gyrru ar antur ar gyrru leisure tour

taith hamdden sir y fflint y sir hamdden taith a drive to explore

2

ni cheir eu hatgynhyrchu’n rhannol nac yn gyfan ar unrhyw ffurf heb ganiatâd ysgrifenedig. ysgrifenedig. ganiatâd heb ffurf unrhyw ar gyfan yn nac rhannol hatgynhyrchu’n eu cheir ni

t ar gyfer deunydd ac deunydd gyfer ar t hawlfrain mae’r cyhoeddwyr y Gan wybodaeth. gyhoeddi’r o deillio neu’n â gysylltiedig sy’n ddeunydd unrhyw am nac fethu ei wedi

beth sy’n anghywir neu anghywir sy’n beth unrhyw wallau, unrhyw am gwbl o gyfrifoldeb unrhyw derbyn gallu yn cyhoeddwyr yw’r nid gywir, yn fod ei sicrhau i wneud ei wedi

Er bod pob ymdrech pob bod Er Fflint. Y Sir Dwristiaeth Chymdeithas â cyd y ar Chadwyn a Fflint Y Sir Gyngor gan 2010 Tachwedd mis ym gyhoeddi ei Wedi

www.split-the-difference.co.uk Wersylla: Fan Jesi’r

Norman Closs-Parry, Tony Trasmundi. Trasmundi. Tony Closs-Parry, Norman

Orange Imaging, White Fox, Colin Varndell, Beach Caravan Sales Limited, Bywyd Gwyllt Gogledd Ddwyrain Cymru, Ddwyrain Gogledd Gwyllt Bywyd Limited, Sales Caravan Beach Talacre Varndell, Colin Fox, White Imaging, Orange

© Hawlfraint y Goron (2010) Croeso Cymru, Cyngor Cefn Gwlad Cymru, Nick Critchley, Carolyn Thomas, Carolyn Critchley, Nick Cymru, Gwlad Cefn Cyngor Cymru, Croeso (2010) Goron y Hawlfraint © Ffotograffiaeth:

White Fox 01352 840898 www.whitefox-design.co.uk 840898 01352 Fox White chynhyrchu: a dylunio copi, Ysgrifennu

credydau Goleudy’r Parlwr Du Parlwr Goleudy’r

Lighthouse at credits Copywriting, design and production: White Fox 01352 840898 www.whitefox-design.co.uk Photography: © Crown copyright (2010) Visit , Countryside Council for Wales, White Fox, Nick Critchley, Carolyn Thomas, Orange Imaging, Colin Varndell, Talacre Beach Caravan Sales Limited, NEWWildlife, Norman Closs-Parry, Tony Trasmundi. Jessie the Campervan: www.split-the-difference.co.uk Published November 2010 by Flintshire County Council and Cadwyn Clwyd in association with Flintshire Tourism Association. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, the publishers can accept no liability whatsoever for any errors, inaccuracies or omission or for any matter in any way connected with or arising out of the publication of the information. Copyright for material is held by the publishers and may not be reproduced in part

or in whole in any form without written consent. 2 3

contents A drive to explore 5 How it works 6

Profile: Mold 8

Section 1: Mold to Holywell 10

Profile: Holywell 12

Section 2: Holywell to 14

Section 3: Llanasa to 16

Profile: Caerwys 18

Section 4: Caerwys to 20

Section 5: Cilcain to 22

Section 6: Nercwys to 24

Section 7: Caergwrle to 26

Section 8: Hawarden to Flint 28

Profile: Flint 30

Section 9: Flint to Mold 32

Directory 34 4 flintshire

M6 M58 M63 M LiverpoolLiverpool 6 ManchesterManchester M57 0 HolyheadHolyhead PrestatynPrestatyn M LlandudnoLlandudno 53 M56 A55 A55 HolywellHolywell EllesmereEllesmere PPortort BangorBangor A5 5 A5 ChesterChester

A470 CaernarfonCaernarfon MoldMold CreweCrewe

M6 Betws-Betws- A487 3

8 y-coedy-coed A5 4 WrexhamWrexham PorthmadogPorthmadog A ENGLANDE N G L A N D 4 A470 A49 BalaBala

