The Great Little Trains of Wales 29th June - 5th July 2013
Posted on: 9/07/13
Updated on: 20/07/13
At the end of June I spent a very enjoyable week in North Wales with the intention of visiting as many of the Great Little Trains of Wales as possible. The following is a journal chronicling the events of the week through written reports, photos and videos.
Contents: 29th June - Welshpool & Llanfair, 30th June - Bala lake, 1st July - Ffestiniog, 2nd July Welsh Highland, 3rd July - Llanberis Lake & Snowdon, 4th July - Talyllyn, 5th July - Vale of Rheidol.
Video playlist.
Updated on: 20/07/13
At the end of June I spent a very enjoyable week in North Wales with the intention of visiting as many of the Great Little Trains of Wales as possible. The following is a journal chronicling the events of the week through written reports, photos and videos.
Contents: 29th June - Welshpool & Llanfair, 30th June - Bala lake, 1st July - Ffestiniog, 2nd July Welsh Highland, 3rd July - Llanberis Lake & Snowdon, 4th July - Talyllyn, 5th July - Vale of Rheidol.
Video playlist.
29th June - Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway
 No:822 'The Earl' takes a drink at Welshpool.
The Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway, which celebrates 50 years of preservation this year, had been on my 'to visit' list for several years and more than lived up to expectations. The 2 foot 6 inch gauge line was one of very few narrow gauge lines built through the 1896 Light Railways Act, opening in 1903 to help businesses in Llanfair by linking the town to the mainline station at Welshpool, a journey which took 3 hours by horse and cart. On the preserved line today it takes around 50 minutes. Always short of cash, the line was not a great success and passenger services ceased in 1931; goods trains plodded on until 1956. It passed into preservation intact, re-opening in 1963, but sadly since then the street running section in to the mainline station in the centre of Welshpool has been lost to road 'improvements' in the town. While the WLLR has a great loco fleet which includes several interesting foreign engines, it was wonderful to be able to travel behind one of the two Beyer Peacock 0-6-0Ts built for the line in 1902, No:822 'The Earl', which actually pulled the last train on the line operated by British Railways in 1956 and the re-opening train. and travel in some beautifully restored Hungarian carriages whose open balconies at front and rear provided an interesting vantage point to see the line and the work of the loco crew, working up the 1 in 29 Golfa bank.
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Related LinksKey informationLocos:
No:822 0-6-0T 'The Earl' (1902) Ticket prices: Adults £12.80 return Concessions £11.00 Child £3.50 Line length: 8 miles |
The stations were neat and well presented, oozing period atmosphere with GWR lower quadrant signals and more. It was good to have the opportunity to see two of the line's out of traffic foreign locos in a shed at Welshpool too (see photos).
All in all, a great little line that preserves an important part of Britain's railway heritage as the first real light railway while offering an enjoyable ride, good passenger facilities and excellent value for money. A truly unique line which I look forward to visiting again soon.
All in all, a great little line that preserves an important part of Britain's railway heritage as the first real light railway while offering an enjoyable ride, good passenger facilities and excellent value for money. A truly unique line which I look forward to visiting again soon.
30th June - Bala Lake Railway
 No:3 'Holy War' trundles along next to the lake
The Bala Lake Railway offers quite a contrast to the WLLR, running alongside Wales' largest natural lake on the trackbed of the standard gauge Llangollen - Dolgellau line, built in 1868. The Bala Lake Railway opened in 1972. It has a interesting atmosphere as Llanuwchllyn station, for example, retains its original station building and the original signal box built by the Great Western in 1869; it looks like standard gauge, just with small engines! One of the great features of this friendly little line is that the signal box was open to the public, allowing visitors to get a feel for how the line is operated which isn't available on most railways. The journey alongside the lake is very pleasant - it looked quite choppy out on Llyn Tegid when I visited - and the mountains in the distance add to the good views. On 30th June No:3 'Holy War' was in action; the 1902 Hunslet built machine worked at Dinorwic Slate Quarry near Llanberis until November 1967, becoming the last steam loco to work in a British slate quarry. No:3 gained its unusual name in 1908 after one of her owner's winning racehorses that year: Holy War,
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Related LinksKey informationLocos: No:3 0-4-0T 'Holy War' (1902)
Ticket prices: Adults £9.50 return Concessions £9.00 Child £3.50 Line length: 4.5 miles |
and in 1961 the loco was clearly still in winning condition. That year she was trapped by a rock fall on one of the high up 'levels' in the quarry, 1,860 feet above sea level but it was decided that it was worthwhile rescuing her, no easy task.No:3 was dismantled. The parts were lowered down two levels by ropes, placed on some of the inclines to take them down two more levels to the bottom of the quarry, moved over to the other side of the quarry and up another level to be put back together!
