North Wales Coast Railway Notice Board 12 January 2025

NORTH WALES COAST RAILWAY :NOTICE BOARD

Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd


13 January 2025











 
13 January


Forthcoming events

See our Calendar Page for operator details.

January 2025

Monday 20 January Merseyside, Cheshire and North Wales Branch Bromborough: AGM followed by: Jon Penn “A Miscellany of Railways”  (Non M,C&NW members and Non-RCTS members will not be able to take an active part in the AGM)

February 2025

Wednesday 5 February Merseyside, Cheshire and North Wales Branch Liverpool: Chris Poole   “Czech Railways”

Thursday 6 February Clwyd Railway Circle David Jones and Dave Southern “Annual General Meeting” followed by “Rails to Bala”

Friday 14 February. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Macclesfield Area Railways in the 1950s and 60s" by Martin Welch.

March 2025

Saturday 1 March - Railway Touring Company - 'The Mancunian' from Manchester Piccadilly to Llandudno and Holyhead via Altrincham. Steam hauled.

Thursday 6 March Clwyd Railway Circle Jeff Nicholls “A Baptism of Fire and Water-My First Wolsztyn Experience” Part One

Friday 14 March. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Navigation Road and All That" by Ted Buckley. Local rail scenes, mainly of steam, from the 1960s in the Altrincham and Dunham Massey areas and elsewhere taken by Ted's father Bill Buckley.

Monday 17 March Merseyside, Cheshire and North Wales Branch: Charles Roberts “On Line Transport Archive (OTA) Images”

April 2025

Wednesday 2 April Merseyside, Cheshire and North Wales Branch Liverpool:  Paul Shackcloth “L & Y Engines at Work, Part 3” Speaker and Subject TBC

Saturday 5 April  Saphos  Lakelander from Llandudno Junction to Carlisle. Diesel to Lancaster and return, steam from Lancaster, return via Cumbrian Coast line.

Saturday 5 April  UK Railtours - The Snowdonian. No further information available at present.

Saturday 11 April Pathfinder Tours 'Cambrian Coast Express' from Swindon to Pwllheli

Friday 11 April. Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society "Steam, Diesel and Electric in the Northern Fells" by Ian Pilkington. A joint meeting with the Irish Railway Record Society Manchester Branch.

Saturday 12 April  Midland Pullman  Torbay Riviera Pullman from Chester, Wrexham General and Ruabon to Paignton.

Saturday 19 April   Northern Belle - Settle and Carlisle Steam Special. Wrexham General and Chester to Carlisle via the S&C. Diesel to/from Carnforth, steam for remainder.

May 2025

Thursday 1 May Northern Belle  "Conwy Castle & Bodnant Gardens" charter from Coventry It includes other off-train options.

Saturday 5 May - The Victorian Festival (Intercity). Birmingham International to Llandudno and return with a pair of LSL class 20s.

Saturday 9 May Pathfinder Tours 'Cambrian Coast Express' from East Midlands Parkway to Pwllheli

Saturday 10 May  UK Railtours Llandudno and Chester. London Euston to Llandudno Junction and Penmaenmawr freight yards.

Saturday 16 May Pathfinder Tours 'Cambrian Coast' Express from Bristol Temple Meads to Pwllheli

Saturday 31 May  Northern Belle Conwy Castle & Bodnant Gardens from Cardiff

June 2025

Friday 20 June   Northern Belle  Spirit of Travel Lunch. Circular tour picking up at Chester and Wrexham General. Diesel hauled.

Friday 20 June  Northern Belle  Champagne Afternoon Tea. Circular tour picking up at Chester and Wrexham General. Diesel hauled.



Saturday 21 June North West Rail and Transport Collectors Fair Crewe Alexandra Football Club 10:00 - 16:00

Thursday 26 June The Railway Industry's "Three Peaks by Rail" will be down the Coast on the evening of 26 June and heading onwards in the early hours of 27 June.

July 2025

Saturday 5 July Railway Touring Company "North Wales Coast Express" from London Euston to Llandudno. Electric to Crewe, with steam along the Coast.

Sunday 13 July Railway Touring Company charter from Liverpool to Holyhead on with steam throughout.

Tuesday 15 July   Midland Pullman  Yorkshire Coast Pullman from Ruabon, Wrexham General and Chester.

August 2025

September 2025

Friday 5 September Clwyd Railway Circle To be announced

Saturday  5 September Pathfinder Tours 'Cambrian Coast Express' from Cardiff Central to Pwllheli

Wednesday 10 September - Snowdonia Statesman. Cardiff Central to Blaenau Ffestiniog.

