Walking

[Fester]

Perhaps a different thread required to reply to Ian, but I cannot accept him dismissing the FACT that the labour market is more difficult now than in the 1970's, 1980's etc...

You see, some of my schoolfriends went on to University, and as you say, did VERY well in high levels of the MOD, or banking sectors.
But the rest of my friends, (including me) left school with reasonable A level passes I suppose, but in subjects that were entirely unrelated to anything we subsequently went in to.
In actual fact, the A-level certificates that I was so proud of, have never been seen or requested at any interview I ever had!

What I noticed was, that by age 20, everyone I knew had a decent disposable income, we all had cars, holidays and many of us were easily affording our own houses.  It seemed very normal.
At 20, I was a supervisor in a retail company, (not a manager til a couple of years later), yet I still had a tidy salary, non-contrib pension, and loads of other benefits.

All I am saying is, that I am sure that there are are very good careers still to be had, BUT they ARE only for a lucky few Uni Graduates.  In the past, such jobs were much more prevalent, the labour market has most certainly changed.

It has changed in another way too.  Most jobs now are part time and very menial.  Lots of checks and systems in place to rein-in any free thought.  (Nick Leeson probably caused that).
Looking back, it is remarkable how much free-license and responsibility I was allowed to have at such a young age.

The 1980's is the era I am talking about.....a real Golden Era,  I accept that things were MUCH harder for my parents.

[mull]

Longest Single line in the UK is the West Highland Line .
Has a steam service each day between Fort William and Malliag during the summer season.It is now so popular that this year they are running 2 round trips on most days.
Worth a trip if you are coming this way for a holiday.

[Ian]

All I am saying is, that I am sure that there are are very good careers still to be had, BUT they ARE only for a lucky few Uni Graduates.  In the past, such jobs were much more prevalent, the labour market has most certainly changed.

Agreed.

[Ian]

Longest Single line in the UK is the West Highland Line .

You're quite correct,. M;  I meant longest single track railway tunnel. Sorry about that :-)

[DaveR]

H's pics of the WHR (very nice, H:-) and a recent visit to the Virgin train website brought another thing to mind: hiring a train for a special party. You can hire any Virgin train or just a carriage, if you wish, for parties, excursions or just private travel, so In wonder if Arriva would do the same?  Or - and here's a thought for the entrepreneurs - what if someone formed a limited company that would hire an Arriva train, then sell that train for the day to companies for training or management bonding exercises.  The company could provide catering, cleaning, and any extras requested.  On the longest single-track line in the UK, could it be a money-spinner?

The biggest problem with that is the fragmented privatised railway. As well as hiring a train from a TOC you would then have to negotiate with Network Rail to run it on the infrastructure between the many scheduled services that run daily.

Was it easier to hire a train in the BR days? I remember both the trains and service as being dreadful back then - even now, I can recall a train trip from Crewe back along the coast in the early 90s where the train was so filthy that pretty much every surface had ingrained dirt on it. The trains in use now along the coast are relatively modern in comparison and far cleaner, in my view.

[Ian]

Was it easier to hire a train in the BR days?

I don't think so. Virgin provide their own security but I doubt that would be necessary for the Conwy Valley specials....

[Fester]

All I am saying is, that I am sure that there are are very good careers still to be had, BUT they ARE only for a lucky few Uni Graduates.  In the past, such jobs were much more prevalent, the labour market has most certainly changed.

Agreed.

I nearly fainted when I saw that.... 

[Ian]

I nearly fainted when I saw that.... 

Ah, well, if you'd said that in the first place... 

