Caernarvonshire Railtour

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Tour Timings. (As supplied by BR before the tour.)

Manchester Exchange	dep.		9.35am
Eccles	dep.		9.45 am
Chester General *	call	10.35 -	10.40am
Bangor	call	12.14 -	12.45pm
Bethesda	call	1.05 -	1.30pm
Nantlle	call	2.35 -	3.20pm
Llanberis	call	4.30 -	5.00pm
Britannia Bridge	arr.	5.58pm
Britannia Bridge	dep.		6.40pm
Bangor	call	6.45 -	7.30pm
Chester General	arr.	8.53pm
Eccles	arr.	9.52pm
Manchester Exchange	arr.	10.3pm

* Connections made at Chester outwards include 8.50am from Liverpool Central L.L, 9am from Birkenhead, 3.11am from Birmingham New Street or 4.11am from Snow Hill, 9.20am from Crewe. Returning, trains leave Chester at 9.10pm for Lime Street, 9.30pm for Crewe, 9.53pm for Birkenhead and Liverpool Central L.L, 11.03pm for Birmingham New Street.

Our train calls at Colwyn Bay (11.32am outwards and 8.07pm returning) and also at LLandudno Junction, Conway, Penmaenmawr, Llanfairfechan (12.03pm outwards and 7.40pm returning).

THE SLS/MLS RAILTOURS

13. THE CARNARVONSHIRE RAILTOUR May 5th 1957

From The Mancunian No. 221, March 2001

The spelling of place names in this article is that in use at the time of the tour.

It isn't possible to do it now, and very few people have done it in the past, but some MLS members actually performed the feat whilst taking part in this tour. The "feat" was to walk across the Menai Strait along the top of one of the tubes of Stephenson's Britannia Bridge, about 150 feet above the waters of the Strait.

This is the view from the top of Britannia Bridge. Members of the tour party can be see walking along the top of the tube in this view towards Bangor.

Photo by kind permission of Ken Widd.

The Rail Tour was organised jointly by the Sub-Committee of this Society and the North Western Area of the Stephenson Locomotive Society which consisted of Harold Bowtell (Chairman), Les Buchanan (Treasurer) and Alan Chorlton, Alan Gilbert and Harry Townley. The 5-car train, which included a twin articulated pair, formed the rear portion of a public half day excursion (with cafeteria car) from Manchester Exchange to Bangor and departed at 9.35am. It was hauled by 45582 CENTRAL PROVINCES (of Preston shed) which was in immaculate condition, and picked up at Eccles (9.45am), and Chester (10.35am to 10.40am). Here connectlons were advertised from Liverpool Central Low Level (8.50am), Birkenhead Woodside (9.00am), Birmingham New Street 13.11am), Birmingham Snow Hill (4.11am) and Crewe (9.20am). Stops along the North Wales coast were arranged at Colwyn Bay, Llandudno Junction, Conway, Penmaenmawr and Llanfairfechan for the benefit of local participants, including members of the Aberconway Historical Society and the North Wales Model Engineering Society. The train made a good run, free from engineering difficulties, and arrived in Bangor on time at 12.14pm.

45582 CENTRAL PROVINCES on the turntable at Bangor.

Time was allowed at Bangor to visit the loco shed and to see a collection of photographs (with L&NWR emphasis) and other relics which were displayed in the loco shed office. This had been arranged by the Bangor Shedmaster, Mr J M Dunn, whose valuable assistance and cheerful presence contributed so highly to the success of the day. The shed was accessible to visitors on the arrival of the train from Manchester and also on the return of the tour, and arrangements were made for it to be approached across the lines from the platforms at the Holyhead end of the station (can you imagine the HSE agreeing to such a large number of people doing that these days??). Mr Dunn also compiled an informative itinerary and historical notes on the tour which were amplified by a map of the area compiled by Gerald Harrop and Arthur Chambers.