Saturday  12 September Pathfinder Tours '.Cambrian Coast Express' from Bristol Temple Meads to Pwllheli

Wednesday 17 September  Midland Pullman  Settle and Carlisle Pullman. From Ruabon, Wrexham General and Chester.

Saturday 20 September   Northern Belle   Settle and Carlisle Steam Special. Wrexham General and Chester to Carlisle via the S&C. Diesel to/from Carnforth, steam for remainder.

October 2005

Friday 3 October Clwyd Railway Circle To be Announced

Wednesday 8 October - Snowdonia Statesman. Durham to Blaenau Ffestiniog.

November 2005

Friday 7 November Clwyd Railway Circle Jeff Nicholls “A Baptism of Fire and Water-My First Wolsztyn Experience” Part Two

Saturday 8 November Northern Belle  Settle and Carlisle Steam Special. Wrexham General and Chester to Carlisle via the S&C. Diesel to/from Carnforth, steam for remainder.






North Wales Coast Railway website created and compiled by Charlie Hulme 



Royal Scot passing Bagillt, 13 January (Scott McGahey).

Don't miss the time travel at the end of this issue

Snow Scenes



Way out of area but we can't resist using these pictures by Greg Mape who travelled on the Saturday Rochdale - Ribblehead service. This is Ribblehead station with 158 815.



Near the viaduct (Greg Mape)


Steam on the Coast 13 January

From the LSL Facebook page a few days ago:
We are currently getting ready for 46100 'Royal Scot's last run before she goes out of service for her overhaul ....  10 years ago, LSL took the Scot to Holyhead on her first run out following overhaul by LNWRH. This was a regular route for the Scots back in the day, so it seemed appropriate to repeat the trip as her final farewell. It has been 40 years since class 40 D213 was switched off and withdrawn from British Rail, here on the Down Holding sidings at Crewe. As far as we're aware, a class 40 has never piloted a Scot over on the East side of the NW coast, which is what we have planned for today when the train returns form Llandudno Jct in the afternoon. This is a private charter running exclusively for LSG Employees.
Here we go:



Chester Walls (Geoff Morris)



Beeches Farm (Bob Greenhalgh).



Rhyl (Ivor Bufton).



Approaching Abergele (Ian Pilkington)



Llandudno Junction (Garry Stroud)



Heading for Conwy, D213 trailing (Garry Stroud).



Conwy station (Scott McGahey)



Dwygyfylchi (Ian Pilkington)


From Dave Sallery's archive

Up to 2,000 contractors are working Turkish firm Eren Holdings to transform Shotton Mill in Flintshire into one of the UK's largest cardboard and tissue production facilities, which it is hoped will start operating next year. 

The paper mill, opened in 1983 (or 1986 from another source) to produce newsprint paper. However, decline in the demand for newsprint and the site, latterly was used as a recycling plant. It was sold to Turkish Eren Holding in 2021. The site in includes an area which used to hold the blast furnace for Shotton Steelworks. Eren Holding said its new plant would process a quarter of the waste cardboard the UK currently sends abroad, and focus on creating containerboard - used to make packaging and corrugated boxes from recycled paper - as well as tissue products.

The Shotton Mill had a siding, which was used to bring in logs for pulping, and  china clay, and send out products. Sadly, the rail operation was disused by 2010. Will the new owners bring it back? Unlikely perhaps.



31 201, wearing the 'Railfreight Coal' symbol, with empty china clay wagons from Shotton Paper to Cornwall leaves Penyffordd after a signal check, 20 August 1998. It had been one of a small group of 31s allocated for nuclear flask traffic which 'sort of like coal.



47 238 Bescot Yard with empty 'OTA' wagons from Shotton Paper passing Hawarden Bridge, 13 January 1994.  This loco was allocated to the Railfreight Distribution sector: it was named after Bescot Marshalling yard in a ceremony at an an Open Day, when it looked rather smart, as seen in a picture in Railway Herald.



56 088 is climbing out of Shotton with empty 'OTA' wagons, 14 June 1997. The OTAs were created from 1985 by converting air-braked open wagons , and later vans.  By the 1960s, they were withdrawn in favour of continental bogie wagons. (Details here). The loco has the livery of the  English, Welsh and Scottish company which took over most of the country's freight trains in 1996.

None of the locos in this item exist today.


