The Vale of Rheidol Light Railway
| Tue, 4 Mar 2008 12:53 John Lucas |
Nantyronen to Aberffrwd– 0.91 Route miles running through squares SN6778 and SN6878 . This short section of the line runs through a mixture of woodland and farmland. Old mine workings are to be found in Coed Lluest above Abernant. Public access to the lineside between the stations is limited to two foot crossings, at Troed-rhiw-ceir farm SN6774378335 and a footpath just to the west of Aberffrwd at SN6835878735 . Between Nantyronen and Aberffrwd, the railway climbs some 70 feet, with a short length having a gradient of 1 in 40 immediately after leaving Nantyronen.               Aberffrwd Station – SN6869578710 – 7.47 route miles from Aberystwyth and 286 feet above sea level. Aberffrwd was originally opened in 1902 as a ‘stopping place’ (halt). However, traffic exceeded that at Nantyronen and by 1904, the station building originally located at Nantyronen was moved to Aberffrwd which then became a full station. The building was removed in 1986 after many years of disuse. A passing loop was also installed here in 1904. It was removed in 1962 during the British Railways rationalisation of the line so, apart from at the termini, there were then no crossing points anywhere on the line. The loop was reinstated by the private owners in the 1990’s and is now used to pass trains when a two train service operates during the peak of the summer season. A water tower still stands at Aberffrwd. This is a rare structure surviving from Cambrian Railways days, having been constructed in 1919. It has been disused since 1982 when locomotive watering was transferred to Nantyronen.          |
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| Sat, 15 Mar 2008 11:01 John Lucas |
Aberffrwd to Rheidol Falls – 1.56 Route miles running through squares SN6878, SN6879, SN6979, SN7079 and SN7078 , climbing 158 feet between the stations. Access to the lineside in this section is quite difficult. There is a public road level crossing to the east of Aberffrwd at SN6876078690, the last on the line in the Devil’s Bridge direction. There are then two right of way crossings within a short distance of Aberffrwd station, at SN6892578710 and SN6899579000. Thereafter, there is no public access until Rheidol Falls station and most of this part of the route is hidden in forestry plantations. Shortly after leaving Aberffrwd, the gradient changes from level to 1 in 50, which is then maintained for virtually the whole 4 mile distance to Devil’s Bridge. The old shaft of Gothie mine is near the line at SN70307911 . Meithrinfa Halt was an unofficial stopping place for pupils attending the Meithrinfa School at Felin-newydd, which was just below the present hydro-electric dam. The approximate location of the halt was SN69497918 . The 1946 1:25000 map shows a path leading from the Aberffrwd lane to the halt, but it now appears to be forested over and there is no indication of the path on current maps.                        Rheidol Falls Station - SN7082378697* – 9.04 Route miles from Aberystwyth and 444 feet above sea level. * The station symbol on the OS Explorer map is at SN7078378760 but this is too far to the north west. From personal observations, the station nameboard is at SN7082378697. The footpath crosses the line at the northern end of the station, rather than to the south of it, contrary to the arrangement shown on the map. Rheidol Falls Halt was not opened until 1904, 2 years after the line was opened, as there were initially concerns about the ability of locomotives to start and stop trains on the ruling 1 in 50 gradient. Tests were conducted to show that it was indeed possible. The halt became very popular with the local mining community and additional land was provided by the Rheidol Mining Company to allow the site to be widened and a shelter built. The shelter disappeared many years ago and only the station nameboard remains to mark the site of the station. It is hard to believe that the area was a hive of mining activity and that trains regularly stopped at the halt to pick up and drop off passengers. The station now has an atmosphere of remoteness with just a single steep footpath providing access to it. Much of the valley’s timber had been felled for use in the mines before the Great War, and most of that which was left was cleared for war use. After the war, timber was actually imported into the valley because local supplies were unavailable. Early photographs, particularly those from the post Great War period, show the location to be very exposed and open, with no sign of the forest that surrounded it in later years. However, recent clearances below the line have once again opened out the views from the station.       |
| Mon, 17 Mar 2008 16:03 John Lucas |
Rheidol Falls to Rhiwfron – 1.65 Route miles running through squares SN7078, SN7178, SN7177, and SN7277 , climbing 167 feet between the stations. Above Rheidol Falls Station, the railway enters the Coed Rheidol Nature Reserve. This is an area where particular attention is given to promoting the growth of broadleaf trees, especially the sessile oak which is native to the Mid-Wales valleys. Sheep and cattle are kept out of the reserve so as to avoid damage to saplings and vegetation is managed to encourage the growth of young trees. Some spruce remains in the reserve but most has been felled in recent years. This has opened out some magnificent views from the line which had been lost for many years. This section of the railway runs through the most intensively mined area of the valley. Initially it passes the site of Gwaith-côch Mine - SN71037848 - latterly owned by Rheidol United Mines and then through the Erwtomau complex at Horseshoe Bend (Cwm Nant Rhiwrugos) – SN71227816 . Public footpaths cross the line at both of these locations. Erwtomau mine closed in 1918 and Rheidol United lingered on until the 1930’s. Even so, the mining history of the locality is still much in evidence in the form of ruined buildings, adit levels and spoil tips. One unfortunate legacy of the mining activity for the railway is some ground instability and this section of the line has been affected by landslips on several occasions.               