Category: Community Groups

Redbrook and Pontsticill

Redbrook and Pontsticill

Redbrook

We parked at Redbrook and walked up the Wye valley, away from Monmouth, towards Bigsweir bridge.

We entered Highbury wood, an example of ancient semi-natural woodland typical of the Wye valley. For centuries, until the 1950s, it was managed by coppicing, to provide wood for charcoal and fuel for the limekilns in the wood. We were amazed by the number of large-leaved lime trees we passed and spotted whitebeam and yews which are apparently over 300 years old.

We heard lots of bird song but although the woodland has treecreepers, nuthatches and woodpeckers, we did not spot any of these. However, we did find tall kissing gates standing alone which we walked around. Then we found a lone Butterfly orchid, with a small, white flower mimicking a butterfly with outstretched wings and were delighted later, when they lined the path.

Next was Cadora woods which is a collection of woods which cloak the steep-sided slopes of the Lower Wye valley. The large leaved limes throughout indicate that the woodland could be more than a thousand years old. In the 1960s many trees were felled and conifers planted. These are gradually being replaced to reclaim its native broad-leaved beauty.

We emerged onto a road to walk towards Bigsweir bridge; three-way lights at the bridge kept traffic to one way most of the time. We put on a spurt and walked in single file. Crossing Bigsweir bridge, we arrived at the Toll house which was built with the bridge 1825-39 on behalf of the St Arvan’s – Redbrook Turnpike Trust.

The Toll house was renovated in 1981 by 16–18- year-olds under the Youth Opportunities Programme. As it was lunchtime we found some comfortable grass and sat on the banks of the River Wye to take our break. We voted to continue along the Wye valley rather than use our planned route saving ourselves a climb of a few hundred feet. Consequently, we had a little trouble finding the right footpath but were entertained by the wildlife of the river.

Two Canada geese with 4 goslings swam by. A lone heron stood stock still on a rock, in fast running water, fishing. A flotilla of Canada geese (10 of them) swam majestically along the river beside us. These were followed by a stag party; several canoes, full of males wearing sailor hats, paddled by and when asked where the groom was, they pointed at the first canoe where a lone ‘sailor’ wore a large hat leading the rest. We are not sure but suspect we saw the hen party further along.

This was a delightful walk on a dry day, but it was humid in enclosed places, a very welcome light breeze cooled us in the open space by the river.

Drinks were enjoyed at the Boat pub just across the river Wye; apparently the tea was a bit odd, but the beer was delicious.

Walk 8m 800ft Map OL14

Pontsticill

Parking between Pontsticill and Pentwyn reservoirs, our route took us up to Bryniau Gleision, above the Taff trail and Beacons Way. We have been incredibly lucky with the weather this spring, every Saturday has been dry and clear and often sunny. Today our luck changed. The forecast was for dry weather late morning, so we headed for the hills but as we climbed, we reached the clouds.

It was dry until lunchtime a fierce wind was blowing. Lunch was in an abandoned quarry where there were a few comments about the sheep poo scattered around – it was difficult to avoid but I can’t say I blame the sheep for taking shelter where they can from the cutting wind. Setting off again the moisture from the clouds dropped as fine rain. The force of the wind was such that those of us that failed to don waterproof trousers were soaked to the skin.

At this point, we were supposed to have glorious views of Pen y Fan and the reservoirs – Pontsticill and Tal y Bont. But we saw nothing except a faint glimmer of sunshine when we hoped the sky was clearing but it closed in again. Still, most of us have memories of previous visits and we can come again!

As we descended into the valley, where it was dry, we soon dried off. On the whole walk there was only one stile, near the Pontsticill reservoir and throughout the walk we could hear skylarks and spot them soaring despite the weather.

The Barn tearoom supplied us with cups of tea ice-cream, chocolate cake and several scones; they were scrummy, and we deserved it after the wetting we’d had.

