Hi all, just to say thanks for all those who gave suggestions on where I
went on my first trip to the Brecon Beacons National Park. Here's a quick
precis on my travels.
*************
Tuesday 10th July.
Left opticians at 10am and drove to Brecon via Cheltenham and Great Malvern
where I climbed to the highest points in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire.
Or so I thought. If I'd checked the map more closely I would have realised
the top of Cleeve Hill is not at the lookout point but at the trig point
nearer the car park. Sod, will have to go back. Nice views though!
Worcestershire Beacon is dead easy to get up and the views are great. Shame
the two pubs I came out by on the way down were both closed for the
afternoon.
Arrived YHA Brecon (Groessffordd) about 8pm.
*********************
Wednesday 11th July.
Expected good weather and it damn well was! Clear blue skies most of the day
and I got sunburn. Left hostel at 9am, arrived 9.30 in car park at SO 023247
which was once an Army training camp. Headed up the north ridge to
Pen-y-Fan, reaching the top by 12.15pm.
Across to Cribyn and then stopped for lunch at the motorway junction where
the north-south path from Brecon to the Reservoirs crosses the east-west
mountain paths. Whilst munching my sandwiches I spotted 50+ soldiers on a
route march from Cribyn and up Fan-y-Big with full packs and weapons with 2
more smaller groups of troops on other routes. Add to that loads of other
walkers like me and it's easy to see how the paths get so eroded and need
rebuilding as I saw one guy doing.
On top of FyB where the gusty winds put me off posing on the sticking out
rock and then across to Waun Rydd. On the way there I diverted to the
memorial to the Canadian crewmen who died in their Wellington bomber, R1465,
when they crashed on 6th July 1942. Hard to imagine the cloudy conditions
they suffered in on such a beautiful day.
As I headed down from Waun Rydd I felt it was getting late and I wanted to
be back in time for a pub dinner so I went down the valley side hoping to
find the path, but had no luck in the waist high ferns and had to hop a
couple of fences to get onto the bridleway. From SO 065241 I had a roadmarch
back to the car of approx 5km, managed to get back to the hostel for dinner
by 8pm.
Thursday 12th July.
As clouds were low and the rain was constantly spitting down I opted to go
to the Ystradfellte waterfalls. Unfortunately, so did the rest of the hostel
inhabitants! Mostly schoolkids on a geology trip.
Was fairly easy going with some tricky damp parts and I was walking slower
as I was rather tired from the previous days 21km and 1165m of
ascent/descent.
Got to the actual falls by 12noon and it was obvious I shouldn't go that way
because of a profusion of warning signs and tape. Apparently there's some
loose overhead rocks which may get you as you walk under the falls. I
ignored the signs as they were out of date ('Path closed 6th June 2007 for a
period not exceeding 21 days'😉, later on I saw a more up to date sign in a
carpark detailing the closure for at least the next 6 months.
Tis a steep climb down and up again but the actual feeling of being under
such a massive spray of roaring water is fantastic.
I eventually arrived in Pontneddfechan at 2.50pm but the pub landlady lived
up to the pubs name (The Angel! - but cash payments only) and let me order
lunch even though they stopped orders at half two. I had stopped to explore
the gunpowder factory ruins at SN919084 which have a wonderful feeling of
desolation.
From the pub I followed the river north and then east to Pont Melin Fach
where the car park sign said it was locked from 6pm till 9am every day. As I
had a fair way to go along slippery riversides and it was gone 5pm I
panicked and chose to hit the road. I even managed to get a lift the last
mile only to find that I had worried over nothing, the carpark at SN928123
is open all night.
Ended the day with a tasty meal in the Three Horseshoes in Groesfford, Butty
Bach a good drop to wash the Chilli con Carne and Chips down with.
Friday 13th July was a total washout so I spent the day looking around
Brecon, the Cathedral, the shops and the South Wales Borderers Regimental
Museum with its large collection of Zulu War weapons. Went on to Hay on Wye
for books and looked for the top of Hay Bluff from the car but decided to
return on a less wet and misty day!
Nick
--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com