SNOWDON MOUNTAIN RAILWAY
by Super Train Station H

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Since 1896,
Snowdon's Mountain Railway
let people climb the tallest mountain in Wales
the easy way.

Don't let your feet feel attacked,
Swiss-engineered double-bladed rack has got your back,
designed by a clever fellow named Roman Abt,
a well-learned man who was apt for the job,
his rack and pinion system uses out-of-phase teeth
attached to a cog,
now matter how steep it gets,
the little trains keep chugging on.

The outer wheels spin freely,
adhesion is an afterthought,
cause the one-in-five climb
means that movement is the cog's job.

Snowdon's is the only Abt System line
with a guard mounted to the rack.
And every inch of the track
at the start of each day, they inspect,
due to the opening day disaster history will not forget.

Engine Number 1,
named "L-A-D-A-S",
abbreviated nomenclature,
suited the engine's size best.

The full name had too much width,
so only the first letters we mention,
cause "Laura Alice Duff Assheton Smith"
wouldn't fit on the engine.

Some say the mountain spirits were out revenging,
putting human handiwork in spontaneous suspension.
Engine 1's cog became detached from the rack,
and the out-of-control train
rattled down the mountain track.

The locomotive crew jumped,
and the conductor put on the coach brakes.
The coaches held fast,
but the engine derailed,
and broke fast -
fell down the mountain
and against the rocks it was smashed.

The crew and passengers lived,
save for one man who panicked,
he jumped for his life,
but met with a fate sober and tragic.

The poor man went on holiday
to see the mechanical marvel,
and was laid to rest
beneath a monument of marble.

For his sake,
the Board of Trade
turned a new page -
dictated improvements
to put passenger safety center stage.

They added the rack rail guards,
which were mentioned before,
so if the cog comes off,
the train stops in place,
and moves no more.

And they inspect the track each day
before a single passenger rides,
perfect visitor safety since the 1890's is a good run -
obey the safety instructions, enjoy the view, and have fun.

Trains are made up of an engine
and just one coach,
which the engines push -
seeing the engine at the rear
is a unique mountain railway look.

The engines from the 1890`s are numbered 1 through 5,
Number 1 didn't last long,
but the rest of them all survived.

Engines 6, 7 and 8, came in the 1920's,
their super-heated boilers
made more steam for the money.

Snowdon's steam engines all look rather funny,
the cylinders are mounted backwards,
in a design that's quite cunning,
to send the strength to the cog wheels,
and get the trains upward running.

The boilers that change water
into steam are special too,
designed with a downward lean,
so water stays level across the tubes.

Those tubes
carry the hot gas
from the coal fire

through the boiler,
so that the creation of hot steam
is inspired.

The steam flows into the cylinders,
which move the rods,
linked to the cog wheels -
and gets the passengers to the top
with comfort
and high appeal.

The steamers left running in the 2020's
are Numbers 2 through 6,
though some of them are on the sidelines,
cause old engines sometimes get sick.

Of the later batch of engines,
the last operating is Number 6,
perhaps being thirty years younger,
after a century
ain't an advantage.

Diesel locomotives came around in the 80's and 90's,
if the Victorians had diesels,
they would have used them,
so I don't mind them.

They have uncovered Rolls Royce engines,
so you can look at em,
and hear them whir,
and they have big crank rods on the sides of the wheels
that you can watch turn.

Bio-diesel locomotives are a new 2020`s thing,
an Earth-friendly solution that would make Greta Thunberg sing,
and the locomotives have one feature that's extra amazing:
a mini-coach can be attached to the front
for extra rider placement-
making them the only locomotives
running in any nation,
that include on-board
public passenger accommodation.

The steam and diesel locos have their own sets of coaches,
whichever type of train you choose,
you can get the most of the mountain road.

I've said more than enough,
to learn more,
research on your own -
look up "Snowdon Mountain Railway",
and book your trip by telephone.

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Thanks for reading!


PHOTO CREDIT:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/thean.....rit/284949037/

ART CREDIT:
https://www.furaffinity.net/user/keetahspacecat/

SNOWDON MOUNTAIN RAILWAY OFFICIAL WEBSITE:
https://snowdonrailway.co.uk/