Had the pleasure of riding on Barry s railway while on holiday Jan 2012. Totally unique experience and would recommend to anyone visiting the Corramandel. Unbelievable dedication of one mans lifetime of inspired creation. We also had the privilege of hearing the story behind the railway from Barry himself, who was waiting for us in The EyeFull Tower at the top of the ride. Thanks Barry!

Dear Barry, I have Google+ set up to search for articles on Narrow Gauge Railways - and bingo, up came some videos of Driving Creek Railway & Potteries. Just search Google+ for ' Coromandels Narrow Gauge Mountain Railway '

You have a wonderful railway Barry and I hope to visit someday. I'm lucky enough to live just one hour's drive from The Ffestiniog Railway and The Welsh Highland Railway, both two foot gauge and steam operated.

Regards.

Hey! Just saw program about You and Your pasions on Travel Channel. It really have to be amazing place! It's another one reason to belive in my personal dreams that i can do what i want and i should try all the time :) One of that dreams is coming to New Zealand. Now i just figuring out where i can go. Your incredible place will be on my list. All the best and see You in soon future.

Dear Barry, I saw your inspiring work and land this week by television here in Brazil. I love it!!! And wanna say Congratulation not only for what you ve accomplished but for you standing by your gift of making pottery and didnt let anyone kill this dream!!!! Very inspiring . One day I ll go back to NZealand and first thing visit your Railway!!! May the Universe Always provide you all the Inspiration and Strengh you need to carry on with this treasure! PEACE!

Hi Barry I haven't been to see your wonderful Railway and Pottery yet.. But I saw it on Sky TV, Friday night..

It looked amazing !! Why I haven't heard of this before I don't know, but if I hear of anyone going to the North Is. I'll be recommending they see the Driving Creek Railway..

If my friend Lindsay ( a Steam Engine fanatic) wishes to go in his holidays I'll be coming along with him .. I couldn't think of a better holiday !!

Congrtulations on your hard work .. An Amazing, Unique NZ

What a labour of love! Barry and your team - a big wave of accolades, praise, honour and compliments going your way for the amazing selfless gift you lay at Driving Creek Rail's visitor's feet. I feel privileged to have shared in the experience - and you have enriched my kids' understanding of their environment. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you ....... 'go raibh mile maith agaibh'.

This is an experience not to be missed! I checked out Driving Creek Railway website before leaving for our second motorhome tour of New Zealand and it was one of the main reasons for including The Coromandel on our tour. If you are in The Coromandel spare a couple of hours just to take a ride on this fantastic railway. Barry, it's a true labour of love.

I visited the pottery & railway last year (2010). I would just like to say to anyone thinking of coming here, it was worth the two 12 hour flights from the U.K. just to see this place.

Fantastic trip from arrival, commentry (thanx Russell) kids loved oblidging with the tunnels! Throu to the panaramic views! Well worth the visit - hope to see the Kiwi next time :-)

Amazing place and a wonderful train ride up through the forest. The perfect way to finish off our visit to New Zealand. I can't believe the work that must have gone into creating this unique wonderland. Barry, you're leaving a great legacy for future generations - cheers!

Hey this railroad is alsome!! its a must see the best must see in corromandle! Good on ya for building this its amazing!! cheers barry for building this well done!!!

Hey I love the place. it is da bomb hope i get another chance to go There:(

On holiday with my Son in Auckland who brought us to your Railway last week. What can I say, it was Brilliant day out. The pottery was very good and watching the kilns being loaded was instructive, and then to ride the railway. Cannot wait to get home and try to recreate it in miniture

Last week I traveled to the Coromandel on the 360 Auckland Discovery Cruise and I must say how brilliant the day was .. Dolphins, Gannets, Old Gold Working ect ..

BUT the "Driving Creek Experence" was the master piece...

