About

Many of the Talyllyn Railway’s volunteers are also keen railway modellers. A group of like minded volunteers local to Tywyn, and sharing a common interest in modelling narrow gauge railways at a scale of 16mm/ft, approached the Talyllyn Railway management to see if they could develop a narrow gauge garden railway in the rambling and at the time somewhat overgrown garden at the rear of the Railway’s volunteer hostel Llechfan, situated on the far side of the Wharf station site at Tywyn.

Permission was granted and a first stage was constructed around the pond. This consisted off a 40 yard circuit with a station with loop and a siding. This ground level line was most successful but, with steaming up being carried out on one’s knees in a damp garden, thoughts soon turned to the provision of a raised steam up area. The seeds for expansion had been sown!

Subsequent years saw the construction of a raised steam-up area on a breezeblock foundation; this was connected to the original ground level circuit by a long, sweeping 35 yard branch line with a ‘Y’ junction to the original line allowing for out and back running from the steam-up area down to the continuous run circuit. Constructed on an incline of 1 in 35, although challenging, it was found that even Mamods could surmount this connecting branch line to the steam up area.

The presence of the garden line became known to a growing band of Talyllyn Railway members and soon 16mm modellers from further afield were visiting for a steam up, and some also began to lend a hand with the upkeep of the garden.

The increased support led to the execution of an even more ambitious plan and through 2005/6 the high level circuit of some 90 yards, complete with a passing loop was constructed. Much of this is cut into a grassy bank set below the volunteer hostel and recreates the hillside ledge setting which is so typical of many of the Welsh narrow gauge lines, giving countless opportunities for realistic photography.

In 2008 the operational flexibility of the high level circuit was further improved with the provision of a balloon loop to the east of the steam up bay, giving the opportunity to reverse trains and dispatch them back down the branch to the lower circuit.

As the railway has evolved, changes in track construction have taken place. The track is laid on a base of concrete bricks which sit on compacted sand. The track is held in place with a sand, cement and fine gravel ballast mix to give a reasonably durable and week resistant trackbed.  The lower circuit is constructed of chaired track with wooden sleepers; the wooden sleepers have suffered from the damp nature of the garden and some resleepering has taken place over the years. The more recently constructed high level line consists of flat bottomed rail and plastic sleepers, intended to give a longer life. Pointwork throughout is a mixture of Peco and hand built.

There are buildings under construction for Llechfan which will be installed upon the railway as the landscaping progresses, but this is a slow process. As can be imagined, in the warm wet environment just keeping up with the luxuriant plant growth in the garden seems a full time job in itself at times, and to the casual observer little seems to get done!