We are family, get up everyone and sing…Living Life is fun and we’ve only just begun…

Feb. 21, 2013 - PRLog -- The Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway is having a bit of a do and we would like to invite you along.

Come and help us roll back the years at the Lake District’s longest established narrow gauge steam railway and join us as we celebrate the opening of our all new Turntable Café on platform 1 at Ravenglass Station.  

Join us on Monday 18th March, from 11am…with some very special guests.

Our all new café, which serves the freshest local produce in a range of local dishes and specialities, is to be opened by well-known professional foodie and acclaimed Cumbrian food champion; Annette Gibbons OBE.  

Afterwards members of the media are set for a real treat as they are invited to meet two very special guests, both of whom are a little out of the ordinary…they are brother and sister and to boot they are octogenarians

Still none the wiser???

Well let’s set the scene…We all know that there is a certain romance that only steam evokes, that captures the imagination…For over 100 years, steam-trains have been objects of mystery, romance, amazement and awe…

Have you guessed who or what these guests might be yet?

One guest goes by the name of Synolda, the other by the name of Count Louis…all sounds very mysterious and a little regal…

Well I suppose we should ease the suspense - Synolda is the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway's very own Royal Blue Bassett-Lowke locomotive and Count Louis is her twin brother, visiting his sister for this special occasion.

These two pioneering locos are not only going to be reunited for the day, but they are set to mark the opening of the all new Turntable Café and to celebrate Synolda’s 100th birthday…

So this isn’t any old do though; it’s a pretty significant anniversary for the steam stalwart that is Synolda!

There aren’t too many things, machines or people for that matter, that reach this significant milestone. Especially when you consider it’s amazing that Synolda is even celebrating her 100th birthday at all, given that she had to be rescued from a zoo in the late1970s!

But after lots of TLC and hundreds of hours of restoration work she is set to work up a head of steam alongside her brother and help the Railway celebrate her birthday and the opening of the all new Turntable Café in fine style!

We can guarantee that the romance of steam will work its magic…to make this a day to remember!

After meeting the enigmatic Synolda and Count Louis guests will be invited to board a scheduled La’al Ratty service to steam up the line to Dalegarth for an adventure with a difference, one that is bound to capture imaginations…

Jim Walker, Chief Executive of Lake District Estates, the parent company for the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway, said: ‘’We can guarantee on this memorable day our guests will begin a lifelong love affair with steam, captivated by the sights, sounds and smells surrounding them.’’

He added: ‘’Nothing is more evocative, as metal creaks and rattles and the engine begins to power out of the station to begin what is one of Britain’s true great railway from the Lake District coast, to Dalegarth, nestled in the shadow of England’s highest mountains.’’

In the words of Sister Sledge:

We are family, get up everybody and sing

Living life is fun and we've just begun…

So pop along on the 18th March and join our happy throng as we celebrate the opening of the all new Turntable Café at Ravenglass and Synolda’s 100th birthday.