Conwy Valley Railway Museum, Betws-y-Coed

[EddieB]

5 hours ago, 009 micro modeller said:

5 hours ago, 009 micro modeller said:

I did see the pictures of this on another thread, which mentioned that it was later scrapped - I wonder if this was because of the difficulty of moving it once the rest of the site had been developed. There is currently a very heavily modified GWR brake van on site.

 

 

3 hours ago, Norton961 said:

The ex LNWR brake van was destroyed by fire, I understand this was deliberate by the site owners!

 

David

 

Yes, after posting the photo I remembered there was a previous discussion and that the brake van had been destroyed.

[ardbealach]

Just found this undated slide of Conwy Railway Museum.  From 80's or 90's - does anyone have any idea of the date it was taken?  [Alisdair]

[009 micro modeller]

1 minute ago, ardbealach said:

Just found this undated slide of Conwy Railway Museum.  From 80's or 90's - does anyone have any idea of the date it was taken?  [Alisdair]

 

There seems to be no tram in the station area (its current route being occupied by a 7 1/4" gauge track) - although possibly there are some wires being put up in the distance beyond the museum building, where the 15" gauge wagon is? I think the tram came in about 1989 or 1990 but not absolutely sure. It might also be possible to work out based on the allocation dates for the DMU (if identifiable) and the 7 1/4" gauge stock in the station area but I'm not sure that would narrow it down much. The track on the physically separate self-drive 7 1/4" line (where a Parkside Electronics tram now runs) looks brand new and the line hasn't been fenced. I don't know when this line was added.

[ardbealach]

It all looks very new to me so it could be late Eighties? [Alisdair]

[ardbealach]

Here is the other shot I have of the DMU - which looks as if it is ex works - and there are BR double arrow signage on the platform.  [Alisdair]

[amwells]

4 hours ago, ardbealach said:

Just found this undated slide of Conwy Railway Museum.  From 80's or 90's - does anyone have any idea of the date it was taken?  [Alisdair]

The unit was painted in 1994 for the route

[ardbealach]

Thanks for that info, amwells.  Alisdair

[Rail-Online]

Are the LNWR models and Dioramas by the late Jack Nelson still in the museum?

I last saw them I guess around 1988!

 

Tony

 

[Ben B]

Love this site- we holiday a few times a year in Wales, and usually visit Betws-y-Coed a couple of times in the summer and the foster-kids have a ride or two on the miniature railway and a brew from the cafe. 

 

 

The miniature line was working last year, we managed a trip on it between lockdowns in early-August, but I've certainly never seen the tram running any time I've been there. 

 

 

Once again, this was the only train running in the Conway Valley thanks to the branch being shut.  In fact, between the regular closures and sparse timetable, in 6 years of regular visits, I've only seen a sprinter here once.

 

 

The child-operated 'Toby' that goes on an out-and-back run, very popular with our youngest!  The temptation to install one between the front and back garden when we get home grows each visit...

 

Looking forward to a return visit this summer, if the national situation permits, and Drakeford re-opens the country to tourist travel from England.

 

 

[009 micro modeller]

4 minutes ago, Ben B said:

I've certainly never seen the tram running any time I've been there. 

 

I have been on the tram once, but it always seemed to be operated as a bit of an afterthought in comparison to the main 7 1/4” line.

[tender]

3 hours ago, Rail-Online said:

Are the LNWR models and Dioramas by the late Jack Nelson still in the museum?

I last saw them I guess around 1988!

 

Tony

 

There are a lot of LNWR Dioramas in the museum, not sure if they're by Jack Nelson but they've been there for years so i suspect they may well be.

[009 micro modeller]

13 minutes ago, tender said:

There are a lot of LNWR Dioramas in the museum, not sure if they're by Jack Nelson but they've been there for years so i suspect they may well be.

 

I’m pretty sure they are Jack Nelson’s.

[scouse889]

Just found this thread, visited the CVRM over the Jubilee bank holiday and it seems to be in quite a bad way. No tram in operation, line overgrown and in disrepair, there was surprisingly little stock in the model railway shop compared to previous visits, no kids rides outside the main building and no ride on kids cars in the area at the end of the siding, fence around the miniature railway falling apart, the scenic model railway in the green wagon closed and evidently damaged by fallen ceiling tiles from a collapsed roof, the end of the buffet car separating off due to rust, and so the list goes on. I have fond memories of this place from when I was a kid, and have been back periodically over the years, but very sad to see it in its current state. It is almost as though it’s heading for closure…. anyone know anything about it?

