Category: Community Groups

Llandegfedd Reservoir

Llandegfedd Reservoir

Llandegfedd lake is a large reservoir, constructed in the early 1960s by Cardiff Corporation to provide drinking water to the rapidly growing city. It is now owned by Welsh Water and the lake is a haven for birds, wildlife, walkers and water sport enthusiasts. It is a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because of its value to overwintering wildfowl. The longer walks around the lake are only open between March and September, though there are short walks of 1 mile or so available all year. Other activities include archery, clay shooting and a recently added mini golf course.

We started at the large carpark at the reservoir. We walked away from the lake, our route going south to Llandegfedd village before heading generally north, but to the east of our outward route, to return to the lake near Coed y Paen.

As we crossed the dam, several skeins of Canada geese came flying to the reservoir. We saw three groups of at least 30 geese each time, causing us to stop and admire them.

We headed into the woods above the pumping station and started climbing. The paths were in a poor state of repair but…at least it was dry so we could walk them. In wet weather it would have been difficult.

We walked through a brown carpet of autumn leaves, dotted in places with the bright green of fallen apples, and across wide open fields. On reaching a stream, crossing it proved impossible, so we took an alternative path along the stream. We found a herd of cows standing along the bank, as if trying to reach the water, even though the bank was too steep. Yet not far away there was easy access – what were they playing at? A sign warned us that a bridge was unusable, but we decided to take a chance on being able to cross the stream.

Soon we arrived at a very tidy Walnut Tree farm; a large area of grass in front of the house had statues of deer and a flock of pheasants, some taking to the air as we approached. Our path took us into a field where a large ram wore a bag of dye strapped to his front to mark any ewes he serviced. And there ahead of us was a brand new sturdy bridge which looked like it had only just been completed. Excellent!

Walking through a wood some white fungi, growing on the limb of a tree, glowed in the dim light.

We passed through Llandegfedd village and the Farmers Arms pub. A little further and we met cattle bunched together in a well-trodden field, next to which there was a huge tank of slurry with its ‘delicious’ smell and a couple of silage clamps. We walked through there quickly.

We entered a path which had road signs at the beginning – clearway, 30mph limit, beware cattle and another warning ‘Unsuitable for Access’. Well, it started as a green lane! And soon deteriorated into a gully, all the soil having been washed away so there was only rock at the bottom with steep sides which were 4ft high in places, with, of course, the autumnal growth of nettles and brambles. We emerged near a large cattleshed, the last person being about 15 minutes behind the leaders – that’s how difficult it was.

We found a spot to eat our lunch after this exciting episode; and decided to give the next hill a miss, taking a level route back to Llandegfedd reservoir and adding about a mile to the walk.

At The Forest, I was surprised to see eucalyptus trees growing. We spotted signs for Coed y Paen and Prescoed prison (a category C prison for vulnerable prisoners which has been a Borstal in the past). We also saw a healthy-looking herd of pedigree Holstein cows belonged to Cilwrgi farm, part of the prison. They also have a sawmill, woodlands and workshops and there was a sign for an SSSI on their land.

Entering a field, we found a lone ‘mad’ cow, running towards us like a bucking bronco, getting close and then staring hard with wild eyes. We waved our walking poles to get it to move away – it ran across the whole field before turning to come back but we had hurried on and exited the field. Why was it by itself and what was wrong with it? And no, it was not a bull!

A short walk along a wooded lane brought us back to Llandegfedd lake, and we were soon supping drinks at the Visitor Centre café.

We have done this walk in the past with no problems but some footpaths were not maintained. In the Vale of Glamorgan, we are fortunate that the Walk and Clear volunteers from Valeways work hard to keep footpaths open. Thank you to all the Valeways volunteers. Walk 7 miles, 1100ft. Map 152.

 

 

A Community Energy Scheme?

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Is it time for a Community Energy Scheme?

The coverage of COP26 and the need to replace fossil fuel based energy generation, coupled with the potential insecurity and dramatic cost rise of our energy supply is a source of concern. We are reaching for our warm sweaters, turning down the thermostat, not leaving the TV on standby etc etc. But is it time to consider an increasingly popular option? Is it time for a Community Energy Scheme for Wenvoe?