Walk 7.7m 1100ft Map OL12

Wenvoe Village Show

WENVOE VILLAGE SHOW AT THE CHURCH HALL
SATURDAY 6th SEPTEMBER

This is Wenvoe’s own local show and offers an excellent opportunity for some friendly, fun competition. Will your fruit and veg be the talk of the village? Is your baking a triumph? You don’t have to be an expert; you just need to enter. The show is limited to entries from people who live in the Wenvoe community (Wenvoe, Twyn-yr-Odyn, St Lythans and Dyffryn) and children who are residents of Wenvoe or attend the village school.

Entries to be registered at St Mary’s Church Hall between 8.30 and 11 am on Saturday morning (for those who have other commitments on Saturday morning there will be a limited time slot to register entries between 6 – 7.30pm on Friday evening 5th September but this will NOT include culinary entries). The hall will then be closed between 11 am and 1.30 pm. for the judging to take place. The public will be welcome to come and view the exhibits between 1.30pm and 4pm. From 3pm – 4pm there will be a chance to sample the culinary entries for yourself. There will be a good quality raffle, and this will be drawn at 3.30pm. If you have a prize that you could give, we should be very grateful.

If you wish to reclaim your entries they should be collected between 4 and 4.30pm but please note that items entered in the culinary categories will be offered for public tasting and will not be eligible for collection unless there is any left at 4pm. Entry fee – £1 for the first entry and 50p for all subsequent entries per person. You may enter as many sections as you wish but the maximum number of entries per person in any one section of a category is two. Items entered in previous Wenvoe Village Shows are acceptable but only if they have previously failed to win a prize. If you would like to help on the day or have any queries, please speak to Mike or Glenys Tucker.

Weather permitting there will be refreshments available outside all day.

The categories are listed on the opposite page.

“Real Americans ” by Rachel Khong

OFF THE SHELF

“Real Americans ” by Rachel Khong

We thoroughly enjoyed Real Americans. We were especially drawn to the novel’s multi-generational structure and the thoughtful exploration of identity, heritage, and the American experience. The characters, particularly Lily and Nick, felt well-developed and relatable.

May (also known as Mei) revealed how her past decisions shaped the lives of her daughter and grandson. Through her experiences, we were invited to consider how the pursuit of progress and the desire to escape one’s past can impact future generations. Only by reading the final phase of Real Americans does one fully understand the emotional weight carried by Lily – how being denied both her true genetic identity and meaningful parental love left her feeling incomplete, possibly too damaged to experience a normal, loving relationship. This added a poignant dimension to her character and deepened our appreciation of the novel’s emotional complexity.

These themes around family legacy and scientific ethics sparked deep discussion in our group. However, we did find some elements of the plot implausible – especially the connection between May and Matt’s father. While we understood the thematic intention behind this link, it felt a bit too coincidental and took us out of the story at times.

Still, the novel provided plenty of material for reflection and conversation, making it a strong choice for us – and we gave it a score of 8/10.

All This Sunshine!! It Makes You Think.

WENVOE FORUM

Considering Tomorrow Today

All This Sunshine!! It Makes You Think.

Have you seen leaflets like this recently dropping through letterboxes in Wenvoe. They are primarily about installing solar panels and batteries. Is yours maybe, hanging around waiting to be read properly or did you sign up immediately to the scheme. Don’t worry, it’s not a scam, at least I don’t think it’s a scam, it is all part of the attempt to make the UK “Carbon Zero” by 2050. What “Carbon Zero” actually means varies and there is a plethora of terms with slightly different meanings, but the main message is that we need to stop adding carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to the atmosphere and remove some that is already there changing our climate and putting the way we live on earth at risk.

Local authorities in Wales have been charged with leading the way towards rapidly reducing carbon emissions and the scheme that is described in the leaflets is one of the tactics that is being used. I expect every house received the leaflet and it would be interesting to know what the initial take up is. The first task is to register for this scheme with no commitment to do anything further at this stage, a small dip of the pinkie into the whole business of changing the energy economy. So far so good and I’ve done that bit. By making it easier, and potentially cheaper through joining the scheme the aim is to encourage householders to invest in the future and step onto the path towards carbon zero. There is also an element of raising awareness, the first time you see such a scheme you may think “Very good but money is a bit tight just now” but it has crept on to your to do list and you may be more receptive next time. I’m an example of this. I’ve wanted to explore solar panels for my house for a while but needing to find a reliable supplier in a newish market is off-putting. This scheme offers local authority vetted suppliers.