Rhiwfron Station - SN7287077830 * – 10.69 Route miles from Aberystwyth and 611 feet above sea level. * This is another example of where the OS has incorrectly placed the station symbol on the Explorer map. The OS has it SN7295877793 whereas my observation shows the station nameboard to be at SN7287077830 . This again places the station symbol on the wrong side of the foot crossing on the map. The name is derived from Troedrhiwfron, a farm down in the valley beside the Rheidol. The present tranquillity of Rhiwfron Station belies it’s industrial past. It opened unofficially in 1902 as a stopping place but by 1903 had become a formal halt. By then, a siding had been laid and a shelter built. The base of the shelter still survives. The most notable structure at the location was undoubtedly the 1100’ aerial ropeway which carried lead ore from Cwmrheidol Mine across the valley. The ore was tipped into waiting wagons by means of a hopper set above the siding. The whole arrangement was supported by an anchor block set into the bank on the south side of the line. This still survives. The ropeway ceased work in 1925 and the disused siding was lifted in 1955.        |
| Wed, 19 Mar 2008 22:15 John Lucas |
Rhiwfron to Devil’s Bridge – 1.02 Route miles running through squares SN7277, SN7377 and SN7366 , climbing 80 feet between the stations. This section of the route offers some of the most scenic views from the whole line and this is particularly so now that much of the lineside forestry has been felled. With sharp curves and precipitous drops, the traveller knows that they have reached the high valley. Two paths cross the line, one at SN7291077800 , just to the east of Rhiwfron Station, and another at SN7316577567 . The former is an ancient roadway, now classed as a bridleway, leading from the Rheidol Valley to Devil’s Bridge. The latter is a footbath also leading from the valley to Devil’s Bridge. It follows the route of the line part of the way to Devil’s Bridge, through the forest at Derwen. This is my favourite walking route in the whole valley and it is no coincidence that it has generated more photographs in this gallery than any other section of the line! The last crossing of the line is a private access road bridge just to the west of Devil’s Bridge station at SN7374376938 . Although marked no entry to unauthorised vehicles, I don’t believe that there is an access problem for pedestrians and the bridge provides an excellent view of the ‘goings on’ at the station.                                     Devil’s Bridge Station - SN7384076958 – 11.71 Route miles from Aberystwyth and 691 feet above sea level. The station opened in 1902 with limited facilities but was expanded over the next few years. The corrugated iron station building was opened in 1902 and extended in 1905. This is the only surviving 1902 building on the line. The 1989 ticket office come shop at Aberystwyth has been built in a similar style. The 1905 weighbridge office at Devil’s Bridge also survives but doesn't appear to have any use. It was anticipated that significant goods traffic would be generated at the station but, apart from large tonnages of timber around the period of the First World War, goods receipts were poor. The GWR realised that tourism was the way to go and marketed that side of the railway activities, promoting the scenic attractions of Devil’s Bridge, and soon abandoning goods traffic and winter services altogether. The GWR even acquired two ex-War Department cross country vehicles and operated a tourist coach service from Devil’s Bridge to the top of Plynlimon. Various mishaps befell this venture and it was soon abandoned!            |
| Wed, 19 Mar 2008 22:37 John Lucas |
Postscript This concludes my tour of the line. Over the last two months, I have visited every public crossing and lineside access point to show as much as I can of the route as it is today. I‘ve certainly enjoyed having a reason to study in some depth the railway which has been a near neighbour for over 20 years. I hope that it has been of some interest to viewers of the gallery. My thanks to Geograph members who have also submitted photographs of the line - I have used every one that I could find! We are indeed fortunate that the Great Western Railway realised that the future of the V of R was in tourism and that in the British Railways years some ‘creative accounting’ kept it alive in a very hostile environment. It could so easily have gone the way of the much lamented Lynton & Barnstaple Railway. I also wish to congratulate the current owners who have invested heavily in the railway – it‘s condition is probably as good now as it has ever been. By coincidence, I have completed this section of the gallery just two days before the start of the 2008 season so there will soon be an opportunity to add more pictures of ‘live’ trains. If you are contemplating visiting the railway during the forthcoming season, the operator’s web site can be found here: 2008 Timetable I will now leave the gallery unlocked so that others can add any new photos of the railway. |
| Fri, 21 Mar 2008 15:29 John Lucas |
The first train of the 2008 season at Capel Bangor on a cold, wet, Good Friday morning:     |
| Wed, 2 Apr 2008 21:02 John Lucas |
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| Mon, 21 Apr 2008 09:55 John Lucas |
A photographic record of a trip on the railway:                                                                                            |
| Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:14 John Lucas |
Six shots from 1988, courtesy of John Firth :      |
| Thu, 19 Jun 2008 12:20 John Lucas |
Capel Bangor, June 2008 by Nigel Brown    |
