Llanberis Lake Railway
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The loco “Dolbadarn” pulls into the Llanberis station which was opened in June 2003. |
The
Llanberis Lake Railway (
Welsh:
Rheilffordd Llyn Padarn) is a
narrow gauge heritage railway that runs for 2.5 miles along the northern shore of
Llyn Padarn in north
Wales in the
Snowdonia National Park. The starting point is the town of
Llanberis at the eastern end of the lake with the western terminus at Pen Llyn in the Padarn Country Park. The return journey takes around 45 minutes.
The railway was built in 1971, specifically for the tourist market. It uses three steam locomotives ("Elidir", "Dolbadarn" and "Thomas Bach") all of which ran on the internal 2 ft. gauge lines of the
Dinorwic slate quarry. There is also a diesel loco "Twll Coed", which is used when the steam locomotives are unavailable.
The railway runs along part of the trackbed of the defunct
Padarn Railway, a 4 ft. gauge line which connected the quarry with Y Felinheli (Port Dinorwic) on the
Menai Strait. The Padarn Railway was lifted in 1969 and the lakeside length was replaced by the current Llanberis Lake Railway, originally running from the
Welsh Slate Museum at
Gilfach Ddu to Pen Llyn. Gilfach Ddu was the main engineering workshop of the Dinorwic Quarry and provided repair facilities for all of the steam locomotives of the quarry system.
In June 2003 the railway was extended the town of Llanberis, with a new station close to the start of the
Snowdon Mountain Railway. The original terminus at Gilfach Ddu is now a through station serving both the Welsh Slate Museum and the nearby
Dolbadarn Castle. On the return journey from Pen Llyn, passengers may stop off at the Cei Llydan station for a picnic and a chance to enjoy the magnificent views of the Snowdonian mountains above Llanberis Pass.
Although some railway purists have dismissed the Llanberis Lake Railway as a historically inaccurate creation, it gives the chance for people to see the steam engines of the Dinorwic Quarry in a historical setting and co-ordinates well with the Welsh Slate Museum. It is also a popular tourist destination in its own right, providing a pleasant trip through some of Wales' most spectacular mountain scenery.
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List of British Narrow Gauge Railways
