NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY:NOTICE BOARD
Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd
13 June 2022
Contributions to the Notice Board are welcome, although they may not always be used, due to time constraints, especially if they don't follow the file name convention given on the Contributions Page.
Forthcoming events
Charter trains, and meetings, may be subject to cancellation or postponement. See our Calendar Page for Club and Society details.
July 2022
2 -3 July Llangollen Railway Classic Transport Weekend
Sunday 17 July 2022 Railway Touring Company. Steam The North Wales Coast Express Liverpool -Holyhead and return.
Tuesday 19 July Railway Touring Company. The Welsh Mountaineer Steam Preston Blaenau Ffestiniog and return.
30-31 July : Welsh Highland Railway Centenary and Celebrations:
A weekend of heritage trains operating between Dinas and Rhyd Ddu (as South Snowdon is now known) to celebrate the reopening of this section of line.
August 2022
Friday 12 August Pathfinder Tours Cambrian Coast Express Cardiff - Pwllheli
September 2022
Friday 2 September Clwyd Railway Circle: “The Greatest Railway Builder in the World” A 60 Minute Talk on the Life and Times of Thomas Brassey by Peter Bolt
3-4 September Llangollen Railway Diesel Weekend
Saturday 3 September The Cheshireman steam (6233) Norwich - Chester and return (diesel Peterborough - Norwich)
Friday 9 September Pathfinder Tours Cambrian Coast Express. Oxford - Pwllheli
24 September Trailffest Half Marathon : An Event Train will be provided to take the competitors from the event centre at Porthmadog to the start of the race in Tanygrisiau, the cost of which is included in the entry fee.
Friday 7 October “Fond Memories” A look back over 70 years of Railway interest by Larry Davies
7-9 October: Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways: Vintage weekend.
8-9 October Llangollen Railway DMU railcar weekend
November 2022
Friday 4 November Clwyd Railway Circle: “A trip by Norwegian Railways to Hell (and back).” Geoff Morris
Saturday 5 November Llangollen Railway Ride the Rocket Firework Train
December 2022
Friday 2 December Clwyd Railway Circle: “Members Selections & Christmas Celebrations” Members are invited to give a 15-minute presentation of their choice (Any format). Contact David Jones 01244 537440 to book a slot.
(see our Calendar page for meeting venues)
North Wales Coast Railway website created and compiled by Charlie Hulme
67 008 crossing Conwy Cob on the early morning Holyhead - Cardiff Central service. Picture by Gary Thomas, who writes: "This was the first day the tide was high and it was sufficiently light to get this photo this year".
Update at 14 June, 8am: several interesting comments have been received regarding this week's items: we'll save them for next week. Thanks as always to all contributors- Charlie
Purple peregrinations
66 734 Platinum Jubilee has worked the South Wales - Dee Marsh steel trains every day since it emerged in its patriotic livery. Above, Penyffordd, 6 June (Bob Greenhalgh).
Waiting on platform 4a at Shrewsbury on 7 June with a very short 6V75 Dee Marsh - Margam comprising only one Dutch registered Touax steel carrier waiting to follow the 5-minute late running 1V38 Piccadilly - Carmarthen formed by 175 111 (John Oates).
Passing Shrewsbury Golf Course on 9 June (Graham Breakwell).
Wrexham, 9 June (Mark Riley).
North West Rail and Transport Collectors Fair
Organiser Oliver Hambly writes to tell us the fair, at Crewe Alexandra football ground, is going ahead as planned on Saturday 25 June, despite the likelihood that there will be no trains that day due to RMT strike action. Oliver tells us that there will be free car parking all day at the football ground , club shop and offices car park with 120 spaces and an additional 200 spaces in the Club's private car park behind the Pay and Display have now been opened up to the event .
Oliver writes: 'We know the Strike will affect numbers but we still feel that there will be a strong turn out for this inaugural event , and of course the Railway Children Charity will be benefiting in turn, receiving a percentage of every paying visitor plus refreshment monies .'
