Category: Footsteps

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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Footsteps

Peterston Super Ely

We parked in St Nicholas, within our 5-mile limit, to do a walk based on Valeways walk no. 37 Peterston super Ely (A ridge and valley walk). The main walk is 2 loops of 3 miles and 4 miles centred on Peterston Super Ely.

From St Nicholas head north past the school where attempts have been made to keep rabbits off the play area with wiring under the fence, but they were running across the grass.

A profusion of brambles edged the path to Cottrell Park golf course, where there are views towards the south. We crossed the 7th tee and headed into the woodland opposite.

We met some people, with colourful bicycles, foraging in the lanes. They were collecting ramson seeds which were to be pickled and then scattered over salads etc. I tasted one, they have a strong garlic taste, much stronger than the leaves in spring. Later we spotted water hemlock growing alongside the road – very poisonous.

Outside Peterston Super Ely is chapel Croes y Parc (1777). We spent some time exploring the churchyard which has some fascinating tombstones; one so high it towered over us, another crenelated like a castle wall. Care was needed as there was evidence of subsidence.

Arriving at Peterston Super Ely we had a quick look at the river from Llanbedr bridge and then walked generally north along the western side of the river Ely.

A large house The Mill was for sale but cannot be seen from the gates; the front garden is large. It is behind the National Trust Lanlay meadows – an SSSI with rich wildlife. This is an area of hay meadow virtually untouched by modern farming methods. There is a Community Orchard which was very tidy with many clumps of comfrey growing and a living willow shelter.

Continuing north a succession of stiles leads over the flat open fields of the river’s flood plain. Understandably the ground can be very wet here, but it was a beautiful summer’s day, and, after all the dry, spring weather, footpaths were firm underfoot. We had an especially early lunch (before noon) so that we could sit beside the river.

At the road running east-west near Dyffryn Mawr farm, we were disappointed to find that we were still in Peterston Super Ely after all our walking. We crossed the river and later the railway where you must phone before crossing as it is so busy.

This section had some interesting wildlife including monkshood (another poisonous plant) and innumerable butterflies, we spotted speckled woods, gatekeepers, tortoiseshell and burnet moths.

Arriving back in Peterston we enjoyed a coffee by the river. Then we crossed the pedestrian bridge to Wyndham Park, a Garden Village development begun in 1909. The Main Avenue is lined with both horse and sweet chestnut trees. It is interesting to walk around this area, we spotted several Polish emergency vehicles parked up. Some of the earliest built houses are the so-called Moroccan houses with tiled frontages and flat roofs.

At the top of Main Avenue, the footpath is to the right, a narrow path leads to open fields and there are soon expansive views to the north from the wind farm in Llanharran to the Garth mountain. At Homri farm you join a track and after a short walk the valley opens to the east. Now the panorama behind includes Castell Coch (which looks tiny from this distance) and Cardiff.

Another day we took a short but enjoyable diversion, east along this valley. It was a delightful and peaceful place no doubt enhanced by the glorious summer’s day. We crossed farmland dotted with sheep and ponds, witnessing idylls such as horses grazing beside a pond. At one point we had to cross a very narrow road (an access road for St Georges and St Bride’s Super Ely) – careful and speedy walking required here. Arriving at the Natural Burial ground, we explored their footpaths admiring the wildflower meadow, with lots of chicory. The arboretum has many interesting trees and once again when we emerged into open space, we had superb views. We ate lunch in a large field with a herd of cows in the distance who edged towards us all the time we were there. Three small aircraft flew above us in formation as we sat. We had great views almost the whole time we were walking, extensive to the north as described above and from the Natural Burial Ground we could even see parts of Cardiff Bay.

Continuing we arrived back in St Nicholas, took a brief diversion to the churchyard to see a grave marked by an anvil and then walked past the war memorial and pump to the cars (in line with Government advice just 2 households participated in this walk).

Walk 7.5 miles( plus extra for the diversion).

