On 31 July 1922 the Welsh Highland Railway reopened the former NWNGR (North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways) line from Dinas to South Snowdon (Rhyd Ddu), which closed to passenger trains in 1916. The line through the Porthmadog opened the following year.

To celebrate the century of the Welsh Highland Railway ‘Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways’, ‘Cymdeithas Rheilffordd Eryri’, ‘Welsh Highland Heritage Group’ and the ‘Welsh Highland Heritage Railway’ are holding a series of events to celebrate the occasions.

In this first Centenary event, held 100 years to the day of the reopening of the line to passenger traffic, NWNGR Hunslet 2-6-2T ‘Russell’ returned to Dinas and was turned to face South (as it did in original WHR days) and operated its first solo public passenger journey's on the northern end of the modern day WHR. The locomotive ran with the Welsh Highland Heritage Railway's heritage train, including newly outcropped from Boston Lodge replica Pickering Brake Van 8 between Dinas and Rhyd Ddu.

We start off this video looking at the end of the days event on Sunday 31st July, when Russell ran from Dinas to Porthmadog with a "ECS" working to return to the WHHR, with the train seen leaving Dinas, Betws Garmon, Rhyd Ddu, Aberglasyn Pass and Pont Croesor. The event was focused at Dinas, with exhibitions including a 16mm model layout in the former WHR Goods Shed, where a Beer Festival was also held. National Trust owned Quarry Hunslet 'Hugh Napier' (and Lynton & Barnstaple 'Lyd' on the Saturday), offering steam locomotive footplate rides in the bay platform. NGG16 No. 87 operating Dinas to Caernarfon shuttles.

A second Dinas to Rhyd Ddu train was operating by Ffestiniog Railway George England 0-4-0ST+T No. 4 Palmerston, which worked on the WHR for many periods including in NWNGR days when it was used on construction duties out of Dinas in 1876.