What is a Community Energy Scheme? In essence Community Energy Schemes are about community led, and importantly community controlled, renewable energy production, energy efficiency schemes or energy purchase schemes. They can be wholly community owned or with commercial or public sector partners or can act as a trusted intermediary to ensure community interests are considered by commercial generators. The movement is growing in Wales which has more Community Energy schemes per head of population than other parts of the UK. Some of them have been around for over 20 years and have learnt some of the tricks of the trade the hard way but all are willing to share their experiences in order to advance the sector. The sector is supported by Community Energy Wales (CEW) and a look at its map of members will show you wind, solar and hydro generation schemes alongside insulation schemes, provision of charging points, a biomass project that heats a community swimming pool and plans for schemes using heat pumps.

How are they funded? Largely they are run as businesses with a variety of different models; co-operatives, community interest organisations, Ltd companies etc. Investors get a reasonable return on their money but no share of the profit which is used for community benefit and often applied to other environmentally friendly or energy efficiency projects. In common with charities, Directors are usually volunteers. Community members are able to purchase energy at a reliable and often lower price

What other benefits are there? In its State of the Sector 2021 report published earlier this year CEW cites the following benefits:-

  • A major practical contribution towards achieving zero carbon emissions
  • Involved, energy aware community members are ready to make the behaviour changes necessary to combat climate change
  • New jobs and local investment
  • Other community driven projects utilising the surpluses that would normally go to shareholders

 

So what might a scheme for Wenvoe look like? Council buildings and many more houses with solar panels or heat pumps; a way of capturing hydro energy from the water that pours down from the woodland when it rains; a Wind turbine up on the hill… who knows, the community decides based on practical feasibility.

One thing is certain however, the magic ingredient of any successful scheme is a handful of people who are prepared to give some time to get things going. If you are one of those people, let’s make it happen, please get in touch gwenfo.forum@gmail.com.

Recent Forum Activity

We are still pursuing the monitoring of air pollution in the village and encouraging drivers not to leave engines idling.

We submitted our response to the WG 20mph zones scheme. This is due for implementation in 2023 and there will be further consultation about local issues.

We attended a Road Safety meeting hosted by Jane Hutt SM and attended by other rural Vale communities, Vale of Glamorgan officers and Councillors, South Wales Police and Lee Waters, Deputy Minister for Climate Change. Other communities shared proven examples of schemes that improve safety, reduce pollution and encouraging active travel.

We have an exploratory meeting with Community Energy Wales planned and a request from the Vale officer in charge of Project Zero to meet with us for an update..

An information pack to welcome newcomers to the village is nearly ready which includes the list of local providers which can be found on our Blog site.

We will be responding to the Vale of Glamorgan consultation on plans to improve the play area at the Grange. You can respond too. blog https://wenvoeforum.wordpress.com/ .

New members welcome, meetings on Zoom 2nd Thursday each month 7pm. Comment or Contact us on :-Facebook: Gwen Fo @ https://www.facebook.com/gwen.fo.1/ and Wenvoe Forum @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/635369267864402 twitter @ForumGwenfo or e-mail us on gwenfo.forum@gmail.com.

 

 

The Bell in the Lake’ by Lars Mytting

.  The Bell in the Lake’ by Lars Mytting

Norway, 1880. Winter is hard in Butangen. The lake has frozen, and the ground is too hard to bury the dead. Astrid Hekne dreams of a life beyond marriage and children, and working to the end of her days. Then Pastor Kai Schweigaard takes over the small parish, with its 700-year-old stave church. The two bells in the tower are said to hold supernatural powers.

It is rare that a book receives similar praise from a diverse group of people reading it. An average score of 9.5! Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the book praising the translation, the research, descriptions of the landscape and the cold, the incredible detail of the stave church, and the characters. There was an incorporation of myth and folklore but the story still remained believable with descriptions of the hardships of farming and the long dark winters. Some of the group had been fortunate enough to visit Norway and to see stave churches, of which few remain, and for them the book was evocative and brought back memories of Norway.

The ending felt slightly rushed but as this is the first of a trilogy, this was perhaps as an introduction of what is still to come.