A5 WALESW A L E S StaffordStafford DolgellauDolgellau ShrewsburyShrewsbury M54 WelshpoolWelshpool TeTe l f or d MachynllethMachynlleth A47 0 WolverhamptonWolverhampton M6 A49 A458 A487 BirminghamBirmingham AberystwythAberystwyth NewtownNewtown M5 2 ContainsContains OOrdnancerdnance SSurveyurvey ddataata © CCrownrown ccopyrightopyright aandnd ddatabaseatabase rrightight 22010010 4 ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk M

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 5

a drive to explore

Come and join us. It won’t take you long. That’s why we’ve broken the 83-mile tour Flintshire is a beautiful Welsh border into nine manageable sections. You may county that’s very handily placed for a day find you can only tackle one or two out or short break. sections in a day. And that’s if you stick to the route. And since you’ll be here double quick, you’ll have plenty of time to explore. We Once you’ve made the odd detour, done have rather a beguiling mix of countryside, some shopping, had a good lunch, coastline, market towns and historic wandered around a or walked up a attractions. hillfort, you may not have made as much progress as you expected. So many things, in fact, that you won’t know where to start. Which is where the Shame. You’ll just have to book a bed – or Flintshire Leisure Tour comes in. a pitch - for the night and start again in the morning. Unless you already live here, You’ll need a vehicle. One that you’ll probably of course. The Flintshire Leisure Tour can find yourself stopping and parking on a be a voyage of discovery for residents, too. fairly regular basis - because there’s a lot to see along the way.

For more information or to book a bed call 01352 759331 or email [email protected] 6 how it works

M53

River LlanasaLlanasa Mersey

A5151 A548 River Dee

A5026 HolywellHolywell A55 FlintFlint ENGLANDE N G L A N D CaerwysCaerwys A55 9 M56

A54 A511 8 A541 C l w y d i a A494 n A541 R CilcainCilcain a HawardenHawarden n A55 g e A550 A5 MoldMold A5104 25 A5118 A494

NercwysNercwys A 550

A541

A494 A5104 A483 CaergwrleCaergwrle NORTH WALESW A L E S

0 2 km

0 1 mile

ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 ProducedProduced byby www.themappingcompany.co.ukwww.themappingcompany.co.uk

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 7

We recommend you start in Mold, next to this sign. But if you do decide to start elsewhere, it’s safer and simpler to drive the route anticlockwise. The same direction as the arrows on the map opposite.

Look out for road signs like this – some people call it “following the dragon”. There are 104 of them in total and each has its own number. We refer to some of these numbers in the text to help you find places of interest or work out where to make a detour.

2 1 This booklet also contains maps to help you find your way. B5 GreeGreenfield Greenfield There’s one for each of the nine sections of the tour. Plus a 12 street plan of all four towns en route. Where you see a blue Carmel Valley VaValley Carmel circle with a number in it, that refers to a particular road Holywell sign on the tour. Contains data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 HoHolywell Produced by wwBw.theamapgpingicolmlpatny.co.uk 026 Contains Ordnance Survey data And where you see a red dotted line, that shows the route © Crown copyright and database right 2010 of the Flintshire LeisureFl iTour.nt There. Couldn’t be simpler. All Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Brynford we ask is that you drive carefully along our sometimes PentrePentre narrow country roads and through our lovely villages. After HalkynHalkyn all, you wouldn’t want to miss anything. Babell Halkyn Flint Mountain The only way to see it all is to get out of your vehicle – and into your walking boots. Look out for this photograph. It showsN whereortho thep tour connects with one of 25 Flintshire PentRuralre Walks. Lixwm C Halkyn l w y d i Soughton a For more information or to bookH a bedalk callyn 01352 759331 n

R or email [email protected] a Cilcain Halkyn n g e PantymwynMountain Buckley Flint Mountain Mold

Nannerch LoggCerhaedaodsle Country Park RhoGsweesrnmymoynrydd

C l w y d Rhydymwyn i a Soughton n

R a Cilcain n g Gwernaffield e Buckley Mold

LoggCerhaedaodsle Country Park 8 profile | mold

D R E A 9 N ClwydClwyd I 1 B DenbighDenbigh K 1 FlintFlint E 5 IG S TheatrTheatr A

