NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY:NOTICE BOARD
Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd
01 August 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.
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
57 313 Scarborough Castle arrives at Llandudno Junction with the Northern Belle "Conwy Castle and Bodnant Gardens" excursion from Nottingham, 29 July. The line to the slate waste loading point on the right. Picture by Garry Stroud.
Clwydian Railways: hello and goodbye
Our item about the proposed Bangor - Marylebone open-access service caused a lot of interesting discussions on social media and the RailUK forums. This resulted in the immediate deletion of the website by the owner, and the application he made to Companies House.
A pointless hoax, perhaps? Or maybe some kind of college project which was not intended to be seen by the public. Who knows (or cares)?
Slate test train
Wednesday 3 August is planned to see a GBRf trial train of the long-promised slate waste traffic from Llandudno Junction sidings. The route is Doncaster Decoy sidings 02:46 via Wakefield Kirkdale, Rochdale, Manchester Victoria, Eccles and Chester to 'Llandudno Junction Traffic Centre ' at 07:51. The return departs the sidings at 13:01 and runs via Chester, Crewe, Nuneaton, Leicester and Corby to Wellingborough arriving 20:53 (RTT timings). The planned flow is to Hope Cement sidings on the Hope Valley line, but testing that must be for another day.
15 Minutes at Flint, Friday 29 July - with Stephen Dennett
158 834 on the 10:27 Chester to Llandudno service lining up with 175 009 on a Llandudno to Manchester Airport journey. The two-car 175 on the 09:45 Llandudno to Manchester Airport stayed in the station for five minutes or more. It was so full it was difficult for everyone to get on, especially with cases. Similar problems had apparently occurred at Rhyl and Prestatyn; the train left Flint 13 minutes late.
57 313 Scarborough Castle heads the Northern Belle "Conwy Castle and Bodnant Gardens" excursion from Nottingham to Llandudno Junction...
... with 47 812 at the rear. Blue 47 812 is a recent transfer from Rail Operations Group to West Coast Railways.
197 004 and another on their daily Crewe - Llandudno Junction - Chester-Llandudno Junction - Crewe mileage accumulation circuit. Meanwhile the 175s are starting to look really worse for wear.
Just made it to Beeches Farm to see the 1V96 Holyhead - Cardiff 67 014, now a loco-hauled regular, along with with 67 025.
66 757 West Somerset Railway with the loaded aggregates train from Penmaenmawr Quarry to Tuebrook Sidings; the first time the quarry train had run for a while. 66757 is a low-emission new-build loco.
[The expanse of dry grass looks like a fire waiting to happen. - Charlie]
WHR 100 event - pictures by Ian Pilkington
Six images attached taken at the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways "WHR 100" event on Saturday 30th August 2022, featuring former NWNGR/WHR Russell and FR Palmerston working trains between Dinas and Rhyd Ddu. Above: Russell, visiting from the Welsh Highland Heritage Railway, approaches Rhyd Ddu with the 09:20 from Dinas.
Palmerston approaches Rhyd Ddu with the 11:40 from Dinas.
Russsell approaches Rhyd Ddu with the 12:45 from Dinas.
Palmerston heads away from Rhyd Ddu with the 13:50 to Dinas.
Palmerston heads away from Betws Garmon with the 15:10 from Dinas.
Russell stands at Dinas, prior to working a photo special to Waunfawr.
Cambrian Corner
On Tuesday 26 July, 97 302 Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways visited Harlech with a 'driver training' working - the 11:38 Coleham - Coleham via Harlech. (This was repeated on Thursday 28 July). The attached photos from 26 July show 97 302 after arrival...
...and the departure from Harlech back to Coleham. (Ken Robinson).
Heading for Barmouth Viaduct (Kate Jones).
Welshpool and Llanfair ex-Cambrian Railways loco 822 The Earl departs Welshpool, 28 July. The standard gauge wagon has been acquired, we understand, to allow demonstations of the 'transporter wagon' system (Greg Mape).
Machynlleth on a damp and misty Saturday morning. 30th July. Busy scene despite industrial action elsewhere with the 08:05 Machynlleth to Birmingham International pulling into the station some 12 minutes late.
