April 28

Llangollen railway

Llangollen, Wales

Wow. We journeyed from Chirk, over the Chirk aquaduct, which is alongside the railway viaduct. Very impressive tall arched masonry. Gorgeous setting, then immediately into a tunnel. The canal is now very different- either perched on the side of a hill or on a large embankment, or in a cutting. The amount of labour required to make this canal is staggering.

On, up the Dee river valley, though the canal doesn’t change levels at all (no locks!). This canal is also strange as there is a current; the canal is fed by the river at the head of the canal, so there is a significant current, all too evident when in narrow bridges or aquaducts, or tunnels.

We then crossed the Pontcysyllte (pont-ker-sulth-tee) aquaduct. One of the wonders of the canal system, and there is no doubt why: the experience is amazing. On the port side, there is a 20cm high by about 4cm wide cast iron trough (above the waterline.) Then about 40m straight down to the river valley below. Don’t step of the side of the boat- it is a long way down. No railing, no barrier, just a real awareness of space. The other side has the towpath, and a railing to prevent the horses from falling off. Very sensible.

The canal takes a VERY sharp corner immediately after the crossing, and then makes its way further up the valley. The river gradually rises alongside the canal, as again, no locks for us. The canal is perched on the side of the valley, and there are places where it is only wide enough for one boat (like many English roads for cars). Watch out for traffic!

We arrived in Llangollen, moored in the basin, and explored this really beautiful town. The high rocky topped hills (mountains here) form a splendid valley setting that is really worth every effort to get here. We took a ride on the vintage steam railway that chuggs further up the valley, watching the sheep and baby lambs run away as the engine chuffed past. Just to make things really perfect, the wind had died down, and there were intermittent clouds- but it was a nice day for sightseeing.