The Fair is open from 10:00 to 15:00 and admission is £2.
Vegetation Control
Network Rail's new weed-killing train (3Q00) appeared on the Coast on 10 June, worked by GBRf locos 66 778 Cambois Depot 25 years and 66 791 Neil Bennett. Bob Greenhalgh captured the train in sunny weather at Beeches Farm.
The Conwy Valley branch was also served: at 19:47 it was crossing to the branch (Larry Davies). Neither the Llandudno branch nor the Llandudno Junction - Holyhead section was not covered; there had been a previous run a few weeks earlier.
Videoscene's Latest
John Wilkinson writes: The DVD British Rail Motive Power 1981-1999 Vol 9 made by Track Record Rail Films has just been released. It has a North Wales chapter and a Chester chapter so the area is well covered.
'On 12 May 1984 40 122 hauled 1Z96 charter from Ayr to Llandudno, a nice sequence of this is included at Deganwy plus plenty of action around Llandudno Junction from the 1980s & 90s. All the shots in the Chester chapter are from the 1980s except the last one.'
More information and ordering from Videoscene.
Grounded
Unsurprisingly perhaps, the Welsh Government have decided that the Valley - Cardiff air service, which has been suspended during the Pandemic will not re-start. Instead of spending up to £2.9 million each year to fund the air service, they will "look to invest this saving in helping to deliver a package of measures to improve public transport services for the north". We look forward to seeing them. Perhaps the Gareth Dennis proposal for a north-south route?
The picture of Barmouth bridge from the air was taken in 2012 by Gareth Thomas.
Miscellany
The Locomotive Services empire has now taken over the annual rail industry "Three Peaks Challenge". 47 593 and 47 501 storming through Dwygyfylchi on 9 June with the first leg - Crewe to Bangor for Snowdon (Gary Thomas).
Not quite purple, but a Freightliner loco for a change: ONE liveried 66 587 As one we can was assisting on the rear of an exceptionally lengthy High Output ballasting train running from Taunton Fairwater Yard to Crewe Basford Hall past Shrewsbury Golf Course (Graham Breakwell).
In the sidings at Chester alongside platform 7 on 7 June, 2-car "175 004" sits awaiting its next call, though actually formed of vehicles 50759 and 79759, the two outer vehicles from 3-car set 175 109...
... whilst a lonely 79708 from 2-car 175 008 waits to be taken back to the depot.
221 103 passes Gwrych castle on 11 June heading for London (Greg Mape).
All that could be found for the 05:20 Cardiff - Holyhead, seen near Abergele by Greg Mape was 150 237. It arrived on time at Holyhead despite the 75 mph limit on 150s, and headed back south on the 10:30 Holyhead - Cardiff. At Wrexham General, for some reason (toilet-related perhaps?) it was swapped with 150 281 from the Bidston service. Both trains left fifteen minutes late and stayed late for the rest of their journeys.
These units, even though they have more comfortable seats than the Northern Trains version, are surely not appropriate for a journey of 234 miles.
Theft of model locos
We've been asked to mention the theft on 31 May of items associated with the Liverpool Lime Street EM-gauge layout which many of us will have seen in recent years on the exhibition circuit. The models include most classes of loco that would have been seen in Liverpool (and North Wales) , mainly in LMS livery. Being 18mm track gauge, without much work they wouldn't run on the average layout which would be 16.5 mm '00' gauge.
There are also 0 gauge items and other equipment. They were stolen from a property in St Annes in what looks like a targeted robbery and the items may well start turning up online and possibly at exhibition sales. If anyone knows of their whereabouts or are offered to them for sale please contact :
Lancashire Police on email : 5776@lancashire.police.uk
or Les Green email : les.g.green@btinternet.com
or John Holden email : john.holden6201@outlook.com
A marine memory - by Phil Atack
Dave Sallery's image (last issue) of 56 063 delivering steel to Mostyn docks reminded me of the ship which worked the Mostyn - Northern Ireland. In those days the vessel was known as Samin Trader - Maltese flagged, Dutch registered, German operated, with a Ukranian crew. I was Vicar of Mostyn 1999-2003 and Hon Chaplain to the port (supported by the Mersey Mission to Seafarers) so regularly visited the crew.
