Little Storping-in-the-Swuff

…of The Guardian’s Top 200 Pubs and Those I’ve Been To Is 5.

Each of those I’ve been to is thoroughly deserving of its place, though I’d suggest there are a few omissions (even though I can’t authoritatively say the 195 pubs I haven’t been to aren’t better). Scotland and Wales seem a little under-represented, too.

I’ve been reading about this all week, but before I got round to blogging it the Guardian’s been and visited it .  A friend told me they’d linked up the Welsh Highland Railway and the Ffestiniog, as it used to be, crossing the mainline on the level and running through the streets of Porthmadog.  It’s true: 

 
Though that bit isn’t officially opened yet.

Ffestiniog trains can run from Blaenau Ffestiniog right through to Caernarfon (Welsh Highland trains can’t run through to the Ffestiniog though! The loading gauge is bigger on the WHR). That’s a run of 40 miles.

This history of the project is extraordinary, and actually encompasses two railway companies. The relaying of the line was bizarrely driven by the Ffestiniog’s attempts to block it. The politics and business arrangements are so complex I think I’m going to have to read several books on it.

The section from Dinas to Caernarfon, which has been open for 12 years, wasn’t actually part of the WHR. It used to be standard gauge, though originally Parliament approved a WHR extension on the route that was never built. There’s a nice symmetry to this, because the full length route is truncated at the Ffestiniog end, where the old Ffestiniog and Blaenau Railway route is now standard gauge (standard gauge transporters used to convey the narrow gauge wagons until the closure of the quarries).

Oh yeah, and I’ve realised what’s wrong with my job: unlike Partrick Barkham I don’t get paid for riding narrow gauge trains.

I’m having a little play with Wordpress 2.7’s image handling. Here are some pictures I took today at Sheffield Park Gardens.

Wary though I am after the controversy stirred up last time I had to post a picture of these shetland blacks also from the potato man at the farmers’ market.

I was surpised, when I cut into them, that the blue is just a seam near the surface. Clever camoflage to hide the yellow within… and they are not any where near as tasty as the salad blues.

Eat your heart out, Adrian Mole.

What’s this? Another one?

In just under three weeks Dufftown, a model narrow gauge railway 4mm scale will be exhibited in Brighton. It’s a layout I’ve designed and help build, and it’s not nearly ready, so I thought it would be fun to record the last few weeks of the race against time on a blog. So I will.

I first encountered one when presented with pomme de terre en deux colours with a delicious lunch served in the square in front of an excellent restaurant in Vence. Now I’m happy to find they’re a regular feature of the Lewes Farmers’ Market.

The final episode of Dave Shelton’s current Bergman and McBoo today, alas. Surely there has to be an anthology published soon?

The thing about the iPhone, right, is that it’s got no zoom. And the thing about seals is they’re rather well camouflaged. So this is not a great pic, but see if you can spot about half a dozen adults and a couple of (rather pixelated) pups. Taken yesterday near Wooltack Point, Pembs.

After an unbelievably wet August, two September weekends in a row have provided absolutely stunning Autumn sunshine. Last weekend the conditions would have been perfect for sailing, if there had been any wind.

The photos I took whilst crewing in the Axe Yacht Club’s last river race of 2008 are here on the website for the Axe One Design class. Or at least the photos which feature Axe Ones are (we were sailing a Miracle). Long may this wonderful weather last.