Little more than ten miles apart as the crow flies, the two towns are connected in theory by an 11½ mile trans-Pennine railway track.

But that route was closed in the Sixties, so yesterday's chartered service had to go the long way, via Keighley.

The train then had to stop at Bingley. Then it stopped at Shipley. Then Leeds. Then Bradford.

Then Halifax, Hebden Bridge, Accrington, then Blackburn.

And finally, after 100 miles and three changes of direction, it reached Colne.

No wonder the trip's organisers, the Skipton East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership (Selrap), have spent the past seven years campaigning for the old line to be reopened.

The special trip was the first rail journey from Skipton to Colne since 1970, when the line fell victim to a Government cost-cutting drive.

Selrap chairman Derek Jennings said: "They closed railway lines all over the country which were losing money and unfortunately the Colne-Skipton line was one of them.

"But there are more cars on the roads these days, and the road between Colne and Skipton is absolutely choc-a-bloc going through the villages.

"There are lots of people from East Lancashire who work in Yorkshire.

"What better option could they have than a train from Colne that takes them to Skipton and on to other places?"

So rare was yesterday's historic service, it even arrived on time.

The shoppers were in Colne by 12.07pm – two hours and 37 minutes after they left Skipton.

It brought happy memories for passenger Bob Sanderson, 76, of Silsden, who used to catch the Skipton-Colne train regularly before it was scrapped. "I used to live in Nelson, and I travelled from Nelson to Skipton many times because it meant you could get to the Yorkshire Dales in no time at all," he said.

"It was a bit stupid to get rid of the service because I think the railways are a great way of travelling."

Campaigners claim the trip would take just 15 minutes if the old line was restored and their cause has been backed by high-profile supporters including Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu, film director Ken Loach, magazine editor Ian Hislop, 129 MPs and more than 70 business groups.

Selrap members are to meet rail minister Lord Adonis early next year, hoping to persuade him that the project is worth the £83m funding it requires to come to fruition.

"Compared to dropping bombs on people and bailing the banks out, it's peanuts, really," quipped one passenger yesterday, as the train went into reverse for a third time.

Selrap's 360-strong membership includes supporters
from both sides of the Pennines, as well as Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Malta and the US.

But evidence that Lancashire-Yorkshire relations have not always been so cordial could be found on the itinerary handed out to all passengers on board.

Advice for those staying on the train after Hebden Bridge was clear and to the point: "We now leave the Calder Valley and enter Lancashire; please have your passports ready for inspection."

Landmarks visible on the bizarre route included the mills of Saltaire, Kirkstall Abbey and Armley Jail in Leeds, the former site of the world's largest carpet factory at Dean Clough Mills in Bradford, and the Eureka! children's discovery centre in Halifax.

Passengers also had the chance to witness customs rarely seen in the 20th century, let alone the 21st.

At Barkerhouse Road, near Nelson, a friendly flag-waving rail worker prevented the train driver from having to wind down his window and pull on a length of rope to activate the level-crossing gates.