Welsh Highland Railway

A little while ago among the feedback I received was a request for some recordings made on the Welsh Highland Railway. In the last few years I have made a few attempts to make recordings on that railway but, apart from one occasion when the Hunslet, 'Blanche' from the Ffestiniog Railway was working the trains I had been pretty unsuccessful. As I wrote to my corespondent; those Garratts are simply to big and don't make enough noise to record with the current length of train.
Witness this recording of the inaugural public train running on he first section of the original Welsh Highland Railway to be reopened, from Dinas to Waunfawr. Heard near the site of Tryfan Jc. Garratt 143 with 6 bogie coaches makes very little noise on the 1 in 40 gradient. The noise was however sufficient to frighten a couple of horses which bolted along the road alongside despite every effort of the riders to control them. However, you may rest assured that no horses were injured in the making of this recording!

Back in 1999 before the extension to Waunfawr had opened the railway soon found that, once the novelty had worn off, using a Garratt on 5 or 6 coaches was rather more than the passenger numbers justified and sensibly borrowed a smaller Ffestiniog engine for the quieter times. For the 1999 season the borrowed loco was 'Blanche' and that loco was at work on just 3 coaches on 1st September 1999. This is how the Hunslet sounded soon after leaving the Caernarvon terminus in the cutting just beyond the St. Helens Road overbridge.

As I mentioned above I have made a number of attempts to record one of the Garratts. In the past this has always been futile since these big and powerful engines need make hardly a sound with the loads currently required. However, on 28th August 2002 Garratt 143 with a load of 7 bogie coaches actually made some noise for me as can be heard in this recording of the loco climbing the 1 in 40 gradient just over a miles from Dinas at the point where the road to Rhostryfan passes over the railway. Now I wonder what one will sound like with 15 bogies coming up from Beddgelert? I can hardly wait!

The summer 2002 timetable had the first regular two train service on the railway, the second service being a train made up of Vintage stock hauled by the England loco 'Prince'. This engine made a fine sound with three bogies on the steep gradients as can be heard in this recording made mid way between Bontnewydd and Dinas on 28th August 2002.