The scheme seems to be based partly on the idea of economy of scale, by collecting together customers in a geographical area, companies carrying out the work are expected to be able to deliver more cheaply. Now it seems to me that such a scheme could work very well where there are rows of houses that are similar, as they are in the photo on the leaflet. Roofs facing in the same direction and all the same size will only need one set of planning calculations for several houses, a set of customers that could be described as “low hanging fruit”. However, look around Wenvoe, mostly the house next door is different, a lot of houses have several small bits of roof pointing in different directions many of which are too small for a straightforward array of solar panels.

Whilst any progress toward carbon reduction will be very welcome, I fear that this particular scheme won’t work as well for us as it might elsewhere.

I was very aware that in answering the questions to register with the Solar Together scheme, the information I was giving would be insufficient for any supplier to genuinely provide an estimate of the cost. I will be bearing that in mind when the next phase of the scheme kicks in.

However, it has crossed my mind that if, as I suspect, my house will need its own specially tailored survey and provision, which will be more expensive, there may still be an opportunity to achieve some benefit from economies of scale for solar energy scheme providers through joining together in a community collective purchase arrangement. Is anyone interested? Please e-mail gwenfo.forum@gmail.com if you are and we’ll see where it takes us.

To join our Facebook group, please ‘friend up’ with the GwenFo account @ https://www.facebook.com/gwen.fo.1 and then jon the Wenvoe Forum @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/635369267864402

Some further information and updates, blog site https://wenvoeforum.wordpress.com/. Any Wenvoe community member is welcome to join the Forum meetings, via Zoom, which are normally held 19.00 on the second Thursday of each month. E-mail gwen-fo.forum@gmail.com if you wish to join

Highlight Of The Living With Cancer Walk

LIVING WITH CANCER STROLLERS

Highlight Of The Living With Cancer Walk

What was the highlight of the living with cancer walk at Cosmeston this month?

The bright blue sky?

The sparkling lakes?

The warming sunshine?

The endless chatter?

The ice creams?

No…..it was the sight of a family of voles in the water…a real treat

 

 

May Meeting of Wenvoe W.I.

WOMEN’S INSTITUTE

May Meeting of Wenvoe W.I.

On Thursday 1st May Wenvoe WI met for their AGM at 7.00pm in the Church Hall. The out-going president Mrs Jan Young welcomed members and our Glamorgan Federation Advisor, Mrs. Claire Atherton. The meeting commenced with the usual business as well as the annual financial statement, the secretary’s report and a closing statement and vote of thanks to the out-going Committee by the President. Finally, Mrs Atherton presided over the election of new officers for the forthcoming year.

These will be as follows:

Mrs Carol Charlson – President

Mrs Pamela Ewington – Secretary

Mrs Dedrie Smee – Treasurer

Committee members – Mrs Lyn Hull, Miss Ros Lock, Mrs Madeleine Rees and Mrs Brenda Webster.

Our open coffee morning was held on 1st May where £200 was raised for our charity for the year – Ty Hafan. On 4th July it is intended to visit Ty Hafan and tour the gardens.

Our next WI meeting is on 3rd June at 7.00pm in the Church Hall, when Mrs Anne Lush will speak about the ‘History of Cake and Cake Making’.

All tasters, visitors and potential new members are most welcome.

Jan Young

Brecon & Llanthony Priory

Brecon 

This was a delightful walk, we parked north of Brecon and took a footpath through the cathedral grounds. The mixed woodland (oak, beech, hazel and alder trees) of Priory Groves borders the river Honddu, and is about a mile long. Birds sang, the river tinkled, the scent of bluebells hung in the air and the sun shone through the branches as we strode along, heavenly.

We emerged into open farmland where the Pen y Fan range came into view dominating the skyline. Heifers showed interest in us and a local farmer drove towards us apparently to check that the two dogs were under control. Unsurprising, as the next field had a bull and cows with their calves. As we travelled northwest a few footpaths proved a challenge but the many spring lambs in varying shades were entertaining and the views fabulous. At the northernmost point of the walk a missing footbridge across the river Honddu forced us to retrace about 1 kilometre to take an alternative route. So, we stopped for lunch on the edge of a field trying to avoid nettles and thorns as we sat.

