European Railroad Discussion > Blanche and Linda's Birthday Bash

This weekend the Ffestiniog Railway has hosted a party to celebrate two of the railway's most popular locomotives 125th birthday, inviting many of their relatives. The birthday girls are Penrhyn Quarry duo Blanche and Linda, originally 0-4-0STs (saddle tank) but today running as 2-4-0STT (saddle tank / tender). Built by Hunslet of Leeds in 1893, they were named after the wife and daughter respectively of Edward Sholto Douglas Pennant, later 3rd Baron Penrhyn and owner of, what at the time was, the world's largest slate quarry. To celebrate this milestone the Ffestiniog pulled out all the stops, running an intensive passenger service over the mainline to Blaenau with freight workings from Porthmadog over the Welsh Highland to Hafod y Llyn as well as a mass gathering of Hunslet quarry locomotives in the yard at Minffordd. In all the railway had up to 25 locomotives in steam on each of the three days, 14 visitors and 11 from the home roster. It really was an extraordinary event. And the weather played ball too, warm and sunny on all three days, albeit slightly hazy on Saturday. Unfortunately we had to come home on Saturday evening as we had a prior commitment on Sunday. So here are a few pictures of what was happening

1: On Friday morning Blanche approaching Blaenau Ffestiniog on the 08:00 from Porthmadog. This had an extended wait at Tan y bwlch to allow sister Linda to arrive with a train of slate wagons which returned to Porthmadog by gravity.
2: Later in the day the two sisters ran in tandem from Porthmadog to Blaenau, here approaching Tan y bwlch
3: This is one of the visiting locomotives awaiting release onto the mainline at Boston Lodge. It's an 0-4-2T called Chaka Krall, built in 1940 by Hunslet to an Avonside design (Hunslet acquired Avonside's design book and goodwill when the latter folded in the mid 1930s) for a sugar mill in Natal and now living at Toddington in Gloucestershire.

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4: Signalling problems on the Welsh Highland delayed Linda and Blanche's return from Caernarfon on Saturday morning, they were about an hour late when they passed me above Clogwyn y gwin
5: Another visitor was 0-4-2T Trangkil no.4, seen here rather towering over David Lloyd George which accompanied it on a Saturday afternoon return to Beddgelert. Trangkil no.4 was the last steam locomotive built by Hunslet in their Leeds factory, emerging in 1971! Built to the order of a sugar mill in Indonesia, where it worked for 30 years before being repatriated and converted from 750mm to 2' gauge by Statfold Barn. Built to a design of Kerr Stuart it's not unlike similar locomotives on the Corris and Talyllyn Railways.
6: And finally an overview of Harbour station with Single Fairlie Taliesin arriving on a train from Blaenau, passing NGG16 Garratt no.87 which is waiting to take it's train to Boston Lodge for stabling overnight.

The whole event seemed very well attended, there were queues at the booking office at Harbour station, the weather had brought people out to the coast and riding the railway seemed very popular judging by the crowds

I took a few more pictures which you can find here
https://nick86235.smugmug.com/Trains/2018/Two-days-in-Snowdonia/i-DchLMmG

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My wife and I stayed at Porthmadog a few years ago and that view in the last photo was the view we had from our B&B. A beautiful country and beautiful shots that really show it off.

photobob Wrote:
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> My wife and I stayed at Porthmadog a few years ago
> and that view in the last photo was the view we
> had from our B&B. A beautiful country and
> beautiful shots that really show it off.

Thanks very much.

Nick - looks like a very fun event!  Especially like #3.  Do you know what size rail they use? 

dwatry Wrote:
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> Nick - looks like a very fun event!  Especially
> like #3.  Do you know what size rail they use? 

60 or 75lb per yard, the latter mostly secondhand, the former made specifically to order. None of the original bull head rail is still in service on the main line.