Why was this Tunnel Pointless. The Haddon Story 

TWO THINGS: 1) Massive thanks to Positec UK, who lent us those torches to trial for the day. We loved them, you can look at their products here: www.ebay.co.uk/str/worxpositecshop?_trksid=p2047675.m3561.l2563 Item in Video: www.ebay.co.uk/itm/184071024859?hash=item2adb7cf0db%3Ag%3A1dUAAOSw6tNd6OZN and www.ebay.co.uk/itm/183627854064?hash=item2ac112b0f0%3Ag%3AQvMAAOSwLeFcNchk 2) We were a tad unsure of the fate of Alfred mentioned in the story. We think we have misread the information and Alfred did sadly pass away on that fateful day. You can also find Mr Martin Zero's channel here: ru-vid.com

the one thing about how they brick up the tunnel openings like that, is that it prevents the tunnel from draining and ventilating correctly as you can see. It clearly has some significant drain system in the floor, which is unusual for tunnels from that period, but the brick walls across the openings just hold back the water and causes more damage because the water will force itself through the main structure. It is far, far better to use open fencing so water and air can get through. By not allowing the brickwork to breathe the moisture problems become worse, and when you then have a lake building up on the one end it's just a matter of time before the water rips the bricks apart. It doesn't take much to maintain these old tunnels, as long as they're kept open. Closing them up just accelerates the deterioration and is literally the worst thing you can do for old structures.

I think of the engineering skill and artistry, and the countless hours of hard labor required to lay all that stone and brick (indeed, to cut and shape each stone and make the brick), and then to have it all end in tragedy.

Dear Martin Liam Paul & Rebecca That is a serious and highly crafted tunnel. A very well put together and very informative video. This well illustrates the incredible problems with water that the mid 19th Century engineers had to face. Well done team!

Oh dear. The subtitles were doing so well until the end when it listed your name as Lightweight. Excellent video, though.

Love Martin's channel! Both of your channels have great content. For me, living in America's midwest, I get to see places I'll never see in real life and learn their history. I also get to bask in your lovely accents. Thank you all! :)

St Pancreas ?? :)

St Pancreas? My gut feeling (and without intending any Bile) is that must be close to Liver poolstreet, in the Heart of London. I Kidney not. Sorry, just venting my Spleen.

The hydraulic pressure on that block wall must be immense.

Brilliant use of your time. This content is the original purpose of RU-vid and long May it last. (The water retaining wall was a bit creepy😬)

Saint Pancreas?! Ha ha! Who's that? Patron saint of all diabetics!

Spectacular tunnel! Thanks for showing it, and any future collaborations would be great!

great to see you all together again, I'm off to watch Martin's now, I pass Haddon everyday on my work commute so will give you a thought tomorrow.

Hi Both. Have you watched "Taylors Aboard" channel video 145.

Wonderful, Martin's version last night, and yours this morning, such a treat, my two favourite exploring channels. Great video, I love the poetic licence in Martin's story to the reality of yours, so funny to see both versions, you should all be members of the actors union! Keep it coming guys.

A breeze block wall with all that water behind it , I'd of hightailed it sharpish.

There is a similar pointless tunnel just outside Bishop Auckland. It is now part of the Auckland Way foot / bike path. The Prince bishop did not want to see the railway when he went to his castle

I gotta say; I'm with Haddon. That steam train woulda run right past my front door and I, too, would find it unseemly. I think it's quite rude of you to call him a 'pesky land owner'. No matter how he's portrayed by the Midland Rail. Very nice tunneling, though. And great solutions for all the problems they encountered. And you're so lucky to be able to walk it, those photos are stunning!

St Pancreas? was that the patron saint of the digestive system?

Another great video! That was a surprise at the other end of the tunnel! I wonder how long it will be before that wall gives way!

Do you think this will be opened for walkers and cyclists by Sustrans?

Found your channel yesterday, Absolutely love your videos.

DId he say St Pancreas?

Watching this in a Premier inn in London(bankside), it has controls to to turn down and off,the fan 😀.

All these old railway tunnels will be getting a new lease of life soon, when they are converted into nuclear shelters. Not quite what any of us had in mind.

Thank you all for the content. Really interesting and very well produced. I subscribe to both your channel and Martin’s channels so thank you both for the interesting collaboration. 👍

I wonder what problem they had draining that tunnel when it was in service?

Often wondered if the Haddon Tunnel was still passable Thanks for uploading the video (Locals pronounce Rowsley as rose-lee)

Top work! (as per usual) I thought for a moment you had diversified into the realms of unboxing videos.

Nice to see that a Lord of the Rings fan has been there and added the appropriate inscription to the entrance.

Sneaky..... Which one to watch first....🤔

Good timing as I’m up in the Peak District very shortly! Was probably going to roll along the Monsal trail depending on time!

