At the junction

Today I ventured a few miles inland, to the village of Maud, to have my car serviced.

These days, Maud is an attractive, sleepy little place, but not so long ago it was a busy and important railway town. Maud Junction station was where the single track line north from Aberdeen split into two routes, to the coastal town stations of Peterhead and Fraserburgh. The auction mart in the village was the source of Aberdeenshire beef cattle for transport to all parts of Great Britain and Maud Junction was the major railhead for N. E. Scotland cattle transport.

The line was built between 1861 and 1865 by the Formartine and Buchan Railway Company, which became part of the GNSR in 1866. In 1923 the GNSR was incorporated into the London and North Eastern Railway, which was in turn nationalised on 1 January 1948. Passenger services on the Buchan lines were withdrawn in 1965 as part of the Beeching cuts. Freight trains continued to operate to Peterhead until 1970 and Fraserburgh until 1979. The Formartine and Buchan Way long-distance footpath now follows the lines of the old track.

This colourful structure is part of the former Esso Oil Depot at Maud Junction station, standing within the V of the junction to the north of the station. The small sign on the door bears the rather enigmatic instruction, Fit it and Forget it.

Use the binoculars to spot the lone pigeon.