The Abandoned Steam Locomotive left on the side of a Mountain

[@Arkay315]

Next episode- lawrie raises money to save the engine and have it restored.

[@alanclarke4646]

I'm in.

[@Tankdestryer1]

let's do it!

[@steamtrainguy-365]

yesssssssssss

[@wesless1111]

Empty your wallets fellas

[@rubenskiii]

Wahahahahaha

[@TheHatMusic]

Hidden on the side of that mountain is an entire abandoned village, with an old school house, several cottages and a load of rose bushes which have pretty much become trees. It's a spectacular place.

[@drewbarker8504]

Those kind of sites are like a window into the past. So cool to see what’s left and comparing it to existing photos. It’s like casual archeology

[@nicowolters8959]

Here in Germany we have a piece of an railyard, which has only abandoned steam engines on it. It is in Falkenberg/Elster, just behind a Roundhouse. There are 4 Track with about 34 abandoned Steam engines on it. There are also two Rail-Cranes and a bunch of wagons, but mainly steam engines. There are some restored engines in the roundhouse. But none of them Runs

[@builderbob58]

51°35'29"N 13°14'40"E I think

[@nicowolters8959]

@@builderbob58 no its 51°35'05.2"N 13°16'12.8"E

[@martinkaye1801]

You were very lucky with the weather. The drone shots were amazing. You're blessed to be able to get the views with the drone that others can't see. Thankyou

[@danblanchflower5139]

I admire those who built and quarried often in such harsh weather. Thank You

[@sovietspybob]

My great grandfather worked there, I'm lucky enough to have the gold watch he got from the quarry as his retirement gift. I grew up on the village on the other side so have spent a lot of time up there and it is truly amazing. For anyone else I'd say it's a lot easier to start from the other side and then go down to the engine from the Llanfairfechan side rather than up from the Penmaenmawr side.

[@jjock3239]

As soon as I can learn the spelling, I am going there. :-) What a fantastic view.

[@BillyGraves-s4h]

Lawrie please do more things like this especially in Wales and england

[@RalphFreeman-ok5of]

I love it when people climb steep hills and fly drones from the top. I'm old now and just watching makes me tired. Thanks again L for your effort expended 😊

[@PacoOtis]

From here in the States we thank you for sharing this excellently produced video and wish you the best of luck!

[@joelightrailway2362]

Lawrie on a mission to find a steam locomotive up in the mountains. This reminds me of Duke the Lost Engine vibes this does.

[@greghilton7797]

That was truly good. Thank you for taking us along. I agree with Billy Graves 'please do more things like this.' Cheers

[@fritz46]

I found it (53.26400407902326, -3.9498534205224503). Now I just need a big helicopter, lots of money, someone to restore it, a 3 ft gauge garden railway to run it on, and a garden big enough for a 3 ft gauge railway.

[@pietersnackaert]

who's setting up the fundraiser for Lawrie?

[@Ragnar8504]

More like "building a new loco using some original parts" I'm afraid.

[@strike9716]

Less a garden more of a forest at that point really

[@retrogamelover2012]

Or, if not that, I can imagine the Corris or Talyllyn railways being good places to re-gauge the engine.

[@Dumbrarere]

Send it to the Colorado Railroad Museum. They have a 3ft gauge garden railway that can service it. :)

[@FlyingForFunTrecanair]

I saw that 30 years ago. Didn't bother walking; flew through the quarry in a Dragon Rapide and could easily see the De Winton!

[@jbhtrams]

We (the Bala lot) had to climb up the inclines at Dinorwic. Struggling, but amazed by the sheep and lambs bouncing over walls, barbed wire, etc and us still struggling!!! I still have a poker I found in a shed where 'Maid Marian' once lived!

[@colinlothlorian]

I visited nearly 50 years ago, we were able to drive to the top and scramble down the incline and take photos of Penmaen in it's shed. I remember putting my hand through a manhole into the boiler and the tubes crumbling when I touched them. I was a lot fitter in those far off days!. We also visited the Ruston diesel in it's engine shed on the interchange sidings, all now buried under the A55.

[@sablatnic8030]

Ferns, digitalis, and a stunning view, what is not to like, apart from the gradient!