Great video! A video on the tunnels beneath the english channel would also be very interesting as a suggestion.

St Pancras NOT St Pancreas. Station not digestion

Hoorah The Intrepid Martin Returns!

It's true Mr. Manners (Duke of Rutland) allowed the line to pass through his estate, albeit under cover; BUT this was because Mr. Cavendish (Duke of Devonshire) refused the Midland Railway to cross his estate at Chatsworth. Check out Patrick Dickinson's RU-vid channel, he has done a great Haddon Tunnel video 🖖

You got some beautiful still photos there and I love the history talk of the way in which it was built. Thanks for all the videos Princess Rebecca and Prince Paul put up.

I solo hiked the rail-bed in the mid-70s and had a peep inside (big metal doors then) but decided to walk around. Rabbits galore and that collapsed hut was clean swept so I guess somebody ate a lot of rabbit :D Two young men (twins?) rode by, thrashing some Victorian jalopy on the dirt track back to the road; I thought it was going to bounce so hard it would flip. I may have met the owner later, if there's a Revlon connection :) Drop-dead gorgeous exit into Monsall Dale at the viaduct

Pancreas: Organ Pancras: Terminal station in London..... Great video though, in one of the most fascinating areas for railway history...

There's a little side story regarding the Midland Railway line along the Wye valley, now the very popular multi-user Monsal Trail. The ill-fated Lancashire, Derby and East Coast Railway, LDECR, was supposed to connect the east and west coasts but never got past Chesterfield on its westward route to Lancashire due to cost. It seems that the route was going to be along more or less the same route up the Wye valley with a high viaduct over the existing Monsal Head viaduct and onward to Manchester. The unintended terminus was the Market Place station in Chesterfield with only the east coast route finished, much of it using lines belonging to other companies. Long gone now but close to the existing Portland Hotel. There was a magnificent LDECR high viaduct at Horns Bridge in Chesterfield passing over the LMS railway and the LNER railway. Now gone, of course. I remember as a boy going on a train excursion to Skegness on the LDECR and in 1948 there was a George Stephenson centenary exhibition at the Market Place station that I went to. The LNER line and it's Chesterfield station is now also gone and much of it a road bypass. There is a disused tunnel running under the town. Patrick Dickinson has a RU-vid video on that one.

That was fabulous, love it when you get together with Martin. Love his idea. Really loved this. A beautiful tunnel. Personally I would have no problem with a train going thru my yard. Thanks for taking me along. Please stay safe and take care

Loving the "SPEAK FRIEND AND ENTER" graffiti.

Did you not visit what's left of Rowsley station and the still half remnant, so attractive, rail bridge over the Bakewell Road just past same, djkining, virtually, the Grouse & Claret ?

It would be great if you guys could do a study of what's needed to reopen the Buxton the Matlock Peak to mainline traffic. It really should be one of those infrastructure projects so favoured by Boris Johnson. That said, the Haddon Tunnel would probably have to be excavated into the cutting it always should have been.

Great video 😃😃😃... I'd heard of the Haddon tunnel ... now I know where it is ! Becca's looking radiant today ... Hi Bec 👍

HI Martin

In the Netherlands we do the same nowadays. Large stretches of railway underground to avoid it being seen by people above ground.

I can remember, and knew well, that bit of line when it was open and worked by steam. From recollection, at the Bakewell end, where the pond is that you found, there was a signal box and a lay by siding on the west side. The main line was on a more or less continual incline from Rowsleay to Peak Forest (NE of Buxton). The siding would have been level. So it's probably the track bed of that which is holding the water in. Because of the long climb almost all northbound goods trains had an extra engine banking at the back, all the way to Peak Forest or Buxton depending on which way the train went after Millers Dale.

So, was that door open or did you have to get a key from somewhere? 🙂

Went here today with a friend. Sadly, it's been sealed up tight now. We had a walk over the top and found the cutting square area to look down, along with the air shafts. So all was not lost. :)

Fascinating story. This cut and cover tunnel was being built at the exact same time as the Metropolitan Railway’s first cut and cover line in London. Having watched Martin’s video first, thank you for revealing the camera does sometimes lie!

Love you guys! Nice to see Martins mug in there too. Hugs from a fan from Chicago (ancestors from the UK) 🤗

I was thinking; Tunnel? No one would build a tunnel at tat depth, and then you explained. And then I was thinking; Wet! And then you got to the far end. Holy !!

Was "St Pancreas"...the patron Saint of digestion? 🤣🤣🤣

Peak National Park and any other landowners need to let this be reopend for railway use again it’s totally do able if the public wants it , we’ve got enough cycle paths

I'd have got the hell away from that wall at the end of the tunnel a lot bloody quicker than you guys! Bear in mind 1 cubic metre of water weighs a ton, and water is incompressible. That means that the pressure on that wall must be about a hundred tons.