... Led by 158 830, it was accompanied by 158 838.
... Waiting off the platform were 158 827 and two 158s coupled together and being shunted into the yard.
Sitting there already was the 197 003, being used for ERTMS trials. Pictures by Eryl Crump.
Llangollen and Ruabon scenes - by Martin Evans
I travelled on the Llangollen Railway on 29 July and found the Wickham railcar in traffic - unit numbers 56171 and 50416. Above, the unit prepares to leave Llangollen with the 11am service to Carrog.
Having arrived at Carrog it will depart with the 11:50am service to Llangollen.
67 025 departing Ruabon for Cardiff Central, 26 July.
Four from 29 July - by Gary Thomas
Four photos I took within 30 minutes at Ffynnongroyw (just west of Mostyn) which highlight the variety we're now seeing on the Coast. Before you know it the Voyagers will be gone: I suspect they'll end up with Cross Country, but to me they would be ideal for Transport for Wales' longer distance services (certainly more so than a 150/2 or a pair of 153s!).
The first is the 10.10am London Euston to Holyhead, formed of 221 111 and 221 109.
Then 67 014 on the 11.33 Holyhead to Cardiff Central.
66 757 on the 11.49 Penmaenmawr Quarry Sidings to Tuebrook Sidings (over 20 minutes late) ...
... and finally 197 102 on a driver training run from Llandudno Junction to Chester.
From Dave Sallery's archive
Load Haul liveried but not branded 37 516 on an up ballast near Mostyn, 22 April 1997.
Mainline liveried 37 219, in practically the same location, on relaying duties, 27 September 1999.
Posed for the camera, 37 108 and 37 686 at Penmaenmawr, 26 August 1994. 37 108 was saved from the cutter's torch in 2000 by the 'Type Three Traction Group' and taken to the Crewe Heritage Centre where as far as we know, it remains.
37 107 on the refuelling point at Holyhead, 24 May 1994.
For more of Dave's images, visit his Flickr site
Looking back: Diesels and
Electrics 2006 Part 1 - by David Pool
Freightliner 66 602 has four sets of five MRA ballast wagons as it passes through Pensarn on 9 February 2006. I assume it would be going to Crewe from Penmaenmawr as usual.
Later that day I have moved to another vantage point at the Puffin Roundabout, where 57 314 Firefly with a Manchester to Holyhead working makes a particularly pleasing shot. The footbridge at Dwygyfylchi is in the distance.
I went to Wrexham on 25 February 2006 to see a Pathfinder Railtour, but first there was the 09:33 Birmingham to Chester, which was 158 842 with a Western Mail livery.
The Pathfinder Railtour was the “Welsh Whistler”, 1Z47 Crewe to Cardiff, appropriately headed by a very clean 40 145 and photographed at Croes Newydd.
It was unfortunately rather dull at Hargrave on 8 April 2006 when the “Blue Pullman” appeared. The Railtour files indicate it was 1Z75 from Euston to Chester. 47 712 Artemis was also in the Nanking blue livery, and at that time the train was operated by FM Rail.
On 10 April 2006 I was at Winwick, and in the late afternoon there was a Mail train, probably Shieldmuir to Warrington, which at that time was not being worked by powered Class 325 electric units, but by a Class 87 dragging the units. On this occasion it was 87 006.
Whitchurch was my choice on 15 April 2006, when 1Z49 the 09:50 Crewe to Cardiff, was being worked by 50 049 Defiance.
I well remember trying to get photos of 50 049 in 1988 when it was running as 50 149. After a shot near Plymouth Laira, I tracked it to St Blazey Depot, where I went to the Depot Manager’s office to seek permission to photograph it. The Manager was rather brusque, saying that I would need written permission to be there, and he would personally escort me off the site. Whether by accident or design the route he took with me passed 50 149, and a hurried shot gave me what I had come for!
On the Footplate
Greg Mape writes: 'Myself and my brother-in-law Jim Ikin (plus the driver) on the footplate of 0-4-0 Hugh Napier at Dinas during the 100 year event. I was allowed to open the regulator & pull away gently.' Picture by Sue Ikin.
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