[@chrisattwood8701]

I used to run that place, penmaenmawr quarry. There used to be 2 separate quarries which both had their own jetties out to sea. Now there's only a rail loading facility and road to get the stone out. The majority of the infrastructure was taken out when the A55 was built

[@daleeasternbrat816]

I Really Enjoyed this! I'm a Diesel Generator Man. Old steam engines and electrical stuff has been at the top of my list since I was little. Britain has some of the Best! Thank you, sir. New subscription. . From The Sunshine State!

[@edwardbull3045]

Went up to see this back in August. Got down to the loco and all. A fantastic trip and the loco remains as a lovely reminder of the quarry and will hopefully never be moved.

[@larx4074]

Good one Laurie, but the schlepp up the mountain is easier from the other side........ A terrific location indeed and there are lots of railway remains to intrigue and fascinate. The line from Penmaen Mill around the mountain on the sea side to West Quarry must be one of the most spectacular railways in the country, it's still walkable, but unfortunately, I have never seen any photos of a train on this line. Also, underneath all of that heather, most of the railway track is still in situ. First went up there over 40 years ago, must go again soon.

[@Dhira108]

It's so nice to see you document such a significant train from our industrial heritage I'm also very impressed by the climb, definitely got your steps in

[@adriaanboogaard8571]

I love the show. I'm always looking for old grades and structures. One leads to another. I would be like a kid in a candy shop.

[@denniseldridge2936]

Wow, such a well presented exploration! I'm keenly interested in this sort of historic location, and I was flabbergasted to see that steam engine - from 1871(!). The fact that it was still in use in the early 1940s is amazing as well. I'd dearly love to know more about the history of this location.

[@rodsmith3911]

What luck to get such a good day to explore Penmaenmawr quarry. It has supplied ballast for the railways for many years and also shipped stone out from a pier near the station. I haven't visited since the new A55 road was put in but in my childhood days there were similar "coffee pot" locos on the tracks to the pier. Penmaenmawr means the great stone headland as a rough translation. As you surmise it was a very bleak mountain to be at work on in bad weather. A beautiful place when it's nice and I remember many great summer hikes in the surrounding area all of which in memory at least were on sunny days! It was once a very busy place with little trains scuttling to and fro, bringing the hard won granite down to the pier and the coast rail line. Distant relatives worked there but sadly they are long since passed. I only wish I had asked more questions as a boy, as I know little about the quarries other than exploring about 70 years ago when there were a lot more remains than today. A quarryman's life was hard and often short, due to accidents and the dreaded dust in the lungs. How they climbed up the paths to work and home after a long shift amazes me. They were a hard bunch of guys! Thanks for the memories this video brought back to mind. Sad to see how little is left of the loco today but it's still there, and thanks to you I've enjoyed a walk up the mountain again, a place where we probably should not have been and were in danger when we climbed up years ago due to the quarries, blasting, and hazards of falling down the mountain sides.

[@Mickhanic-garage]

Fantasic quality video, footage and production is great! Stunning scenery and what a huge site slowly returning to nature..

[@deanedeane4318]

What a wonderful adventure ! Awe inspiring all right ! Thankyou for taking us along ! 😉🙃😎😉

[@citricamoeba]

Oh wow! Amazing views and what a spectacular story behind that engine!

[@HowardLeVert]

Hey, if people can rebuild a Spitfire from a single original bolt... and 3' gauge would be ideal for the Southwold Railway projects.

[@TheHypnotstCollector]

These narrow gauge engines are scattered here and there in the Santa Cruz Mtns of Californi'. As well as the old China Camps. One we found were 10 feet+ diameter redwoods, hollowed out... a good 100sqft. c. 1968. We called it Hobbit Land. On La Honda Road, maybe half way up. Have fun dear reader. It wouldn't surprise me if everything in that ravine is a condominium.

[@epicstormchaserswf]

From what I've found, *Penmaen* was cannibalized for the Alan Keef Locomotive "Taffy" who is a 2' locomotive replicating DeWinton Locomotives built in the 90s. Although I am certain she will never run again I would love to hear about this engine getting rescued and put on display somewhere, cosmetic restored or behind glass.

