North Wales


day, and a brush with the words of the former National Poet of Wales, Gwyn Thomas, etched stoically in the elements-lashed granite. It reads, in Welsh, “The summit of Snowdon: you are here, closer to heaven.” This Easter, another major new project finally comes


to fruition with the grand opening of the Welsh Highland Railway. First operational in 1923, built to connect the slate and mineral quarries of industrial North Wales, the decaying track was saved by volunteers in 1997. Six years and £30 million later, and the train is officially back in coal-powered action, taking a gloriously scenic route that cuts a swathe through the rural heart of the national park. The final seven-mile section of the track, running from Beddgelert to Porthmadog, will open this spring. It will join up with the existing 13-mile-long Ffestiniog Railway route from Porthmadog to Blaenau Ffestiniog. Wales will then be able to boast the longest narrow-gauge railway in Europe. The real rising star of the north in recent months,


however, has been the Isle of Anglesey, and most notably stately Beaumaris, its burgeoning visitor hub. Beaumaris has welcomed a slew of new places to stay, deli-cafes and galleries, including the Italian-Welsh-fusion Red Boat Ice Cream Parlour and the boutique-chic Townhouse, the contemporary little sister to the town’s well-loved


16 BRITAIN www.britain-magazine.com


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