Template:Featured picture/November 2014
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Hafod y Llyn station operated from 1836 until it was replaced by Tan y Bwlch in 1873. It was one of the original Horse stations which became a public passenger station in 1865, with the erection of a small wooden building (later moved to Tan y Bwlch). Access was restricted to footpaths unsuitable for horse-drawn vehicles through the Oakeley estate and, for reasons never explained, this was occasionally denied. Both circumstances made the location unsuitable so steps were taken to move the station to a location closer to a road and on land owned by the Company. The site chosen, at Creuau, was slightly further up the line and became Tan y Bwlch. There is a sharply curved space for a second track on the valley side (engine side) of the present track and there are recesses in the walling at either end for the former signals. It must have been a tricky place to work, as the visibility in either direction from the station is restricted. There is a ring set in the wall. This was possibly used to stop runaway slate wagons. There is a stream here which once filled a water tank, long since removed. Above the line lies the lake of Llyn Hafod y llyn, hence the name. There are stories of water monsters in the lake. Photo credit: Jim Hewett |