h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I'm so jealous! That's what I used to do as a kid...

Frankie

At the Ffestiniog? My Dad was the vice chairman there when I was a kid so we spent so much time up there...and we stayed at Portmeirion a lot too which was great.

We were just up there this weekend because it was my older brother's birthday party there - and he was driving a steam engine this morning (Monday) but we had to come back.

But beware getting me started on steam engines...my Dad wrote more than 50 books about them...

Wow - what a fan!

North Wales is great for steam trains, I must have been on most of them as a kid. The Ffestiniog Railway is a clear fav (though Blaneu Ffestiniog itself is a bit of a slag-heap town dump). LLanberis lake is quite nice too. There's plenty of others but I don't remember them all.

Portmerion is very cool. I like the gardens, and the strange, pink buildings.

My brother's just taken over 'charge' of some aspect of the Ffestiniog so my beloved and I were chuffed up and down it to give him some insights on how to update it and make it more attractive.

Blanaeu Ffestiniog is really the biggest problem (oops - apologies for anyone living there) because there's no real reason to take a train to there....it's a town with a few shops and pubs but why would you travel for an hour and a bit on a train to visit it? So we have to come up with some reasons!

Also need some heating on the trains...that's a priority. Nearly froze to death on Sunday!

...I must put up something about my Dad on site (like Richard has about his). I was totally raised with steam engines - learnt to drive one before I was 15 and had my 21st birthday party on a train pulled by Clun Castle (my favourite of the engines my dad rescued for restoration).

Enough...I have work to to!

Wow, so you've always wanted to 'be a train driver when you grow up' then?

You're so right about Bleanau Ffestiniog. I've only ever had grotty meals there and the pubs are a bit crap too.

I like getting off at some of the request stops and doing the little walks. They're a lot more fun! There's one where you walk along the sleepers of the old track. You also get to cross the track (looking out for trains of course). One of the stops has a picnic area nearby too.

Be interested to find out what he does...

Yes, the walks are great (rain permitting) and there's the old station at D.... can't remember what it's called offhand.

My beloved and I were being asked to come up with marketing ideas while we were on the trip and we were getting pretty outrageous.

We thought of a 'Merlin's Cave' in the slate quarry at Blaenau with a resident hermit; having the train held up by bandits; creating a ghost town at the disused station.

Also a 'learn Welsh in a week' pamplet reprinted from the 1920s and HEAT on the trains...oh and a buffet car that served your tea sooner than 45 minutes after ordering it...