The Harrogate Loop - Version 2.3
The Harrogate Loop V2 for Train Simulator is a network of lines in West and North Yorkshire and features the stunning Harrogate Loop from York to Leeds via Harrogate and also the Leeds direct line through Cross Gates and Church Fenton. Additionally Version 2 of the Harrogate Loop also adds in the line from Church Fenton to Milford Junction and Gascoigne Wood meaning there's much more scenario potential. This route also finally fulfils the initial goal of the TPR Team to create the Harrogate Loop,a route which began way back in 2010!
PLEASE SEE MANUAL FOR ROUTE REQUIREMENTS AND ENSURE YOU HAVE THEM
PLEASE SEE MANUAL FOR ROUTE REQUIREMENTS AND ENSURE YOU HAVE THEM
Background Info:In 2010 The Transpennine Route was begun by Jim Nobbs (AKA Nobkins) creating a substantial rail network spanning coast to coast between Liverpool and Scarborough. Along with that all railway lines in between were included such as the ECML from York to Doncaster, Leeds to Bradford and the Calder Valley and much more. The route had a team over the years of 23 different contributors. People came and went all leaving some valuable work behind them. The main route focus for the beginning release was to be Neville Hill - Leeds - Harrogate - York. Sadly the project never saw the light of release and got shelved in 2014. In July 2016 Tom Harrison decided to open the Harrogate Loop once more and began to update the scenery to bring it up to current standards. As of 2019 the Harrogate Loop was considered shelved with no plans to complete it however Lewis Cox kindly contacted Tom during the first Covid lockdown and thanks to furlough,he had enough time to bring you everything that is new to Version 2!
What's Included:
What's Included:
- Around 75 route miles featuring the lines from York to Leeds via both Cross Gates and Harrogate,as well as additional scenery to Milford Jn
- Wide variety of scenarios including all manner of operations across the route
- Comprehensive set of Quick Drives provided by DP Simulation
- 30 scenarios covering a wide variety of operations - scenario supplement included to detail the requirements for each
Requirements
The full list of requirements is at the bottom of the page,and in the linked manual
Note - There are a lot!
There are numerous reasons why,the most significant is the age of the original route - having started in 2010 some of the requirements were the only variant available at the time.
Note - There are a lot!
There are numerous reasons why,the most significant is the age of the original route - having started in 2010 some of the requirements were the only variant available at the time.
Along the route:
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YorkYork features it's impressive station with 11 platforms,but along with that the area also has a number of yards,including Holgate,York North and South and the NRM's small yard. Beyond that there is also the Siemens Depot which serves as a base for Transpennine Express Class 185's. York is an important railway hub with the lines to Scarborough,London,Leeds,Yorkshire,Harrogate and the North all converging making it one of the busiest places on the network.
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York to Church Fenton
The East Coast Main Line is used from York to Colton Junction where we turn south west and head along either the Leeds or Normanton line to Church Fenton,this is the busiest section of the route outside Leeds with high speeds and a wide variety of traffic.
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Leeds Direct Line |
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The major new section for Version 2 is the line between York and Leeds,featuring the stations of Ulleskelf,Church Fenton,Micklefield,East Garforth,Garforth and Cross Gates. That's not all though,Neville Hill Depot has had a makeover and proudly stands on the west side of the line as you head into Leeds,making it a good start or end point for a variety of scenarios.
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Poppleton to Hammerton
A rural section crossing an area of farmland,filled with crops. Semaphore signal controlled manual crossings are located at Hessay,Marston Moor and Wilstrop,gradients are easy.
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Cattal to KnaresboroughThis 6 mile section features another area of farmland,features include Whixley semaphore controlled LC before later passing under the A59 York-Preston road near the site of the former Goldsborough station. Upon passing the distant signal for Knaresborough the line begins to climb sharply on a ruling gradient of 1 in 87 before plunging through the short tunnel into Knaresborough station.
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Knaresborough
Harrogate Loop V2 features our brand new models of both Knaresborough station and viaduct.
