The Most Isolated Station in Wales - Dovey Junction
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- It's often said that you can't exit from Dovey Junction - the most isolated station in Wales, and as I've only ever spent a few minutes there changing trains, I thought it about time to investigate fully and spend more time at Dovey, taking a ride on the Cambrian Coast line.
The 'Station House' is actually from the disused Glandyfi railway station which closed in 1965.
Have a look at the fantastic old photos on the 2D53 Website : www.2d53.co.uk...
Visit The Dyfi Osprey Project : www.dyfiosprey...
With apologies for my appalling pronunciation of the the placename 'Pwllheli' !! 😁
😂
Don’t worry, mine would be a lot worse 🫣
Don't worry about it.
My Granddad lives there and I still don’t know how to pronounce it 😭
Looks like polish for 'i now need a new screen mine got water logged from the tea' ;)
Ah, Dovey Junction, many is the time I sat on the train thinking 'there really isn't anything here!' while travelling between Aberystwyth and Birmingham New Street...
Same. I was a student in Aber ('98-'01), and often wondered as to who used the station.
Or Dyfi Junction, as us locals call it........
Dovey Junction had the only mechanical Signal Box in the country that worked semaphore signals in 3 different counties (Gwynedd, Dyfed and Powys). The track layout until the 15th of May 1984 had a passing loop on both the main (Aberystwyth) and Branch (Pwllheli) lines and at times you would have 4 trains there at the same time. It took 90 moves (Pulling and Putting Back) the levers to cross the 4 trains, the Main and Branch Loops were as long as their respective platform lines, at one time the two platforms were even longer going towards Machynlleth and were wooden but the wooden section was removed in the 1970's. The station house at the end is the old Glandyfi Station, great video Geoff,thank you for making it.
Great info andrew, thank you!
@@geofftech2 Your very welcome Geoff, the Main Platform was as long as it is now in the 1960's when the same moves were taking place whereby a Down Train came through the Main loop to the Aberystwyth end of the platform whilst an Up Train was at the Machynlleth end of the platform. The only difference then was that the points to the Main Loop were near Glandyfi so the Aberystwyth train had to go right up to the foot crossing to make the connection. A similar thing was done daily in the Branch (Pwllheli) Platform with the Down train going through the Branch Loop onto the Bridge and then Setting Back (Reversing) into the platform with a hand signalman protecting the rear end of the Up Train at the Machynlleth end of the Branch Platform.
If you think Dovey Junction is Isolated you should see the site of the former Bala Junction Station which was even more isolated, you could not even buy a ticket to Bala Junction it was just an interchange station. I have just subscribed to your channel as I am very impressed with your video.
90 moves! Gosh that sounds like quite hard work.
@@alistairkewish651 Thank you for your reply, yes it was quite hard work, if all the trains arrived in the correct order and at the correct time it took 19 minutes to do that includes 4 tokens coming in and 4 going out. The hardest part is remembering that each lever requires a different amount of pull strength to make sure points go over correctly and you can lock them correctly and get the Signal arms to travel through 45 degrees, even the air temperature makes a difference as signal wires expand and contract with temperature changes.
Cheers for the video Geoff. I was a guard based at Machynlleth back in the early 2000s and worked every single one of the TfW 158s! The video brought back some great memories. I'm not sure if anyone lives in the house over the viaduct on the Pwllheli branch anymore, but certainly back in my time on the Cambrian there was and they had to get permission from the signaller to walk over the bridge. I remember picking up the person who lived in that house on Wednesdays to go to Machynlleth market. Basically they had their own private railway station!
hey Josh, lovely comment - thanks! i just published the Barmouth Bridge video too .. if you want more memories !!!
I believe the house is still occupied.
You probably checked my ticket out of Aber then. Hello again
Hi Josh, I was on the very first train you were the guard on down the Branch Line after you had passed out. I have been over the bridge at Dovey Junction in more recent times than you may have been and the house had lights on inside it in the evening. Back in the 1980's it was owned by a naturist from London he bought the place so they could live their lifestyle away from other peoples' gaze. Their possessions were taken down to the Bridge cottage by a train from Machynlleth I was told. I think it was our friend Arthur who was the Lamp Man at the time that told me, if it was not then it would have been one of the Signalmen. If you're still in Chester as a conductor I hope the jobs going well for you.
