Ffestioniog Railway & Porthmadog

The Ffestiniog Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Ffestiniog) is a narrow gauge heritage railway. The railway is about 13+1⁄2 miles long and runs from the harbour at Porthmadog to the slate mining town of Blaenau Ffestiniog climbing 700 feet.

The line was constructed between 1833 and 1836 to transport slate from the quarries around the inland town of Blaenau Ffestiniog to the coastal town of Porthmadog where it was loaded onto ships. The railway was graded so that loaded wagons could be run by gravity downhill all the way from Blaenau Ffestiniog to the port.

I took a return trip starting from Blaenau Ffestioniog on the "Quarryman" service.  The weekend had seen a railway festival where they had been operating gravity trains. This resulted in brake grease being left on the line, which combined with todays heat made the tracks slippy for trains climbing the hills. The heat also added speed restrictions due to buckled rails. Just 3 minutes after leaving, we then had to wait 20 minutes at the next station for a delayed train that had been struggling up the hill. 

Llechwedd Slate Quarry

Llechwedd quarry is a major slate quarry in the town of Blaenau Ffestiniog, north Wales. At its peak in 1884 it produced 23,788 tons of finished slate per year and had 513 employees. It continues to produce slate on a limited scale. It also the site of Zip World offering zip line experiences as well as tours of the mine tunnels. It also has views towards the neighbouring Ffestiniog Quarry. Slate from Blaenau Ffestiniog was exported across the British Empire and can still be found on roofs as far away as Australia, Canada and South America.

Trefor and Trwyn-y-Tal

A trip to the coast to escape the heat took me to the north of the Llyn Peninsula.

With inland views to the remnants of the slate quarries and out to sea across to Anglesey, just about visible through the haze.