Category: Community Groups

Footsteps To Pontypool

We started from the Pontypool active living centre. Soon we were walking through Pontypool park to climb up to the shell grotto (groto cregyn) and the Folly tower.

It was uphill to the grotto. As we climbed, we had good views of Pontypool behind us. The grotto itself was closed (coronavirus restrictions) but even from the outside it is an unusual building. It was built in 1794 and many improvements were made by Molly, the wife of Caple Hanbury-Leigh in about 1830. The inside is much bigger than the outside suggests. It is circular and built of rough stone with a conical stone tiled roof. The ceiling is vaulted and supported by 6 pillars decorated with stones and shells. The floor is reputed to be deer bones, but closer inspection reveals a mixture of backbones and teeth from a variety of animals. The grotto fell into disrepair at the end of the last century and was painstakingly repaired in 1996 with funds from Cadw and European aid.

This is arguably the first proper mountain spur in Wales. It is certainly a geographical fault line between the prosperous agricultural lands of Monmouthshire and the radical mineral belt of South Wales.

Continuing north along the Cambrian Way we glimpsed the Bristol Channel glistening in sunlight and the hills around us. Arriving at the Folly tower, we had an early lunch. The 230-year-old tower was rebuilt in 1994 after war time destruction. The views were brilliant in all directions: the channel sparkling in midday sun, Skirrid and Sugar Loaf shaping the horizon and Pontypool nestling in the valley. It had been showery with coats on and off throughout the morning but now the weather settled, though clouds returned briefly as we finished lunch.

The route took us towards Mamilhad via a Roman Road, it was a rough stony track leading downhill through woods and quite slippery after the rain. We were glad to reach the bottom of the road but admired the construction and longevity of the Roman Road.

At the bottom we came across a badge on a stone wall for the Brecon Beacons National Park. Now we turned onto the Brecon and Monmouthshire canal which was built between 1791 and 1812 to transport stone and lime to Newport. After decaying into stagnant disuse, it was reopened in 1970 and today is a vibrant leisure waterway. Navigable from Brecon to Pontypool and walkable for most of the rest of the route to Newport.

We followed the canal for about 3 miles and were bathed in sunshine the whole time. The Folly tower stood out on the hill above us and we passed the old 1960s British Nylon Spinners works at Mamhilad.

The flat canal enabled us to stride out and we were delighted with the local wildlife. There were lots of fish in the water – one of our group thought they were probably roach. Moorhens and ducks busied about the water and a heron, stood stock-still, in the field on the opposite bank, flying up just after we passed it. A large raptor took to the air along the canal just in front of us, reminding us that we had seen 3 buzzards at the Folly at lunchtime. Then best of all one of our group spotted a kingfisher as it flashed along the canal, the rest of us were sorry we had missed it but then we came to an area where the canal widened and there was a kingfisher perched on a metal railing – brilliant. A local told us that this is the kingfishers favourite fishing spot and he regularly sees two birds. A plant with arrow shaped leaves grew in the water, probably arrowhead.

Now we approached Pontymoile Basin, where two canals merge connecting Brecon with the coast in Newport, cause for much celebration in 1812. It was the Merthyr Tydfil ironmaster Richard Crawshay that pushed the project to completion, eager to ensure his iron reached Newport docks more competitively. We left the canal at bridge 52, Pontymoile junction, where there is a picnic area and small café. After a short walk along the main road we re-entered Pontypool park through the ornate Pontymoile gates, the original main entrance to the park. The gates are grade II listed and affectionately called the ‘Sally gates’ – Sally was the Duchess of Marlborough and legend has it that they were a present to the Hanbury family for help with the execution of her late husband’s will. Of particular interest on the pillars are the vines and bunches of grapes which originally, would have been gilded along with the acanthus leaves and finials of the gates. A short stroll took us back to the cars.

Map OS 152. Walk 7 miles.

 

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Hensol Forest

On another sunny day, Wenvoe walkers met as a group (12 of us), for the first time since the beginning of March, to walk in Hensol forest.

We crossed fields with long grass heavy with dew which soaked our trousers, but we knew they would soon dry in the heat of the sun. A thorny hedge absolutely smothered in spiders’ webs glistened in the morning sunshine as it too was covered in dew. Our route was a figure 8 using tracks within the forest and some open farmland.

 

We passed some beautiful black cattle and spotted a colourful dragonfly resting at the edge of the road. At a path junction we stopped maintaining social distancing while everyone double checked our next path.

Ty Fry House, farm and Lodge appeared. Ty Fry Lodge looks like one might imagine a Hansel and Gretel house. It is a 19thC lodge to the Ty Fry estate. Originally the lodge to the country estate of the Insole family of The Court, Llandaff. It is a Grade II listed building constructed of local random rubble with Bath stone dressings and quoins. Its chimneys are unusual and seem large for the house.

We had lunch at Pysgodlyn Mawr, a lake which is a designated SSSI site. Several large clumps of water lilies were in full bloom and with clear blue skies and sunshine it was glorious. As we ate, House Martins swooped low over the water, no doubt feasting on insects hovering over the water.

Soon we were back at the cars having exercised tongues as much as our legs. How good it was to be together again.

Walk 5 miles. Map 151.

 

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Draethen and Ruperra Castle

It was a hot day in early August when 4 of us parked in a woodland at Llwyn Hir, near Draethen and headed into the woods. We soon came across a tree with a large vertical hole in it where the trunk had split into two and then reformed.