The loco shed retained no shadow of its former celebrated L&NWR stock, the 29 locos on view being mainly BR standard types, but three L&Y 0-6-0s were present (52119,52230 and 52269) and also well hidden so as to be invisible to the casual visitor stood the L&Y 0-4-0ST 51221. The "Pug" looked rather forlorn despite the specially whitened stone plinth below. Apart from his photographs in the office, much interest was shown in Mr Dunn's collection of mounted crests of pre-grouping railway companies, a list of mourners and the train make-up for Queen Victoria's funeral, and an original Chester & Holyhead Railway upholstered chair - in "sittable" condition.

The 5-car train was booked to depart from Bangor on the first leg of its journey at 12.45pm for Bethesda. The train engine was Fowler 2-6-4T 42366 which had been built at Derby in August 1929 and allocated to Buxton shed when new. It stayed there until transferred to Stoke on 5 October 1956 and was still allocated to that shed at the time of the tour. It was in the charge of Driver R Edwards and Fireman W Evans. Assistance on the Bethesda branch was provided by 42356 with Driver D Owen and Fireman C Linley. This was a Macclesfield engine, having been built at Derby in June 1929 and allocated new to Longsight where it stayed until 11 April 1942 when it moved to Macclesfield. Both engines were in beautiful condition and provided brilliant examples of the new and old BR emblems on their respective tank sides. Bangor shed must have borrowed these engines for the tour. Five days earlier, 42356 worked the 7.35am Macclesfield to London Road service whilst 42366 was back on Stoke diagrams on 28th and 31st May when lt hauled the 5.22pm out of London Road to Stoke via the Tunstall loop line.

The tour train is ready to depart for Bethesda from Bangor with 42356 coupled ahead of 42366.

Leaving Bangor station, the train passed through the 913 yard long Bangor Tunnel, then left the main line at Bethesda Junction. The Bethesda branch was single track throughout and opened for passengers on lst July 1884. Freight traffic began two months later on 1st September 1884. With a few exceptions it climbed on gradients of between 1 in 40 and 1 in 80 and traversed a pleasant, well-wooded countryside. After crossing the Afon Cegin on a viaduct, it crossed the 1'11½" gauge Penrhyn Railway, after which the two lines kept company with each other. The original line of the Penrhyn Railway opened in July 1801 but it was replaced on a new route in 1876 when the original line was closed.

The tour train passed the remains of Felin Hen Halt, then Tregarth station and went through a 279 yard long tunnel before reaching Bethesda, 4 miles 18 chains from the junction. The services of the assisting engine were particularly necessary here because the branch passenger service had been withdrawn on 3 December 1951 and at the time of the tour the line was used solely for freight, one train making the return trip daily. The platform and loop had been removed at the end of 1956. For a short period from 1 June 1905 until July 1909 the branch passenger service was provided by a L&NWR steam rail coach but from then until eventual closure it was worked by a motor fitted L&NWR 0-6-2 Coal Tank with a push and pull set, latterly just one coach. In 1951 the Station Master at Bethesda was also appointed British Road Services Depot Superintendent, this being the first of these dual posts.

Arrival at Bethesda.

The train was allowed 25 minutes at Bethesda and was booked to return to Bangor at 1.30pm where a stop was made to detach the assisting engine. The tour then continued behind 42366, passing through Belmont Tunnel (614 yards) and on to a shelf on the hillside, parallel to the main Holyhead road and the Menai Straits, to Menai Bridge station where the train took the line to Caernarvon. Menai Bridge station had four platforms, the signal box being on the Bangor side of the junction. This was the original Bangor and Carnarvon Railway which opened for mineral traffic as far as Port Dinorwic on 1 March 1852. Four months later, on 1 JuIy 1852, the section from Port Dinorwic to Caernarvon was completed and from that date the whole line from Menai Bridge was opened for all traffic. It was then leased to the Chester & Holyhead Railway and vested in the L&NWR in 1867.

