Annoying things about Ciao, No. 368: you are taken to a page for the specific purpose of writing a c...
Annoying things about Ciao, No. 368: you are taken to a page for the specific purpose of writing a comment, and the cursor goes automatically not to the comment box, but the the search box at the top of the page.
Member since:23.09.2002
Reviews:112
Members who trust:198
When he wanted a railway carriage compartment to himself, the late, great Vivian Stanshall used to grin invitingly to potential occupants and beckon them in. I don't have to go to such lengths. My naturally forbidding visage puts off all but the most thick-skinned passenger. But on the Snowdon Mountain Railway (SMR), intimacy with fellow travellers is unavoidable. I just hoped that my miserable countenance would deter too much small talk.
In the end, I was disappointed. The elderly couple from Essex with whom we were forced to rub knees for an hour were complaining about cold draughts before we were even out of the station. They were showing us pictures of owls on their digital camera soon afterwards. A slightly younger Belgian couple who also shared our compartment were working doggedly through an itinerary in a British Tourist Authority handbook. They received the full force of Mrs and Mrs Owl's tourist advice on the return journey.
When I say 'compartment', I mean two facing narrow bench seats, about 18 inches apart with a door at each side. There are seven of these
in a single coach about half the size of a standard rail carriage. Those in service on the SMR mostly date back to the 1890s. A single locomotive pushes them the five miles to the top of Snowdon. If you're lucky, this will be one of the four steam engines of similar vintage. If you're like us, you'll get one of the rather less romantic modern diesel versions.
I suspect that the choice of engine was partly because we took the cheapskate 'early bird' option. This half-price offer is available only on the 9am train if you book a day or more in advance. Even then, the return fare for an adult is £10. Had we paid full fare, the 2.5 hour return trip would have cost us (two adults and a child) a whopping £54. The normal fares are £3 less for senior citizens, children and people with disabilities. I would imagine though, that access to the carriages might prove tricky for those with severe mobility problems.
During peak summer season, it is advisable to book ahead or arrive well in advance (you can't book by telephone on the day of travel). Even the early bird journey is very popular. The coach was full to its 54-passenger capacity and included the usual mix of stoical Far-eastern tourists, and bearded men with video cameras and resigned-looking wives. There was also, as required by the Welsh Tourist Board in any enclosed visitor attraction, a screaming toddler.
We went in mid-July. This is, however, no guarantee of good weather in Snowdonia. Although the streets were still wet with rain when we arrived at the station in Llanberis, the sky was fairly clear and the omens looked good. What was not evident, was the useful scrolling LED display I noticed on the booking office on our return, which warned of poor visibility on the mountain.
That was, it turned out, an understatement. A howling gale blew icy drizzle into your face the second you stepped onto the platform at the summit. A handful of maniacs were determined to walk the last 60 feet to the very top. For the rest of us, there was no option but to huddle in the grim café building eating quite possibly the most expensive crisps in Britain, and wait the 30 minutes for the train to make its descent.
The first half of the the journey up the mountain had been fine. Once out of the wooded outskirts of Llanberis, the train rattles its way over two viaducts, past a couple of small waterfalls and into the wide, green glacial valleys of the foothills. These are dotted with ruined houses and chapels. There's even the odd farm still inhabited by those hardy enough to try eking out a living on the slopes.
A recorded commentary gives a fairly informative account of the geology, history and mythology of Snowdon. Although this was sometimes barely audible above the roar of the engine and the whine of bored infant, it helped establish the major landmarks. But as the train ascended and the mist began to swirl around us, it grew ever more irrelevant. The narrator's enthusiastic entreaties to view far-off peaks were greeted with snorts of derision as we strained to see a few wet rocks and a bit of scree through the murk.
I could only assume that on a clear day, the views must be breathtaking. Snowdon's summit, at 1,085 metres, is the highest in England and Wales. Completed in 1896, the railway has ferried those unable or unwilling to walk to the top ever since. The railway is narrow-gauge and uses a rack-and-pinion system, with cog-wheels on carriages and locomotives ensuring a good grip. The speed, on both ascent and descent rarely exceeds 5mph. Nervous passengers will be reassured to learn that automatic brakes come on if the speed tops 7.5mph.
This does mean that the descent takes as long as the ascent. It seemed even longer. There were several stops at stations and to make way for trains going the other way, and one or two for no apparent reason. Back in Llanberis, as with any attraction worth its salt, you have to pass through the gift shop on the way out. They must think that, in sheer relief at escaping the confines of the carriage, you'll buy a novelty eraser or a CD of relaxing new-age music.
Apart from the necessarily cramped and spartan carriages, and the truckstop ambience of the summit café, I can't really fault the SMR. It is very professionally run, and staff are friendly and helpful. There is ample car parking at the station (£3 for a day's stay) which is easy to find and only 15 minutes' drive from Caernarfon or Bangor. On a clear day, it is probably worth the money. But as with most of my holiday experiences, I came away like a recently-shorn Snowdon sheep, feeling slightly fleeced.
Great review, made me very much interested to go the Snowdon!!
butimba 30.08.2006 21:56
Having just climbed Snowdon I was looking for an opportunity to write about it (well, rant about the number of people and the monstrous 80's cafe on the summit), and stumbled across this review of yours again...I reckon Snowdon would be a lot better off without the railway altogether, really, but maybe I wouldn't be saying that if I couldn't walk up it. Who knows. We couldn't see a thing from the top either. x
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
Sep 18th, 2005
exceptional by (26%):
very helpful by (74%):
