Wednesday 30th March to Friday 1st April 2022 The route which the new crew – Gill and Derek – would be negotiating was to be very different from that tackled by Sue and Henry earlier in our narrowboat adventure. This stretch of the Llangollen Canal features only two locks, although there are several tunnels and aqueducts including the iconic Pontcysyllte Aqueduct as well as lift bridges . . . Although we had been unsure at times whether we were in England or Wales, and had been expecting to see a proud proclamation when we were entering Wales, we did eventually spot a fairly low-key indication on one of the mooring signs. On their first day, Derek was designated as steering assistant and started the day at the helm under Robert’s guidance past frolicking lambs as we left Whitchurch. At the end of the day, once through the 80m long Ellesmere Tunnel we moored in Ellesmere itself. A walk round the town took us past the market hall dated 1879 and a memorial to Eglantyne Jebb, born in the town, who went on to found Save the Children in 1919. A branch of the canal leads into the town, past picturesque […]
Wales
Sunday 27th to Tuesday 29th March 2022 We have now reached day 40 on The Duke – a number with Biblical associations – and Ralf will be returning to his homeland. The only problem is that it is difficult to identify exactly when we will be entering Wales: looking at the map, the canal seems to cross and re-cross the border. We are hoping that a sign will proudly announce when we arrive in Wales properly. A short distance from Barbridge, although still in England at this point, we turned onto the Llangollen Canal. Immediately, we were faced with the first of the 21 locks on the Llangollen Canal – the flight of four Hurleston Locks which rise 34 feet 3 inches from the Shropshire Union Canal. Ralf again wanted to participate in the adventure and perhaps plant his paws on his motherland once more. Matilda had to crank open a lift bridge. . . . . . and watch The Duke glide past before closing it again. Robert had read that there were cast iron embellishments to the graves at St Margaret’s in Wrenbury but Matilda could not identify them and as there was a man tending a grave […]
Thursday 26th August 2021 As always on these historic railways, the steam engines on the Bala Lake Railway are lovingly restored and cared for with gleaming paintwork and highly polished copper domes. The track was built 150 years ago but was re-opened for passengers in 1972 and follows the shoreline of Llyn Tegid, or Lake Bala, which is the largest natural lake in Wales. Although we had not booked to travel on this line, we went to see one of the trains arriving and . . . . . . watched while they restoked the engine and moved it to the front of the carriages [See Video of the day]. From here, Liz and Martin set off to cycle along the shores of the lake whilst we headed south to Codsall, near Walsall, to visit Robert’s uncle and cousins. It was lovely to be able to catch up after such a long and trying time. We then stayed in a very quiet motorhome site close by prior to travelling home the following day. There are many more trains to ride and we will surely be returning to Wales at some point [Robert will be in October!]. Video of the day:
Wednesday 25th August 2021 Allow us to preface this post with an apology. Those of you who are keen followers may notice that the videos here feature the sister site, Robert on the Rails’ logo. Robert tells Matilda this was a genuine administrative error and not a blatant attempt to promote across the two sites. At LLanberis, Robert was pleased to see that, before the first train of the day leaves, you can watch the fire being stoked and the engines taking on water, in order to get up steam, outside the National Slate Museum. . . . . . which is situated right by the station in the Dinorwig Quarry workshops. Getting our priorities in the right order, we planned to visit the museum after our train ride. We were to be pulled by the engine Dolbadarn, which like all the engines on the line, was rescued from the Dinorwig slate quarries and restored to work the Llanberis Lake Railway. The Llanberis Lake Railway runs alongside Padarn Lake to Penllyn and back. Back at Llanberis station we were able to admire Thomas Bach at work. Thomas was the other steam engine operating that day. But not that Thomas Rising […]
Tuesday 24th August 2021 Liz and Martin again gave us a lift to Porthmadog but this time they were joining us on the 10:15 Glaslyn Venturer from Porthmadog to Beddgelert. This time there was no need to position Matilda as gatekeeper of the carriage as we had pre-booked a premium spot in one of two observation compartments. There are panoramic windows, plush seats for six with small tables and, even at this hour in the morning, Matilda and Liz felt they should be sipping champagne wearing 1930s cocktail dresses. It seems not everyone was buying into the experience with the same enthusiasm. Instead of traversing The Cob, this time we set off in the opposite direction, through Porthmadog itself. We started the journey at the rear of the train with uninterrupted views back down the track. And being at the back of the train provides the opportunity . . . . . . to see the engine and the train as they curve around bends in the track in front. Hot air rises. We know this. But it was nevertheless eerie to see the steam emerging from an uphill tunnel behind us as though a Welsh dragon lurked within breathing […]