The line climbed at 1 in 79 from Menai Bridge and from the train there was an excellent end-on view of the Britannia Bridge. Shortly afterwards Treborth was passed, a station whose chief claim to fame was that from 1934 it successfully defied all attempts to close it. This was because a lady, Mary Matilda Crawley of Martln Coombe, Somerset, on part of whose land the rallway was built, succeeded ln getting a clause inserted in the Bangor and Carnarvon Railway Act compelling the company "to construct and continually use, except for special express or mail trains, a station at Treborthuchap in the parish of Bangor". It was not until 2 March 1959 that BR actually succeeded in closing it.

Then followed a descent at 1 in 117 and 1 in 79 through the twin single line Vaynol Tunnels (498 yards long) to Port Sidings Signal Box, a very tall structure on a brick base, where a 1¹/³ mile long goods branch went down to the quay at Port Dinorwic. Soon after the junction came the original Port Dinorwic station (closed in 1873 and later converted into a dwelllng house) and an inclined overbridge carrying the Padarn Railway to the harbour. This dated from 1824 but part of the line was rerouted in 1848. The second Port Dinorwic station which was about ½ mile to the west, came next and from here the line was close to and above the shore of the Straits on undulating gradients of 1 in 97 and 1 in 74. Another station on this section was Griffiths Crossing Halt, which closed on 5 July 1937 and at the time of the tour no trace of it remained. The sidings at the halt lasted until 6 JuIy 1964 when it closed for freight, but a special platform was built on the site and used by the Royal Train on 1st July 1969 for the Investiture of the Prince of Wales in Caernarvon Castle.

Caernarvon Station (it was named Carnarvon until 1925/26) had 3 through platforms and an east facing bay on the town side and at one time was the terminus of the line from Bangor. It also had a small loco shed which in LNWR days was sub to Bangor (coded 21C). The opening date of the shed is not known but it had two roads, each 151 feet long and had been enlarged in 1874. In February 1921 it housed 8 small and 3 large locos and had been enlarged in 1874. At the end of 1925 a report says that the shed had 10 locos and 55 men. The decline in slate traffic brought about the shed's closure on 14 September 1931 but the building remained in use as a signing-on point for some years afterwards, with watering and servicing facilities.

The line continued from Caernarvon through the town as two single tracks for about a mile, running side by side on sharp curves and undulating gradients of from 1 in 40 to 1 in 60. After passing through the 164 yand long Caernarvon tunnel (now a public road), the quayside and castle could be seen on the right, along with the engineering works of De Winton & Co. where vertical boiler locos were built. This section of line was opened by the L&NWR on 1st August 1870 to connect with two separate railways which had been opened earlier.

The two lines separated at Morfa Bridge, the one on the left heading for Llanberis whilst that on the right, on which the tour train was travelling, crossed the Afon Seiont on a 2-arch bridge and on to the alignment of the former Nantlle Tramway. Those who were quick enough could discern in passing the mouth of a short tunnel through which the Nantlle line ran from 1828 to 1865 en route to its terminus by the castle. Then, a little further on, was Pant station (closed 5 July 1870) which was the original terminus of the Caernarvonshire Railway which ran from there to Afonwen and was opened on 2 September 1867. This line was absorbed by the L&NWR in 1870 and used much of the alignment of fhe Nantlle. Arrangements had been made for the tour train to run slowly through Caernarvon and past these points of historical interest and this was appreciated by the participants.

Much of the line on to Pen-y-groes was superimposed on that of the Nantlle Tramway and at various points traces of the old line could be seen. On looking across the Afon Gwryfai at Bontnewydd, a stone arch could be seen which carried the Nantlle line over the river (it was one of the earliest railway bridges). From here the train climbed on grades of 1 in 53 to 1 in 60 to the site of Dinas Station (Dinas Junction until September 1938). This was formerly the junction with the then defunct North Wales Narrow Gauge Railway and was opened on the same date that the narrow gauge line opened - 15 August 1877 . Later renamed "Welsh Highland Railway", it closed to passengers on 19 Septernber 1936 and to all traffic on 1 June 1937, but the L&NWR station, which was not renamed Dinas until 29 September 1938, lasted until 10th September 1951 when it closed. At the time of the railtour, very few traces of the WHR were to be seen but now, of course, it has been re-opened from Caernarfon Castle to Dinas on the formation of the L&NWR line and then in stages all the way to Porthmadog on the old WHR formation.

