Snowdonia

Jay on Thomas
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We caught the ferry from Dublin to Hollyhead and we had our first day of sun in ages and, thankfully, a very calm crossing.

We arrived in Wales at Holly Island then crossed to Anglesey Island before finally getting to ‘mainland’ Wales. This is more dramatic than it sounds as there are bridges between the islands – but since I saw it on the map I have shared it with you ;-)

It should be noted that ‘mountain’ is used in the English sense not the Alpine sense

View from the top
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Llanberis is the depart point for the Snowdon Mountain Railway and is located, unsurprisingly, at the bottom of Mt. Snowdon. It should be noted that ‘mountain’ is used in the English sense not the Alpine sense as it is only around 1000m tall. But despite its somewhat modest proportions it still manages to be imposing.

We wanted to take the railway to the top but had a couple of hours to wait after buying tickets - be aware also that not every trip up is by steam train. We killed some time looking around a nearby old castle and also looking at the Llanberis lake railway.

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This is a cheaper alternative to the Snowdon railway, still using steam trains but going around the lake. Jay was very impressed as they had a blue train which looked like Thomas the Tank Engine and he got to stand in it!

We got our steam train up the mountain and while the view and experience was great you soon realise that you don’t want to be riding around in Victorian era trains any more than you have to. Number one problem is steam trains smell – its not all white steam, there’s a lot of nasty brown coal coloured stuff and it gets in your eyes, your hair, your clothes.

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Secondly, the carriages are tiny for the 8 people they cram into them – Victorian era folks were probably smaller. Or more tolerant ;-) Unfortunately they were working on the tracks so we didn’t get right to the top. Despite this I would recommend the trip – the view is well worth the effort.

Dave.