Knaresborough is where the line returns to double track for the remaining 22 miles to Leeds. Knaresborough not only sees the hourly York-Leeds services,but also terminating services from Leeds which arrive into platform 2 before shunting into platform 1 for their return journey. The town is dominated by the magnificent Nidd Viaduct,which crosses the river of the same name,while Knaresborough Castle dominates the skyline on the East side of the line. The well known Mother Shipton's cave is located in the town. |
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HarrogateHarrogate is at the summit of the climb from Starbeck on one side and Pannal on the other and features some superb semaphore signalling at it's north end. The station is dominated by the Victoria Car Park and it's associated bridges which link into the shopping centre of the same name. The fenced off bay at the north end is used to stable DMU's on a night while there is also a centre road,the signalbox is just north of the Victoria Car Park. Shortly after leaving the station the line passes through "The Stray",a 200 acre park which borders Harrogate "old town" and is a wonderful place on a summer's day.
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Crimple Viaduct
The stunning Crimple Viaduct,around a mile south of Hornbeam Park spans the scenic Crimple Valley. The line here is climbing towards Hornbeam Park coming off the 20mph check-rail protected curve with gradients as steep as 1 in 91.
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Weeton to HorsforthThe section from Weeton to Horsforth sees the line cross the Arthington Viaduct (aka Castley Viaduct) which carries the line high above the River Wharfe before the 1 in 94 climb to Horsforth begins in earnest. Shortly after the viaduct the line climbs into the 2 mile long Bramhope Tunnel,which these days is a serious factor in the banning of steam charters over the line due to gauging issues. The climb continues through the tunnel and is a serious challenge for any steam loco. Upon exiting the tunnel the line climbs through a steep cutting,lined with Rosebay Willow which creates a very distinctive scent on a summers day.
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Horsforth
Horsforth is the first station in the suburbs of Leeds and is near the summit of the long descent to Leeds which has a ruling gradient around 1 in 100. The station sees a daily service to London Kings Cross from Harrogate,which bizarrely passes straight through on the return to Harrogate in the evening. In 2012 a new turnback siding was added at the north end of the station to allow for further timetable enhancements.
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Engine Shed Jn and Holbeck Depot |
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Engine Shed Junction and Holbeck Depot lie on the former Midland Main Line south of Leeds and are the southernmost point on the Harrogate Loop TS route,Holbeck Depot was once an impressive steam shed and indeed had a sizeable diesel allocation beyond the end of steam. Today it is used by Northern Rail DMU's and Track Machines.
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Leeds City StationLeeds City station,one of Britains busiest and certainly an impressive site when filled with trains in TS,the hub of Yorkshire's rail scene it features 17 platforms,most split into 4 sections meaning that a whole host of pathing options are available at all times. Although there are no fewer 6 tracks leading into Leeds from the West,just 2 exit to the East meaning the east end of the station can often be a bottleneck for Transpennine Express and Cross Country services.
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Neville Hill Depot |
Neville Hill Depot is used by Northern as their main Yorkshire depot whilst LNER also use it as a base,meaning on early mornings and late evenings it is an extremely busy location with trains queuing to leave and enter the depot. Also included are the sizeable (but little used) yards on the south sides of the York-Leeds direct line.
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Heading south from Church Fenton we have the new 5 mile section of the Swinton and Knottingley Line as far as Milford Junction, which features a large yard and the triangular connection to the hub of the former Selby Coalfield,Gascoigne Wood.
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Church Fenton to Milford Junction |
Micklefield to Gascoigne Wood
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This 4 mile section of the Micklefield-Selby line currently ends at the large yard at Gascoigne Wood. Once the main yard for the huge Selby Coalfield it is now overgrown and unloved,recently used for the storage of LNER HST's and redundant pacers. This section of line also features the small station at South Milford and the line crosses over the Church Fenton line just north of Milford Junction.