 

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Abercynon to Mountain Ash

The aim of this walk was to travel up the Cynon valley from Abercynon to Mountain Ash but keeping about a kilometre to the west of and above the river.

Soon after setting off we came to Abercynon cemetery where there are Commonwealth War Graves. The 29 graves are scattered around the cemetery and marked by narrow upright stones, each with a cross and above that a symbol associated with the regiment of the person buried below.

There were thick clouds overhead but it was a good temperature for walking and we had no rain all day. The route took us northwest past Ynysboeth, Pen-twyn, Perthcelyn and Miskin before descending back to the river at Mountain Ash. Those of us who hadn’t been here before were impressed with the beauty and wildness of the area. We have walked in the Valleys of South Wales many times but this felt more remote than most other places. We were in open moorland with streams accompanying us for most of the walk.

The theme for the day seemed to be ‘Walls’. We saw a long stretch of wall absolutely smothered in moss which glowed green. Not long afterwards we walked along an extensive stone wall which was well made but beginning to show cracks; will anyone have the skill or time to mend it?

For lunch we sat against a wall looking back at where we had walked, while a cow stood the other side of another wall looking at us the whole time we were there. They were sheltering from the wind to which we were exposed as we felt it best not to eat in the company of cows.

Our descent to Mountain Ash was through the woodlands of Craig Abercwm and Fernhill where there were no street names just numbers which were quite large in places, a bit unusual.

We crossed the railway and then the river Cynon to enter Mountain Ash. Here we found a park with an Impressive War Memorial having writing and figures carved into each face. A stone circle is nearby. We followed the footpath alongside the river to the railway station but were hampered by drainage pipes which were still in place following the heavy winter rains.

As the footpath crossed the river Cynon and turned towards the station we encountered a strange wall covered in sculpted heads. An article appeared in Wales Online in April last year about the wall and it was headlined ‘The creepy wall hidden in a Welsh town which hardly anyone knows about’. They also said ‘Once seen never forgotten’ and I agree. I found it fascinating. For the author of the article it looks like something out of Game of Thrones.

It is made up of dozens of stone severed heads, ghoulish grimaces and strange creatures. After looking at it for a while you start to notice that some animals are also included e.g. a rabbit peeks out from a ground level tunnel. It was originally based on Greek mythology and the goddess Hebe and ideas of Welsh folklore and images of miners’ faces underground worked their way into the design.

The ex-landlady of a nearby pub is quoted as saying that ‘they used to joke that the faces were based on some of the regulars as they’d stagger home.’

The artist is Blackpool-born Tim Clapcott, who won a tender in 2007 to transform the area of town now known as Riverside Park. It was part of an EU and Welsh Assembly regeneration project. Tim went to Art College in Cardiff in the 1980s and thinks that that particular bit of land was a former slag heap. It took him about a year from conception to completion of the project. The actual sweat and toil took about 6 weeks with the help of local stone masons and labourers.

The concept went on to win a British Landscape Award. I asked a local about the wall and she said that they represented the miners who had worked in local mines and ‘I don’t know why they put them here. Who is going to see them?’ I found that an interesting idea the miners hidden underground are available for all to see but in a location that most people wouldn’t expect to find them. This piece of public art is definitely worth seeing. Continuing to the railway station we saw mosaics on the ground and then travelled by train back to Abercynon.

Walk 7.6 miles and 1500ft ascent. Map 166.

 

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Margam Park

Margam Park – We are going back to February for this month’s walk, just a week after storm Dennis. The weather forecast was 40-45mph winds with rain later. This was enough for some of us to think that maybe we should be cancelling but we decided to give it a go. We were lucky – it was dry all day and windy but wind speed was only about 20-25mph.

