News from the Bala Lake Railway
August was predictably another good month for the railway and, in spite of soaring temperatures in most parts of the UK, a certain amount of ‘liquid sunshine’ appeared, noticeably in the middle of our Bank Holiday Mini Gala. However, this did nothing to dampen the occasion and passenger numbers were…
July 2018 Update We started July on a very sad note when we learned of the death of Wendy Levy who had been suffering the horrible effects of a brain tumour for over a year. Wendy and her husband, Martin, who is a director of the BLR, were, for years,…
It started with an innocuous dinner in a delightful restaurant in Bala High Street called Y Cyfnod, named after the newspaper which was published at that address. Being the sort of town where a lot of people are known socially because of their achievements and occupations, this dinner was deliciously…
May was a good month for the railway, a very good month. Our numbers were up by 20% over May last year, and we are now virtually level-pegging for the year with our best ever in 2017. This has been helped by two busy Bank Holidays in the month as…
As we mentioned last month, the Easter break, being a moving feast from one year to the next, has a big impact on travelling numbers at the start of the season and makes planning even more difficult. An early Easter straddling the end of March and early April is never…
Donations of railwayana to the Bala Lake Railway are always appreciated but, very occasionally, something of great relevance suddenly appears, the kindness of which takes us by surprise. In this instance, we received a call out of the proverbial blue from a renowned collector of railwayana in Bristol, Keith Skilleter.…
February 2018 Update February was a month of relative contradictions, with conditions ranging from spring-like and damp to decidedly wintry. Needless to say, during the half-term services, snow fell and the loco rostered for these duties was Maid Marian which is open to the elements. However, that did nothing to…
As anyone involved with railways will know only too well, the winter season is one of great and varied activity behind the scenes, as well as preparations for the start of passenger services, this year coinciding with half term in mid-February. What follows will give a flavour of the huge…
December 2017 Update 2017 was another record year for the Bala Lake Railway, with overall numbers of passengers up by 5% over those of 2016, itself a record year for the railway. On top of that, much progress has happened with the Red Dragon Project, our ambitious plan to extend…
November 2017 Update The passenger season has ended, activity on the Bala Lake Railway has slowed down and the pressure of everyday life has diminished dramatically. You might think that, but we would definitely comment otherwise! The Halloween Specials were, as always, a resounding success and we send huge thanks…