Another super railway, all the more so for being, like all the Great Little Trains of Wales, unique with great stories behind the basis for the line and all its locos. Another first visit I'm sure won't be my last!
Another super railway, all the more so for being, like all the Great Little Trains of Wales, unique with great stories behind the basis for the line and all its locos. Another first visit I'm sure won't be my last!
1st July - Ffestiniog Railway
 No:10 rounds the spiral at Dduallt
The Ffestiniog Railway is a firm favourite of mine with its good length run, spectacular scenery and unique features; from the only spiral on a public railway in the UK to its unusual 'double Fairlie' articulated bogie locomotives.
In terms of motive power, I got to see the two sides of the FR - the heritage, and the impressive capabilities of its Boston Lodge works. Heritage in the beautiful shape of 'double Fairlie' No:10 0-4-0+0-4-0T 'Merddin Emrys', the first loco to be built at Boston Lodge in 1879 and the last double engine in service when the line closed abruptly in 1946. In fact closure came so quickly that she'd been put in the shed with water in the boiler and coal in the bunkers ready to run again the next day with the result that when the preservationists took over in 1954 she needed much work doing before returning to full service in 1967. And impressive capabilities in the form of Lynton and Barnstaple Railway replica 2-6-2T 'Lyd' which emerged from Boston Lodge in 2010, making it the newest steam railway locomotive in Britain. Both locos ran faultlessly, but it was interesting to see (as you can in the video!) that even on a dry day, both slipped on the sharp curve departing Tan y Bwlch for Blaenau Ffestiniog - what fun in the wet! The line runs through great scenery with many interesting features, from the 60ft high dry stone embankment that is Cei Mawr (see photos) to the spiral at Dduallt, construction of which began in 1965 and running over began in 1977. The spiral was needed to lift the line 35ft up to pass around the reservoir, built in the 1950s at Tanygrisiau for hydro electric power generation but as the reservoir was quite low, I was able to see the old alignment and old Moelwyn tunnel, part of the on going story of the line. That's one thing the FR does very well; telling you its story. At Tan y Bwlch there was an interesting information panel about the history of the station and the visitors guide was excellent with a superb, highly detailed route map in a fold-out centre section - I only wish I'd found it while I was on the train! |
Related LinksPhotos (20)
Video (13mins) Ffestiniog Railway accommodation Festpedia - loads of great information about the line Merddin Emrys' own website Key informationLocos:
No:10 'Merddin Emrys' double Fairlie, (1879) No:190 'Lyd' (2010) Ticket prices: Adults £20 return Concessions £18.00 Child: 1 free with each fare paying adult. Line length: 13.5 miles |
Of course, the best thing about this story' is that it's still being written; I was pleased to see the progress being made at Porthmadog in changing the track layout and signalling to better accommodate the Welsh Highland Railway and it was good to see 'Lyd' for the first time, showing Boston Lodge is still a centre of engineering excellence!
There's never a dull moment on the FR, from new and ever-changing vistas and engineering marvels - not just the locos but everything on the line - to the professional response to difficult situations; like when you find sheep (in Wales, what else?) on the track! That's why the Ffestiniog Railway deserves its status as one of our premier preserved lines of any gauge.
There's never a dull moment on the FR, from new and ever-changing vistas and engineering marvels - not just the locos but everything on the line - to the professional response to difficult situations; like when you find sheep (in Wales, what else?) on the track! That's why the Ffestiniog Railway deserves its status as one of our premier preserved lines of any gauge.
2nd July - Welsh Highland Railway
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The Welsh Highland Railway is very impressive and, again, offers something very different from all the other Great Little Trains of Wales with its massive Beyer Garratt locomotives and more spectacular scenery - a line that really goes somewhere in style.
Related Links |
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Key information
Locos: Beyer Garratt NG/G16 2-6-2+2-6-2Ts Nos: 138 and 143
Ticket prices: Adults £34 return
Concessions £30
Child one free with each fare paying adult.
Line length: 25 miles
Ticket prices: Adults £34 return
Concessions £30
Child one free with each fare paying adult.