[@xinlu2806]

I imagine the engine must be looking out towards the sea, and enjoying its final rest after a long productive live, like grandparents watch their grandchildren. I believe it should stay there, taking it away would break this peaceful scene and rebuilding it would be almost like building a new locomotive, with how little of it is left.

[@ryano.5149]

It would be cheaper to build a replica from scratch. I believe the Ffestiniog/Welsh Highland Railway has experience with that sort of thing.

[@RunawayTrain2502]

@@ryano.5149 I think the WHR has a DeWinton.

[@adriaanboogaard8571]

It would be great to do more on this place after researching some old photos history or the works and the people that worked their. Great stuff.

[@mildertduck]

I somehow managed to miss this video when it first came out, but this is awesome, and one of your best.

[@MishaDaBear]

Local to me mine buildings are all soft Wallace sandstone and tends to suffer from becoming just a pile of wood and sand so all that survives is old mine rails and rusty steel tools, Thanks for sharing.

[@sodor_dan-da-man]

Fantastic. You were not too far from me in Colwyn bay. Could of popped in for a brew. Penmaenmawr lovely place. There's another abandoned multi level rail system on the Conwy side of the tunnel

[@retrogamelover2012]

I was wondering where this was. Actually rented out a bungalow for the holidays there.

[@HowardLeVert]

Fat lad from the Fens here being reminded of the time he walked up to the top of Lycabettus in Athens in 30+ degree heat. After lunch. I did however jump on the funicular when I got the chance...

[@derekp2674]

Really awesome, thanks Lawrie and Charles.

[@Plymouthstation1985]

Wow that’s incredible thank you for bring this to us lawrie credit to you climbing all that way up and back down again

[@jbhtrams]

A gang of volunteers from Bala Lake Railway went up Dinorwic Quarry in the mid 1990s. It was blowing a gale and raining sideways, but we got to the third level from the top and came back with a few spares for the railway; only bits and pieces, but from where domevof our locos worked!!!

[@alank2296]

Great video Lawrie, thanks for posting ....

[@SAM-zt2uy]

You picked a great day for it! I went a couple of years ago and was racing from the top down to see her and get back to the car before it rained as I’m sure you will testify there’s no way you would want to be tackling those inclines in the wet.

[@CR-rb5hl]

Thank you for sharing this adventure. It was quite beautiful to see. Hope to see the UK some day.

[@billlewis5425]

I came across this video story quite by accident. When "an old steam engine" was mentioned, I was curious. Glad I stayed with it to the end. I have shot & viewed years of video stories. Few mini-travel (b)logs captivate the imagination and curiosity that this one did for me. Your shooting technique, mixed with your casual style voice-over placed me into the story at every turn. Especially when the drone took over where you & your camera could not go. The views were magnificent. My highest compliment though, go to the creative script writing used during the absolutely breathtaking closing few minutes of the drone's wide angle scenic shots. An incredible match of words and images. Congratulations for a job well done. If I could offer a bit of input, it would be to please inform your US viewers where this area is located. If you did so and I missed it, I Apologize. US Navy Combat Photo, Ret..

[@jontaylor6094]

The most easily removed parts were used to restore other deWintons and (I think) construct ‘Taffy’ the new-build at Keef’s.

[@glenkelley6048]

To one fat guy from another, carrying a sturdy walking stick is a great aid in climbing steep and slippery slopes!

[@lauriecooper8194]

Brilliant video Lawrie, most interesting. You were quite brave attempting some of those paths, vertigo is something with which I definitely suffer. I found the location of the loco on satellite view.

[@richardsweeney197]

Thank you, a wonderful story. Thank you for the effort you went through.

[@curlew1000]

Really good. I live below this quarry so this was absolutely fascinating. May thanks for filming this

[@SCronin944]

Loved this style of vid 👍 eddit definitely the most bot interesting and existing vid i have seen on youtube from resent history

[@zippy5131]

A nice view of the A55, how many times I have driven down there and looked up....... and thought 'WOW!'

[@TheEerieMaster]

She's going to rot away, looking at a beautiful view in the same place she called home... Something wonderfully morbid and melancholic about that

[@TrainMann]

Oh, hullo Penmaen! What a nice surprise to see you with Lawrie!

[@keithshergold9257]

Brilliant video. I really enjoyed the soaring vistas and ruins.

