May 2013 Holiday - Days 3 & 4

After yesterday, the dogs needed a good walk. We decided to visit the Isle of Anglesey and get in a bit of bird-watching, too. We crossed the Britannia Bridge onto Ynis Mon, new territory for both of us. The countryside here was a stark contrast to the Snowdonia National Park. It reminded me of the other Welsh extremity, Pembrokeshire.

Our first stop was at Newborough Warren, a National Nature Reserve. As we pulled into the car park, we noticed that a foal had just that minute been born.

When we came back almost two hours later, we witnessed the new born get to its feet for the first time, after some frantic nudging from the mare. She was also pre-occupied in keeping the other two nosy horses away from her precious off-spring, threatening them with a mouth full of teeth if they attempted to come too close.

Walking along the public footpath at the back of the dunes, we were welcomed by the song of many Whitethroats coming from the Blackthorn and Willow scrub. As we entered the forested part, our attention was drawn to a low croaking noise. After some manoeuvering  we did find the Raven's nest and clocked one of the adults. We also had our first Garden Warbler of the year.

Feeling better for the walk, we headed north for some sea-birds, courtesy of the RSPB watch point at South Stack.

South Stack lighthouse, Anglesey.

Jenny was told where she could see a couple of nesting Puffins (without crossing to the lighthouse), while I enjoyed seeing a pair of Choughs feeding in a small field right by the RSPB cafe. Many visitors missed these  and had to be content with distant views  from Ellins Tower of the birds returning to their nest in a gulch at the back of one of the stacks. We also notched up Guillemot, Razorbill, Kittiwake, and another pair of Ravens that were assisting the piratical Greater Black-backs to raid incoming birds carrying food.

In the evening, we returned to the pub at Garreg (non-cooking day!), taking the narrow, twisty and hilly by-road from Tan-y-Bwlch. Care and quick reactions needed to avoid the locals!

After an early morning walk and necessary caravan duties (small space, four occupants), we set off for Blaenau Ffestiniog. After a couple of false starts (mobile 'phone, etc.), we got to the far end of this ribbon village and parked in the municipal car park, cost £3.50 for over 4 hours. I Like. 

Part of the main square, celebrating slate.

Being Caravan Club members, we collected a 20% discount on our already discounted pensioner concession return fares . The dogs were still £3.00 each and we paid £14.60 each, a 28% saving on the full fare which is currently £20.20 for a round trip.
The Rheilffordd Ffestiniog is celebrating 150 years of steam power and is still using the original diminutive locomotives dating back to 1863. We were pulled by one of the unique Double Fairlie engines.

My & Cerise's tickets
Note the humour.

"JAK" about to travel 'back to the engine'.

The 11.50 left on time. By the time we got to the cross-over point at Tan-y-Bwlch, we were early and had to wait for the 'down' train - which goes up, of course! We left on schedule at 12.20. More stunning views. We pulled into Porthmadog 13 & 1/2 miles later, just before 13.00. A completely different view of the estuary here, from The Cob, than from the new by-pass (A 487), and a chance to snatch a little bird-watching. 

The Afon Glaslyn from the Cob.
Mount Snowdon, far horizon,left,just visible behind Moel-ddu

Porthmadog - end of the line.
Welsh Highland engine on the left.

The return journey began at 13.40, leaving plenty of time for a coffee and some sandwiches and a bit of cake. Here are some of the photos taken en route back to the slate quarries. The main engineering work of recent years took place at Tanygrisiau when a reservoir was built. The line had to be diverted and, in order to gain height to avoid the maximum height of the water in the reservoir, the track was taken up the valley sides in a spiral.  All done by volunteers, this took a number of years but is now one of the major attractions of the line.

Steam up to start the spiral

Crossing over the line

Sheep on the old embankment west of the old tunnel.
The access track, used to build the new line, in the foreground

The old line was showing, with water levels low in the reservoir.
Original tunnel entrance can be seen right of centre.
Access track, now a footpath, this side of the water.

The railway is fully modernised with electronic signals and barrier lights at crossings. The only exception is the full barrier at Penrhyn, which is manned.