I worked (quite a number of years ago) with drivers who 'signed' this route. General consensus was it was the most challenging route any Derby driver went over, especially in the winter months.....

I don’t know why I watched all this, but fascinating……

You mean to say Martin dragged you up through the scrub when there was a perfectly good pathway near by. Tch Tch.

drain the swamp find the secret tunnel systems and free the children and babies from the suffering

Interested to know what was the Plan B, which picked up where the abandonment of the tunnel left off? If any.

Love your videos! So cool to work with Martin on this one. Love his channel as well! Thanks for you hard work!

Life expectancy was about 42 for males in 1861

Thanks for posting. I watched Martin's as well. Both excellent.

What a great video and I learned quite a bit. This is an area I have walked in many times. One of the first walks I ever did as a teenager was on what became the Monsal trail just after services stopped and walked through Cressbrook tunnel when the tracks were still in place. I always thought that the entire Haddon tunnel was cut and cover. Once again we learn how hard the life of the men that cut these tunnels, cuttings and embankments was. Do we appreciate what they did? I believe that there is a plan to reopen this line. I would love to see this but It won't be in my life time. Thank you for this great video.

That concrete block wall at the end looks horrendously unsafe. I bet it was never engineered for the force of that much water and it’s total good luck that it hasn’t let go.

Future note…. If you go down stairs to the reception in those hotels, they can change the settings on the room heating/air conditioning 😎😎👍👍

I first found Paul and Rebecca on Martin Zero you tube adventure, that how I found them

A big thumbs up for the idea of a forthcoming joint effort this year.

I watched Martins video first and was absolutely convinced you had gone to the tunnel separately ahead of them! 😂 the magic of television at work haha

I'm curious as to why there's a lake now in the ravine/cutting that had been a train route...

Top marks for being so intrepid! Excellent vid, thanks.

If you want to visit a pointless tunnel, try the Williamson Tunnels in Liverpool.

I loved this! My two favorite RU-vid channels together. What a treat. I guess there is no way to make a trail using that tunnel with one end under water. Too bad as the tunnel itself looks to be in good shape.

Great to see you with Martin, I live in the Gtr Manchester area and do enjoy Martins channel along with yours.

@ 5.00mins the JRR Tolkien reference made me smile.

Amazing seeing the amount of history these tunnels have seen over the years these tunnels should be repurposed again perhaps for paths or something shame seeing them going to waste.

I used to live in Harmer Hill, near Haddon. Wasn't even aware of this tunnel.

The railways took over from the canals; now it looks like a canal is starting to take over a railway...

Great story, a tunnel to keep a landowner happy! Some good stills as well. Will catch up with Martin and Liam next. And the completion video sounds a great idea.

Very enjoyable video. I love seeing all of you together. I watch both channels all the time. Thanks. 🤗

Reminds me of the Bourne Park tunnel:www.heritagegateway.org.uk/Gateway/Results_Single.aspx?uid=1553255&resourceID=19191 Used to hide a railway gun for cross-channel duels with Nazi fortifications.

Great collaboration video, well done!! What a mysterious open section, I thought trees like that only grew out of the walls of the Bury Bolton canal. Look forward to seeing you both in Manchester with Martin (don't forget your teaspoons!).

I used to live three miles away! Lovely part of the world.

To me in Canada, BOTH yours and Martin's channels are tops!

We’ve walked past the blocked up far end of the tunnel many times.really interesting to see the inside of it . Thanks for that 😄

Any approach to this tunnel is unfortunately trespassing on private land! The tunnel did have a padlock on it but has been smashed off! Now it’s been properly boarded up to prevent people going in and security cameras now have been fitted.

0:54 you said "St Pancreas" 🤣🤣🤣

All of this was very interesting, but... Where did she find that mustard coloured jumper?

Saint Pancreas? Excellent! :-)

@4:53 I see we have a Tolkien fan who visited the site at some point

Nice video you lot together, I will go and watch Martins version next......lol

Brilliant getting the four of you together . Love Martin’s content as well 👍

Looks like the local one to me. Raining inside, floor had been ripped up and levelled during the war to store military equipment, bombs and ammo. But yeah very much like this inside only way longer here, way darker, and the shaft in the middle is insanely high in ours. Also mid way down its near waist deep here and has some breeze blocks dividing the tunnel with a cut out for bats to get through. Love these old tunnels.

use metric finally... it is 2022

And why was this tunnel pointless? (Do you mean because they had to open it up in the middle?) And why is there water such high on the other side?

Great video. Thanks.

Funny how the other two ‘met’ you there on their video 😛

Good to see you both on a new adventure as well as with Martin, two of my favourite channels, now off to see what Martin has to say.

Quick tip on that noisy hotel air vent. That card slot you put the card in to turn the lights on by the door. One half of that turns the lights on, the other half turns the air on. If you use a piece of cardboard half the width instead of the room key in that slot you can make the lights work but the air be off.