H L R A O CymruCymru A D QueensferryQueensferry GW E NORTH RN T A E FFIE AN E LD R FL R OA E T D A S R 541 D G H N B AL I 5 L V K 4 I

0 0.5 km BaileyBailey 4 EW

P 4

E LA W HillHill V

O N L

L E 104

0 0.25 mile L

G MuseumMuseum

L 4 A & LLibraryibrary LEA 9 S H MILLS IG 4 4 4 A H 4 D 5 B

T S G ET S N E D T I TR OA R K S N R E R TO E TE AY T S CL L RD E R CH C EA HE STE R R OA W D

R A541 E ChesterChester H TownTown ET X E RE H D N ParkPark T A A D S M O 9 Y R 54 R W A O E S S AD N T D R N E A A E 5 L 4 MOLDO T D 1 D O O

W

A L

AD BR E D N RO YN N L I C E UTH O LA I R C H F M O

BR 4 19 9 51 4 A H A C Q O C U E YN E R N B U R ’S PP E ER PP L B U W A RY N N R E C E O X CH H AM RO AD

B5 444 A 49 4

MOLD BYPA 94 SS A4 ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 ProducedProduced byby www.themappingcompany.co.ukwww.themappingcompany.co.uk WrexhamWrexham 9

Main pic: shopping in Mold. Facing pics (left to right): , Mold market, Mold Cape, St. Mary’s Church.

The people of Mold believe slowness is a laboriously beaten from a single ingot virtue. You may think they move pretty quickly weighing half a kilo. when they’re hunting down a bargain every Wednesday and Saturday in the open-air The British Musuem has the original. But you market. can see a replica of one of the world’s great Age treasures in the museum in Earl But Mold wants to be a Slow Town. As part Road. of the international Cittaslow movement, it refuses to join the global rat race that’s making And you can stroll a town trail which includes, every town centre feel the same. at the top of the High Street, the remains of a Norman motte and bailey castle. From the Instead it celebrates what’s local and unique. turbulent days when life in Mold was just a little The food and drink, for example, which is so faster than it is now. good there’s a whole festival devoted to it every September.

Or the history – 4,000 years of it. That’s how long ago the fabulous Mold Gold Cape was www.visitmold.com 10 section 1 | mold to holywell distance | 11 miles

1 Start: on A541 Road, Daniel Owen is Wales’s Charles Dickens and Mold’s Mold, next to the Love Lane car most famous son. His statue park. See street plan page 8. stands outside the library Sat nav: N53.17084°, W3.14102°. and museum. Pop inside to find out more about him - or borrow one of his books. Before you leave: have lunch See street plan on page 8. or do a bit of shopping. Mold has a fine range of shops, restaurants and cafés. Or visit 2 the world-leading Arthurian If you can find the Valley Works in Rhydymwyn Collection of books at the County (detour at Tour Sign 1) Hall complex (ring 01352 704400 you’ll be doing better than for an appointment). It has more enemy aircraft in World War Two. This chemical than 2,000 items about King weapons factory, now a Arthur and Avalon - which some nature reserve, stayed think was on Halkyn Mountain. top-secret throughout the war. Call 01352 741591 to book a visit. En route: romantic wild uplands, shaped by centuries of industry, with stunning views 3 over the . The Age hillfort of Moel y Gaer commands spectacular views over the Dee Estuary. So we built a fire beacon there more than 2,000 years later just in case Napoleon decided look out for: to invade. The sheep on Halkyn common. They’ve been roaming freely there since medieval times.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 11

A5026 NORTH B5121GreenfieldGreenfield 12 ValleyValley River Dee CarmelCarmel 0 1 km A5026 A55 HolywellHolywell BagilltBagillt 0 0.5 mile CContainsontains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 PProducedroduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk BrynfordBrynford A5026 6 A548 BabellBabell FlintFlint