Honestly the bike shelter makes perfect sense to me. It just might be a mountain/gravel bike rather than a road bike.
As part of my job I drive up and down that path quite often, also acted as pilotman from there many times due to tidal flooding, the station house at the main road end is Glandyfi a closed station on the Aber line, the whole of Dyfi junction platform was recently raised a metre to stop some of the tidal flooding issues.
Very interesting info thanks
I did this line from Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth one week ago. It was absolutely lovely. It is good that it is not completely isolated as other junction stations could be.
There were several summer Saturday Euston to Aberystwyth loco hauled services until the late 80s. They changed from electric to diesel at new st. They used pairs of 25s until 1983 or 84 then switched to 37s. There were 2 or 3 diagrams every Saturday so plenty of locos if you planned your changes right.
Trent Junction station in the East Midlands was another example. It was just there for people to change trains and to get something to eat. This was before catering facilities were common on trains. The station linked trains between London, Nottingham and Derby.
The only link to it was a footpath from Long Eaton. There was even a row of houses provided for the staff. The station is long gone, but the houses remain. You can see them between Beeston and Long Eaton stations.
Thanks for the info , passed Trent many times and wondered about it’s history
I know of the old Trent Junction very well, along with the old Long Eaton station in the town, plus Sawley Junction, which is now the current Long Eaton station.
Go down the side of United Carpets to the crossing and look left, you can still see the old platforms.
The 1970's ish Trent Signal Box is still there, after signalling got switched to the new place next to London Road, Derby.
@@stanmarsh14cheers Stan. That’s a great bit of info. I’ll have a stop-off at Long Eaton next time I’m passing through. Cheers bud!
@@stanmarsh14 You also have "sheet stores junction" there, named after the tarps used to cover the old open goods wagons. These stores were where these covers were kept and repaired if necessary.
@@davidcronan4072 oh yes, and a pub on High Street, called The Tappers Harker, a nod to the carriage works.
Thanks for mentioning the Dovey Osprey/Wildilfe Centre Geoff!
Seeing you get rained on in Wales reminded me of every family childhood holiday I ever had. Bleak but beautiful.
Ah, Dovey Junction. I pass through it when travelling between university in Aberystwyth and home. Always been curious about it, so glad to see you've finally done a video on it!
I used to live about four villages towards Aberystwyth from Glandyfi, and only once ever used Dyfi Junction. My aunt had tried to drop me for the train at Aberystwyth, but we missed it by about 2 minutes. Cue hectic drive back along the line and this was where a run along that path got me to my train! I swear the taka-ta-tum taka-ta-tum sound of 158s echoing over the estuary was one of the soundtracks of my childhood!
Wouldn't it be nice to just go to that Station and sit there all day enjoying the quiet and scenery.
And the wind and rain? Not sure...
@@paulsengupta971 Obviously pick a nice day mate.
I love the name of the station!
Wow - my favourite station - make sure I pass through it every time I visit the UK from Canada. Thanks for sharing this, Geoff. First visited there while travelling between Aberystwyth and Tywyn on a sunny day back in 1982 - loved the location, with the sunlight playing on the hillsides and the constant ocean breeze. The station building was still there and tokens were still being exchanged. Visited again in 2017 with my son - we were staying at a nearby B&B, our host drove us to the footpath and we hiked to the station. In 2022, I was volunteering at the TR and my wife was arriving from Canada, but she first wanted to visit a long-time friend in Aberystwyth. Dovey Jct. was a great spot to surprise her on the train. Of course, we visited the station again last year during TR/FR volunteering stints. We'll return in 2025.
On a cycling tour in 1963 I remember seeing the same BR Standard 2-6-4 Tank Locomotives at Dovey Junction which used to ply their trade on the LTSR line in the previous 10 years. Love the isolation of the place as you seem to do.
