Happy returns

Jonathan Manning recaptures the glamour and excitement of rail travel in its heyday on a long-distance steam-hauled journey

The 45212 in full steam. © Bob Green

So, this is what life is like for A-list celebrities. For 12 hours, passers-by stop, wave and take out their phones for photographs. A variety of workers clamber onto the roofs of their vans for a better view, golfers pause their games mid-swing, parents hold up toddlers and elderly folk appear to wipe tears from their eyes. Everyone is pointing and smiling, yet the star of the show is not on the train, but pulling it.

This is not just any engine, but a steam-driven Black Five locomotive, which began its working life in 1935 and kept hauling carriages and wagons until 1968. Recently restored, locomotive 45212 (it gained the ‘4’ after the nationalisation of the railways) now earns its keep on long-distance journeys. While there’s no shortage of heritage steam railway lines in the UK, many chuff along a few miles of private track.

The Railway Touring Company, however, runs epic full-day adventures, including London to Blackpool, York to Edinburgh and Bristol to Par in Cornwall. Tempting offerings include a journeys on the Settle-Carlisle line on board the Cumbrian Mountain Express or The Waverley, while The Royal Duchy traces the Dawlish seawall. Today’s trip, though, heads from Manchester to Holyhead on Anglesey, via  Stockport, Chester and the north Wales coast.

Touch of glamour

Enjoying a taste of first-class luxury while travelling between Manchester and Holyhead. © The Railway Touring Company

The experience is a nostalgic reminder of a time when railway travel represented glamour, its advertisements picturing guards in uniforms that would put an admiral to shame, while passengers wore suits and dresses and everyone had a hat.

The 45212 recaptures the essence of yesteryear wonderfully. In my carriage, the tables are covered in crisp, white linen, decorated with fine bone china, vases of red roses and tassled lamps – reminders of a time when first class really meant first class.

The seats are plush, luxuriously upholstered and well spaced. As we sit down, I can’t be the only one attempting a Brief Encounter impression, “Oh daaaah-ling.”

My own darling, Mrs M, is already selecting her breakfast from the menu as she sips a Bucks Fizz. Two chefs cook everything fresh on board, as in the old days, and after porridge, melon and Greek yoghurt, or cereal, a mouth-watering full English breakfast arrives.

Sipping tea, I gaze out at magnificent Victorian warehouses, rusting corrugated industrial units and out-of-town retail developments. The long curve into Manchester’s Deansgate opens a view of the locomotive through the carriage window. As we pass under bridges and through short tunnels, the steam billows in white clouds, like a fairy-tale dragon.

All that steam demands water, and lots of it. The train manager, David Hughes, tells me the Black 5 has about a 60-mile range before we have to stop and refill the tank.

High-level approaches to Nantwich and Stockport see us fly over rivers and canals, the original arteries of Britain’s Industrial Revolution before rail, then road took over. Rail’s rise and fall is detailed in a booklet that outlines today’s trip, the text punctuated with details of closed stations, sidings, depots and lines as the network was cut to efficient size.

Coastal connections

The train glides by magnificent Conwy Castle. © Bob Green

On board the 45212, however, it’s still the heyday of train travel and everything is rosy as we barrel along the north Wales coast, Prestatyn, Rhyl and Colwyn Bay passing in a blur.

These seaside towns, like so many other resorts that dot the British coastline, owe a debt to the railways. Small fishing villages boomed after their track connections, Blackpool attracting holidaymakers from Lancashire’s industrial towns, Skegness providing bracing appeal to workers from Derby, Leicester and Nottingham, and Scarborough offering a North Sea welcome to workers from York and beyond.

For most of the year, few people would have travelled beyond the limits of their towns and cities, so the excitement of catching a train to the coast must have been intoxicating.

These days, holidaymakers are more likely to drive, and as I glance south to the A547 dual carriageway, which runs parallel to the track, I notice that we’re overtaking cars that must be doing 70mph – a powerful indication of how fast we are travelling.

A 90-minute break at the terminus on Anglesey gives us a chance to stretch our legs before the return journey. A delicious four-course dinner is paired with the drama of Eryri’s (Snowdonia’s) mountains, their north-facing crags still covered in snow, creating an impossibly romantic atmosphere.

As night casts its blanket over the last of the day, the views disappear, leaving only the reflections of lamps in the windows. The complicated rhythms of the engine and the clicks of the track provide a subtle soundtrack to easy conversation as the miles pass, until we finally arrive back in Manchester.

In truth, today has not so much been a trip from Lancashire to north Wales, but a journey back in time and a blissful reminder that it’s always better to travel than to arrive.

Information

The 45212 in full steam. © Bob Green

Club members receive a 10% discount with the Railway Touring Company. For more information and terms and conditions see camc.com/greatsavingsguide. Full day adult tickets cost from £115, with departures all over England and Wales.

Contact: railwaytouring.net; 01553 661500

Three more options for railway adventures...

• Bure Valley Railway, Norfolk
  Chug along the 18 miles from Aylsham to Wroxham in the Norfolk Broads on this narrow-gauge railway that follows the meandering River Bure.
  Info: bvrw.co.uk, 01263 733858
  Stay: Norfolk Broads Club Campsite
  
  
• Ecclesbourne Valley Railway, Derbyshire
  Catch a steam train near the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, along this nine-mile heritage line between Wirksworth and Duffield. Club members receive a 50% discount – see camc.com/greatsavingsguide for details, terms and conditions.
  Info: e-v-r.com, 01629 823076
  Stay: Carsington Water or Lickpenny Matlock Club Campsite
  
  
• South Devon Railway, Devon
  Travel a seven-mile stretch of the old Great Western Railway line between Buckfastleigh and Totnes, enjoying views of the River Dart valley. Club members benefit from a 10% discount – see camc.com/greatsavingsguide for details, terms and conditions.
  Info: southdevonrailway.co.uk, 01364 644370
  Stay: Steamer Quay Club Campsite

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Please visit camc.com/greatsavingsguide for vouchers, discount codes and pre-booking where relevant, as well as terms and conditions for all offers. Please check site and attraction opening dates and times before visiting/travelling.