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Route Requirements:
Alan Thomson Sim (Freeware)
Fuller Sim VMS Signal Pack
Armstrong Powerhouse (Payware)
Wherry Lines: Norwich to Great Yarmouth & Lowestoft Route*
(We cannot guarantee the Steam Store version will work)
Golden Age Developments:
UKTS Freeware Packs (All Packs required)
Just Trains
Common Library*
We recommend using either the latest version of Sheffield to Derby or South Western Expressways - Reading to obtain this
On Track Simulation
Cynx / 4AS Signage Pack V1.2
Steam Store
North Wales Coast Line
East Coast Main Line Modern: York - Peterborough Route Add-On
Liverpool - Manchester Route Add-On
West Highland Line Extension Route Add-On
WCML Trent Valley Route Add-On
Doncaster Works Route Add-On
Settle to Carlisle Route Add-On
West Coast Main Line Over Shap Route Add-On
Isle of Wight Route Add-On
Great Eastern Main Line London - Ipswich Route Add-On
European Loco & Asset pack* Not required if you owned Train Simulator before September 2012
US Loco & Asset Pack* Not required if you owned Train Simulator before September 2012
Vulcan Productions
Tree Pack (Version 2 Recommended)
Grass Pack
Fuller Sim VMS Signal Pack
Armstrong Powerhouse (Payware)
Wherry Lines: Norwich to Great Yarmouth & Lowestoft Route*
(We cannot guarantee the Steam Store version will work)
Golden Age Developments:
UKTS Freeware Packs (All Packs required)
Just Trains
Common Library*
We recommend using either the latest version of Sheffield to Derby or South Western Expressways - Reading to obtain this
On Track Simulation
Cynx / 4AS Signage Pack V1.2
Steam Store
North Wales Coast Line
East Coast Main Line Modern: York - Peterborough Route Add-On
Liverpool - Manchester Route Add-On
West Highland Line Extension Route Add-On
WCML Trent Valley Route Add-On
Doncaster Works Route Add-On
Settle to Carlisle Route Add-On
West Coast Main Line Over Shap Route Add-On
Isle of Wight Route Add-On
Great Eastern Main Line London - Ipswich Route Add-On
European Loco & Asset pack* Not required if you owned Train Simulator before September 2012
US Loco & Asset Pack* Not required if you owned Train Simulator before September 2012
Vulcan Productions
Tree Pack (Version 2 Recommended)
Grass Pack
Users who don't own the new (re-released) version of North Wales Coastal:
The legacy V2.1 will remain available on the link below.
This only applies to people who own the original North Wales Coastal route and do not have the newly released version (January 2022).
This version of Harrogate Loop will not be updated and any future updates to the route will only apply to the main copy on the links above.
All other users should download the latest version,available above.
This only applies to people who own the original North Wales Coastal route and do not have the newly released version (January 2022).
This version of Harrogate Loop will not be updated and any future updates to the route will only apply to the main copy on the links above.
All other users should download the latest version,available above.
Credits:
Benedict Cooper - Asset Creation & Route Tweaking
Callum Green - Asset Creation
Darren Porter - Quick Drive creation & Assets
Jack Hales - Batch File creation for the Class 67 & DVT Sound Fix
Jim Nobbs - Original Route Founder and all things technical
Joshua Bridge - Scenarios & Testing
Joshua Lake - Testing
Lewis Cox - Route creation, Asset Creation, Scenarios and Testing
Mark Walker - Scenery & Scenarios
Matthew Cox - Scenarios & Testing
Matthew Wilson - Track Tweaks and Manual Logo for Harrogate Loop
Original TPR Team - Assets & Scenery
Sean Harris - Testing
Thomas Harrison - Version 1&2 Route creation, scenarios and testing
Vulcan Productions Team - Original Route hosting & Testing for V1
Asset Permissions with thanks:
4Aspect Simulations
Acfreeman99
DPSimulation
Gougha
JADsHome
John Yelland
PenninePacer
Richard Maxted
Callum Green - Asset Creation
Darren Porter - Quick Drive creation & Assets
Jack Hales - Batch File creation for the Class 67 & DVT Sound Fix
Jim Nobbs - Original Route Founder and all things technical
Joshua Bridge - Scenarios & Testing
Joshua Lake - Testing
Lewis Cox - Route creation, Asset Creation, Scenarios and Testing
Mark Walker - Scenery & Scenarios
Matthew Cox - Scenarios & Testing
Matthew Wilson - Track Tweaks and Manual Logo for Harrogate Loop
Original TPR Team - Assets & Scenery
Sean Harris - Testing
Thomas Harrison - Version 1&2 Route creation, scenarios and testing
Vulcan Productions Team - Original Route hosting & Testing for V1
Asset Permissions with thanks:
4Aspect Simulations
Acfreeman99
DPSimulation
Gougha
JADsHome
John Yelland
PenninePacer
Richard Maxted