[@iforwilliams2509]

There is a similar engine to this in Caernarfon, home of De Winton. You may be aware of it.

[@vectorbrony3473]

De Winton's are a less known chapter of the quarries. They took over from the horses in the quarry and were a vertical boiler with the pistons bolted onto the side of the boiler. This meant they didn't have any springs and were prone to derailment on rough track. They were easy to light up and get steam due to the vertical boiler design and were a vast improvement to the horse. Then the Hunslet engine company came along with their famous quarry Hunslet to take over but they were pricy and gave the De winton a few more years. I think five or six still exist with Chaloner being the better known on the Leighton Buzzard Light Railway

[@derekp2674]

Ex-Penrhyn George Henry is preserved as a static exhibit at Tywyn and ex-Penmaenmawr Llanfair is at the Welsh Highland Railway.

[@Hercules4277]

For the UK, that really is beautiful!

[@gregculverwell]

All very nice, but for someone not from the UK a bit frustrating. Where is this? What are they mining etc.

[@rogerwilliams2902]

Brilliant video !. They were tough bastards in those days without a doubt, god knows how they managed it !. Ive nothing but admiration for them.

[@jamessmith7691]

Great video guys.

[@martinsims1273]

Absolutely freaking amazing. 😮 :-) :-) :-)

[@jeremyashford2145]

That was a fun walk.

[@BecsterDotCom]

Took me far too long to realise where you were! Thats a bloody impressive climb! Never realised how high it is there. Not that I’ve been up there but travel under often. 13:00 I assume it’s an old adit? What I love about the modern operation is that they use the railway to transport stuff from the quarry. They’ve built brand new sidings down in Penmaenmawr for the operation. Can you imagine if the quarry closed today and an engine being left to rot? Someone would rescue it in a shot. A part of me feels like she should stay where she is rather than be rescued now. Abandoned quarries are so sad. I always feel a deep sense of loss when I stand in a quarry. All the lost heritage 😢

[@beeble2003]

Looks too small to be an adit, and quarries don't have adits, anyway. I'd guess it's drainage but that's very much a guess.

[@malcolmbarr2267]

Top Notch Effort Matey 👌🤩👍🤩👌

[@Treehat]

That looks awesome!!!

[@NathanielKempson]

You should visit Dinorwic, its madness the amount of cool stuff still there.

[@ellesmerewildwood4858]

Getting up there was one thing, finding your way back down again is something else altogether. Sure was worth the effort getting up there though.

[@edpetrocelli2633]

This place is beautiful where in the world is it?

[@johnanthony4194]

absolutely fascinating. But I think the quarry was still working in 1944 when I was holiday from Manchester in Penmaenmawr. I remember that every evening there were loud bangs, which frightened me. Presumably evening blasting to loosen rock for next days working. I also have vague memories of a ship on a pier out from the beach, presumably collecting the stone from the quarry.

[@jarthurs]

Driven under there on the A55 on many occasions and looked up at those abandoned workings.

[@MrOlgrumpy]

Thanks for sharing,spectacular old workings there,and the quarry it still eating out the core of the mountain. The "hobbit hole" is probably the powder magazine for the original site.

[@marieascot]

I'm new to the channel, excellently researched and filmed.

[@NZHazard]

Lawrie, Go to Dunedin and climb the steepest street in the world (the foot path is a hell of lot of stairs), but many of the older streets in Christchurch around the Port Hills will make even a fat guy (i'm a little heavier than yourself) wish that the roads were a little gentler. Great views, but hell on the knee's.

[@malcolmbarr2267]

Go Kiwi. Wellington has a few good calf-stretching knee-breaking streets as well. If one is an orthopedic surgeon, this would be a good place to set up business.

[@samball6019]

Wow Lawrie This is one of your best videos yet . Such an amazing place with history everywhere you look . What part of the country is this great place ? i would like to find out more about the area on Google.

[@andrewjames1190]

its the penmaenmawr quarry between Penmaen and Llanfairfechan almost right on top of the pen y clip tunnel just about directly south from the bangor road tunnel.

[@rjstandland4459]

Let's save it. Also, the roads incline is as steep or steeper than my driveway.

[@tobes1989]

Should visit Dinorwic quarry, so much to see there.