A hidden station, I like that you only walk in or ride in and that there's a local bus to pick you up and drop you off.
From my limited understanding of Welsh pronunciation, Glandyfi is pronounced Glan-Dovey. Hence Dovey Junction / Dyfi Junction.
Yes, I came down here to see if anyone had said that. I'm surprised Geoff didn't read the name of Dovey Junction in Welsh and put 2 and 2 together! :-)
One of my favourite stations!
The Dovey viaduct - that you can see in the drone shot - was rebuilt, along with a load of the other viaducts along the route when Barmouth bridge was rebuilt last autumn (see my recent article in Today's Railways UK)
A couple of years ago I met a member of TFW train crew who lives nearby and has a key for the vehicle gate there, so they can park at the station & take their train to work!
Thank you for the video Geoff, it was very interesting. ❤ I've done mountain-walking a few times in Wales. 🙂
This video is looking awesome.
When I was growing up my dad had a friend that lived in Dovey Junction (we lived a few towns over and it’d take about an hour to get there maybe shorter) and I always remember passing the train station wondering why there even was one because it was the tiniest place, my dad’s friend lived up a hill in a solitary house surrounded by fields and stuff and it was always muddy. I was just always excited to see his and his wife’s black lab called Jet
Hi Geoff, off topic but I thought you'd appreciate this.
Last month I took a Scotrail day trip from Crianlarich to Glenfinnan and briefly got off to take a pic at Corrour. On the Ft William to Mallaig section, who should be the conductor but none other than the lovely lady who had her dog with her when you filmed for All The Stations. I had to laugh when she said she wished she'd her hair done!
i'm not from UK. (correct me if i'm wrong) but i love how isolated, little or least used statios most of the time are served by sprinters
I must say that Dovey Junction is pretty much in Mid Wales where you got lots of mountains and hills all over and the view of it is breathtaking.
The closest road to get to Dovey Junction station is the A487 and where Morben Isaf Caravan Park is located near to the railway station that is only a short distance by foot.
As a former Aber student great to see love for Dovey Junct
You must be a lovey Dovey...
Isolated but with such a lovely view it would be worth a visit. I haved added it to my working list for next year when I make it back to the U.K. This Florida girl will have to bundle up it looks chilly😊
I didn’t know about that passing loop but it is good to know one has been installed. The legendary footpath away from this junction station remains obscure ,,,,,,,for the moment.
There is a rumour that once upon a time, RagAberRag had a "Dovey Junction Challenge" - take the last train out in the evening, camp on the platform overnight, then take the first train in the morning back...
Thanks Geoff. If possible try and get hold of a book called "Stopping Train Britain" by Alexander Frater from 1983. It has a feature on the Dovey Junction to Pwllheli line and relates how the line had, (maybe still has) serious flooding issues at Dovey at the highest of tides. There's a tale about how a signalman there decided it was time to get out, so pulled all the signals to danger and rapped out the Section Obstructed signal, then made off on hands and knees on the Aberystwyth route, waves breaking about his ears, to the safety of the nearest hillside!
Passed through this station many times on the way to and from Aberystwyth while I was a student there 😅
Brilliant. It rained when I was there too, but I did see the nest, it can be seen from the train. You can't walk to it, there's no path, which causes problems when it comes to ringing the chicks before they take flight
The catering at the Osprey project is also out of this world, but you wouldn't be any nearer the ospreys, even at the Observatory, which could be seen distantly from one of your positions.
Although I found it mesmerising, you missed the best part.
that's the best video you've done for a while
Been through at least four times - aged 9 in 1973, I've a memory of sitting at Dovey Junction for an interminable time awaiting the connection from Aberystwyth to Shrewsbury - we'd arrived from Llwyngwril. I guess even 10 minutes can seem like a life time to a nine year old!
Yes, some 197's are being fitted with ERTMS and will be used on the Cambrian Line. Great video, Geoff!
Many thanks Geoff!
