Five at Deganwy

On the way home from our break in Wales we dropped into the little town of Deganwy whilst on our way to RSPB Conwy.

As it is Friday here are five things we learnt about the town whilst we were there.

1.  The town is on the Creuddyn Peninsula at the side of the Conwy Estuary, not far from Llandudno and Rhos-on-Sea with views across to Conwy and out towards Angelsey.

2.  We parked on the station car park.  The trains running on this line are the main line train to Manchester and the smaller Conwy Valley Line which calls at places like Llanrwst, Betws-y-coed and Blaenau Ffestiniog.  Shelters have replaced the original station building which was built in 1866. From about 1876 Deganwy became a popular seaside attraction.

3.  Visitors came off the trains at the station and joined  paddle steamers which ferried them down to the popular spa of Trefriw sailing across the river from Deganwy to Conwy before reaching their destination.

4.  The Edwardian Beach Shelter along the promenade was built in 1904 and was damaged by a a severe storm in 2014.  Local residents set up the Beach Shelter Restoration Team and with help from local councils the Heritage Lottery Fund and HAFOD it was restored in 2017.  The promenade on which the shelter stands is part of the Wales Coastal Path and the National Cycle Network.

5.  One of Deganwy's noted personalities is Commander Harold Lowe who was 5th Officer on board RMS Titanic.  He assisted in launching several lifeboats before taking charge of lifeboat number fourteen.  He collected three other lifeboats and formed a raft, then he returned to the wreckage looking for survivors.  He found four of them and headed back towards RMS Carpathia stopping to help another lifeboat which was in trouble and he towed it to safety.