When we arrived at Margam Park there were two other groups in the small car park near the lake – one was Cardiff Ramblers which included people from Culverhouse X. The car park was very full as a result with us taking the last two places which involved some manoeuvring to reverse down the narrow track and squeeze into small spaces. An impatient driver who was probably upset that he didn’t get a space roared down the track going off-road to pass other vehicles coming in the opposite direction and spraying mud everywhere as well as thumping the bottom of his car quite violently on a large rock which produced a cracking sound!

 

The Margam deer herd roams through approximately 500 acres of parkland. It dates from Norman times, the herd, originally exclusively fallow, is of excellent genetic quality to rival any herd in the British Isles.

The water in the lake was quite high with lots of birds swimming around including at least two swans. Mute swans, coots, moorhens, Canada geese, mallard, tufted duck and pochard inhabit the lakes. Whilst the patient observer may see kingfishers beside the streams, skylarks, stonechats and wheatears can be seen over the grasslands with buzzards, kestrels and the occasional red kite in the skies. As it was February and quite cold we saw little in the way of birds whilst walking. We heard one when climbing but we actually saw just a couple of crows when eating lunch.

Margam Park owes its location to the monastery, which was privatised following the dissolution of the monasteries in 1537. We climbed to a ruin, which still has all four walls standing (at least in part). This was an outlying monastery building, Capel Mair ar y Bryn, (the chapel of St Mary on the hill). It is thought that its purpose was to allow members of the monastic community to fulfil their devotional duties, when engaged in keeping flocks, without returning to the main church. From here we could look down on Margam Castle. The house was built in 1830-40 at a cost of £50,000 using sandstone from Pyle quarry and as a mansion of exceptional quality it is Listed Grade I. The Castle has some spectacular features such as the vast stair hall and octagonal tower.

We followed the edge of a wood to pick up the Wales Coast path taking us towards Brombil. On the escarpment above the motorway is one of a network of early warning radar stations that were built along the coast from 1941 to detect German bombers and shipping during World War II. The Margam station is a scheduled ancient monument. Three flat-topped buildings stand high on the escarpment overlooking Port Talbot and Swansea Bay. They would have housed generators and control equipment, with large antennae on the roof.

Now we turned northwest into Cwm Brombil and crossed a small but fast running stream. The name of the valley and the atmosphere of the place made some of us think of Bilbo Baggins from Tolkein’s ‘Lord of the Rings’.

Climbing quite a steep track we looked down onto the ‘Blue Pool’ so called because the water is bright blue especially in sunshine. There were a group of wild swimmers enjoying themselves and inviting us to join them. They were obviously having a great time but as they left the water their skin looked bright red and raw with the cold. Brrr…

Although swathes of trees had been felled we soon entered the cover provided by woodland and stopped for lunch, half of us perching on tree stumps and the rest on grassy tussocks. It was cold here at the top of our walk and we could see our breath in the air. We spotted tadpoles in a puddle beside the path.

Towards the end of the walk we took a slight diversion to a wider path as we were concerned that trees or branches may block our planned route. The descent through woodland with gnarled and fallen trees was easier and coming into the open we could see our path etched in the hillside above us. It had been firm underfoot throughout the walk which was a bonus after the winter’s rain.

As we approached the lake again we spotted a ruin beside the path – a very posh boathouse? We retired to Pyle garden centre for welcome refreshment.

Walk 8 miles and 1700ft climb. Maps 165 & 166.

 

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Rhymney Valley Ridgeway

It was the end of February and the day of St Mary’s Church quiz so we knew the walk would be fairly straightforward as the question master needed to get back in good time! After a month of double the normal rainfall, the previous day had been very wet – it was the Friday that the A48 was closed in two places between Bonvilston and Cowbridge. Hail stones hammered down at 8a.m. and strong winds were forecast. This almost put us off but by 9.30a.m. the weather had improved and we set off, parking at Caerphilly Garden Centre.

Beginning the walk uphill we decided to stay on the road rather than wade along the first footpath. The deep gutters at the side of the road were torrents about a foot deep and overflowing into the road so that at times we were paddling in an inch or so of water.

