"Bisley Bullet" Bridge ...

... then and now.

I took another trip back to the Basingstoke Canal and the Deepcut locks, this time accessing the canal further down, in order to investigate the remains of what looked like a railway embankment and bridge over the canal near lock 15.  This was originally a branch off the SWR mainline near Brookwood Station into the new National Rifle Association  ranges at Bisley built in 1890, and later extended to other army camps, including Deepcut, in the World Wars.  The trains serving the line were affectionately known as the "Bisley Bullet" and reached the magnificent speed of 10mph!  The last train ran in 1952.

The original photo was taken by Dr Neil Clifton in March 1979, almost exactly 42 years ago, and the bridge removed shortly afterwards. At this time the canal is clearly unnavigable, though some clearance of the undergrowth has taken place prior to restoration and its eventual reopening in 1993, 217 years after its first plans were drawn up in 1776.

I merged my photo from today (in extras) with the old image in Photoshop to give a "then and now" image before you.