The creation of the association
During the summer of 1969, a handful of enthusiasts got together and met the local authorities to study the possibility of preserving the Noyelles-Le Crotoy meter gauge line as a tourist railway. A preservation society, the «Association du Chemin de Fer de la Baie de Somme» (CFBS) was created early the following year.A few very promising experiences had already taken place elsewhere in France (Pithiviers, Abreschwiller, Vivarais…). A project was therefore submitted to the Conseil Général de la Somme, which expressed interest.
In early 1970, the handful of available volunteers got down to work and began to gather some rolling stock. September witnessed the arrival of the first two steam locomotives, two small 0-4-0 engines previously owned by a public works contractor, the Paul Frot company based at La Chapelle St Luc, near Troyes.
Both engines were fortunately in very good condition. The volunteers began to clear vegetation and to refurbish the station at Le Crotoy, and also started to work on the track.
The first train ran on 4th July 1971 hauled by Corpet-Louvet locomotive n°25, affectionately nicknamed “la verte” (“the green engine”). Some 2700 passengers travelled on the railway that year.
In 1972, the second Corpet-Louvet 0-4-0 locomotive, nicknamed « la marron » (“the brown engine”), was put into service.
1972 ended with the closure to commercial services of the Noyelles-St Valery-Cayeux line, a daunting challenge for the CFBS, as many elected representatives expected the association to take over that line also. It was very much a case of now or never, and despite its short history, the preservation society decided to forge ahead. Operation of the railway became significantly more complex, as three seaside resorts, Le Crotoy, Saint-Valery and Cayeux, now had to be served, with two lines in operation.
.To assist the two steam locomotives, the CFBS took over a railcar and three diesel engines, one of which was out of order following a derailment. The CFBS also took over OC1 railcar n°X 157 ex-SE / Réseau Breton, to replace n°X 158, transferred to Corsica.
For several years, a lonely volunteer worked on the diesel locomotives to keep them in running order. But usually, as soon as one was operational, the other would break down. It wasn’t until the early 1980s that both diesel engines n°351 and 352 ran together regularly.
In parallel to work at the depot, major trackwork was undertaken on the Le Crotoy line, the busiest at the time. From the late 1970s, the number of passengers carried increased significantly, exceeding the figure of 10,000 for the first time in 1978. The few wooden "Somme" carriages still in working order were no longer sufficient to cope. At the time, the preservation society could not afford to rebuild the "Somme" carriages that were out of order. Money and time were lacking. It was therefore decided to buy second-hand carriages in good condition from various Swiss meter-gauge railway companies. These carriages, all featuring sheet-metal bodies and end-balconies, were delivered in several batches. They are known nowadays as the "Swiss carriages".
The first significant restoration work on the steam locomotives was undertaken by volunteers. Buffaud-Robatel 0-6-2 n°3714 (ex-SE Seine & Marne) and Pinguely 0-6-0 n°101 (ex-Chemin de fer du Morbihan) were the first two “large” engines to be returned to service.
From the early 1980s, the activity of the preservation society and the importance of the railway for tourism in the Baie de Somme began to be acknowledged. Thanks to help from the Syndicat Mixte pour l’Aménagement de la Côte Picarde (SMACOPI), the CFBS was able to undertake major investments such as the refurbishing and extension of the depot at Saint Valery Canal, the construction of a carriage shed, the restoration and, more recently, the full-fledged and phased reconstruction of "Somme" carriages.
Late 1998 saw the return to service of the Haine-Saint-Pierre 2-6-0 locomotive n°15 (ex-VFIL Oise), entirely rebuilt. This was the first engine to be fitted with a newly-built boiler. It was followed by Cail 2-6-0 locomotive n°1 (ex FCPR) built in 1889 by the Cail company at Denain (Nord) for the construction of the Panama canal. This engine was shipped back from the United States by the CFBS, restored and returned to service in 2003.
In 2000, the Cayeux line, off-limits for many years to steam engines due to its poor condition, was entirely refurbished and Cayeux station building fully restored thanks to continuing support from local government.
Le Crotoy station followed, before similar work was performed on the station buildings at Saint-Valery-Ville and Lanchères-Pendé.
Meanwhile, every 2 or 3 years, a steam locomotive was rebuilt at St Valery works. N°3714 (Buffaud & Robatel 0-6-2) and Corpet-Louvet 2-6-0 n°1 (ex-Chemin de fer Départementaux de l’Aisne) were both fitted with newly-built boilers.
Then, in 2009, a mythical engine was returned to service: Fives-Lille 4-6-0 n°E.332 (ex-SE / Réseau Breton).
The carriages followed suit, and the purchase of 6 bogie carriages from the Swiss Berner Oberland Bahn railway enabled the CFBS to deal with growing numbers of passengers. With the availability of this rolling stock, the CFBS was able to undertake the complete rebuilding of the wooden Somme carriages.
The «Réseau des Bains de mer» (“the Sea-bathers’ railway”) has become a remarkably preserved and maintained heritage railway, which carries around 180.000 passengers every year, while remaining very much a part of the local scene and way of life.
As manager of the railway, the preservation society is among the leading actors of tourist development on the Picardy coast. It has evolved with its environment and has helped the Baie de Somme to be re-discovered and to achieve the status of “Grand Site de France”.