A MILESTONE event will take place for a long-running restoration project in Chirk this weekend.

The volunteers of the Glyn Valley Tramway Trust will host a celebratory weekend with opening the doors to the Chirk Station for the first time in over 88 years.

The event - which will double as a fundraiser for the project - will take place on Saturday and Sunday, July 8 and 9, from 10am until 4pm, on the track next to Chirk’s mainline station.

A spokesperson for GVT said: “We have held three working parties this week with the aim of getting the trackbed as presentable as possible.

“Our main focus has been on the station platform area at Chirk; which has been cleared, weeded and levelled ready for our visitors.”

The Glyn Valley Tramway, which was established in 1873, initially relied on animal power during its first 15 years of operation.

Horse-drawn trains transported passengers up the valley from Pontfaen, while goods trains travelled in the opposite direction, descending from Glyn Ceiriog through gravity, carefully controlled by a skilled brakesman.

By the 1930’s the quarries were closing or turning to road transport, and that’s when the decline and closure began, ending in 1935.

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“We're very much looking forward to seeing it return in time for our planned open weekend for our 150th anniversary in July,” added the spokesperson.

The event is set to commemorate the opening of the GVT, all the hard work done by the volunteers and will also act as a fundraiser for the continuation of the project on the line.

The event will be free, and visitors will be able to see the horse-drawn wagons, miniature railway and classic cars.

Donations made on entry will receive a wristband for unlimited train rides and access to the bus shuttle.

The money raised will go to the GVT Trust and The New Glyn Valley Tramway and Industrial Heritage Trust.