We took a road west until we were beside the iron age, Pen-y-crug fort, where we climbed a footpath to the top of the fort. We had superb 360o views of Pen y Fan and other hills of the Brecon Beacons and of Brecon lying to the south-east.

A wide grass path led us down into Brecon near Maen-du well. The dogs paddled in muddy water before a brief foray into a clear stream and the humans looked at the stone building around the well. An excellent day’s walking rounded off with a drink in the sunshine at the pub in Libanus.

Walk 7.25m 1125ft. Map OL12

Llanthony Priory

Another beautiful walk, this time in the Black mountains above Llanthony Priory. As we set off, we realised we were sharing the mountain with a few other people! Lots of cars were parked in a field, with a marquee, a police presence and a ‘Finish

Line’. Longtown Mountain Rescue were holding their annual fund raiser with 850 participants! As we climbed, we saw few people, as luckily, our route differed from the event.

Our surroundings were a pastoral idyll, with lush grass, trees in full leaf and ewes with their lambs. The climb was demanding, and we all took breaks to look at the tiny people and vehicles below and to gaze at the beautiful valleys and hills around us. The call of a cuckoo echoed up the valley and we were all reminded of days gone by when we regularly heard it. The Mountain Rescue helicopter flew up and down the Ewyas valley doing circuits until it eventually landed in a field near the priory just as we reached the ridge of the mountain and Offa’s Dyke path.

We were doing our route anticlockwise, and the event participants were going in the opposite direction. We reckoned they were walking further than us and gave way whenever necessary. There was a feeling of spaciousness along the ridge as the Black Mountains spread away from us. This area is spectacularly beautiful, and we enjoyed superb views with a light breeze and sunshine all day long.

As we turned to start our descent, we looked for a moment at the cairn where we had laid a stone in memory of a fellow walker. It was lunchtime and we took ourselves a good distance off the main path to relax. Everyone started to divert off the path towards us, obviously assuming we were part of the event, even though there was no visible path. One woman asked, ‘Is that real?’ referring to a white horse that was stood stationary behind us, staring at the people. Perhaps she was from Milton Keynes?

Hang gliders took off from the mountain opposite and rode the thermals to come over Offa’s Dyke. We joked that maybe they could give us a lift down the mountain. Now we had a steep descent, the path was clear as bracken had been cut back. Stone markers pointed us to Capel y Ffin as we descended and hawthorn trees heavy with white blossom dotted the hillside, but I had to keep my eye on the path or risk vertigo.

Arriving at the road that runs along the Vale of Ewyas we discovered that the road to Capel y Ffin was closed to all but walkers due to a landslide. We headed towards Llanthony enjoying the warm afternoon and the beauty of the valley.

Jams were inevitable as Llanthony traffic met other vehicles on the narrow road, but we had a cunning plan and headed for the Crown at Pantygelli where the refreshments were excellent.

Walk 7.3m 1300ft. Map OL13

Thursday Walkers – A Farewell –

 

THURSDAY WALKERS

– A FAREWELL –

 

In September 1995 I had the pleasure of leading the first ever Wenvoe Walkers group.

At first my walks were demanding and wide ranging. As the years have gone by they have become a Thursday Walk centred around enjoyment of the company of like-minded people AND a coffee at some point. The walk has always been advertised as about 5 miles though often it has been more. That was psychological as some of the group always felt “I can walk 5 miles “but might not have wanted to tackle 7 or 8 miles which they did!

There has also been a comment that Bert’s Thursday Walk always has good weather. Not true. It has rained on 3 occasions! Anyway, I have always said that I only choose the day, it is the Good Lord that decides on the weather.

I had intended to complete 30 years of leading before retiring so my last walk would have been this September. However, I have some commitments over the next months which makes it difficult to fix dates. Therefore, my May Walk, which covered some of the first walk I led, was my last walk as leader. I have thoroughly enjoyed my years of leading and the company of the many people that have accompanied me over the many years.

Best wishes,

Bert

 

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