After another 3¾ miIes, and after passing Llanwnda and Groeslon stations, the train reached Pen-y-groes where it left the Afonwen line and headed east towards the mountains along a branch laid on the formation of the 3' 6" gauge Nantlle Tramway. This was opened by the L&NWR as a standard gauge line on 1 October 1872 but closed to passengers on 8 August 1932. At the time of the tour there was one freight train on three days a week. For the first ½ mile it climbed at 1 in 69 and 1 in 62 and was then level to Nantlle station which was actually in Talysarn and 1 mile 36 chains from Pen-y-groes. Freight traffic lasted until 2 December 1963.

At the terminal could be seen the commencement of the remaining section of the tramway where a string of unsprung steel slate tubs was waiting on the 3' 6" gauge line to demonstrate the operation of this unique working relic of the quarry lines at the beginning of the railway era. The Nantlle Railway Company was authorised in 1825 (6 Geo 1V Cap 65) to build a line from the slate quarries at Glodfarlon in the Nantlle Valley to the port of Caernarvon. The 3' 6" gauge was adopted and the whole of the 9¼ miles was opened in 1828. Horse traction was employed and although there was no Parliamentary sanction, passengers appear to have been carried from an early date. The Nantlle was taken over by the Caernarvonshire Railway in 1862 and the part of the tramway north of Pen-y-groes was incorporated into the Caernarvonshire's standard gauge line to Afonwen. Passenger services on the old line were suspended on and after 10 June 1865 "owing to the danger of the works in progress connected with widening the gauge and making the necessary deviations". It passed to L&NWR control along with the Caernarvonshire in 1870. In 1872 the tramway from Pen-y-groes to Nantlle was converted to standard gauge to form the branch over which the tour train travelled.

The motive power for the section towards Nantlle is in place......

... and is ready for the trip up Bryncelyn Road as far as Dorothea Quarry.

Forty-five minutes were allowed at Nantlle and members could walk up to the head of the tramway if desired. The more adventurous entrained and, double headed by the horses PRINCE and QUEEN (which were both in immaculate condition),were treated to a rlde of about ¾ mile up the line and back. The motive power was supplied under contract to BR by a local farmer. The enthusiasm of the participants was not dampened by the light rain which had begun to fall, still less by the unexpected climax on return to Nantlle when a sudden burst of speed on the part of the motive power department (perhaps stimulated by snacks of sugar administered by certain ladies) succeeded in derailng almost the whole train, fortunately without, ill effects to man or beasts. The remarkable feel of exerted power behind the horses, the primitive polnt lay-out and the even more primitive but effective braking methods, were remarked upon, as was the possibility of a slightly higher standard of comfort having been provlded when horse haulage prevailed over the whole 9¼ miles to Caernarvon. The 1½ miles travelled by the tour members were quite enough to leave an appreciable dent in the case of seated passengers which persisted for the rest of the afternoon.

The roofs of the houses at Talysarn indicate that the weather has made a turn for the worse as 42366 waits to take the special back to Caernarvon.

Passengers were informed that a long engine whistle would be given 10 minutes before departure from Nantlle, and pop whistles 5 minutes before leaving. The timetable did not permit waiting for any late-comers. The train returned by the same route to Caernarvon where the engine ran round once again, then set off on the left hand line of the two slngle tracks to retrace its journey to Morfa where the original site of the Caernarvon & Llanberis Railway's terminus could be discerned. The Llanberis branch opened throughout from Morfa to Llanberis on 1st June 1869 and was absorbed by the L&NWR in 1870. It climbed steadily through stations at Pont Rug, Pontrhythallt and Cwm-y-Glo and for part of the way kept company with the 4' 0" gauge Padarn Railway. However, the two lines were on opposite sides of Padarn Lake on the approach to Llanberis. For a time from 1st April 1914 the branch was worked by steam rail coaches and Pont Rug station was closed temporarily from lst Jan 1917 until July 1919. The whole llne closed to passenger traffic on 22nd September 1930 but re-opened again on 18th July 1932, only to close again on 12th September 1932. However, this closure was only for regular traffic and frequent "excursions" continued to run during the summer months until the outbreak of war. These "excursions" ran to fixed timings and appeared in the LMS public timetables under the heading:

