{"id":16789,"date":"2026-03-27T13:00:42","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T12:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=16789"},"modified":"2026-03-27T13:07:53","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T12:07:53","slug":"16789","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=16789","title":{"rendered":"Margam Park and Merthyr Mawr"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Margam Park<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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We parked at the small fishing lake near Margam Abbey, the drive over had been misty and as we started out it was raining. Heading north we passed the lake with ducks and swans.<\/p>\n

Margam park is one of 22 sentinel sites across Wales acting as an early warning system for any plant pests and diseases. There is a hillfort just above the abbey, we decided not to climb it as there would have been no view. A memorial bench dedication struck a chord, \u2018come and sit and watch the seasons change\u2019, we were ready for an end to this winter\u2019s rainfall.<\/p>\n

Everything was festooned with moss, fungi and water droplets. The views were restricted as the mist and rain continued. We walked alongside woodland, through woodland and almost up to the Ogwr Ridgeway walk. Lunch was taken in a wood where some of us sat on tree stumps but most stood, as the incessant rain dripped from the trees onto us and our sandwiches.<\/p>\n

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After lunch the rain was heavier with a wind driving it horizontally. We saw frog spawn and squelched across an open area as the footpath was water-logged. Bare trees grew from ponds which are almost certainly not there normally.<\/p>\n

The mist became thicker and a herd of deer stood staring at us through the gloom. Soon after we reached the highlight of the walk, a visit to an ancient ash tree. Its trunk had split open and a couple of branches had reached down to the ground. On one of these, above our heads, a group of daffodils were growing amongst ferns \u2013 an amazing sight. Hidden\u00a0by the mist, beyond the tree was Port Talbot steel works.<\/p>\n

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Margam<\/p><\/div>\n

Margam\u2019s tamer paths formed the rest of the walk as we passed information boards about bike rides and walks in the area and a sculpture of a stag outside the remains of the abbey. More than one of us will return to visit the Margam Stones museum with its Celtic crosses.<\/p>\n

At the end, we were all soaked through and we opted to go straight home rather than stop for a drink. One person declared it \u2018the wettest walk ever\u2019. But that ash tree and the deer made it all worthwhile, I think!<\/p>\n

Walk 7 miles 1110ft Maps OS165,166,151<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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Merthyr Mawr<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

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Parking at Castleton we walked up the surprisingly busy road, but the weather was dry. A footpath led us uphill across a grassy field and down to a stream which had spread over the grass. White violets, vibrant red cup-shaped elfin cap and other fungi were abundant.<\/p>\n

At Merthyr Mawr the dunes are fenced and cattle or ponies graze to keep the dunes open, preventing overgrowth by dense grasses and scrub. We walked through some scrub where gorse and hazel were in flower and spiky sea buckthorn bordered the paths together with the seed heads of evening primrose.<\/p>\n

Natural Resources Wales\u2019s website explains how dunes are formed. Waves carry offshore sand to the beach and storms and tides stir sand from the seabed. Coastal erosion can contribute and rivers may bring inland sand. Sand deposited on the beach, gradually builds to dunes, typically in areas with a wide sandy beach.<\/p>\n

Waves and wind leave obstacles such as wood, pebbles and seaweed on the beach at the high tide mark. Once the sand is higher up the beach it can be blown by the wind, is trapped by the obstacles and dunes start to form. Plants like marram grass colonise the dunes, their roots stabilise the sand allowing more sand to build higher dune ridges. As plants die organic matter allows other plants to grow perpetuating the growth of the dunes.<\/p>\n

Arriving at the beach, we noted the huge amount of wood which sat at the hightide line and walked halfway to the river Ogmore before choosing a tree trunk to sit on for lunch. A cool breeze picked up and reaching the river we saw ripples running across it in strange patterns.<\/p>\n

Walking upriver we noticed holes dotted in the sand dunes, continuing for a good distance, rabbit burrows we guessed as they looked too large for birds, and we had seen a few rabbits. Good paths led us past a stand of silver birch and then beech trees with their russet leaves and back to the car park.<\/p>\n

Walk 6.5miles 450ft Map OS151<\/p>\n

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

Margam Park We parked at the small fishing lake near Margam Abbey, the drive over had been misty and as we started out it was raining. Heading north we passed the lake with ducks and swans. Margam park is one of 22 sentinel sites across Wales acting as an early warning system for any plant pests and diseases. There is […]<\/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":[38,432],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s6cWjO-16789","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7542,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=7542","url_meta":{"origin":16789,"position":0},"title":"Footsteps – Margam Park","author":"Alan Williams","date":"3rd May 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Margam Park Margam Park - We are going back to February for this month\u2019s 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\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\/2020\/05\/P1000351-10.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/P1000351-10.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/P1000351-10.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/wenvoe.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/P1000351-10.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13527,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=13527","url_meta":{"origin":16789,"position":1},"title":"ST. MARY\u2019S CHURCH NEWS – SEPT 2023","author":"Alan Williams","date":"31st August 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"AUGUST REPORT By the time you are reading this, schools are on the point of resuming for the Autumn Term, and following the cold, wet summer, let us hope for a brighter warmer September. The three churches came together to celebrate the Holy Eucharist at St Bleddian\u2019s on the fifth\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "St Mary's Parish Church News"","block_context":{"text":"St Mary's Parish Church News","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=3"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2796,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=2796","url_meta":{"origin":16789,"position":2},"title":"March Walk Programme","author":"Alan Williams","date":"5th March 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 \u00a0MARCH WALKS \u00a0 THURSDAY 2ND MARCH -\u00a0Barry. A circular walk based around Barry approx. 5 miles. \u00a0 \u00a0Bert \u00a0 \u00a0 SATURDAY 4TH MARCH -\u00a0Margam Deer Park and woodland. Around 7\u00bd miles.Ian (165\/166) \u00a0 \u00a0 SATURDAY 11TH MARCH -\u00a0Llandenny near Raglan. A 7\u00bd mile walk. \u00a0\u00a0Mike (152) \u00a0 \u00a0 SATURDAY\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Walking Group"","block_context":{"text":"Walking Group","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=5"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3237,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=3237","url_meta":{"origin":16789,"position":3},"title":"April Walks","author":"Alan Williams","date":"1st May 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 Margam Park:- We parked next to the lake just outside Margam Park and made our way along the main track towards the deer park. Marshals stood near a stream, there was a run across the park and the runners were expected to go through this stream not once but\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":3560,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=3560","url_meta":{"origin":16789,"position":4},"title":"Term End Report","author":"Alan Williams","date":"28th July 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 Well, here we are, almost at the end of this academic year and what a fantastic year it has been! Our Year 6 pupils led a super Leavers Assembly last Friday, sharing their memories of their time in Gwenfo. They were each presented with a memory stick containing photographs\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Gwenfo Primary School"","block_context":{"text":"Gwenfo Primary School","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=58"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2880,"url":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?p=2880","url_meta":{"origin":16789,"position":5},"title":"March Report and Schedule","author":"Alan Williams","date":"31st March 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"The president introduced our speaker Peter Cox to our March meeting. Peter is a former employee of G.C.H.Q-a British Intelligence and Security Organisation, responsible for providing the British government and the armed forces with information to keep our country safe. We were given an intriguing and interesting insight into the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Womens Institute"","block_context":{"text":"Womens Institute","link":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/?cat=37"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16789"}],"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=16789"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16789\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16792,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16789\/revisions\/16792"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16789"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16789"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wenvoe.org.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16789"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}