[@TheNapalmFTW]

There's so many to choose from in North Wales.

[@Parax77]

looks like some of those winding drums would have been for ropeways, as there are no inclines under them. the remaining inclines are still obvious in situ.

[@romancharak3675]

Those must have been brutal working conditions, especially in winter !

[@eggs_trains]

One of my friends told me about this a couple months back, great video

[@b9y]

So cool, where is this?

[@johnbeck3270]

Abandoning heavy equipment isn’t all that rare. Here in Colorado there is abandoned equipment everywhere, from stamp mills to the steam engines that powered them, as well as the pumps that removed the water. I remember what appeared to be a drag line (at least the remnants) near an abandoned strip mine. It was less expensive to leave it behind than move most of it.

[@philhawley1219]

By the time the mines and quarries were worked out the machines were worn out and obsolete too. Not worth the time and effort to remove them. A few miles from where I live there are lead mines from pre-Roman times. Strangely the people back then removed their railway lines and Caterpillar machines. Coal hadn't been invented back then so they had to use dinosaurs for power.

[@beeble2003]

It's somewhat rare in the UK, which is about the same size as Colorado, but has 70 million people in it, rather than 6 million. We don't generally have the space to just leave stuff around.

[@John-yf8qh]

I’ve seen pictures of this in the past and always thought it was the base of a crane rather than an upright-boiler locomotive. Though I suppose cranes on rails were pretty much locos in their own right - just to make me sound a bit less of a dunce :)

[@davidty2006]

guess that depends since alot of dockside cranes were on rails.

[@HowardLeVert]

I'm wondering if the spring-like things with the ceramic insulators attached were starting resistances for the winding house motors?

[@johnmarten4184]

Lawrie couldn't be bothered with these details, but the Penmaenmawr & Welsh Granite Company still operates the quarry, access is now from the land side, using trucks. The locomotive is an 1878 De Winton 040. De Winton was Welsh and specialized in vertical boiler locomotives.

[@lmm]

Pretty much all that information is in the video.

[@wazza33racer]

The stonework of that wall at 2.40 is very impressive.........how has it remainaed stable on that slope for all those years?

[@Insect_Expert1489]

This reminds me of Duke the lost engine but in real life congrats on the discovery!!!!

[@daveyorkvh]

I heard Lawrie popped into RAF Valley to ask for the number of the Chinook Sqn lol

[@petetimbrell3527]

One of the particular joys of looking round old industrial sites are old bits of wood hidden in the grass, and full of old nails. Wear some feckin decent boots. Pulling out a rusty nail that's gone right through your foot is not fun, especially if you've got miles to walk back.

[@earthbaine9803]

see locomotives in like that always makes me feel sad and she could have been prserved and restored even to static dispay long ago yet it never happened i guess we cant save them all as much as we want to

[@MichealRandall-q2x]

Just let it rest there,it’s done it’s work,it’s peaceful apart from the winter

[@sodor_dan-da-man]

Also that road on the active quarry is used and is a quarry for the supply of current railway ballast

[@grahamrumbelow5778]

Never been in a quarry? Sounds like you need to spend a week in the Welsh slate quarries and blag a trip on a Garratt and a Double Fairlie. And the RAF fly Chinooks, not the army!

[@sicks6six]

what a great place to work, away from the city and people, nature abound, winter could be problematic though !

[@myriaddsystems]

Fascinating

[@JacobHipkin-p4r]

Lawrie ,could u do a Lawrie goes loco on a Garratt or a double farlie at the WHR?

[@frankw8772]

I hope you can add a true picture of this’s locomotive what it should look like …..drawing image or a photo of a preserved locomotive

[@lmm]

It's a Dewinton, broadly they all look quite similar.

[@BrokenIET]

As cool as the loco is, I’d possibly think it would be more interesting to dismantle the shed and move it elsewhere. It would also be nice if you got the shed and the loco together, so that the loco could still stay in it’s shed

[@Livinginlanguage]

I think they may well have appreciated that view (to the sea and town below).

[@TheNapalmFTW]

You can see from the air there was an easy path down there, not taking the incline.

[@dannyzee1130]

If you find this interesting you should visit Dinorwic quarry

[@Fedora5957]

Also, what were they mining?