B5121 PentrePentre A54 LixwmLixwm HalkynHalkyn 8 19 A541 HalkynHalkyn A51 HalkynHalkyn

MountainMountain B5123 FlintFlint MountainMountain B51 29 NannerchNannerch 4 5 3 RhosesmorRhosesmor B5126 NorthopNorthop A541 B5125

C l A55 w A5119 y 2 d RhydymwynRhydymwyn i a 1 A54 SoughtonSoughton 4 n 1 A49

R a CilcainCilcain B5127 n g GwernaffieldGwernaffield e PantymwynPantymwyn A494 BuckleyBuckley MoldMold 1 A549 LoggCerhaedaodsle 4 Country Park 5 6 The wild, open landscape of Halkyn Gwernymynydd Time for a sarnie. Mountain Common has reverted to nature This sculpture in after the lead mining and quarrying booms Brynford is a tribute of the 18th and 19th centuries. You can still to local quarrymen. see relics like shaft craters and horse-whim And the importance circles. But you’re just as likely to notice the of break times in wildflowers and circling buzzards. their dusty, noisy day. www.ccw.gov.uk

Flintshire Rural Walk 16 takes you all over Halkyn Mountain. Download it at www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for a copy. 12 profile | holywell

NORTH

A 1 5 2 4 1 8 5 B B A 0 1 km G

IL LT D R 0 0.5 mile A O O A R D D EL FI N E E R G Greenfield Valley Heritage Park

A BagilltBagillt 548 ET RE ST HOLYWELLL

D EL FI N E E A502 R 6 G

1 2

1 5

12 B StSt Winefride’sWinefride’s ChapelChapel & WWellell

D T

R S

W W L AES ROAD E -M H EL -Y

N PEN IT F W ORD ST A 50 26 A H D 5 I A 0 G O 2 H R 6 ORIA VICT ST 026 A5 F R B C O R O N Y H LE N A SH PA L ILL STREET R F K K O Y R N

R D

O S

A D S T

T R E E T

B 5 B 4 5 3 1 2 2 1

H B A R L Y K N Y F N O

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R D ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rrightight 20102010 A55A55 D ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk 13

Main pic: St Winefride’s Well. Facing pics (left to right): inside St Winefride’s Well, shopping, historic buildings, High Street.

Never mind one of the Seven Wonders of Wales. uncle St Beuno and lived another 22 years as St Winefride’s Well, which gives Holywell its a nun. name, is quite simply unique in the world. This being the “Lourdes of Wales”, you can This reputedly healing spring has been a place bathe in the pool beside the beautiful chapel of unbroken pilgrimage for 1,300 years. It was built by Margaret Beaufort, mother of long-famous by the time King Henry V walked Henry VII. here from Shrewsbury to give thanks for his victory at Agincourt. And if you haven’t brought your swimsuit you can still follow an audio trail through the According to legend Winefride was beheaded grounds or visit a museum containing many in 660AD by a local chieftain after she spurned rare relics. People of all faiths, and no faith, are his advances – and a spring rose from the spot welcome. where her head fell.

All a bit gruesome but don’t despair. She was restored to life thanks to the prayers of her www.holywell-town.co.uk 14 section 2 | holywell to llanasa distance | 11.5 miles

1 Start: next to St Winefride’s Within 70-acre Greenfield Well on the B5121 in Holywell. Valley Heritage Park is a very special farm museum. See street plan page 12. Not only does it contain real live animals. Its combine harvester is among the 10 Before you leave: count the most important in Britain. And that’s official. listed Georgian and Victorian www.greenfieldvalley.com buildings in Holywell town centre. There are more than 60 of them. 2 With nearly 100 mostly family- Basingwerk was run shops. And a market every founded in 1132 by Cistercian monks. Now Thursday in the High Street. it’s a romantic ruin that you can see for free every day. En route: countryside www..wales.gov.uk immortalised by Wales’s most famous naturalist and the tallest stone wheel cross in Britain, 3 carved a millennium ago. A detour at Tour Sign 28 brings you to and Talacre Dunes Site of Special Scientific Interest. Where you look out for: might see rare natterjack The Keeper at Point of Ayr lighthouse. toads and Wales’s only breeding colony of little A stainless steel replica terns. Or you could just of a ghost who haunts build a sandcastle and the spot. work on your tan.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 15 Pointoint of Ayryr 3 NORTH TalacreTalacre

