When the train has gone: Beautiful areas left behind on the rails

Cycling the Rio Grande Trail, in Colorado. Photo / Supplied

Anthony Lambert finds beautiful areas left behind on the rails.

Callander and Oban Railway

Arguably Scotland's most scenic closed railway, the Callander and Oban line ran through some of the loveliest glens of the Central Highlands. So admired was the line that most of the Caledonian Railway's tours featured it, some using a Pullman observation car. Today one of the most dramatic sections, through Glen Ogle, is part of NCN 7 between Glasgow and Inverness, with the excitement of wheeling or walking over the arches of Glen Ogle Viaduct high above the valley the railway's manager described with permissible hyperbole as, the Khyber Pass of Scotland.

The Ghan, Australia

You need a four-wheel drive vehicle to tackle the old route of the Ghan, the legendary train that has served the "red centre" of the country since the railway reached Alice Springs in 1929. When the new standard-gauge railway to Alice was opened in 1980 on a more westerly route, the old narrow-gauge line was abandoned, and its eerily remote stations are now part of the week-long 1050km Old Ghan Railway Heritage Trail between Alice and Port Augusta. Travel notes include places to find water at artesian springs.

Somerset and Dorset Railway

Probably the most lamented railway in England, the Somerset and Dorset line wound through the most beautiful parts of the two counties. On summer weekends it carried a constant stream of trains between northern cities and the south coast, including the Pines Express between Manchester and Bournemouth. But for the rest of the year, it served a string of market towns that never generated enough revenue, once the roads smelt of fumes, and so it was closed in 1966. Its northern section has become the Two Tunnels Greenway through the LED-lit Devonshire and Combe Down tunnels, as part of a 21km loop using the Kennet & Avon Canal towpath.

Central Otago, New Zealand

Gold was the progenitor of this 236km railway into the heart of the South Island, but the rush was almost over by the time construction started from Dunedin in 1879, and it was 1921 before the western terminus at Cromwell was reached. Agricultural produce just about sustained the railway until road competition caused its closure west of Middlemarch in 1990. Largely thanks to a group of far-sighted Otago women, the potential of the scenic route was realised with help of the Department of Conservation when the Central Otago Rail Trail was opened for cyclists and walkers in 2000.

Kettle Valley Railway, Canada

When open, this railway through British Columbia's rugged Kootenay Rockies attracted visits by those who relished challenging railroads, but it is probably far more widely known for its post-closure reincarnation as Canada's finest bike trail. Stretching for 586km between Midway and Hope, it has become so popular that there is a book devoted to the cycling the journey and tour companies provide luggage transfers.

Florida East Coast Railway

Some people motoring along the very southern end of US Highway 1 down to Key West may be unaware they are driving along one of America's most extraordinary railways. The Florida East Coast Railway was built through the determination of Henry Morrison Flagler. Construction of the 206km entailed heroic engineering — its longest viaduct stretched for seven miles on 336 concrete piers. Opened in 1912 the railway carried freight for Cuba and trains from New York until a hurricane in 1935 caused damage beyond repair.

Newfoundland T'Railway

Railways came late to Newfoundland; hauled by a Leeds-built locomotive, the first train over the 882km line ran from St John's to Port aux Basques in 1898. A century later it was abandoned, but the railway's value was recognised and today it forms the Newfoundland section of the Trans Canada Trail.

Vias Verdes, Spain

Spain has lost many of its most scenic railway lines, but no other country in the world has been as assiduous in giving them a second lease of life. More than 2700km of lines have been opened as Vias Verdes, amounting to 117 itineraries. The routes are signed, and 98 railway stations have been restored. The longest is the 160km Ojos Negros II Greenway, partly over the track bed of a Sierra Menera mining railway.

Rio Grande Trail

Railway enthusiasts in the United States of America have long held a special affection for the legendary Denver and Rio Grande narrow-gauge lines and two sections survive to this day as heritage railways — the Durango & Silverton and the Cumbres & Toltec. The Rio Grande Trail follows the 68km long line through the Roaring Fork Valley with its soaring red cliffs that linked Glenwood Springs with Aspen.

Salzkammergut lokalbahn, Austria

Few closures are as regretted as much as that of the railway between Bad Ischl and Salzburg, which shut in 1957. This railway served villages, winding its way beside mountain-fringed lakes. Its charm is recalled by a museum at Mondsee. Much has become part of the 345km Salzkammergut Cycle Route, though people in the region campaign to reinstate the railway to alleviate traffic congestion.

— Telegraph Group Ltd