We felt sorry for a group of black sheep standing on an island of grass in the midst of a morass of mud. At a chapel, a sign on the gates to the graveyard warned: ‘People entering this graveyard do so at their own risk’. In one field a herd of horses stayed close to a wall taking shelter from the wind rather than coming after us which is our normal experience.

On the ridge the air was filled with the wonderful song of larks taking wing as we passed. As we reached the trig point, our highest point for the day, we could see the sun shining on the Bristol Channel and extensive views in all directions. My attempts to take pictures of the group here resulted in heads chopped off and fuzziness as I struggled against the wind. Descending from the top of the ridge we were suddenly exposed to an icy wind slicing up the valley below but once we got to the road there was some shelter.

At noon we came to Eglwysilan Church with a Victorian post box in its wall. We took refuge from a hailstorm and had a look around. What a lovely surprise to find there was a table with 6 chairs and even a tablecloth. Since we were six we decided on an early lunch, a welcome sanctuary but cold.

Originally Roman Catholic, St Ilan’s Church became Anglican following the Reformation. The dedication of the church is ambiguous. Ilan may have been a Celtic saint of whom no other trace survives. The Cistercian Way website suggests that Ilan may have been a pre- Norman bishop of Llandaf and says that the 12th century book of Llandaf denotes the church at Eglwysilan as the resting place for the relics of Ilan. The churchyard contains the grade II listed tomb of the bridge builder William Edwards (he built the first stone bridge in Pontypridd) and many of the victims of the Senghenydd Colliery Disaster of 1913. Evan James who wrote the lyrics of the Welsh National Anthem was baptised here.

All was going well and we got down to the Taff trail, which is tarmac here, and were striding along at 3 miles an hour when we arrived at about 200 yards of water. We had gone through a few shorter stretches – using walking poles to gauge the depth as we progressed- but this was a challenge. Two of the men took some exploratory steps and turned back when the water reached calf height. We had several options: climb the steep side on our left traversing a few gullies – not favoured by most of us, turn around and walk back about a mile to find an alternative route (adding at least 2miles to the walk) or explore the embankment on the right. On inspection the narrow ledge of the embankment was a few feet wide and covered in brambles, rotting wood etc. One person’s walking pole broke in half as he attempted to beat back the brambles but… lucky for us we got past the flood just before reaching a fallen tree which would have been very difficult to pass. Now we wondered whether any further floods faced us and fortunately after about 5 minutes we met a man who had just walked up the Taff trail, so we knew we could carry on and were able to advise him to take an alternative route. Although some stretches had lying water none of them was more than an inch or two, so we returned to the cars in good time

It had been surprisingly firm underfoot and although it was windy, nothing like the 40mph forecast. We had a few moments of sunshine and a few hail showers (that hurt with the wind behind it) but there was little rain. Tea at the garden centre was thoroughly enjoyed. Walk 8.6miles and 1300ft climb. Map 166.

 

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Kenfig became a National Nature Reserve in 1989 and an SSSI in 1950s. Inland from the beach is a complex landscape of dunes and wetlands covering about 1300 acres. It is home to many rare species of plants, insects, birds and animals. Kenfig is one of the wettest dune systems in the UK as the sand sits on clay.

As we set off from the main car park we aimed for Sker House, near the beach, it is a deep yellow colour and probably the oldest house, in the area, still occupied. It was built as a monastic grange linked to Neath Abbey. Passing through the edge of the golf course we kept a sharp lookout for any flying balls.

The day was overcast with poor visibility – Port Talbot steel works largely unseen except for the flames. We skirted Sker house to make our way onto the beach which is a delight as you can stride out without looking where you are planting your feet – indeed one of our group was seen to break into a jog at one point – helped by the wind at our backs. We spotted the skeleton of a wrecked boat. Turning north and inland through a break in the dunes we had lunch in the shelter of a dune to get out of the wind, but pouring rain drenched us. Still we had a good view of a ‘lake’ below us –created by the heavy rainfall this winter.