PrestatynPrestatyn A548 0 1 km

0 0.5 mile GronantGronant GwespyrGwespyr FfynnongroywFfynnongroyw LlanasaLlanasa 6 River Dee GwaenysgorGwaenysgor 31 Glan-yr-AfonGlan-yr-Afon GopGop TreloganTrelogan MostynMostyn HillHill A54 TrelawnydTrelawnyd BerthengamBerthengam 8 A5151 5 MaesMaes PennantPennant MaenMaen AchwyfanAchwyfan WhitfordWhitford Llyn 4 Helyg 2 A50 26 1 B5121GreenfieldGreenfield A5151 12 ValleyValley A55 CarmelCarmel A5026 RhualltRhuallt HolywellHolywell

B5122

BrynfordBrynford A5026 BabellBabell CaerwysCaerwys

A55 A541 B5121 ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata PentrePentre B512 © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand ddatabaseatabase rrightight 22010010 AfonwenAfonwen ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk LixwmLixwm HalkynHalkyn 3

4 5 6 Naturalist and traveller Thomas It’s 12 feet tall and 1,000 years Pennant, born in Whitford, was old. It’s one of Britain’s finest famous enough to be painted by sculptured stone crosses. Gainsborough. Now you can And Maen Achwyfan is just retrace five of his local walks - standing there in a field near the fourth features the ancient Tour Sign 21. lead-smelting house of Gadlys. www.thethomaspennantsociety.com

Flintshire Rural Walks 2 and 3 start in Ffynnongroyw and take you through the ancient woodland of Coed y Garth. Download them at www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for a copy. 16 section 3 | llanasa to caerwys distance | 10 miles

1 Start: in the centre of Llanasa Llanasa parish church contains two spectacular village with the church on the stained glass windows left, opposite Tour Sign 31. from . Not to mention the final resting place of Gruffydd Before you leave: soak up Fychan, father of Welsh the atmosphere. Llanasa is a hero and freedom fighter Owain Glyndwr. Mind perfect example of a small your feet. His sepulchral Welsh virtually slab is set into the floor untouched by time. It has a near the organ. fine 17th century gabled house called Henblas, an 18th century 2 Lepers weren’t entirely inn, tithe barn cottages and a welcome at Victorian former school. And church in the 14th century. But they did the old village pump still stands have their own tiny beside the pond. window through which they could listen to the service and receive the En route: Gop Hill, site of sacrament. Take a detour Queen Boudica’s last battle. at Tour Sign 32 to see it. Allegedly.

3 Gwaenysgor is 650 feet above sea level. Which is why the vista that opens look out for: up from the viewpoint The flowers. Llanasa is just outside the village is quite so spectacular. It famous for its gardens and includes a glimpse of opens them every year as part of North Hoyle, Britain’s first the National Gardens Scheme. offshore wind farm.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 17 A548 PrestatynPrestatyn FfynnongroywFfynnongroyw River 3 LlanasaLlanasa GwaenysgorGwaenysgor 31 Dee 2 1 Glan-yr-AfonGlan-yr-Afon MostynMostyn GopGop TreloganTrelogan HillHill 4 5 BerthengamBerthengam TrelawnydTrelawnyd A5151 MaesMaes PennantPennant

A548 MaenMaen WhitfordWhitford AchwyfanAchwyfan Llyn Helyg 21 B51 A5026 CarmelCarmel A5151

A55 HolywellHolywell RhualltRhuallt

B512 A BrynfordBrynford 55 2

BabellBabell NORTH CaerwysCaerwys 40

B5121 0 1 km A541 0 0.5 mile AfonwenAfonwen LixwmLixwm ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk

4 5 On top of Gop Hill is a mysterious stone cairn. It may have been a monument to the dead. Or just somewhere to gaze at the stars. What we know for sure is that it’s the second-largest prehistoric mound in Britain. And the Flintshire Rural Walk 25 takes views, if not the walk up you from village, to it, will take your past Gop Hill and along Offa’s breath away. Dyke Path. Download it at www.cpat.org.uk www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for a copy. 18 profile | caerwys

