I get withdrawal symptoms, if I don`t go back to Wales, at least twice a year !... have just come back from a week in Old Colwyn, North Wales, (that`s on the northern coast not far from Llandudno!)
The A55, or North Wales Expressway, is a super road, on one side you get the mountains, and the villages hugging the lower slopes, and on the other side you get the sea.... Old Colwyn, is one of those villages, that has the A55 running through it, although it is hard to notice..... you can walk from the "old" main road through the village, down to the beach in about 5 minutes. Two places worth a mention there, one is "Fairy Glen" and the other is "Min-Y-Don".... both of these are local woodlands, and yet they are right there in the village for all to enjoy. Extremely pleasant to walk and listen to the birds, or just enjoy the peace and quiet.
Whilst staying at Old Colwyn, I had the pleasure to travel on the much extended Welsh Highland Railway... This is an old railway line that was closed years ago, due to being un-economical, but enthusiasts have been trying to restore it ever since... Recently (at least 10 years ago) it has become a tourist attraction for the area, running from just outside Caernarfon Castle, to Aberglaslyn Pass, near Bedgellert, it is almost fully restored through to Porthmadog, where it will link up with the popular Ffestiniog Railway. For more information please visit their websites
http://welshhighlandrailway.net/
I am now posting some photographs taken on that journey, and can thoroughly recommend it as a "day out".... It is a wonderful experience, and very relaxing way to see some of the most spectacular scenery in North Wales, INCLUDING Mount Snowdon, where the train skirts around the lower slopes at Rhyd Ddu, before setting off for the twisting and winding descent into Bedgellert.