I'd hoped to walk to Dovey Junction last month on my way to Aberystwyth but it was absolutely pouring with rain. So I continued on my way, briefly stopped at the new Bow Street Station and then sheltered in the warmth of Aberystwyth Arts Centre! 🙂
Absolutely excellent video, one of your best in a while! Have been interested in this place for many years and the unusual operations of the station are so interesting too. Really looking forward to a new request stops video next ;)
4 carriages to Aberystwyth is very rare 😮
Good spot! the guard told me that there was a techinical fault one of the sets, so they were being moved/taken out of service. on the way back [ same train, four carriages ] the rear two weren't in use, and they weren't letting passengers on them.
I remember around 5 years ago I got off here to run along and grab a bus to Aberystwyth from a bus stop along the main road 😂
I used to get this train a lot when I was at uni in Aberystwyth. You definitely could get off an down the main road from Dovey Junction. Most trains split at Machynlleth with one end going toward Pwllhelli and the other going to Aberystwyth, so as long as you were in the right end of the train there was no need to change at Dovey Junction. I have seen people get on and off at Dovey Junction, but it was pretty rare
The final batch of 2 car 197 units to be built by CAF at Newport will all be fitted with ETCS equipment to enable them to operate west of Sutton Bridge Junction in Shrewsbury. They will be based at Machynlleth. Delivery is expected to commence later this year and once testing and driver training has been completed, should come into service in 2025.
As a former local to this area, I would love to see Geoff try to pronounce all the stations along the Cambrian Coastline. Have fun with Penrhyndeudraeth!
Oh I saw that one and just thought, “nope!” Ha HAA 😅
I could teach you in 10 minutes flat😅
Fancy going to Wales with no suitable coat! 🌧🎐😄
Hi Geoff, I used the train in 1970 to attend the Outward Bound School at Aberdovey. I started out from Newcastle upon Tyne Central Station via Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton, Shrewsbury and Machynlleth before alighting at Penhelig Halt. What a journey that was. On the return trip all the lads who were travelling home by train were told to change trains at Machynlleth. When we got to Dovey Junction the Euston Express from Aberystwyth was already at the station so a few of us got off very quickly and boarded the waiting train and managed to find seats. When it eventually got to Machynlleth all the passengers from our previous train were waiting on the platform and the train was in the sidings there to allow the express through. I remember the Euston Express must have had about six or eight carriages behind a diesel loco. This is probably why Dovey Junction has such a long platform on the Aberystwyth side.
There used to be a 1-a-day direct diesel service to London, originally to Paddington, then latterly to Euston (when I used it in the ‘80s). 6 or 8 carriages behind a class 37 loco.
Ahhhh, my favourite station in Britain. I visited two years ago, and had it all to myself on a sunny day - sheer heaven. From the end of the footpath, it's about 30 mins walk up the road (in the Aber direction) to the stupendous Ynyshir RSPB reserve, which sprawls back down to the estuary and is involves sections of forest and boardwalked marshes. (There are only pavements for some of the walk along that road, but it never once felt dangerous.) The acclaimed Ynyshir restaurant is up there too - and so was my brilliant Airbnb. Happy memories :)
So you didn't see any memorial flowers along the road, in memory of those lost ? Quite common when I've been, between there and Machynlleth
@@barbaramcmillan3835 I did not - well, not knowingly, alas.
Many many years ago we was on a family holiday to Aberystywth and wanted to catch the train to Barmouth. We got to the station but there was a long wait for the train and the ticket clerk said to drive to Dovey Junction as there was a train due in like an hour or so.. We did that and ran up the path to catch the train, my dad managed to get to the platform and tell the guard to wait as my mum in her flip flops was waaaay behind 😅 We managed to all get on the train, but the guard was not happy and I think we delayed the service by about 5 minutes. IIRC it was a 158 in Central trains colours.
Shrewsbury is our local hub station. Used to work in Aberdovey and Barmouth. Glad you enjoyed the Cambrian Line. Expecting an Osprey in flight shot!🎉
You should add defibrillator to your station checklist. I’m surprised and impressed that there’s one at such a remote station!
The 'dyfi' in Glandyfi sounds like Dovey.
