2017 June – North Wales

With  another few days free of commitments we set off for 4 days in North Wales. Our first stop was Welshpool and a trip on The Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway. The 2 ft 6 in narrow gauge railway is about 8.5 miles long and runs westwards from the town of Welshpool to the village of Llanfair Caereinion. The return journey was very pleasant with time at Llanfair for coffee and a sandwich.

We then carried on to Bala and the Royal White Lion Hotel. This was our third stay at the hotel and the first since it was refurbished (not surprisingly the prices had increased).

The weather was not brilliant but we enjoyed a walk to the northern end of Bala Lake before dinner.

The next day we set off early to drive to Porthmadog and then to take the Welsh Highland Railway to Caernarfon. We had done this trip one way last year and decided to travel both ways by train this year.  As with last year, we decided to upgrade to first class; this time it was in a beautiful observation car rather than a Pullman coach. The extra comfort and outstanding view made the extra expense very well worth it even if on one of the journeys the engine was in front of the coach.

We thoroughly enjoyed the views and the engine hauled the ten coaches effortlessly up the many steep gradients.

The following day we visited Bodnant Gardens near Colwyn Bay. We had previously visited last year but slightly earlier when the rhododendrons were in bloom. However, although the rhododendrons were well past their best, the colours were still vibrant and there were many other plants and trees for us to enjoy, even if we had to intermittently use our umbrellas to keep the drizzle off us.

One of the high spots of the visit was to walk under the 55 metre-long Laburnum Arch. The arch was created in 1882 and 145 years later, the display of golden flowers at the end of May and beginning of June is possibly the most photographed event of Bodnant Garden’s calendar.  Bodnant gardens is certainly a must  for any tourist in the area.

 

Having enjoyed our visit we headed back to the southern end of Bala Lake and the village of Llanuwchllyn where we very much appreciated a cup of tea and piece of cake at the railway station. The station was previously a main line station (before Beeching) and now serves the Bala Lake Railway that runs along the eastern side of the lake from Llanuwchllyn to Bala.  

We didn’t travel on the railway on this visit but thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere as a train arrived and was prepared for the journey back to Bala.

We also discovered a brilliant use for a disused phone box.

We left Bala the next morning and headed north east to Cheshire to visit Martin and Louise in their new home.

En route, we visited Beeston Castle. The Castle must have been very large and imposing with a steep climb to the outer walls and then another long climb to the Inner Keep. We didn’t make it that far as time was against us.

When we next head up to visit Martin and Louise we shall make sure that we leave our selves time to visit the castle properly.

We arrived at Martin and Louise’s home in time for a cup of coffee before Louise’s mum, Lynne, also arrived. The five of us then walked to a pub where we enjoyed a lovely and leisurely lunch together.  

We returned to Fairford later in the afternoon arriving in time to enjoy a glass of wine!