Line length: 25 miles
3rd July - Llanberis Lake Railway
 No:3 'Dolbadarn' runs around at Penllyn
My visit to the Llanberis Lake Railway was another return to an old favourite; it must have been at least 10 years since I last visited as I know I didn’t travel on the extension to Llanberis, which opened in 2003.
I do remember the loco though, No:3 ‘Dolbadarn’ – it was hard not to with her eye catching orange livery and deafening whistle (as I remember it – I was quite small at the time!). Happily I was able to reacquaint myself with her as she was running again when I visited, albeit with a new green livery – which looks very smart, but I must say I preferred the orange as a refreshing change to the more usual colours locos get painted in- and a few modern additions that it didn’t have last time. No:3 was built by the Hunslet Engine Company of Leeds in 1922 to shunt on the quays at Port Dinorwic where the slate from the Dinorwic quarry in Llanberis was exported from. The slate trucks reached Port Dinorwic by way of the unusual 4ft gauge Padarn Railway and where it ran alongside Padarn Lake, the larger of the two lakes at Llanberis, the formation of is now used by the Llanberis Lake Railway. I don’t like to be negative about the places I visit, but No:3’s modern additions do detract slightly from what was a rather quaint little engine; the holes in the buffer beam in front of the cylinders had been filled with electric headlamps and another light had been fixed on the back of the cab. I suppose these are probably safer and require less maintenance than using oil lamps, but couldn’t they have been disguised a little as the high intensity lamps on main line steam engines often are? |
Related LinksKey informationLocos: No:3 'Dolbadarn'
Ticket prices: Adults £7.50 return Concessions £6.80 Child £4.50 Line length: 2.4 miles |
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The Llanberis Lake Railway offers a very pleasant lakeside trip, and, I expect in good weather, some excellent views of Snowdon. The operational element adds a little excitement with the train first going to Llanberis, back non stop through Gilfach Ddu, and on to the end of the line, running round and then stopping at the intermediate station of Cei Llydan, which has a picnic site, for a few minutes before returning to Gilfach Ddu.
The extension to Llanberis follows the route of the ‘Mills Tramway’ which connected the mills at the base of the main quarry at Lyn Perris where finished slates were produced to Gilfach Ddu where they were transhipped to the 4ft Padarn railway. It was walking alongside this new section to reach the path up Snowdon (to see the Snowdon Mountain Railway) I was able to see something quite special; an engine passing its namesake. On this section of line trains pass the imposing bulk of the 13th century Dolbadarn Castle, and of course, pootling past it, there was No:3 ‘Dolbadarn’! |
'Dolbadarn' passing Dolbadarn Castle!
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3rd July - Snowdon Mountain Railway
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The Snowdon Mountain Railway is Britain’s only public rack and pinion railway and has been ferrying people up and down Wales’ highest peak since 1896. This year the service has been revamped with new carriages and a new ‘heritage’ steam service. I decided to have a go a walking up Snowdon and get some shots of the trains at the same time – I only got half way, where I turned back because of the low cloud and drizzle – but I did get some good shots of steam loco No:2
‘Enid’ which made a very spectacular sight and sound coming up out of Llanberis. |
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Related Links |
Key informationLocos: No:2 'Enid', No:12 'George'
Ticket prices: Diesel: Adult return: £27.00, Child: £18 Steam: Adult return: £35.00, Child: £25 Line length: 4.7 miles |
4th July - Talyllyn Railway Victorian Train Experience (and camcorder calamity!)
 No:1 'Talyllyn' takes a drink from the at Dolgoch Falls.