Surprised Geoff didn't see the Welsh for Dovey Junction and make the connection.
Whilst listing the facilities, you didnt mention the defibrillator. ❤️❤️❤️
Awesome video
In about 1960 the family had a holiday at Barmouth. I was only 10 but my brother who was 10 years older. I wanted to go to the Vale of Rhydal at Aberystwyth. We caught the train down but don't remember where we changed. On our way back we had to change at Dovey Junction as the two trains crossed at Machynlleth. While waiting a green light engine arrived from the Barmouth line. The signalman came out of his box and asked the driver 'where are you going to?' The driver replied Shrewsbury, so the signalman told him to go into one of the sidings. My brother thought this was a hilarious, i was too young to fully understand, but years later he would often have a chuckle if the conversation turned to the Cambrian Line.
Love these videos!
The Aberystwyth platform at Dovey Junction was always this long. It enabled the portion of a train from Pwllheli to set back onto the portion from Aber sitting in the platform and still have the whole train platformed. Such trains as the Cambrian Coast Express. There were run-round loops for both platforms, enabling loco movements. I'm not sure how long after the end of steam (early 60s) such arrangements lasted and clearly, from your old photos, the track had been rationalized by the early 80s.
fantastic info, thanks!
It would also allow for passengers changing from the long holiday trains to Aberystwyth, the platform there is very long.
There was some rationalisation during the 80s, for example Caersws lost its passing loop, which interestingly was not at the station itself but the other side of the road. When in use, trains to Machynlleth after stopping, reversed back on to it,
Great watch thanks
Glad to see you starting at my home station. I love going down that line.
There's already a pair of 2car 197's based at Machynlleth shed for driver training and fettling with the ERTMS signalling system to get it working so TFW can give their 158's the boot.
Very interesting video, Geoff. Keep doing more videos as interesting as this one, and the previous videos and I am sure the number of video like will increase and the number of subscribers will also increase!😊
Some years ago we decided to catch the Aberystwyth portion of the train and change at Dovey Junction for the portion to Pwllheli as there was about 4 minutes in between them and it had been may years since being on Dovey Junction station. However we didn't know that the Aberystwyth platform had been extended that long and we had to run to make the Pwllheli train. We just made it.
We passed through there only a week ago on our way from Barmouth to Cardiff on our travels.
1km from Station Entrance to platform? I wonder if there are any which are further on the UK rail network. Maybe on the tube somewhere perhaps? St Pancras front entrance to the far end of the EMR? Who knows
When at uni in Aber - I heard that Dovey Jct was popular with tourists who would ride the train there then cycle back to Aber or the other way. Hence the bike shelter.
The first timee I saw Dyfi Junction it was asmall island platform no longer than 2-3 coaches long. You can imagine the confusion every Sturday in summer monthsThere used also to be Gogarth that was nothing but a corrugated iron lean to. It was blown awy one stormy night never to be seen again!
Once upon a time Dovey Junction had lower quadrant semaphores and a signal box, and yes, there were passing loops on both sides and some rather forlorn sidings. I first visited the station in 1966, just too late to catch the last steam trains, although the MetroCammell DMUs did give you a better view from the front seats behind the cab.
Welsh ospreys seem to like trains. The Dyfed nest isn't far from the station, and the nest webcam (also on TH-cam) has shown passing trains in the background in the past (and a year or so ago had a note to say no trains were passing because of a strike). The Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn/Glaslyn Wildlife webcam shows the osprey nest near Port Croesor station on the Welsh Highland line - the cam is often panned to show the WHR trains when the ospreys aren't around.
I can remember me and my mate spending a few hours there, when we were on holiday in Borth as a teenager. We hung around as they used to have class 37s running the service. So we went Borth to Dovey junction and back on 37s.
The class 37s had no intercom to the conductor so could not stop at the request halts. On the other hand when BR replaced 37+4 Mk1s with a single 2-car 150/0 people were being left behind at Shrewsbury for lack of space.
Great and informative video Geoff! I would have never known about somthing so intresting eithout your channel, keep making great video's!