After Tanygrisiau, a couple of unmanned crossings.
Note the scars of the slate mining in the background.

With a 3.pm end to our "tourist" day, we mosied along to the site for a spag. bol. and a good read; my preference was to finish Tess Gerritsen's "Whistle Blower". Apt. That's what holidays are all about - see the sights, support the local economy and chill out with a good book.

May 2013 Holiday - Days 1 & 2

Our spring holiday started with a 240 mile drive from West Somerset to Gwynedd, north-west Wales. After loading the final bits and pieces in the 'van, we took the easy route up the M5 motorway to Worcester and then across on the A5 before picking up the A495 to Bala and finally crossing over to the A470 via the A4212. Because of roadworks, I had decided not to tow a caravan via the old Severn crossing and the A40/A470, a very scenic (and slightly shorter) route which passes through some rather interesting Welsh towns. I hadn't been on the latter route for some while, the last time to ring Pied Flycatchers and, before that, to visit Ynis-hir when I worked for the RSPB and, earlier still, Aber (Aberystwyth)  when my (deceased) best mate, Pete Aslett, was at Uni there. 

We arrived around 4pm, as predicted, at a lovely and quiet Caravan Club site called Coed-Y-Llwyn. This site was central to what we hoped to do during our stay. We put down and hooked up before going out for a meal. We travelled to Garreg, on the eastern edge of the Afon Glaslyn, and ate a hearty meal at the Brondanw Arms. Click here for more info on the PH and the local area. 

Day 2. And off south to Towyn. On the way, we went via Penmaenpool and the Afon Mawddach. I've always loved this bit of Wales. We called in at the Fairbourne Railway, but, as it was a Monday, the light railway out to the point was closed up. I just took a pic of the motionless carriages in the station and, after a trip to the 'mens' room' drove down the A493, along the cliffs, through Llwyngwrll and Llangelynnin to the lower reaches of the Afon Dysynni, before turning west to Tywyn town. The Gorsaf Wharf station is on the far side of the town centre.

I last visited the Rheilffordd Talyllyn in 1958, having completed my GCE 'O' level exams. This was just a few years after the preservation started, the very first line to be preserved thanks to the inspiration and leadership of Tom Rolt. There was grass on the line then and there was no  large, new station building, gift shop and narrow guage railway museum at Wharf Station, let alone toilets at Abergynolwyn, as there is today. We used to travel one way on the "Towyn Tram" and catch the bus back to our camp site at Minffordd at the foot of the Talyllyn pass, or vice versa.

No.6, aptly named "Rock 'n Roll", at Pendre Station, 1958
(C) Errol Newman

Our 'over 60' "full line" tickets cost £13.00 each, plus £3.00 for each dog. Yes, they go everywhere with us. We boarded at Towyn Wharf and were pulled by No.2, "Dolgoch". She is an 0-4-0 engine originally built in 1866 for this 2ft 3in railway, the year after the line was opened.

In an original, enclosed carriage.
Note: Original gas lamp fitting converted to electric

Run-around at Nant Gwernol

We caught the 12.15 for the 53 (scheduled) minute and 7.3 mile trip to the end of the line. The track terminates in the old slate quarry workings above Abergynolwyn which it was built to serve. From here there also used to be a 'ropeway' down to the village. The engine was run-around and drew us back to the station where we had a half-hour refreshment break before returning to Towyn by 14.40. We had a gander at the museum before heading off.

Abergynolwyn platform & tea room

We drove up the B.4405 through the Afon Fathew valley to rejoin the Afon Dysinni at Abergynolwyn. We took the side road to Pentre on foot and exercised the dogs. This brought back old memories as mid-Wales used to be dry on Sundays. The local farmers used to meet in the hotel but on the Sabbath, they used to congregate in the parsons house, where, behind locked doors, they "celebrated". It has since been turned into a bed-and-breakfast for the Cader Idris tourists. [No photo - some how lost 5 pics in this sequence]

Minffordd and the Dol-y-cae

This is the area that Nigel Blake, a friend from Biggleswade, visits to take his photos of multitudinal, multi-national war planes doing their low-flying thing. The weather stayed fine and we poddled back to the site for a lasagne supper.