"LLANBERIS (FOR SNOWDON) AND CAERNARVON"
"The regular passenger train service between Caernarvon and Llanberis (for Snowdon) has been withdrawn and Pontrhythallt and Cwm-y-Glo stations closed for passenger trains but Road Motor (Messrs Crosville Services) and SPECIAL EXCURSIONS run as between Caernarvon station and Llanberis only as shown below."

In the alphabetical index to the timetable, Llanberis is shown as a station at which passengers luggage is delivered under "Luggage in Advance and Delivered Luggage" arrangements. Also, horses could be loaded and unloaded at the station, as could "carriages". The stations at Pontrhythallt and Cwm-y-Glo continued to deal with Parcels Traffic.

Throughout the 1930s, the summer service did not change much and that, for 1937 was typical; in that year the number of trains departing from Llanberis and Caernarvon were as follows:

Departures from Llanberis.

DESTINATION	SX	SO	SUN
Caernarvon	2	3	1
Bangor	1	1	1
Llandudno	5	1	1
Rhyl	2	2
TOTALS	10	7	3

Departures from Caernarvon.

ORIGINATING	SX	SO	SUN
FROM
Caernarvon	5	9	2
Bangor			1
Llandudno	1	1	2
Llandudno Jct	1
Rhyl	2	1
Liverpool Lime St	1
TOTALS	10	11	5

The various originating points and destinations will be noted, the through train from Liverpool to Llanberis departing at 10.53am from Lime Street and 2.25pm from Caernarvon. Whilst shown as "Express" in the WTT, it stopped at most stations from Prestatyn along the North Wales coast. The high number of Saturday trains from Caernarvon was because there were several late evening trains from there - at 9.30pm, 10.45pm and 11.40pm (11.10pm fromBangor). There was also a late night service on Sundays at 10.25pm from Rhyl which called at most stations and leaving Caernarvon at 11.44pm, Pontrhythallt at 12.00 midnight and arriving Llanberis at 12.06am. Despite what the public timetables said, most of the trains stopped at Ponbrhythallt and several also stopped at Cwm-y-Glo, so the service was obviously advertised locally. And, surprisingly for a line which the LMS timetable said was closed, a new statlon was opened at Padarn Lake Halt on 21st November 1936.

After the war, the "excursion" trains were resumed as Llanberls was still a very popular tourist destination. They were advertised locally as "The Snowdonian" but it was a much reduced service running on Mondays to Fridays only during the summer months. They were not shown in the BR tlmetable between Caernarvon and Llanberis but the service was similar each year with marginal changes in timings. In the summer of 1962 the trains worked to the following diagram:

9.30am Rhyl to Llanberis.
1.05pm Llanberis to Bangor.
2.40pm Bangor to Llanberis.
3.30pm Llanberis to Caernarvon.
4.25pn Caernarvon to Llanberis (ECS).
5.20pm Llanberis to Rhyl.

Between Bangor and Llanberis the trains only stopped at Caernarvon except for the 1.05pm from Llanberis which also stopped at Menal Bridge. They ran for the last time on Friday 7th September 1962 which marked the end of passenger servlces on the line. No passenger trains were shown in the WTT for the summer of 1963 but freight traffic continued until 1964, the last service being on Thursday 3rd September, although the official closing date was Monday 7th September. The tracks were lifted durlng 1968(?) and some of the formation was subsequently used for highway improvements.