Well the highlight that day was clearly seeing your 27 years of hard effort ...what a brilliant experience it was to see "with out any Government control and involvement and I also noted you were not knighted for your efforts" that you have captured the spirit of ECO tourism in a na

A unique experience from a small railway with a great story. Barry, please keep going and carry on building. There must be some more routes and hillside to conquer.....Engineering and art are fused together with this installation. Hope to back one day and do it all over again.

We came to Coromandel on the 24th May this year (2009) and although we hadn't booked managed to get a ride to the Eyefull Tower. What a wonderful experience - definitely one of the great railway journeys of the World. Really pleased that we did this during our four weeks in NZ. And all the staff were really nice and informative. Kudos to Barry Brickell though for having created this wonderful railway - a real work of art in its own right.

Thank you team for such a wonderful day out. We are the members of the NZ Goldwing Riders Inc. Motorcyle Club from the Northern half of the North Island. We rode our bikes to Coromandel and were treated to a magnificent experience at Driving Creek. Many of our group had never been to DCR before and have said they were blown-away by what Barry and the team have created here. It is truly inspirational. We were pleased to have visited on Barry's birthday (26 Oct) Happy Birthday Barry, and thank you for having such a vision and sharing your life in the cause of conservation.

Hi, we had such a great day during our visit at New Year! Really great to see what someone can achieve if they have the vision and the wants...

My photos of the day are on flickr, under username duncwilson. If anybody would like to name any of the plants for me, I would be very grateful!

Kind regards, Dunc Wilson

Hi, We enjoyed our visit during Jan and are keen to help support the wildlife santuary and pest-proof fence. It would be great if there was some mention of this on the site but I can't see any. I know it is set up as a separate organisation to the Railway, but obviously there is a close association. Cheers, John.

Hello Barry. Just a line to say I heard, yesterday, part of the "From age to age" radio feature about you, the railway, and particularly your views on the desperate need for conservation of what little is left of "clean, green" NZ, which I totally endorse. As an immigrant Brit, I have been appalled at the European contribution to the problem. I hope to visit the DCR soon. Keep up the good work!

Just arrivwed home but I visited you in February.

Thank you for giving me a lot of time and ensuring that I saw the Brown Teal which was one of the highlights of my visit to New Zealand.

Keep up your good conservation efforts and you can count on my support.

Frank Whymark

I visited the DCR twice around ANZAC Day 2005 and was completely captivated. Thanks to the drivers, Pete (who I went for a ride on the Snake with) and Ron (who I rode the Lynx with) for being so friendly. If I ever become a politician I will make it compulsary for everyone who goes to Coromandel to go for a train ride. I hope I can come again soon!

I read about Driving Creek in a book titled "Land of the Long White Cloud" by Peter Thompson and decided to visit you during my recent trip to the North Island. My wife and I really enjoyed the trip up to Eyefull Tower on March 8th 2007. I will certainly recommend a visit to DCR to any of my friends who are planning a trip to NZ.

hi barry and team i my wife and 4 year old son visted your pottery and railway in jan 07 we found it very interesting and we learned a lot about native trees and plants,my son loved the train ride he still talks about it.as new zealanders we loved the jokes from the train driver.we hope to make another trip to coromandel soon keep up the great work.

my friend jerry jones built a live steam engine and started the mississauga ontario steam railway--the mile long track went through a park and was a big hit with the kids on the weekends within a year two more trains showed up built from kits which required a machine shop to cut all the cast parts. your railway looks very awsome hope to come for a visit

We had a wonderful time in NZ Jan 2007. Having travelled from South Island then up to North Island, the cherry on the top was the trip on your Driving Creek Railway. Thanks Barry, Waylin and team for all your hard work over the years for our leisure and pleasure.

This is a great way to cap off a trip to the peninsula!

You can see our photos at nzphotographic.exposuremanager.com

We will definitely be booking another ride next time.

Enjoyed our first trip to Coromandel on 2 Jan 07 and were extremely impressed with our journey on DCR. This has to be the best kept secret south of the Coromandel and is a must see for all Kiwis visiting the area. Will be recommending to all friends and family. Thanks to your very professional team for such an enjoyable visit.