[andyman7]

3 hours ago, scouse889 said:

Just found this thread, visited the CVRM over the Jubilee bank holiday and it seems to be in quite a bad way. No tram in operation, line overgrown and in disrepair, there was surprisingly little stock in the model railway shop compared to previous visits, no kids rides outside the main building and no ride on kids cars in the area at the end of the siding, fence around the miniature railway falling apart, the scenic model railway in the green wagon closed and evidently damaged by fallen ceiling tiles from a collapsed roof, the end of the buffet car separating off due to rust, and so the list goes on. I have fond memories of this place from when I was a kid, and have been back periodically over the years, but very sad to see it in its current state. It is almost as though it’s heading for closure…. anyone know anything about it?

I don't think COVID will have helped, they must have lost 2 years of seasonal visits

[Darius43]

I was there one weekend in February this year and it was quite busy.  The miniature railway was running and popular and the shop/museum was open.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers

 

Darius

 

Edited June 15, 2022 by Darius43

[Ben B]

On 14/06/2022 at 19:06, scouse889 said:

Just found this thread, visited the CVRM over the Jubilee bank holiday and it seems to be in quite a bad way. No tram in operation, line overgrown and in disrepair, there was surprisingly little stock in the model railway shop compared to previous visits, no kids rides outside the main building and no ride on kids cars in the area at the end of the siding, fence around the miniature railway falling apart, the scenic model railway in the green wagon closed and evidently damaged by fallen ceiling tiles from a collapsed roof, the end of the buffet car separating off due to rust, and so the list goes on. I have fond memories of this place from when I was a kid, and have been back periodically over the years, but very sad to see it in its current state. It is almost as though it’s heading for closure…. anyone know anything about it?

 

We went last summer; admittedly the place was looking a bit tired, but no more than many tourist places in Wales after 2 years of covid.  From what I gather Wales had stricter rules about staff accessing these places for maintainance etc, and even into the start of this year their rules were stricter than in England, which is probably why the kids rides (which would have to be cleaned between uses) are not around.  I don't think the tram has worked for a long time, and I gather the area got a battering in the spring storms too which might explain the damage to the fences and coach. I'm inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt, and we'll popping there in the summer as our youngest likes the miniature railway :)

[009 micro modeller]

On 14/06/2022 at 19:06, scouse889 said:

Just found this thread, visited the CVRM over the Jubilee bank holiday and it seems to be in quite a bad way. No tram in operation, line overgrown and in disrepair, there was surprisingly little stock in the model railway shop compared to previous visits, no kids rides outside the main building and no ride on kids cars in the area at the end of the siding, fence around the miniature railway falling apart, the scenic model railway in the green wagon closed and evidently damaged by fallen ceiling tiles from a collapsed roof, the end of the buffet car separating off due to rust, and so the list goes on. I have fond memories of this place from when I was a kid, and have been back periodically over the years, but very sad to see it in its current state. It is almost as though it’s heading for closure…. anyone know anything about it?

 

 

On 16/06/2022 at 14:56, Ben B said:

 

We went last summer; admittedly the place was looking a bit tired, but no more than many tourist places in Wales after 2 years of covid.  From what I gather Wales had stricter rules about staff accessing these places for maintainance etc, and even into the start of this year their rules were stricter than in England, which is probably why the kids rides (which would have to be cleaned between uses) are not around.  I don't think the tram has worked for a long time, and I gather the area got a battering in the spring storms too which might explain the damage to the fences and coach. I'm inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt, and we'll popping there in the summer as our youngest likes the miniature railway :)

Also, the standard gauge stock on site is constantly outside in a relatively wet environment, so I wouldn’t be surprised if some of it looked, on the surface, to be in need of maintenance. I’m pretty sure they have volunteers involved with the 7 1/4” gauge line but not sure if there are volunteers more generally (and whether they’d welcome volunteers wanting to help with other aspects), and therefore if the maintenance of the site relies on quite a small number of people.

 

As discussed earlier in the thread the tram (including the car itself now, not just the overhead lines) was quite badly damaged by the storms a few years ago. Even when the tram was running, I always got the impression that it was a slightly lower priority than the 7 1/4” line. I know they used to state that the tram was there to provide a more accessible ride for disabled or elderly people compared to the other line, although I’m still quite intrigued as to why overhead electrification was chosen, as it almost suggests the involvement of someone with a specific interest in trams.