Looking back - Gloucester and Dorset Steam - by David Pool



The Horton Road level crossing in Gloucester was always worth a visit in the 1960s.  At that time there were two mainline stations, Gloucester Central for the Western Region trains from South Wales towards Cheltenham, and Gloucester Eastgate for the London Midland Region trains from Bristol to Birmingham.  These two lines converged at Horton Road, which was adjacent to the Western Region shed 85B.  On 1 September 1961 Jubilee 45572 Eire, a Bristol locomotive, was on the 14:15 from Temple Meads to York.  A month later it was transferred to Shrewsbury, and finally withdrawn in 1964. 



The shuttle service between Gloucester and Chalford was worked by a 14XX locomotive and two Autocoaches on that day, the 15:06 from Gloucester being 1472, a GWR Autocoach W233W plus another of BR design.  Chalford station was closed in 1964, marking the end of the shuttles, at which time other classes of Western Region tank locomotives were sometimes used on the service. 



I had several holidays in Swanage in the 1960s, and on 6 September 1961 the late afternoon sun gave a pleasing shot of M7 30108 with the 17:58 Swanage to Wareham. 



On the following day the freight working at Swanage produced 30539, a Q Class locomotive from Bournemouth.  30539 was withdrawn in 1963, and only one of this class has been preserved, 30541 being now at the Bluebell Line. 



On 7 September 1961 the afternoon Channel Islands Boat Train had left Weymouth Quay behind Pannier 1368, somehow managing to get past the parked cars, although there seems to be an obstruction ahead.  In those days cars were narrower and seldom had wing mirrors!  



A short time later the Pannier had handed over to the main line locomotive, which was a Lord Nelson class 30857 Lord Howe.  It was leaving Weymouth some time after 3pm, and if anyone has a 1961 Southern Region timetable I would be interested to know what the timings were from Weymouth Quay. 



The next train out of Weymouth was the 15:50 to Waterloo, which had a King Arthur class 30788 Sir Urre of the Mount, one of the North British “Scotch Arthurs”, with a set of Bulleid coaches.  Six months later it was withdrawn, followed by 30857 in September 1962. 



Meanwhile on the Lyme Regis branch the Adams Radial Tanks had gone, and the LMS designed 2MT locomotives were being used.  On 9 September 1961 41306 was on the 1139 Axminster to Lyme Regis, and calling at Combpyne, where for once some passengers had alighted.  The platform facilities remained rather basic.  It would seem that the lineside fencing was being renewed, but that was no indication that the branch was safe from closure, and the end came in November 1965. 


MONSIEUR HULMO'S HOLIDAY - RESTORED

or, a spring day on the North Wales coast line, 24 May 1997

[Based on the film 'Monsieur Hulot's Holiday' (1953)]

Text and pictures (Casio QV-10 digital camera) by Charlie Hulme37 426 at Stockport
37 429 approaching Prestatyn

Saturday May 24 1997 was a delightful Spring day, sunny but cool; an ideal day to see how the North Wales Coast Line was handling the Bank Holiday weekend traffic. My day began at Stockport, with the arrival from Chester of the stock to form the 09.56 Stockport - Holyhead 'Irish Mancunian' hauled by 37 426 smartly turned out in 'new-style' EWS livery. 37 426 is from Crewe depot, but is not one of the ten locos officially allocated to passenger duty. As expected, the train had a fifth coach attached, one of the chocolate-and-cream Mk 1s owned by Riviera Trains, as did every other train I saw during the day.

I decided I would treat myself to a ride in the first-class coach to Bangor, and settled down with my £3 supplement to hand. My plan was to be overcome by events, however: when the train arrived at Piccadilly it was besieged by crowds of people, many of whom had seat reservations but could not find them in the general melée.

Eventually the harassed guard correctly decided to allow all into the first class coach, and I was joined by two friendly couples on the way to Bangor, who told me that when they reserved their seats on the telephone they were told that the train started from Manchester, so they had taken a taxi from Stockport! They also claimed that when they asked a railwayman where their seats were, he replied that he didn't know because it was 'rolling stock'... I explained that this was the only train of the week from Manchester which has more than two coaches.

After more people piled in to the train at every station, especially at Earlestown where a school party with camping gear clambered aboard, and at Chester, surprisingly since this train runs not long after the London - Holyhead HST, I made a change of plan and alighted at Prestatyn at 11.48, a few minutes late because of the crowds, to await the 11.18 Crewe - Bangor, due at 12.06, and with luck get a picture of the 11.22 Bangor - Crewe, due Prestatyn at 12.04.