[Hugo]

Yesterday Wayne and I revisited Cwm Ystradllyn and enjoyed a delightful and very interesting walk in this remote but beautiful valley.   As you are driving down the very narrow and winding lane to Cwm Ystradllyn the first thing you see as you enter the valley is the very imposing Ynys Y Pandy Slate Mill that stands on high ground and looks just like the ruins of a medieval Abbey.   We passed the mill and carried on to the lake where we parked the car and commenced our walk.  The next thing that hits you is the beauty of the place as this moorland valley stands in a bowl flanked by the steep slopes of Moel Hebog and Moel Ddu.  At the head of the valley are the slate terraces of the Gorseddau Quarry and we were heading there following the tramway that went from the quarry to the slate mill.  The first house we passed was empty and a couple of old cars lay abandoned in the long grass nearby but it strangely had a small water wheel in the back of the property.   Ruins of old buildings were everywhere as we followed the waterlogged path to the quarry and as we approached the quarry there was a fascinating  and massive corbelled wall protecting the line of the slate tramway at Gorseddau from the slate tips above.  We had a walk around the quarry and then returned along the tramway until we took a diagonal path to the ruins of the old ruined village of Treforys. 
Cwmystradllyn was not always so quiet. For eight brief years from 1859-1867, the mountainous dead-end of the valley was a hive of industry as the native Welsh workers laboured in the quarry.  A small village was built for them in 1857 overlooking the lake, and named Treforys, and according to the census of 1861 there were thirty-six houses laid out in three streets, each possessing a quarter acre of acidic, peaty, sodden soil.   We walked along the old streets and then descended to the lake where we stopped for our refreshment break.  Apparently by the time of the 1871 Census the village was abandoned!
Afterwards we crossed the dam and briefly looked at the Trout darting in the water and then made our way over farmland until we came to the Slate Mill.  Another quick look at the Mill,  which in its day had an internal waterwheel, large arched windows, and a (presumably ornamented) slate roof which was said to be the finest in the district. The Company spent ten thousand pounds on the mill machinery alone; to put this into context, its maximum entire capital was £125,500, a very large figure for an undertaking of this scale in the 1850s.    After looking around we walked along the lane back to the lake and our car passing the old Chapel, which is now a holiday let and school next door. 
It's a great walk for anyone and especially for those people who also like a bit of history.

Hugo:  just tried something and I hope you won't mind:  I've added  a link to the Google Maps database so that folk can see - geographically - the excellent walks you describe.

[Hugo]

Cwm Ystradllyn walk

[Hugo]

Cwm Ystradllyn walk

[Gwynant]

             Nice walk and photos Hugo. That area and the neighbouring Cwm Pennant perfectly represent the words of the old welsh shepherd, "Oh Lord, why did you make Cwm Pennant so beautiful, and the life of a shepherd so short?"
            We had a short walk over from Conwy over to Penmaenmawr yesterday, taking in the top of Foel Lus and the Jubilee Path. We started from Cadnant Park, Conwy, and took the Mynydd Dref path up over to Pensychnant, passing some totally unconcerned Carneddau ponies on the path, (see attached photos, also note the tower sticking out of the trees situated directly below Conwy Castle in the 1st photo, which I have never noticed before), and then made our way up past the isolated Penfforddgoch Cottage on our way up to the bridge over the Afon Gyrach where we had our buttie break. While we were sat there a group of mountain bikers (fully kitted out) carried their bikes across the bridge and continued up towards Tal-y-Fan, still carrying their bikes on their backs.
           We then carried on up the other side of the valley to the track and passed the memorial stone to Huw Twm situated high above Pen and continued up to the top of Foel Lus, passing a grave with a poignant inscription which must be the resting place of a much loved and missed pet which I spotted in the heather well off the beaten track. The views from the top were beautiful in all directions and there wasn't a breath of wind. Finally we set off down towards Dwygyfylchi and then took the Jubilee Path back around Foel Lus and then down to Pen for a coffee and the bus back to Llandudno.
             

[Gwynant]

                More Foel Lus photos.

[Hugo]

That's a nice walk and quite long too  Gwynant and the views make you realise how lucky we are to be living in such a beautiful area. 
I've treated myself to a Garmin e-trex 10 GPS just to get more info about walks I do but haven't been able to work it out        I'll have to get lessons from Jack as he's got one and knows how to use it.   

[hollins]

Mr Hollins managed his first 3 mile walk in Norfolk last week after the ankle injury. Mind you he was limping badly at the end of it. I thought I would put some photos of it on here because the landscape is in such contrast to ours over here.
Anyway it was a nice flat walk across the marshes from the hotel to the beach and back with lots of wildlife and flowers to enjoy on the way.