Saturday 7th November saw myself and family journey over to the Welsh borders to find a hidden gem of a railway, the Tanat Valley Railway's Nantmawr branch. The small group of members of the TVR have spent several years clearing and rediscovering the quarry branch and have finally reached the point where they could operate their first trains. John Allman's Beyer Peacock was doing the honours and, not only was this the first steam on the branch for over 40 years but it was thought to be the first passenger trains ever! The first train was despatched over the 600yds so far operable to the strains of the Porth-y-waen Brass Band and welcomed back by a lone piper - perhaps he was responsible for the Welsh mist later in the day that failed to dampen the spirits of the small band of people who were responsible for bringing the line back to life. It's a great little line and, although lacking in facillities, the enthusiasm of the group is quite infectious and everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. It was great to be able to help them celebrate their achievements and I look forward to returning again and having a longer run when they have more of the branch cleared and operable.
If you have a free day between now and the first weekend in December please pay them a visit and if you want to see the potential of the delightful little valley have a look on YouTube where there is already some footage.
0 comments:
Post a Comment