Emerging from the woods we walked through Draethen, a pretty village with good views of the surrounding countryside. We crossed a river and entered a field of maize which proved difficult to navigate as the corn was tall with only a small space at the edge (the footpath was covered by maize). We turned towards the river walking along it. Dogs played in the water and there were plenty of picnic spots on the bank, with one family enjoying the shallows of the river. We spotted a church in the village of Lower Machen, St Michael and All Angels, which was possibly founded during the Celtic period in the 6th century, and Plas Machen in the distance.

We entered Coed Craig Ruperra, an ancient woodland, originally part of the Ruperra castle estate and now managed by the Ruperra Conservation Trust. Here the river Rhymney is spanned by a 16- metre iron foot bridge. The Iron Bridge was constructed in 1829 as part of a carriage drive across the estate owned by the Morgan family. It linked Ruperra castle with Machen church and the 16thC Plas Machen farmhouse (a 16thC mansion house, seat of the Morgan family before their move to Tredegar House in the 1660s).

The bridge is a Grade II listed structure and its restoration was undertaken 2008-2010. Phase 1 involved stripping all the ironworks and repair of the riverbank and stone abutments. The work included searching the riverbank for missing pieces while protecting wildlife such as bats in the locality. During phase 2, winter of 2009/10, the whole bridge was sent in sections to a foundry in Kent where missing and damaged pieces were recast and sections cleaned and painted. Phase 3 saw the bridge returned in 2010, it was secured in its original position, where hopefully it will last another 180 years.

Crossing the bridge, we saw a large modern house on the bank of the river which we circumnavigated before climbing the field behind it. Looking back, we could see it was quite splendid. A pond in its grounds played host to 100 or more Canada geese and other wildfowl.

We had enjoyed excellent shade throughout most of the walk but now we emerged into the sunshine to climb to the Ruperra Iron Age hill fort (200 BC). A motte and bailey castle (1200) was built on the site probably by the Normans, a 17thC 2-storey summerhouse replaced the motte and at the beginning of 20thC it became a thatched summerhouse. We rested here in the shade of a tree, for lunch – relaxed and cool.

Continuing, we passed the ruins of Ruperra Castle, a Grade II listed building built in 1626. King Charles I stayed here after the battle of Naseby. It has twice been ravaged by fire.

Now we had superb views of the Bristol Channel before turning north to return to the cars.

Walk 6 miles. Map 152

 

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Footsteps on Blorenge

Blorenge – We began at Keepers Pond (officially Pen-ffordd-goch Pond) in the south-eastern corner of the Black Mountains which is nestled in the hills of the area. Keepers was the final of three reservoirs built to supply water for the forges and works of Garn Ddyrys foundry. The car park was busy with cars also parked across the road. We were surprised to find a good number of people in wet suits who had just finished a swim in the pool. Although it was a sunny morning the water did not look very inviting to us! A group of men had remote controlled motorboats on the water which were making a whining sound and spoiling the peaceful atmosphere of the place.

Setting off we walked along the edge of the pond towards the aerials in the distance at the Foxhunter carpark, our aim to walk anticlockwise around the mountain.

This area is a world heritage site, an SSSI and part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. It was once prized for the raw materials it provided for industrial processes. Limestone was quarried and coal mined with Blaenavon Ironworks to the southwest.

But the landscape is now treasured and protected for wildlife. The limestone cliffs are home to a rare species of whitebeam tree and nesting birds. The coal measures are covered in heather, the moorland providing habitat for many birds and shallow pools left by old coal workings are rich in dragonflies.

Arriving at the aerials we found the grave of Foxhunter, a Champion International Show Jumper. Best known as part of the 1952 summer Olympics team which won Britain’s only Gold medal at Helsinki. They also won bronze in the 1948 Olympics and amongst many other wins the King George cup in 1948, 1950 and 1953. Foxhunter’s skeleton was preserved and donated to the Royal Veterinary College where it was put on permanent display. His hide was buried on the Blorenge and when his rider Sir Harry Llewellyn died aged 88 years in 1999 his ashes were scattered around the horse’s memorial. He had 2 sons Dai and Roddy, both of whom became well known media personalities, the latter because of an 8 -year affair with Princess Margaret.

We followed a path leading northwest towards the trig point marking the top of the Blorenge mountain (559m), spotting cotton grass in the moorland. To the side of the trig point is a much older stone cairn which marks a Bronze age burial site. Visibility was excellent and we could even see the Bristol Channel in the distance. The whole of Abergavenny could be seen in the Usk valley with the Skirrid and Sugar loaf providing a backdrop whilst England stretched flat into the distance. The Welsh hills, to the west, were also clear – a wind turbine and semi-circular upper part of a white bridge glowing in the sunshine.

We descended slightly towards Abergavenny and walked along the edge of the escarpment keeping our height and contouring around the mountain. A post at one point marked the Iron Mountain Trail. This is a route of 12 miles which can be split into 2 walks. It follows the routes of former tramways, inclines and footpaths linking many of the historic features which make up the landscape of the World Heritage Site between Blaenavon and Abergavenny,

It was a glorious summer day and we lingered a while over lunch which was spent looking across the valley to Abergavenny. We tried to identify the distant hills before a local passer-by confirmed they were the Malverns. A few hang-gliders who looked as though they were almost landing before soaring back up into the sky and finally landing in a field entertained us. Although the traffic in the valley was light it was amazing how much noise from it rose to us.

Walking on we found wild thyme growing on the stony ground and spotted a few fritillary butterflies. The heather was in full flower. As we approached the northernmost point of our day, we could see the distinctive outline of Pen y Fan and its neighbours on the skyline. Arriving back at Keepers Pond white fluffy clouds were gathering and the temperature dropping. We met swimmers tip toeing their way out of the water while begging a friend to throw them a towel.

An easy fairly level walk of 5.5 miles. Map OL13

 

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