No video filmed in Wales, is complete without rain .... good video as your latest one on barmouth bridge 😊😊😊😊.....
Thank you. I will put it on my next UK bucket list.
Wow Geoff, I just got back from Rhyl and this is trulely amazing
Went to Cyffordd Dyfi a few weeks back on a university club trip up to Aberdyfi. A quirk of the system I must say.
There were once several isolated junctions on the Cambrian system. Trains still run through the sites of Afon Wen (between Criccieth and Pwllheli) and Morfa Mawddach (the sometime Barmouth Jnc, just south of the marvellous bridge).
Where the rails no longer run, south of the site of Moat Lane Jnc Station (on the line between Newtown and Caersws) there were the wonderfully named Three Cocks Jnc. (with the Midland Railway) and as far south as the Cambrian got, the triangular Talyllyn Jnc (nowt to do with the railway of the same name) was on the GWR Brecon line (itself just a memory).
Glad 2d53 got a mention. Tripped over that site a few years back and love it. So many memories. The shots of long gone Class 101 and 103, with their panoramic views fore and aft are so atmospheric. Noteworthy are the Mach special red buffer beams!!
I once travelled to Barmouth from the Shrewsbury direction a while ago and the journey planner told me to change at Dovey Junction. Luckily I soon twigged that the train actually split at Machynlleth. However I got into talking with a lady who had previously travelled from Barmouth to Shrewsbury and been similarly advised to change at Dovey Junction, which she attempted to do. Fortunately she was rescued by a kind local who drove her to Machynlleth to avoid waiting in such an exposed place in the dark!
Sadly, the OS map fails to show the path to the main road, with not even a grey dotted line. OpenStreetMap does show it, but only if you zoom in close.
I have left a train at Dovey Junction before and walked 3/4 of a mile (15-20 mins) to the nearest road to catch a bus.
Should have come to Aberystwyth and visited the new railway museum at the Vale Of Rheidol Railway! 🏴
I’m pretty sure the reason platform 2 at Dovey Junction is so long is if a platform had been built on the opposite side access to it would be needed. This means lifts would be needed for disabled access as foot crossings are frowned upon. It’s a similar layout to that at Abergynolwyn on the TR. They have to have it that way because their stock only has doors on one side.
For a very specific reason: The tunnel under the road over the railway at Tywyn Wharf Station throat is quite narrow. When the TR first opened in the 1890s, the line passed down the centre of the tunnel, and carriage doors would not be able to be opened if a train had to stop in an emergency. The Board of Trade inspector made the TR offset the rails, and permanently lock the doors on one side, before it could be opened to passenger traffic.
And, in fact, their heritage stock DOES have doors on the "wrong" side, but they are permanently locked ( except for repairs and maintenance, of course ).
I got scared at the word ‘Isolated’ but it sounds like a great place to chill out.
I know what you mean. I panic if I'm more than 10 minutes from a Greggs.
If the weathers good it’s a glorious place, if the weathers not good it’s utter misery
Looked fffffreezing outside the shelterrrrr
Last summer I was taking a trip from London to the Talyllyn Railway, just east of where you are here. I booked a ticket for a direct train from Birmingham New Street to Tywyn, which was supposed to be a 4 car train that split at Machynlleth. Instead at Birmingham, only a 2 car train arrived, which was massively overcrowded. As we approached Machynlleth, the guard announced that anyone heading toward Fairbourne would need to get off and another train would pick us up in a few minutes.
On the way back, my train from Tywyn only went as far as Machynlleth and then terminated, with no onward trains at all. I ended up having to take a multiple hours long replacement bus to Shrewsbury and then had to figure out my own way back to London from there.
Not a great first impression of Transport for Wales.
What a wonderful place to sit and contemplate the world. Will you be doing the most isolated stations in England and Scotland too?
I suspect the “path” is more for the convenience of Network Rail and TfW staff. The last thing anyone would want in the event of a points failure is to have to wait on the Machynlleth S&T walking miles down the track.
