Nant Gwernol railway station, Abergynolwyn

sign-out

Nant Gwernol railway station, Abergynolwyn

Strange as it may seem, this station dates from the 1970s! The narrow-gauge railway here is much older, however, having been built in the 1860s to carry slate from the nearby Bryneglwys quarry to Tywyn Wharf.

The original Talyllyn Railway operated passenger trains between Tywyn and Abergynolwyn from 1866 over a railway track authorised by an Act of Parliament. The track from Abergynolwyn to the quarry was laid over private land.

When enthusiasts took over the railway in 1951, they hoped to extend their passenger service to Nant Gwernol but the trains could go no further than Aberynolwyn for decades. One of the enthusiasts, a solicitor named George Tibbits, spent five years tracing the various landowners and negotiating to buy the land occupied by the railway between Abergynolwyn and Nant Gwernol.

The Victorians built the mineral line to a lower standard than the rest of the railway. It took volunteers five years to rebuild the route for passenger trains. They had to widen cuttings, make some of the curves less severe and ease the gradient in places. Excavated material was moved to Abergynolwyn station to create space for a platform extension.

Nant Gwernol station was opened by television presenter Wynford Vaughan Thomas in May 1976. It is named after the stream below the site.

Near the station are the former inclines which brought slates from the quarry to the Talyllyn Railway. Waymarked walking trails start at the station and lead through the woodland, which is managed by Natural Resources Wales as part of the larger Dyfi Forest.

View Location Map

Website of the Talyllyn Railway