Many thanks to our host for delicious tea and cakes!

 

 

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

 

OFF THE SHELF

This month’s reading was a classic novel written in 1852. Uncle Tom’s Cabin written by Harriet Beecher Stowe was the best-selling novel and the second best-selling book of the 19th century. One million copies were sold in Great Britain alone.

The emotive story features Uncle Tom, as a long-suffering black slave around whom the stories of other characters revolve.

Reading the novel more than a century and a half after it was written gave us mixed feelings. On the one hand, the brutal reality experienced by many slaves at that time was hard to digest. The racist language which represented the attitudes expressed by slave-owners of the period was difficult to read. On the other hand, we felt that the novel was over-sentimental in its depiction of slaves as being able to endure any form of hardship and mistreatment if only they had the Christian belief in a heavenly reward for their suffering.

Beecher Stowe was herself a fervent Christian and an anti-slavery activist. Her powerful novel was influential in aiding the abolitionist cause. It was also instrumental in stereotyping black people of the time as simple child-like, faithful creatures, eager to serve a good master.

Nevertheless, we considered the book a good if uncomfortable read, giving us a brutal insight to our shameful past. It was a particularly pertinent read in October’s Black History Month. We gave the book a score of 7.5/10

 

 

The Icehouse & Chepstow Racecourse

To the Icehouse

A larger group has walked a couple of times this month, though these events haven’t been advertised in What’s On as we are not ready to open the group to all comers yet. Bert and Gwyn Bates are doing a sterling job of offering local walks, once a month, mid-week.

Our first walk started at the Village Hall, went through the tunnel in Vennwood Close and across fields to Wrinstone farm. We passed through the woods to the Michaelston-le-Pit track and after entering Michaelston took a path heading east, again over fields to pass some rather nice houses. The last stretch of this path has been closed over the summer while a huge wall is constructed next to one of these houses and there were 3 foreign workers, still labouring as we passed. Arriving at the road we crossed to view the Icehouse, with boards across it to stop anyone falling in. We came back by turning left down the road past the houses and through a field which must have been a glorious meadow in the summer. There were beehives standing at the back of it. A brief walk across fields to the Michaelston road and we returned to the village via Salmon’s Leap.

We retired to the garden of a couple in the group and had a picnic in glorious sunshine. It was wonderful to be together again and have a good natter with cake. Walk 6 miles.

 

 

Around Chepstow Racecourse

We parked in Chepstow Leisure Centre, with the intention of doing a circuit of the racecourse and headed out to the road where we saw what felt like hundreds of people striding out on a sponsored Macmillan walk. It seemed that their route was to and from the racecourse (no doubt longer than ours).

We set off through a housing estate and along a busy road. We passed a tiled plaque describing Llangynfarch, St Kynemark. Augustinian canons established a small medieval priory here in the 13th century. The name derives from a Welsh Prince Cynfarth whose 7th century church was near here. The Augustinians led a quasi-monastic life without the rigours of strict discipline. Their church was dedicated to St John the Baptist. Excavations in the early 60s found traces of the Priory’s 13th and 14th century buildings.

On entering woodland, we saw lime kilns and signs explaining that they were felling ash trees. Beech trees were in abundance and a lone willow stood to one side with a stretch of Himalayan balsam, whose seeds are said to be edible and a bit like capers. The tree-lined drive to Rossfield farm looked attractive and as we walked past the house, we decided there were probably at least 3 residences. The garden had a brilliant tree house complete with a bridge and rope ladder. As we travelled across a field, we spied some Muntjac deer running next to Briers Grove; for some reason they couldn’t find their way back to the wood when we interrupted their grazing.

At Oakfield stud farm they were haymaking, the fields golden brown. The gates at this stud farm are a particular style having an extra piece added to their tops. St Arvans is a pretty village and terraces with names like Squirrel Cottages and The Row. A Victorian drinking fountain, which residents raised £30 to purchase, stands in the centre of the village. A nearby tree was presented to the parish on the Golden Jubilee of the Women’s Institute movement in 1965.