Monday 23rd August 2021 It seems that some people feel [mistakenly] that there is such a thing as too many steam trains in one week and our group had therefore opted to follow their divergent interests with Liz and Martin heading off for a serious walk whilst Robert and Matilda went in search of locomotives. Liz and Martin kindly gave us a lift to Porthmadog in time for the 10:00 Woodland Wanderer service from Porthmadog. Our train was to be pulled by the engine Welsh Pony over The Cob to Minffordd, through Penrhyn and on to Tan-y-bwlch. The start of the journey is particularly enjoyable as is travels across The Cob . . . . . . a large embankment with water on either side which took four years to construct and was completed in 1811. Although the journey on a narrow guage train slowly rising to altitude along track flanked by lush vegetation and mountain views reminded us both of the Darjeeling Railway, whenever the track traversed the road it was thankfully marked by gated level crossings so we were spared the incessant hooting and the journey was both beautiful and peaceful. The route took us past the engine […]
Sunday 22nd August 2021 The royal town of Caernarfon lies opposite the Isle of Anglesey in north Wales on the eastern shore of the Menai Straits with Snowdonia rising to the east and south-east. Prince Charles was invested as the Prince of Wales here in 1969. Due to continuing restrictions we had pre-booked a number of things just to be sure and we had agreed in advance to visit Caernarfon city and Castle with Liz and Martin on the following day. They kindly agreed to drive us there in their camper van – Connie – as she is smaller and therefore easier to drive down country roads than Al. We had timed tickets and just managed a quick coffee before going in. Caernarfon is steeped in history from Roman times onwards. William the Conqueror ordered a castle built here as part of an unsuccessful attempt to invade Wales and it now boasts the highest percentage of Welsh speaking citizens anywhere in Wales. The displays emphasise the royal heritage with perhaps a nod to the popularity of Game of Thrones. Even partially in ruins, it is an impressive site. A one way system has been introduced so that you no longer […]
Friday 20th and Saturday 21st August 2021 Although retirement allows us the freedom to plan for our journeys to take place outside school holidays, the restrictions imposed by the pandemic made us eager to travel this summer and enjoy a view across pastures new. Having arranged a trip to Ffestiniog with friends, the drive to north Wales on a Friday in August reminded us why we no longer wish to travel during the peak summer season. The journey to Llangollen took six hours and 20 minutes – nearly two hours longer than expected. We will remember this in future. But it still felt good to be in another country and on arrival at the Gaerhyfryd Campsite near Corwen in Wales all was peace and calm and the warden proved to be very welcoming. Having filled up with water and plugged Al in . . . . . . the warden kindly directed us to The Blue Lion pub in Cynwyd. . . . . . where Robert had to share his knowledge by giving a new member of staff some useful pointers for dealing with lively lager. Matilda was grateful not to have a glass of froth. The following morning […]
Sunday, 18th August 2019 We awarded ourselves a lie-in after the sporting disappointment of the previous day and had a leisurely breakfast before setting out. The day’s destination was to be St Fagans National Museum of History where various buildings have been relocated or reconstructed to show how people in Wales have lived through the ages. A bus from outside our hotel took us all the way there. The buildings include the recreated Bryn Eryr Iron Age roundhouses which host educational sessions during term time. The relocated St Teilo’s church has been refurbished, complete with enchanting mediaeval murals, to reflect how it may have appeared around 1530, before Henry VIII started to break with the Roman Catholic Church in 1532. The Gwalia Stores meanwhile offers a retro retail opportunity circa the outbreak of WWI where . . . . . . many of the brands and much of the packaging on the wooden shelving was nevertheless familiar. Each of the Rhyd-y-car Terrace of six cottages, originally built around 1795 for mine workers, is furbished to reflect a different period: 1805, 1855, 1895, 1925, 1955 and 1985. It is fascinating to take a stroll through time as you walk the length […]
Friday, 16th to Saturday, 17th August 2019 From Cardiff Central Station we walked a short distance around the Principality Stadium along the bank of the River Taff to check in to the Holiday Inn. There are several Victorian covered arcades which provided some shelter from the rain as we started to look round this historic city. There is also a Victorian glass-covered market which opened in its current position in 1835. Although this is not as splendid as some we have visited, it did include the extensive Spillers record store on the upper level. We had decided we wanted to visit Cardiff Bay which is a little way out from the centre and which you can travel to by river taxi: the journey takes about 20 minutes. There is an informative commentary onboard but unfortunately the rain on the windows, coupled with a slight delay on the audio, meant that it was difficult to make out the landmarks which were being pointed out to us as we passed them. Sights included the white clapboard Norwegian Church, now dismantled, relocated and re-opened as an arts centre, where Roald Dahl and his family worshipped. As we disembarked we asked a member of […]