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Slate and steam, VIP history tour of Ffestiniog Railway’s workshops

By Chris Dyson

Steaming through Snowdonia aboard the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways is a highlight of my annual vacation. But this year I experienced an extra delight… a sneak peek behind-the-scenes of this wonderful tourist attraction.

The guided tour around the historic workshops at Boston Lodge isn’t just something for the railway enthusiast either. If you’re interested in history or simply inquisitive about the scarred landscape created by former slate quarries, it’s well worth adding to your holiday bucket list.

It’s VIP service from start to finish too. A sort of ‘through the keyhole’ experience, getting to see parts of the railway normally out of bounds. We travelled to the isolated workshops site from the main station in Porthmadog aboard our own private steam hauled train, in first class splendour too.

Alighting at the private platform, Boston Lodge halt, our knowledgeable guides began their gentle paced walking tour.

The Ffestiniog Railway was built in the early 19^th century to transport slate from upper quarries to the coast, ready for export or home markets. But initially without using steam locomotives.

Our guide explained that the track was built on a steady downward incline, gravity doing the rest. Yes, trains literally freewheeled down a 13 mile slope, with daredevil brakemen controlling the speed, while precariously perched on top of moving slate waggons. Horses worked in shifts to drag the empty trucks back up to the quarries, hitching a train ride for part of the journey.

Steam locomotives were introduced from the 1860s, some of very unusual design (see photo) with central cab and a boiler at either end. Known as a Double Fairlie, each engine was also designed with innovative wheels, allowing them to navigate tight corners along the narrow gauge track.

The tour, with supporting commentary, explores the early waggon workshops, plus the site of the forge where iron was made malleable to build the slate trucks and steam engines.

We peered inside the locomotive workshop to see what I’d describe as a skeleton steam engine. Just a rusting boiler, it was hard to believe that once the Ffestiniog’s skilled engineers had finished their work, once again it would become a gleaming locomotive, read to haul next year’s tourist trains up the hill to Blaenau Ffestiniog.

There were plenty of beautiful steam locomotives in running condition too.

The tour is designed for both adults and children, so perfect for the family experience. If your young ones aren’t interested in history, they’re bound to be excited by the little engines’ shed, with an opportunity to clamber aboard some of the smaller steam locos.

I resisted but got very excited by a rusting relic of an engine named Nesta. Our guide explained that after it was withdrawn from service by a slate quarry, it was exported for further use in the Americas. Thought lost forever, incredibly Nesta was recently rediscovered in a swamp in Puerto Rico, and lovingly repatriated to the UK by dedicated preservationists. The skilled team at Boston Lodge are now tasked with returning this lost engine to her former glory.

Nesta’s story almost reads like a Thomas the Tank Engine tale. Well, Thomas’ author, Rev. W Awdry, based some of his later books on the Great Little Trains of Wales. Duke the Lost Engine, perhaps one of the lesser known characters, being a dead ringer for Prince, the final steam loco we viewed before returning to Porthmadog aboard our VIP special.

So, whether you’re a Thomas fan, a rail enthusiast, history buff, or just want something a bit extra and different during your visit to the Ffestiniog Railway, I thoroughly recommend the Boston Lodge workshops tour.

Operations Database Assistant – Boston Lodge

Start Date: September 2024
Rate of pay: £11.44 per hour for applicants aged 21 and over (National Living / Minimum Wage for age applies)

The Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways are two of the UK’s most popular heritage railways, located in the heart of picturesque Snowdonia. We are looking for a temporary Operations Database Assistant to work with the Operations Team to assist with a variety of admin tasks using the HOPS system. The successful candidate will also engage with other departments to develop a wider use of HOPS across the whole organisation.

We can offer you:

£11.44 per hour for applicants aged 21 and over (National Living / Minimum Wage for age applies)
3 month Fixed Term contract from September 2024 to December 2024
Minimum of 24 hours a week, with up to 40 hours per week available
The pro rata equivalent of 28 days paid holiday, inclusive of all bank and public holidays
Enrolment into the company pension scheme after a qualifying period
Travel benefits on the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways and staff discounts in shops and cafes.

The railway uses HOPS software www.heritage-ops.org.uk for a range of management tasks including rostering and tracking competences. The railway wants to make greater use of HOPS; extending to it to other volunteer groups within the railway. The successful candidate will start with data entry of competence information for established groups, then move on to continuing work already started to incorporate other volunteer groups into the software. In parallel with this the successful candidate will develop the “asset register” section of HOPS to catalogue stored items and investigate the use of the system for tracking usage/mileage of carriages.

This role will particularly suit candidates with strong IT skills who are able to pick up new software quickly, are self-motivated and able to work effectively on their own, have excellent attention to detail and are potentially able to write clear instructions and procedures for other users.

Core Skills:

Strong IT skills to include experience in data entry and verification
Highly effective communication skills, both written and oral
Self-motivated with ability to work independently
Effective organisational skills
Methodical with good attention to detail
Quick learner
Mentoring or training skills and experience are desirable
Prior knowledge and understanding of heritage railway operations is desirable, particular knowledge of the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways operations would be a distinct advantage

Applications by Freelance workers will also be considered.

Please note due to the need to input data currently stored in paper records, and access sensitive personal data, this position will be office based and is not suitable for home working.

Applicants for this position must have the existing right to work in the UK.

Apply

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