Also, platforms 20/1, 19/2 and 7/11 at Waverley in Edinburgh have similar mid platform points, as does Penryn in Cornwall. It’s a great idea for rural stations as the cost of a new second platform would scupper the hopes of a passing loop otherwise (mainly due to modern and quite right requirements for access for all, imagine having to put in a lift at Dovey Jcn?).
Great video, Geoff - I think the GWR had several of these remote junctions and Dovey junction is the last remaining.
Is the passing loop and long platform similar to the one on the Falmouth branch - at Penryn I think?
You may have already seen this YT video Geoff, but Network Rail did a video about them helping to supply the Dovey Osprey Project with electricity a few years ago. 'Network Rail - Fish Hawks On The Dovey', if you haven't come across it before.
The litter bin you could not see was just a few feet away, behind the clear perplex shelter which you were sitting in! What was the yellow box by its side?
I stopped at Dovey Junction on my way to Outward Bound
Drove past the sign to this earlier and everyone in the car was thrilled that I'd watched this video days earlier and could tell them all the facts they didn't know they needed to know 🤓
😂
"I'm all by myself," as 100,000 plus people watch me. I think I have been to the other two stations in this video.
I remember when you could drive up to the platforms. I have also spent many nights looking at the platform lights on full blast all night long.
Glandyfi castle is up for sale now, £2 million quid I think ( it’s on Rightmove) was at one time the weekend retreat of sir Bernard Docker, the Daimler and BSA boss
Interesting video!
PLATFORM SHELTER
Nicely done video......
Given the isolated location....and the fact that the prevailing winds mainly come from one direction....it is interesting to see how the platform shelter is positioned.
Mind you, one has to question just why the shelter has two 'barn doors' the size of which you could drive a car through. The bright sparks who thought this necessary really got things wrong and could do to re-visit the arrangements.
Also, and again with the wind in mind.....
Is it really necessary to have a gap under the bottom of the sheleter panels..?
Commonsense would have mounted these to the platform surface.....
James Hennighan
Yorkshire, England
Geoff, you’re videos got me through a very difficult time last winter. I’ve set up my own Community Chess organisation, to bring people together through the power of chess. I’m looking to do an event on a train or at a train station and I’ve been contacting TFL. They are interested. I wonder if you would be interested too. It feels wrong to do something on a train without reaching out to the great train guru.
Great video for tourists.
In Berlin, back when the city was splitted, the GDR build a loop railway around west Berlin, to not have to go through allied Territory. It had many stations in the middle of nowhere connecting to the Mainlines out of Berlin. Most of them are closed nowadays but you can still use some.
Maybe Pwthweli could be episode 1 of "Geoff's invented stations"? 😁
Is this also the station with the longest distance between station entrance and platform?
Out of curiosity, I pulled up Google maps to see if I could find the Dovey Junction sign on the A487, and somehow managed to open street view the exact right spot, just south of the Dyfi Hideaway. Google doesn't show the path leading all the way there, but the aerial/satellite images are so grainy, it's no wonder.
Marvellous. Those Welsh marches were the most dangerous places in the whole of the British Isles a thousand years ago, if you were Norman.
Or 1600 years ago if you were a slightly effete sub-Roman Briton suddenly abandoned by mummy Rome. Of course, if that was you then you over came your fear when the Saxons arrived a hundred years later. You drifted west, morphed into the New Welsh we know and love today, and became the aforementioned nightmare for the Normans.
Then the railways came and peace broke out everywhere, even in the borderlands: wild no more. Pity.
But still full of weather, it seems.
7:41 wait, a block marker… does it mean the line use cab signalling? 😮
Geoff, there is a bin bag, it's right behind you next to the defibrillator at 7:15.
Ah yes!!
Thank you Geoff. Another must visit station added to the never ending list. 👍😀
What this station needs is not a tea room but a bin bag first 😉
@6:28 You may not have realised but Dovey Junction is the western end of a major off-road bikepacking route called the TransCambrian Way. People will ride from Knighton to Dovey Junction! Many will then head back into Machynlleth for a bed/food and onward connections but you will find a lot of folks arriving by mountain/gravel bike!