Continuing we found a huge lime tree that was hollow on its northern side. We climbed a hill so that we had excellent views of Chepstow racecourse, the Severn estuary glistening in sunshine, both Severn bridges and England. A good place for lunch.

Entering woodland, we were soon on the Wye valley walk. Lover’s leap gave us our first view of the river Wye and the steep cliffs of Lancaut on the opposite side of the river. This walk along the Wye is delightful, though there are some steep drops (not great for vertigo sufferers). Travelling through woodland we passed standing stones, a cave, a grotto, Piercefield nature reserve, a viewing platform (which didn’t have a view) and the Alcove from which we could see the river Wye steeply below us, Chepstow castle and the Prince of Wales bridge. The grotto was originally lined with crystalline minerals, iron and copper slag and according to an 1816 visitor ‘We found the grotto full of gay ladies and gentlemen’. It was built into the side of an Iron age hillfort.

Arriving back at the car park there is an information board; you could use this to do a short walk along the Wye Valley Walk. The full walk is 136 miles, so we did about 3 of those! Then we headed to Chepstow Garden centre to enjoy tea in the garden.

Walk 6 miles, 500ft. Map OL14

 

 

A Tale for the Time Being

The group met in bright sunshine to discuss ‘A Tale for the Time Being’ by Ruth Ozeki, shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, 2013.

In the wake of the 2011 tsunami, Ruth discovers a Hello Kitty lunchbox washed up on the shore of her beach home in British Columbia. Within it lies a diary that expresses the hopes, heartbreak and dreams of a young girl desperate for someone to understand her. Each turn of the page pulls Ruth deeper into the mystery of Nao’s life, and forever changes her in a way neither could foresee.

The book met with mixed reviews – some people finding it difficult to finish the book as a result of some of the distressing issues raised within it. However, an interesting and general discussion regarding Japanese culture of today and years gone by ensued, comparing this to our own Western values. Generally the book was not considered cheerful and described as complex with many themes – friendship, ecology, Gaia, philosophy. It was, however, considered well written.

Scores varied from an average of 8 by those who had finished it and 4 by those who had not, giving an average of 7.

 

 

Parc Cwm Darran

Parc Cwm Darran

On a fine day at the end of June we travelled to Parc Cwm Darran, north of Bargoed. Even the drive here was interesting as we found ourselves driving across an area which none of us had ever visited before – a vast coal reclamation site. We are so lucky that the industrial sites of our valleys have been redeveloped into wonderful Nature Parks. Parc Cwm Darran was created on the land abandoned when the Ogilvie mine closed in 1975. It now takes some imagination to picture the landscape covered in gantries and pitheads with millions of tonnes of coal waste in huge black mounds. Trees and grass would have struggled to grow in the wasteland created by the coal industry.

Since 1975 most of the coal buildings have been demolished, debris buried, and mineshafts capped. The mounds of waste have been reshaped to blend into the hilltops, the colliery feeder pond is now a reed fringed lake, a pond has been created and trees and grasses have been planted to provide habitats for wildlife. The result looks like a natural landscape and walking through the area makes you realise just how much can be achieved with what industry left behind.

Most importantly for us it has a network of footpaths and parking at the visitor centre we were able to use their facilities before starting our walk. There are several trails recommended from a stroll around the lake(1Km) for those with health challenges, a couple of slightly longer routes (up to 3Km) and cycle trails. For younger visitors there is even an Ogilvie Olympics obstacle course.

Luckily, we had a booklet with a recommended route that would take us up onto the hills for a longer walk. After a short walk along the lake in morning sunshine, we headed into the wooded hills. We had only just started out when we spotted some results of the regeneration, large furry caterpillars, and swathes of orchids in the grass.

We found a large stone entitled ‘Marquis of Bute Stone’ with an engraving ‘The Romans first introduced boundary and road marker posts. Until this time ditches had traditionally been used. The Roman marker stones, such as along the Apian Way leading to Rome, showed the name of the emperor only. The Marquis of Bute boundary stones demarcating land under their control, continued this tradition so that the letters MB are shown.’. In two places, once on the edge of moorland and again at the edge of the country park, we spotted these marker stones which rather grandly showed a B beneath a stylised crown.