The tour train's speed on the branch was not high, only about 17½mph up the I in 67 bank to Pont Rug. The weather had improved by the time Llanberis was reached and we had fine views over Llyn Padarn and Moel Rhiwen. Half an hour was allowed at the station and most of the party went to the Snowdon Mountain Railway where the General Manager had arranged for the locomotive shed to be open and for the Locomotive Foreman to be in attendance. All the existing locomotive stock was to be seen; No.4 SNOWDON was out of use and had been in that state since 1939; No.6 PADARN and No.7 ALWYN were undergoing heavy overhaul ready for the Whitsun traffic whilst some of the coaching stock was being overhauled and repainted.

Llanberis.

After running round at Llanberis, the tour train returned to Menai Bridge station where there was yet another reversal, and it then headed for the Britannia Bridge, coming to a stand at a point on the Caernarvonshire side and not far from the site of the station of that name which existed from 1851 until 1st October 1858. Those members who wished to alight here could do so by some very lavish VIP pattern steps specially constructed by the Outdoor Machinery Department. While the train and a few passengers went on to Llanfair to reverse, the more venturesome and energetic were to be seen climbing to the top of the towers of the bridge and crossing the Menai Straits on top of the tubes and practicing some high level photography. Those whose lungs and nerves were not equal to this were amply compensated, as the District Engineer, Mr l. Cunningham, gave an llluminating talk on the history and construction of the bridge and the Straits. He also gave some sidelights on modern maintenance methods and local ornithology. This was much appreciated, as was the factual "hand-out" he had prepared and the exhibition of designs and drawings he had arranged. None of those present will easily forget the deep impression made by Mr Cunningham's eulogy of Robert Stephenson, or the majestic picture presented by the monumental structure in the bright Spring sunlight above the deep green water of the swiftly flowing tide.

ln the train again for the short run to Bangor, and time for another quick inspection of Mr.Dunn's exhibition, and the shed, while the tour coaches were marshalled again on to the rest of the train. Then back to Manchester behind 45582 with the highest speed of 64½mph yielding, despite signal checks, an arrival at Exchange station two minutes early on schedule at 10.01pm.

The tour must surely go on record as among the most successful for its varied historical and engineering interest, scenic beauty and excellent organisation on the part of BR staff and the officers of the two societies. Nothing went wrong and everything went right, and even the refreshments held out to the end. Two menus were available (pre-booked) on the train consisting of:

(a) Ham and salad, rolls and butter (4/0d).
(b) Ham and chicken salad, rolls and butter, ice cream (6/6d).

And above all, the Nantlle derailment offered just that spice of comfortable contretemps to supply a future topic of conversation for the 189 members and friends who look part.

L0C0S SEEN 0N BANGOR SHED.
(From the records of Dudley Whitworth)

4-6-0	LMS Class 5	44913, 45417
4-6-0	BR Class 5	73042 (6A), 73137 (6J)
0-6-0	LMS Class 4F	44305, 44445
0-6-0	L&Y Class 3F	52119, 52230, 52269
2-6-4T	LMS Fowler 4MT	42356 (9C), 42366 (5A)
2-6-4T	BR 4MT	80088-92/94/96
2-6-2T	Fowler	40003
2-6-2T	Stanier	40132
2-6-2T	LMS 2P	41230, 41233, 41234, 41239

Whilst Dudley's records show the shed of 42366 as 5A (Crewe), it was actually
5D (Stoke) and carried that plate when seen later in the month.

51221	Arrived at Bangor in w/e 7/1/1956 and stayed there until w/e 21/9/1957 when
	it was transferred to Crewe South. Transferred again to Bristol Barrow Road
	24/5/1958 from where it was withdrawn 9/1/1960.

52119	At Bangor from 27/3/1948 until 9/11/1957 when it was transferred to Rhyl.

52230	At Bangor from 3/10/1942 until 9/11/1957 when it was transferred to
	Springs Branch.

52269	At Bangor from 25/6/1949 until 9/11/1957 when it was transferred to
	Springs Branch.

Last update December 2023. Comments welcome: website@manlocosoc.co.uk