Following the river Kenfig, we arrived at Kenfig castle – the site of a medieval castle and town. The BBC’s Time Team undertook an extensive exploration of the area – you can view the programme at https://youtu.be/VJwCaCBhD4U or go to YouTube and search for season 19 episode 8 of Time Team.

For 200 years from mid-12thC Kenfig was a thriving community. Then sand began to arrive and after another 100 years nearly everyone had left. The town was an Anglo- Norman settlement, established with the objective of asserting and maintaining rule over the Welsh population. It sat on the border between English Glamorgan and Wales to the north and west. It was regularly assaulted by the Welsh highlanders and burned several times, each time it was rebuilt but what the Welsh failed to achieve the elements did. High tides and storms deposited huge amounts of sand. Further north the dunes remained stable and it is thought that the destruction was partly due to human habitation as their grazing animals destroyed the vegetation which kept the dunes stable. Research shows that winds with speeds over 20 knots will carry sand and Kenfig is exposed to these on average 80 days every year.

There is a ditch around the castle with 2 roads running north/south and east/ west converging at the castle. The town was a large settlement extending outside the castle ramparts though the outer buildings appear to have been animal shelters, forges etc. which people will have used for their work.

Making our way to Kenfig Pool we climbed to the top of a dune plotting our route through the flooded paths. We passed many trees up to their knees in ponds. At one point a boardwalk is provided across a marshy area. The only trouble being that the edge of the boardwalk was about 2ft from dry land with water deeper than the height of the tops of our boots – I was the lucky one that benefitted from lovely cold water soaking one foot with a cold sensation which soon warmed up. The soaking was forgotten until, taking off my boots, I realised that grit in the water had caused a fair bit of wear on my favourite socks! Boots had to be washed inside and out on returning home – a very rare occurrence.

On our way back to the car we came across some handsome cattle grazing; their coats warm brown colours – they were a mix of Highland Cattle and North Devon Ruby Reds.

Walk 7.25miles 250ft + a bit for ‘scaling’ sand dunes.

If you are not a confident map reader and would like to visit the area, an easy option is to park on the seafront at Porthcawl, near Nottage, and follow the footpaths west along the coast. There is a choice between hard surface, grass and beach for large sections of the walk with numerous seats. A walkway covers a long stretch to protect the land which creates an easy walk.

I did this on a sunny and very blustery day (the day before storm Ciara) and walked into Kenfig Nature reserve before turning back the way I had come (about 5 miles flat walking). Visibility was brilliant and there were dozens of kite surfers out on the water at Rest Bay.

The walk can be extended by following the coastal path further into Kenfig.

 

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Cowbridge to Ystradowen.

In contrast to most other Saturdays this winter the day dawned frosty and clear. What a relief after Storm Brendan and all the rain. We walked from Aberthin towards Prisk and Ystradowen in glorious sunshine. The views in all directions were brilliantly clear and we admired the beautiful country in which we live – a bit of sunshine makes all the difference. We saw several rams separated from ewes, donkeys, a llama and the first sighting of lambs this winter.

At Ystradowen we saw St Owain’s church and headed west passing a motte before turning south for our return journey. We found a relatively dry field where we basked in the sunshine while eating lunch . A caterpillar chose to crawl across one of our boots; it was carefully removed.

After lunch the ground was waterlogged in places even though numerous ditches have been dug to drain the land. On a lane we found one ditch clogged with leaves which two people valiantly cleared with their walking poles and the water gushed away. Fortunately we walked along the road, past Newton towards Newton moor; the fields had reeds growing in them and signs of recent flooding.

Skirting Cowbridge we crossed the Aberthin road to climb a hill, following a footpath. A blocked footpath forced us down a quiet road for the final stretch. (Walk 7.75 miles 650ft Map 151)

 

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