Cymru Rails

28/05/2026

Shall we make this our 2026 bucket list?

📍 Talyllyn Railway, Wales

28/05/2026

My look video 75th Anniversary Gala at the Talyllyn Railway is now live! It was a fantastic weekend celebrating 75 years of the preservation movement with an incredible lineup of engines and special trains. You can check out all the highlights from this milestone event in the full video here 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Join me for a look back at the incredible 75th Anniversary Gala, which I attended from May 15th - 17th at the Talyllyn Railway! This historic event celebrate...

28/05/2026

No.5 MOEL SIABOD returning to the sheds at Llanberis after a hard day's work on the Snowdon Mountain Railway. It’s a great sight seeing her pass by No.3 WYDDFA at the sheds, with both of these incredible engines still going strong 130 years after they were built. Steam power at its finest in the heart of Eryri 🚂🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Snowdon Mountain Railway / Rheilffordd yr Wyddfa

28/05/2026

On 28th May 1971, the Llanberis Lake Railway (Rheilffordd Llyn Padarn) officially opened to the public, offering a new life to one of the most scenic stretches of track in North Wales. The narrow gauge heritage line runs along the northern shore of Llyn Padarn, providing breathtaking views of the Snowdonia mountains and the historic Dinorwic Quarry.

The railway follows the historic trackbed of the defunct Padarn Railway. Originally constructed in 1842, the Padarn Railway was a heavy duty industrial line built to transport slate from the massive Dinorwic Quarry down to the Menai Strait at Y Felinheli (Port Dinorwic).

While the original 4ft gauge industrial line eventually closed in 1961, the heritage railway was built to a 1ft 11.5 inch gauge, utilizing rescued steam locomotives that once worked deep within the quarries themselves.

Today, the Llanberis Lake Railway serves as a living museum of the slate industry’s golden age. Visitors can travel in carriages hauled by iconic quarry Hunslet locomotives, such as 'Elidir' and 'Thomas Bach,' which have been meticulously restored to their former glory. This opening in 1971 ensured that the engineering heritage of the Llanberis valley remained accessible for future generations to enjoy.



Credits: Information for this post was sourced from: Llanberis Lake Railway (https://lake-railway.co.uk/).

Image credit: Fred Selby

27/05/2026

🚂 ‘Uskmouth 1’ departs the sheds with a train for the Spring Gala.

Built by Peckett & Sons in 1952 for the Uskmouth Power Station, this locomotive holds a special place in history as the very first to arrive at the Dean Forest Railway back in 1972. Seeing her in steam is a fantastic nod to the line’s early preservation roots and the heavy industrial heritage of South Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿💨

Amazing day—thank you very much to the Dean Forest steam department for granting me access to capture this video!

27/05/2026

Always a pleasure to see this LBSC Atlantic miniature steam locomotive in full steam at the Pembrokeshire Model Engineers track. What a piece of craftsmanship! 🚂✨

26/05/2026

Rheilffyrdd Cymru 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

26/05/2026

🚂🚂 Port of Par Bagnall “Judy” and GWR 5700 Class Pannier Tank 9681 working together as they approach their train at Norchard low level station, about to couple up.

A beautiful display of steam in action during the Dean Forest Railway Spring Gala 🚂✨

26/05/2026

🌳 Hanton Tarrant is a delightful 3mm scale Southern branch line terminus set in Sussex. Originally built by the late Peter Bossom and beautifully restored by Paul Hopkins, it features completely scratch-built local architecture and runs a mix of steam and electric services from the 40s to the 60s. 🚂 Captured at the London Festival of Railway Modelling 2026! For a full show video, check the link in the comments below. 🔗

25/05/2026

POV: You find one of the most beautiful railways in the world...

This is the Dolgoch Viaduct, an iconic structure on the Talyllyn Railway, in Southern Snowdonia, Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

25/05/2026

Falcon 2026 is officially underway! If you're looking for something to do this Bank Holiday Monday, come down to the Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre. I'm here right now displaying my hand painted Star Wars miniatures alongside incredible characters and Millennium Falcon history. Doors are open until 3:30 PM, so come down and say hello! 🌌✨