Beyond Flint we encounter on the right-hand side the incongruous
sight of a sea-going ship, now beached high and dry above the
water. Duke of Lancaster was a British Railways Ferry
which was launched in 1955 from Harland and Wolff, Belfast, with
accommodation for 600 First and 1200 Second-class passengers. She was
in
BR/Sealink service between Heysham and Ireland from 1956, but was sold
in 1979 to Empire Trading of Liverpool, replaced on the Irish Sea
services by roll-on roll-off vessels. In 1980 she was towed across
Liverpool Bay to Llanerch-Y-Mor, Deeside,
beached at high tide and was concreted in afterwards, allegedly
before there was time for anyone to object.
The ship has been used at
times as a nightclub and a supermarket, but at the present time it lies
more or less derelict awaiting its fate; an appreciation society has
recently been formed, whose website gives much
information about the history of the ship,
Mostyn Docks follows shortly after on the seaward side: rail freight
traffic survived here until 2008 in the form of steel which from
eastern England which exported by sea to Ireland. After Mostyn
the train travels along a stretch of exposed sea wall with the Wirral
peninsula and the Hilbre Island bird reserve visible across the Dee
estuary. A long curve to the west signals our train's arrival on
the North Wales coast, at first past sandhills and caravans, then golf
links before arriving in Prestatyn, 47.5 miles from Crewe and
the first stop after
Chester for many trains. The estuary ends here and the line turns
left on to
the holiday coast. Out in the sea on clear days the turbines of a
newly-built wind-powered power station can be seen. Prestatyn is
a quiet little resort, and marks one
end
of the Offa's
Dyke path, which runs along the ancient border between England and
Wales.
This is classic holiday country for the people of the north-western
textile cities, and bears all the hallmarks, such as caravans, holiday
camps and 'amusements.' The sea and the beaches are wonderful, but a
real
jarring note is sounded by a road called the 'North Wales
Expressway'
which has been blasted alongside the line, in places shoving it aside
on
to a new alignment. Rhyl (51 miles) is the biggest and brashest
holiday town, with its funfairs and indoor 'sun centre'. After leaving
Rhyl station the train passes Rhyl Marine Lake on the right: this is
circled by the Rhyl
Miniature Railway, one of the oldest fifteen-inch gauge
railways anywhere in the world. Its origins go back to 1911, and on
peak days in 2004 you can ride on the same train that a visitor in 1920
would have found. The River Clwyd is crossed immediately
afterwards on a girder bridge which wad doubled in late Victorian
times, like much of the route, to carry four tracks, but is now reduced
to two.
More caravan parks are passed on the journey onwards to Abergele
and Pensarn station, with the North Wales Cycleway keeping the line
company on the seaward side. There now follows a more rural
stretch as the train heads up to Llandulas with the folly-like Gwrych Castle
on the left, built in 1819 at the bequest of Lloyd Hesketh
Bamford-Hesketh and now in bad condition: a society, formed in 1997,
led by a teenager called Mark Baker, kept the place in the public eye,
and eventually it was bought in 2006 for £850,000 by
Yorkshire-based Clayton Hotels who plan to spend millions turn it into
a five-star hotel; the last we heard (December 2008) some tidying up of
the site had occurred and an architect had been appointed to prepare an
application for planning permission.
At Llandulas is a jetty used to load stone into ships from the
adjacent quarry. After passing through Penmaen tunnel the wide sweep of
Colwyn Bay opens out as the train passes first Old Colwyn, which once
had a station of its own, and then arrives at the station of Colwyn
Bay - Bae Colwyn. The Victoria
Pier, seen down below, was built in 1900 and has
survived fires and threats of demolition: in 1994 it was purchased by
Mr & Mrs Paxman who worked hard to restore it and make it a going
concern, despite shortage of funds. In 2003 they sold it on to a
gentleman who also intended to restore it to some of its former
glory, but in 2009 it is closed again, the owner being mired in a legal
battle with Conwy Council over updaid debts - see the pier's website for the
gory details as well as the full story of the pier.
A notable feature of this whole section is the North Wales Coast
Cycleway, a continuous (except for a section in Llandudno) traffic-free
route, mostly parallel to the line, for 34 miles from Talacre to
Penmaenmawr. An excellent feature which is highly recommended,
especially to cyclists who are interested in railways as there are some
good viewing and picture locations along the way.
