We love living in the South, here in Dorset we pride ourselves in our gorgeous forestry and our stunning golden sandy beaches, round here you never find yourself being disappointed in the scenery.
And the way to be able to experience it all? The Castleman Trailway! The Trailway is where our company name was born, and it is popular amongst all local residents due to its incredible history!
The Trailway is the original site of the Castleman railway line that ran through the area from 1847 to 1960, it was also known as the Southampton to Dorchester Rail Line that ran a famously circular route, Namely the Castleman Corkscrew, through the Dorset country. This was named and developed by Charles Castleman, a Wimborne born solicitor/railway planner who lived from the year 1807 – 1876.
This Railway ran all the way from Southampton Central, through to Totton, Brockenhurst, Ringwood, Ashley Heath, West Moors, Wimborne, Broadstone, Creekmoor, Hamworthy, Wareham to Dorchester! Though during this time, Bournemouth was not the tourist destination it is today, so the line was not deemed important enough to run the way it had been running for over 100 years. In the late 19th century, a different route via Christchurch instead of Ringwood was built, and the former main line between Lymington and Hamworthy was reduced to the status of a small local branch line, finally fully closing in the 1960s.
However the end sections, from Southampton to Lymington Junction and from Hamworthy Junction to Dorchester, remain operational and form part of the important SWR service we still use in 2021! The discontinuation of the original rail line was very sad for all the locals, and the original line was turned into the Castleman Trailway that it is known as today.
The Castleman Trailway is now a walk, cycle and bridle route that runs from Ringwood to Poole! (The Bridle Way ends at Wimborne, the walk and cycle route continue to Poole) and it is a place where many people, including ourselves here at Castleman Estate Agents, now go for nice walks and family days out! The non-stop incredible views are just unbeatable, there are shops and pubs at different parts of this Trailway, depending one which route you take! One of the show stopping things about Castleman Trailway today is all the still standing pieces of history, like the platform at Ashley Heath next to the convenience store that now resides where the once popular railway ran, and the lady Wimborne bridge near The Willett Arms pub! All are a definite must see!
