Rail Adventure in North Wales, United Kingdom – Full Steam Ahead

North Wales may be a small part of Wales landscape, but it is beautiful. What better way to see it than by steam train?

The  hills are alive in North Wales with the irritable rhythm of chugging  wheels and the whistle of coal trains as a flow of steam is channeled  through your chimney.

It is a mode of transportation dating back to the early 19th century that very soon reached the end of the line.

Railroad  enthusiasts have launched a resurgence of the Welsh Mountain Railways  and the Ffestiniog Railway bringing the humid business of vintage travel  by railroad through this amazing landscape, straight back on track.

Base: Llandudno

Llandudno monument to war on the seafront

The coastal  town of Llandudno is my home base, a beautiful town with a mish mash of  elegant Victorian and Edwardian architecture and a pleasant landscape. It extends from the foot of the Great Orme, a huge piece of limestone that curves around the city. It  rises from the sea and to the promenade and its wide strip of sandy  beach and an even wider walk with a memorial war memorial as its  landmark.

Caernarfon a Beddgeert - Welsh Highland Railway

The first railway adventure begins in Caernarfon, where I board the railroad train of the Welsh Highland range. The line was built in 1923 but was economically derailed shortly thereafter. After 70 years on the sidings, he was restarted in service by a group of railroad enthusiasts.

Engine 87 on the Highland Welsh Railways

The locomotive is the engine 87 and as I observe the steam funnel there comes a dreamy nostalgia in its wake. It  is therefore surprising that vintage wooden style cars with deck are no  more than 20 years old, and some only a couple of months old. A modern kitchen serves sandwiches and of course Welsh rarebit (a cheese version on toast) and a tea cart makes the rounds.

The  journey passes through Caernafon Bay and Lley Peninsuala, the old slate  quarries and once in Bryn Gloch the Snowdonia National Park is deployed  further. The valley narrows dramatically as we pass between the Moel Eilio and Mynydd Mawr mountains.

Now it is all alpine views and volcanic waterfalls towards Rhyd Ddu. We  soon climbed to the top of the line at Pitts Head and shortly after the  train began its descent zigzagging all the way down the hillside to  Beddgelert. The top speed is 25 mph, so there is time to savor and digest what my eyes are devouring.

Welsh Mountain Railway

The total  length of the line is 25 miles until you reach Porthmadog, but I was  disembarking at Beddgeert to make my way to Portmeirion.

Village of Portmeiron

Those of a certain age will remember the cult series The Prisoner. Actor Patrick Mcgoohan, aka No. 6, was regularly chased (there were 17 episodes) by a balloon every time he tried to escape.

Portmerion (c) Portmeirion Ltd

The village of Portmeiron was created from the fantastic imagination of the architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis. Everything that drew his imagination in his travels ended here. Even the strange relic of movie sets.

No one lives in the resort; It's all hotels, restaurants, a beach and 19 miles of trails through lush vegetation. It took him 50 years to complete, but this unusual man never spent a night here - he was just showing off his skills.

Hotel c. Portmeirion Ltd

Bristol Colonnade c. Portmeirion Ltd

Unicorn c. Portmeirion Ltd

It  turns out that Prince Edward and Mrs. Simpson stayed in the Peacock  suite at the hotel, Brian Epstein stayed at Gate House and Jules Holland  loved the 2-bed Unicorn building so much that he made a replica in his  garden. There is also the Bristol Colonnade, where the Welsh choir often sings.

Porthmadog to Blaenau - The Festiniog Railway

The Festiniog Railway Company is the oldest surviving railway company in the world. It opened in 1836 to take the slate from the quarries of Blaenau Ffestiniog to Porthmadog for export around the globe. But nothing lasts forever and its reason for being disappeared when the quarries closed. So again it was the lane enthusiast (bless them) to revive it in 1945 as a tourist attraction.

The engine is the Merddin Emrys named after a wizard Welsh. It  is a nudge-me double fairlie that takes us to Minfford and then Penrhyn  offers brilliant alpine views across the valley through the estuary  Dwyryd Harlech Castle. Every season we stopped in reminded me of those I had seen in the episodes of Thomas the tank engine with my child. It was beyond quaint.

As we climb, a rugged landscape unfolds across Snowdonia National Park  passing the woods and dips before making an extraordinary loop-turn in  Dduallt's spiral.

Llangollen to Corwen and return - Llangollen Railway

This  was once a British railway line, but closed in 1968. Restored in 1975  by enthusiasts is the only standard railroad gauge standard railroad in  North Wales. The  locomotive, a restored 80072, was built in 1953 and the train wagons look the part in upholstered red velvet seats and dark wood panels. Everything was very civilized, so having a tea of scones and jam  served on a white linen table cloth seems like the right thing.

Llangollen and a horse-drawn boat

Llangollen is a pretty but eccentric old town. There  are 3,000 inhabitants and some more unusual shops from a Wiccan store  to a taxidermy studio with stuffed animals on sale - I know. Looking up on an isolated hill I could see the mysterious ruins of Castell Dinas Bran (Crow Castle).

Horse drawn boat on River Dee

The highlight is the Horse drawn boat trips. Boats  are pulled by a county horse with a rope and these slow-motion trips  along the River Dee last around 30 minutes, enough time to zone out and  enjoy serenity.

Mount Snowdon Railway and mountain

Getting  to the top of Mount Snowdon can be a glorious experience, but for the  last 17 years it was only doable if you were prepared to undergo a  sturdy hike to the top.

Narrow gauge train heading for Snowdonia (c) Visit Wales

For less active mortals like me it is a joy to ride an Ivor looking tank engine. The locomotive is now 121 years old. It was recently revived after undergoing a £60,000 review. Ivor, who is in fact a Wadffa engine, spent nearly two decades on the  roads, but now this Victorian Victorian steam train is back on track.

The  engine pushes the train from the station of Llanberris to the top of  mount Snowdon and with a very respectable height of 3,500 feet is the  highest in England and Wales. The train needs 350kg of coal and 2,000 liters of water each trip. You can not carry all the water in one go so stop halfway along the five mile trip to recharge.

It is a scenic five mile trip with views of the mountains dotted with chapel ruins and indifferent sheep. There are several lakes, including Llyn Glas, which at 637 m above sea level makes it the highest lake in Wales. The higher we get to the more rocky the landscape becomes.

Peak of Mt Snowdon

This is a place of legend. Another  lake, Ffynnon-and-gwas means the lake of the names of the servant's  spring so a servant drowned in its waters while immersing his master's  sheep. They also say that Snowdon is the burial place of the giant ogre, Rhita, defeated by King Arthur.

The  round trip is a slow trundle and takes two hours more viaducts, twists  and turns and of course time at the top where the views are thrilling.

STAY: Dunoon Hotel, Llandudno.
EAT: Wildwood Restaurant Llandudno and in Portmerion The Town Hall

Train travel:
Great Rail Journeys, from £675pp for the 6 Days of Wales Railways and Castles
Rail Discoveries, from £465pp for the 6 day Wales Railways
GRJ Independent for a custom holiday

Source/Credits:
Sharron Livingston

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@raviraj4you thank you to read this post.

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