{"id":15578,"date":"2025-05-28T22:56:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-28T21:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=15578"},"modified":"2025-05-28T23:04:03","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T22:04:03","slug":"brecon-llanthony-priory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=15578","title":{"rendered":"Brecon & Llanthony Priory"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Brecon\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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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.<\/p>\n

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 \"\"<\/a>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.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

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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\u2019s walking rounded off with a drink in the sunshine at the pub in Libanus.<\/p>\n

Walk 7.25m 1125ft. Map OL12<\/p>\n

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Llanthony Priory<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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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 \u2018Finish<\/p>\n

Line\u2019. 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.<\/p>\n

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\u2019s Dyke path.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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, \u2018Is that real?\u2019 referring to a white horse that was stood stationary behind us, staring at the people. Perhaps she was from Milton Keynes?<\/p>\n

Hang gliders took off from the mountain opposite and rode the thermals to come over Offa\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

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.<\/p>\n

Walk 7.3m 1300ft. Map OL13<\/p>\n

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\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Brecon\u00a0 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 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[38,422],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6cWjO-43g","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":14948,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=14948","url_meta":{"origin":15578,"position":0},"title":"Brecon","author":"Alan Williams","date":"14th December 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Brecon We started at the Canal Basin, home to Brecon theatre and car park, although you must pay there is a caf\u00e9 and good toilets. The theatre was built near the site of the town\u2019s racecourse in 1996. Theatre in Brecon goes back to 1699, after the restoration of Charles\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":6530,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=6530","url_meta":{"origin":15578,"position":1},"title":"Llanthony","author":"Alan Williams","date":"28th August 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Llanthony We parked at Llanthony Priory, in the care of Cadw and freely open to the public. The hamlet of Llanthony nestles in the heart of the beautiful Vale of Ewyas. This is the easternmost valley of the Black mountains, described by Gerald of Wales in 1188 as \u2018encircled on\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Picture7.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11946,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=11946","url_meta":{"origin":15578,"position":2},"title":"The Usk Valley Walk","author":"Alan Williams","date":"8th July 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"THE USK VALLEY WALK A couple of months ago Isobel and I were camping in Pencelli a lovely little village Southeast of Brecon. One day we walked down the canal to Talybont on Usk and we came across signs for the Usk Valley Walk (UVW). When we came back to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "General Interest Articles"","block_context":{"text":"General Interest Articles","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=334"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Picture23.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11888,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=11888","url_meta":{"origin":15578,"position":3},"title":"Bluebells at Wentwood and Brecon Beacons","author":"Alan Williams","date":"8th July 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0Bluebells The appearance of the first spring flowers always has Wenvoe walkers thinking about the arrival of bluebells. Spring this year was cool and we enjoyed wood anemones, daffodils, primula etc. for longer than usual. Then the blue bells arrived. You can spot them in lots of places in Wenvoe\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/bouquet.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/bouquet.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/bouquet.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14655,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=14655","url_meta":{"origin":15578,"position":4},"title":"Brecon Beacons \/ Bannau Brycheiniog – Craig Cerrig Gleisiad","author":"Alan Williams","date":"9th September 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Brecon Beacons \/ Bannau Brycheiniog Brecon Beacons \/ Bannau Brycheiniog Craig Cerrig Gleisiad\u00a0 We parked near Forest Lodge cottages and set off along Sarn Helen, the 2000-year-old Roman road which runs from North Wales to Neath. The route would take us around Craig Cerrig Gleisiad Nature Reserve, Fan Frynych, climbing\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Footsteps"","block_context":{"text":"Footsteps","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=38"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Picture6.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8726,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=8726","url_meta":{"origin":15578,"position":5},"title":"The Welsh Have No Use For Orchards!","author":"Alan Williams","date":"29th November 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The Welsh Have No Use For Orchards nor Gardens! (The Welsh) have no use for orchards nor gardens'. So said Gerald of Wales, the 12th\/13th century historian and archdeacon of Brecon. We described in the previous two issues something of the background and history of the sweet apple - so\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Nature Notes"","block_context":{"text":"Nature Notes","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=49"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Picture7.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15578"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=15578"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15578\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15581,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15578\/revisions\/15581"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=15578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=15578"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=15578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}