The ship generally sailed from Mostyn on a Monday, returning Thursday / Friday, so the crew were in Mostyn port over the weekend. They used to come up to the Vicarage on a Sunday afternoon to use the Internet as in those days facilities onboard ship were pretty basic. The vessel is now named ZOE and sails under the Greek flag.
Looking back : The Royal Golden anniversary - by Terry Eyres
Steam on the Royal Train. 6233 Duchess of Sutherland top-and-tailed with
47 787 Windsor Castle conveying the Queen during her Golden Jubilee
celebrations. Above, the 09:36 Valley - Bangor - Llandudno - Crewe passing Rhosneigr, Anglesey on Tuesday 11 June 2002.
Then a busy time at Llandudno Jn with 6233 (far right) having come in from Llandudno, then Virgin HST 43 155 + 43 198 on the 13:45 Holyhead - Euston. Centre stage is 66 035 on the rear of a Chester - Blaenau Ffestiniog "Northern Belle" seen having come off the branch with 47 737 Resurgent
leading from Blaenau.
From Old Colwyn.
From Dave Sallery's archive
31 144 waits to leave Prestatyn on an Up working, 9 August 1990. Some BRUTEs in view on the right. British Rail Universal Trolley Equipment to our younger readers.
The classic view at Teignmouth in August 2002.
31519 with a rail mounted crane at Prestatyn, 9 September 1990
Railfreight Distribution 47s on Tinsley depot, 21 March 1992.
Looking back: Diesels and Electrics 2004 Part 4 - by David Pool
On 27 May 2004 the 15:49 Chester to Manchester was being worked by 142 053. This unit was in the second Merseyrail yellow livery (without the back and grey stripes), with the Merseyrail “M” logo, but with the First Group branding replacing the “Northern” branding. During this period, the takeovers and changes to franchises were difficult to follow!
The movements of Merseyrail electrics to Eastleigh provided some photographic opportunities on the Bidston to Wrexham line. On 7 June 2004 it was 67 030 taking 508 140 for refurbishment, and the footbridge at Noctorum gave a good vantage point.
Sunday 18 July 2004 provided some interesting motive power for the trains between Liverpool and Crewe, which were being diverted through Warrington due to closures on the direct route through Runcorn. 47 851 Traction Magazine, in the heritage two-tone green livery, was 'dragging' the 12:25 Lime Street to Euston, with 87 028 on the rear. The train is taking the Warrington line at Earlestown West Junction.
The 13:20 Lime Street to Crewe featured another green Class 47, but rather surprisingly a Freightliner locomotive, 47 150, dragging 87 012 through Winwick with the encouragement of a number of passengers at the windows.
There must have been closures near Euston, as the next train I photographed was the 11:18 Northampton to Liverpool Lime Street. The sun had now reappeared, and the celebrity 47 829 was on duty dragging 87 013 and a matching set of Virgin coaches.
Two welcome visitors to the North Wales coast on the following day were a couple of Class 50s, running light engine to Llandudno Junction. 50 031 Hood and 50 049 Defiance were photographed at Mold Junction in their preservation livery of large logo blue. The Rail 37 Website suggests that they had been hired to carry out TPWS trials, but I have no further details.
By now most of the Class 57/3s had been fitted with Dellner couplings, and 57 301 Scott Tracy was hauling a set of Mk3 coaches on the 08:35 Euston to Holyhead on 20 July 2004. The Mold Junction signal box is just visible through the trees.
I was never lucky with the weather whenever the Railtrack Bubblecar 960 011 was on the North Wales coast. On 28 July 2004 it was at Llandudno Junction, but the gloom showed up the spotlights to good effect. The tampers in the siding appear to be Plasser &Theurer 07-32 Duomatics, possibly operated by Balfour Beatty, but I cannot confirm this.
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