Out in the open, a kite soared overhead, a sight which is always thrilling even though it is becoming more common. The land around us was lush and dotted with groups of trees. We entered an atmospheric stretch of oak woodland where all the tree trunks and branches were gnarled, bent and twisted. Maybe they struggled to grow during the industrial period this land experienced.

We emerged onto extensive moorland where we could see the outline of Pen y Fan and its accompanying hills in the far distance. We decided to break for lunch while we had sunshine and such good views.

Continuing, we spotted some strange structures at the top of the ridge, which looked like a 1970’s idea of a spaceship. According to a passer-by (one of the few people we saw all day) they are listening stations. Now we had a wide track to walk along and were surrounded by hundreds of sheep. The farmer drove towards us on his tractor, we stepped off the track and he had soon disappeared in a cloud of dust. Some sheep grazed next to a pond, and we noted the murky waters.

We skirted the Fochriw forest with its tall bare trunked fir trees and tumbledown stone walls and came back towards the country park. A long wooden sign at Cwmllwydrew Meadows Nature Reserve depicted a goods train with a tree branch covered with leaves as an engine.

Returning to the lake we saw plenty of waterfowl and yellow water lilies.

In medieval France, the yellow water lily was described as ‘the destroyer of pleasure and the poison of love’, the opposite to an aphrodisiac. Stonemasons carved flowers of the water lily into the roof bosses of Westminster Abbey to encourage celibacy.

Arriving back at the visitor centre we quickly changed out of our boots and sat in the shade enjoying tea and ice-creams whilst cooling down. By the time we left it was school chuck out time and the roads through the valleys were chock-a-block with parents trying to collect children. Avoiding the industrial route, we came by and the narrow valley roads with cars parked both sides some of us enjoyed a picturesque drive along a narrow mountain top road to pick up the main road to Cardiff, which rounded off the day nicely. Walk 7 miles, 800ft. Map 166

 

 

A Child In The Forest

We discussed ‘A child in the forest’ by Winifred Foley (no longer in print, but available as an audio book or second hand). The book was originally written for broadcasting on ‘Woman’s hour’. It is the autobiography of a young girl, born in 1914, growing up in a mining village in the Forest of Dean. She has a great love for her family, the Forest and her life there, in spite of their poverty ( no electricity, or running water and shortage of food). At the age of 14 she went into service, first in London, then in the Cotswolds and then on a Welsh farm. The working conditions were tough.

For many people in the group, the book provoked childhood reminicences of their own. There were interesting portraits of characters in the village. The descriptions of nature were good but we wanted more details about the forest. The book emphasised a child’s delight in simple things, in contrast to much of modern consumerism. A couple of readers found the vernacular was off putting and thought a glossary would have helped. Several thought the book was ‘not a page turner’ and preferred other autobiographies like ‘Cider with Rosie ‘ .

We all enjoyed the delicious cake and a chance to meet up again without restrictions. Score 7/10

 

 

Sleepwalk on the Severn/The House of Trelawney

OFF THE SHELF

Several members were away in July and so we discussed two books at our August Meeting.

Sleepwalk on the Severn by Alice Oswald

Oswald is a contemporary award-winning poet, and this was our first venture into poetry.

The slim volume is one long poem set at night on the Severn Estuary. It describes the effect of moonrise on people, water, and voices during the five phases of the moon. Characters and events based on real people talk towards the moment of moonrise and are changed by it. The moon is personified as she keeps watch over the estuary and the writing paints beautiful dreamlike pictures of the landscape

Poetry is not everyone’s ‘cup of tea’, so some members of the group were more enthusiastic than others. Overall, we gave it a score of 8/20.

The House of Trelawney by Hannah Rothschild

We all agreed that this was a good summer read. It is a comic satire on the English Aristocracy and their estates over time. There is the history of the long dead ancestors who founded and added bit by bit to the house and its surroundings. Then there is the quandary of their modern descendants left with the crumbling, dilapidated castle, a shadow of its former glory. The variety of characters of different generations are well described. The way they ultimately address their dilemma is the final twist in the story. It was a fun read enjoyed by all. We gave it 9/10

 

 

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