Talyllyn Railway enhances its heritage credentials

HAVING reconstructed the Talyllyn Railway’s (TR) original watering location at Ty Dwr, the next TR heritage project centres on the location of the winding house for the old incline down to Abergynolwyn village.

The structure was demolished when the TR extended passenger operations to Nant Gwernol, but the remains of the winding drum were left on the ground nearby to be seen from TR trains.

Members of the TR’s heritage team have been digging out the foundations of the north side pillars of the original structure with the idea of building two small slate pillars on which the drum can be mounted and repaired. Although the old winding house cannot be reconstructed in its original form (the running line passes through the centre of its footprint), the group is looking at what may be possible in terms of a reconstruction. Meanwhile, some rails have been added at the bottom of the Nant Gwernol incline trackbed just beyond the station as part of what will become an incline display.

TR’s original carriage No. 4 (long ago nicknamed ‘Limping Lulu’) has gone to Vale of Rheidol Railway (VoR) for a broken spring to be dealt with and attention to the spring links. The chassis of Fletcher, Jennings 0-4-0WT No. 1 Dolgoch has returned to Tywyn after going to VoR’s Aberystwyth works for a bent axle to be dealt with, a modification made to the position of the eccentrics on the leading axle and attention given to the wheels and crankpins. The standard gauge wagon acquired to form a transhipment display at Tywyn Wharf is at Stanegate Restorations where it has been stripped for restoration.