Hi Barry, Carol and I will be coming to New Zealand in March 2007. We will be in the country from March 4th to 19th. We plan to spend two days in Coromandel and stay the nights of March 6th and 7th there. We hope there is a good B&B close to you and we really want to have a ride on your railway. We will stay with Peter Lange in Auckland the first two nights of our trip and travel to the south Island (Nelson) after visiting with you. All goes well with our work. I spent two weeks in Flagstaff, Arizona firing wood kilns in October and spent some time visiting with your friend Don Bendel. He says to say hello. Hope to see you in March and please recommend any good accommodation in your area. Regards, Carol and Richard Selfridge

Will be visiting New Zealand in Feb. 07. Friends from Auckland suggested a visit to your site.We will certainly try to go. Looks very interesting.

Kia Ora Barry, Waylin and the Team,

The answer is WOW! I like it, I will be traveling to Kennedy Bay so on the way I'll be able to stop by and have nohi around. I didn't realise what to expect when I would travel to the Coromandel and that will be exciting and it will be the first time ever I have been up that part of the country.

All I can say is wow, wow and wow.

I heard about Barry for 2 years, and intend making the pilgrimage.

Visited what must be the most unusal and wonderful railway in the world in March 06.

Beutiful scenary , excellent pway , superb infrastructure , great things to do with bottles , tui birds , pottery . The trains are a joy. Barry and your team - congratulations

We are coming over on the 19th January and this is the 4th visit and the place that is always a must on my trip is your brilliant railway, ever since my Uncle Earl (Baillie) took us on it.

There is so much to see and you have done a marvellous job.

Hope to see you all soon.

Thanks again Vivienne

It's been about a year since we first stumbled across this website as our young one is a train fanatic. We only dreamed of the chance to one day experience the DCR. Today that dream became a reality for our family and it was brilliant, to say the least. An excellent work of art set in beautiful surroundings. The views are truly spectacular! Our driver (sorry, we didn't get your name) was very welcoming and pleasant. Thank you Barry and your friendly staff for the passion you have in creating such an enjoyable and informative train ride experience. Well worth the 2 and 1/2hr drive from Auckland with our 3yr and 8mth old boys. Today will be a day that we will remember for a very long time. We look forward to visiting again. We highly recommend the DCR as a MUST to visit.

I remember visiting the DCR in 1`980 when working on the nearby Stamper Battery; I had no idea that it had developed so much. I look forward to taking my kids to see it next time we visit New Zealand.

I happened on this website via the Lithgow Zig Zag railway site. I will certainly visit on my next trip to New Zealand as the railway wasn't there the last time I visited.

this is one of the best train rides i have got to see good luck and keep up the good work S.O.B. (same old bob)

Seeing is believing, and when you see the DCR you won't believe it. Its brilliant, visited in January 2005 in a heatwave. I work in a Faculty of Art in Brighton and I can see the artist temperament of Barry running wild to produce such superb work...........and then just building the railway...and extending....and extending....as a progression of his art and passion for the nature of the area. hope to be back within a couple of years and DCR (and Coromandel) is onthe revisit list. (Sorry to say only just found your website)

Just wonderful Barry - such a credit to you and all involved ! So friendly and informative thanks for a great trip. Makes us proud of our own country. Crazy not to visit :)

We arrived in Coromandel on the 23 of September and it is beautiful! We had a wonderful time there and DCR was relly great. The "Eyefull Tower" is really fantastic. Thanks to Pete (our train driver for the "Lynx")for being so nice and telling us all about Barry and how and why he built the trains and their tracks. It is so great you guys are taking care of the wonderful DCR and if we ever find ourselves in Coromandel again we will be sure to pay you another visit! Thanks again -The Thorntons.