The Talyllyn Railway is a very special line indeed,
not only is it the world's first preserved railway but it is probably unique in that it is still able to operate all its original passenger train from the 1860s. And it is this that made my day out on the Talyllyn's genuine Victorian train so wonderful - it was about the whole experience, not just the locomotive. Having said that, the engine couldn't have been more appropriate; No:1 'Talyllyn', built in 1864 as an 0-4-0 having a set of trailing wheels added under the cab to improve her ride, and it was great to see her for the first time, especially behind the original carriages. Riding in such historic vehicles was just one of the things which made the day really special, somehow knowing that I was travelling in carriage No:2, built by Brown Marshalls of Birmingham for the line in 1866, one of the oldest railway passenger vehicles still in regular service in the world contributed to a real sense of being completely transported back in time which was missing from the other lines I travelled on. The day was well thought out, giving time to enjoy all the best bits of the line and take photos or videos. After leaving Tywyn at 11:15 the train paused at the very pretty Rhydronen station before setting back and performing a run past through the station. The next stop was for a photo call at Dolgoch Falls where the clock was really turned back as No:1 used the original 1867 water tower there rather than the modern (1961) tower at the end of the platform normally used by service trains. 'Talyllyn' then reversed back over the most impressive structure on the line, the three arch viaduct just outside the station for another run past. It was great how the day allowed time to enjoy all the bits of the line that you might want to get off and see when travelling on a normal train, but with the bonus that when you want to move on the train is still there! We then headed up to Nant Gwernol where 'Talyllyn' ran round and took us back to Abergnolwyn for lunch. |
Related LinksPhotos (57)
Video (5 minutes) Talyllyn Railway Victorian Train experience page Narrow Gauge Museum site Accommodation Key informationLocos:
No:1 'Tallylyn' (on Victorian train) No:4 'Edward Thomas' No:7 'Tom Rolt' (4 & 7 service locos) Ticket prices: (for Victorian Train): Adults £25 Child (u.15) £7 Line length: 7 miles |
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Of course, the vintage train has to be fitted around the two service trains running and at Abergnolowyn we passed No:4 'Edward Thomas' which produced some good photos of the two trains passing each other. After passing 'Edward Thomas' again as it came down from Nant Gwernol we went back up to Nant Gwernol another time before heading back to Tywyn, pausing on the way at Brynglas for more photos, although no run past here. On returning to Tywyn we were treated to a delicious cream tea in the Kings' Café (even better for being included in the ticket price!) and a very interesting and well presented guided tour of the Narrow Gauge Museum which provided a great end to a fabulous day.
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No:4 'Edward Thomas' passes No:1 'Talyllyn' and the vintage train at Abergnolwyn
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Overall the day was perhaps my favourite from the holiday offering something really unique that was more than worth the extra cost above a normal ticket. I must mention the guide for the day who was wonderful, very knowledgeable about the line, and did well gently shepherding us back aboard the train so we kept on schedule.
Everything about the day was just right; the train wasn't full and the limited size of the train means when you visit there won't be too many people around to get in the way of your photos or videos. Oh, except one thing, but it's but no means the fault of the Talyllyn Railway; the day before, my camcorder battery had ran out so I switched to the spare battery but this ran out before we'd even departed Tywyn, so I changed to the back up video camera, only for the batteries in this to give up by the time we reached Dolgoch Falls! I did have another camera so there are a lot of still photos from the day, the best of which can be found through the link on the left. A happy side effect of the camcorder calamity was being able to just enjoy the day through my eyes rather than a screen so I was able to really enjoy it, for example spotting small details, like the fact that even though the doors on one side of coach No:2 had been blocked off in 1866 after an inspection by the Board of Trade, the door hinges were still there on the side of coach No:2, which really made my day.
Everything about the day was just right; the train wasn't full and the limited size of the train means when you visit there won't be too many people around to get in the way of your photos or videos. Oh, except one thing, but it's but no means the fault of the Talyllyn Railway; the day before, my camcorder battery had ran out so I switched to the spare battery but this ran out before we'd even departed Tywyn, so I changed to the back up video camera, only for the batteries in this to give up by the time we reached Dolgoch Falls! I did have another camera so there are a lot of still photos from the day, the best of which can be found through the link on the left. A happy side effect of the camcorder calamity was being able to just enjoy the day through my eyes rather than a screen so I was able to really enjoy it, for example spotting small details, like the fact that even though the doors on one side of coach No:2 had been blocked off in 1866 after an inspection by the Board of Trade, the door hinges were still there on the side of coach No:2, which really made my day.
5th July - Vale of Rheidol Railway
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The Vale of Rheidol is a real tourist line running up to the tourist magnet, Devils Bridge; the GWR ended freight and winter services in 1930, it remained open with British Railways, literally into the BR blue era for the locos, and is still run by a company for a profit. Sadly there wasn't time to ride on the VOR but I was able to see the first train of the day leave behind No:8 'The Prince of Wales'. It was great to be able to see just how big the Rheidol engines really are. Hope to be back soon for a longer visit!
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Related Links |
Key informationLocos: No:8 'The Prince of Wales'
Ticket prices: Adults £16 return Concessions £14.00, Child £4 Line length: 11 miles |
2nd November 2012 - Brecon Mountain Railway
I didn't make it to the Brecon Mountain Railway on this trip, but I did visit this delightful (I think I may have overused that adjective a little on this page....) line in November last year:
Read/Watch/Photos
Read/Watch/Photos
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