland Harbour

Ferrybridge

Littlefield Crossing

The Embankment

The Cutting

Buxton Road Bridge

Near Sandsfoot Halt

Henry VIII’s ruined castle and Sandsfoot Gardens

View of Portland Harbour from the Rodwell Trail

N

i