Good Website Barry!! I recently did the trip with Barbara, and it was a real blast for her, and though I had done it before, I was able to get to see things I missed previously. And the Eyfull Tower is an incredible structure, complete with Wheelchair access. And your native tree-planting effort is remarkable. Would like to know about the latest train; it could well be built by now. Tony O

Visited the railway last sunday - well worth the roller coaster road North to Cormanny to ride on the trains & the view at the top. Excellent ! Can Barry come and work for EWS in the UK please we need him to sort our leafs on the line problems !

Daniel & Pamela

Sydney in Transit bound Hong Kong then UK - home !

we pondered and pondered ... what would it be like taking a 2 1/2 yr old on an hour long train ride , clinging to the steep sides of the cormandel mountains ... don't know what we waited for - we all loved it, especially Reece ...

"The tunnels were great, dad ...again" to quote a thoroughly entertained little un' ..

Perfect way to end a perfect week on the Coromandel !!!! Cheers Barry (and Peter the driver) ...

Looking forward to seeing your work Barry. I have heard and read much about you from my niece Christine Leov-Leyland who wrote the book on your life and work, she was a true admirer of your efforts. These web pages are great and make the want to get to the North Is and the Coromandel to see the "Driving Creek" railway that much more urgent! New Zealand needs many more of the Barry Bricknells! - Thanks, George - Methven

I am Barry's 'gardener' looking after his forest regeneration programme and also the host for the volunteer helpers. We at D.C.R. would really like to thank all of the 'helpers' we get from D.O.C , Wwoof and from HelpX ...your help is really needed and appreciated . Many thanks Piet

26-July-05Doreen & Les Tomkins Manchester England.

What awonderful experience riding the railway.We were there 27-Mar-05 We'll be back.

Real awesome time. Was really great! We went on it in 2004. Thanks Barry for Such a great time!

We rode the train on 26-Mar-05. What a wonderful experience. Thank you ever so much for making the train and the "Eyefull Tower Terminus" so wheelchair friendly. We spent 30 days in New Zealand and this was the highlight of our trip.

Just after getting a copy of your video and seeing it in the New Zealand Railfan Magazine I just had to visit to see for myself,which I did on the 22nd March. Fantastic is all I can say and when I bring friends down we will be bringing them to DCR

Bricks, I need a DCR brick. The last one I found was a saltglazed New Lynn brick I dug up with a nearby stone, at a demolished service station, on Clark St New Lynn Auckland.

A fantastic trip in a beautiful setting. Congratulations on what you have achieved and your legacy. Got to be Coromandel Towns's highlight.

Enjoyed the trip. It was very interesting. The view from the Eyeful tower was excellent I will have to bring some friends next time.

Aloha, We loved your train ride, what a wounderful and fun railroad! The view from the top was fantastic and the drive to Corommandel was so beautiful.

Hi, we came across this unique railway and pottery almost by chance during a new zealand tour in july 2004 - highly recommended for anybody into conservation, pottery, ecobuildings and fun!! We loved the Coromandel. jg

Hi, We visited this wonderful little railway in April 2004. Really enjoyed the scenery, the engineering design and the ride. Also the pottery. Extremely worth while visiting.

Hi, I saw your railway on the Tv show by Scott McGregor. I am visiting the Peninsular on Sunday April 17 2005 and look forward to meeting with you. Some of my ancestors were involve with the Kuranui Mine at Thames. Terry

Hi Barry I am a potter/instructor in Vancouver and I plan to come over to a wedding in Australia March 20/05. I was thinking about spending most of my time in New Zealand and a good friend of mine knows Masood Afshar and told me about your place. I am trying to line up a few things in the pottery area.What are the costs to work in your studio??? Accomodation etc.??? I will be off from teaching as of March 1 to about April 15. When is the best weather during this time frame. Do you have addresses of other potters in New Zealand that you would recommend looking up?? Do you know of anyone working in the colleges that I might be able to set up a presentation with??? I went to art school here with a man named Chris Carey who is from New Zealand who apparently is head of the pottery at some Institute there but I haven't be able to track him down as of yet... Any ideas would be helpful... Thanks and looking forward to coming... Take care Sue