The footbridge here makes a useful vantage point if one is tall enough: the picture shows the westbound approaching, hauled by 37 429; the buildings on the right are the original Chester and Holyhead Railway station which was replaced when the line whas quadrupled by the LNWR. As I went to board this train, the eastbound arrived, and I was amazed to see at the head 37 423 Sir Murray Morrison, which has been stored unserviceable for a long time at Motherwell depot in Scotland!
37 423, Prestatyn

37 429's train was busy, but not overcrowded, especially after Rhyl which is the line's principal family day-out destination, and I had a pleasant but uneventful ride to Bangor where along with one other fan I watched the train being watered and run-round, a complex shunting manoeuvre involving the loco running into the tunnel west of the station, then into the tunnel to the east of the station, and finally propelling the whole train into the western tunnel before hauling it into the westbound platform.

I had intended to get a quick lunch here, but when a Holyhead - Llandudno local arrived, formed of the 'heritage' green-painted 3-car diesel set 101 685, I jumped aboard for a short ride to Llandudno Junction. The coast line crews are happy for people to see out of the front of these old units, and we rolled happily along this very scenic section along the sea wall, with colourful flowers of Gorse, Ragwort and notably Red Valerian in profusion everywhere. In the picture below, the Great Orme above Llandudno dominates the horizon.
sea view near Penmaenmawr101 685,
                Llandudno Jc

At Llandudno Junction, I found the buffet almost sold out of railfan food such as Coke and crisps, but just managed to purchase their last cheese and tomato sandwich. The 12.18 Crewe - Holyhead, formed of two 156 units on Winter Saturdays, was few minutes late arriving in platform 2, and a single-car 153 on the Conwy Valley branch train was held in platform 1 awaiting the connection, and was still there when the 37 429 and the 13.22 Bangor-Crewe was cautioned into the platform behind it at 13.41. Despite some very impatient-sounding growls from the engine, the driver was forced to stop with the last door of the rear coach off the platform.

Conwy Castle, from Train

I joined this train as far as Rhyl, where I was able to photograph the 13.18 Crewe - Bangor, (14.12 from Rhyl) with 37 422, and the up Virgin West Coast train (14.49 from Rhyl) to London, led by 43 164, which is seen passing Rhyl's platform starter signal, with the LNWR signal box in the background.

37 422, RhylHST at Rhyl

Rhyl station was built large by the LNWR to handle holiday traffic: once there were four platforms plus two through tracks, now reduced to two platforms plus one through line which has seen the occasional failed train in recent times. My next ride was at 14.48 from Rhyl as far as Chester, behind 37 418, in the first version of EWS livery and now with its East Lancashire Railway nampelates back in position. Riding in the rear coach, I was able to photograph 37 423 again while passing at Prestatyn.

37 418, Chester37 408, Chester

At Chester (arr.15.30) , I took some pictures of this train, and completed my set of all six locos on duty that day by capturing the 15.18 Crewe - Holyhead, which departed Chester at 15.41 with 37 408, still wearing its restored 1986-style BR 'Large Logo' livery. Resisting the temptation to join this train and start again, I returned to Stockport on the 15.52 to Southport via Northwich, a class 150 'Sprinter' for a pleasant wander across the Cheshire countryside, passing on the way 37 211 and 37 678 backing the afternoon limestone train from Tunstead into the Soda Ash works, and 37 426 returning the empty coaches of the Irish Mancunian to Chester.

A very enjoyable day in every way: no failures or disasters, no serious passenger misbehavior, and above all the locomotive-hauled trains were handling the crowds with their luggage and bikes, just as they were designed to do. (I did also notice some strange plastic pig-like affairs with hermetically-sealed windows running around, but nothing made me want to travel in them...) My thanks as always to all the Coast Line railway staff - the best way to spend £25.50 I can imagine.

[ I hope readers like these bits of nostalgia to fill the notice book at quiet times. I had to recover this one from the online  'Wayback Machine', I couldn't find it on my archive.  The Casio camera cost £499, and gave me 320 x 240 images, but it was the only way (except expensive Polaroids) that our website could have had  pictures the day after the event. Sadly, it met its maker after I dropped it on the platform at Llandudno Junction one day soon after this was compiled.  Remarkably, the are now considered 'vintage' and are working ones are offered on eBay for around £50! And what happened to the Valerian? - Charlie ]




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