NORTH A55,A55,

2 HolywellHolywell & RhylRhyl 2

1

5

B

0 250 metres

0 250 yards

T

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StSt Michael’sMichael’s T

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B 5 1 2 2 CoedCoed Nant-plas-IsafNant-plas-Isaf

ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 A541A541 ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk DenbighDenbigh & MoldMold 19

Main pic: Water Street. Facing pics (left to right): shopping, St Michael’s Church, Chapel Street.

Caerwys may be small but it’s perfectly formed. Princess Margaret attended the town’s anniversary So small indeed that the Guinness Book of celebrations on behalf of the Queen. Records thought it the tiniest town in Great Britain. Other monarchs with a soft spot for Caerwys include both Henry VIII and his daughter And so perfectly formed, with its straight roads Elizabeth I. Henry declared it a place for crossing each other at right angles, that it “craftsmen of poetry and music” and Elizabeth provided the model for Philadelphia in proclaimed it “home of the ”. Pennsylvania, USA. By doing so she enabled local arty types to (Sir William Penn, founder of Philadelphia, was avoid being lumped together with tramps, accompanied to America by Caerwys surgeon footpads, beggars and buskers. And she made , who must have bent his ear Caerwys the natural headquarters of the about its attractions.) Welsh bards.

We can thank King Edward I for the fact that Caerwys is a town at all. He granted it his Royal Charter in 1290. Seven hundred years later www.caerwys-town.com 20 section 4 | caerwys to cilcain distance | 7 miles

1 Start: at the top of South Flintshire Rural Walk 1 joins Caerwys with the fishing Street B5122 in Caerwys at lakes of , created Tour Sign 40. See street plan by the Earl of Denbigh in page 18. 1904. Download it at www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for Before you leave: have a pub a copy. meal, buy some freshly baked bread or get yourself a haircut. 2 Caerwys promotes itself under Not content with the banner “convenient, having two naves, St Michael’s Church in character, community”. Which Caerwys has a pair means you can expect a warm of lychgates, too. welcome and a little something The south-western one still has an for your journey into the original pre- bargain. Reformation tie beam. En route: a village made of limestone leading to one of the 3 biggest Iron Age hillforts in Nannerch sits on a bedrock of carboniferous Wales at . limestone in the wooded valley of the . Which may explain why lots of its look out for: buildings are made of limestone. And why it The rare hazel dormice at blends so perfectly with Y Ddôl Uchaf nature reserve its surroundings. Detour at Ddôl. Or more likely one or two right two miles after Tour of their nibbled nuts. Sign 41.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 21 A50

BabellBabell 26 2 B5122 CaerwysCaerwys

40 21 1 1

B5 A55 PentrePentre AfonwenAfonwen LixwmLixwm HalkynHalkyn HalkynHalkyn A541 DdôlDdDdôlôl HalkynHalkyn 3 MountainMountain B5123 NannerchNannerch

RhosesmorRhosesmor 4 C A541 PenycloddiauPenycloddiau l w y d i a RhydymwynRhydymwyn n MoelMoel ArthurArthur R A54 a 1 n 5 NORTH g CilcainCilcain e 45 PantymwynPantymwyn 0 1 km 0 0.5 mile GwernaffieldGwernaffield ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata LoggerheadsLoggerheads © CrownCrown ccopyrightopyright aandnd ddatabaseatabase rrightight 22010010 ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk CountryCountry ParkPark

4 5

The Iron Age hillfort of Penycloddiau is a If you plan to stop in Cilcain, where parking is mystical place. So it might not feel quite right tight, make a detour to the viewpoint after to fish out your mobile phone. But dial into Tour Sign 44. Ahead of you is - the audio trail there and you can hear voices highest point of the . If that’s from the distant past. You may even be too daunting, just saunter down to the village. inspired to climb , the hillfort next door, as well. www.heatherandhillforts.co.uk 22 section 5 | cilcain to nercwys distance | 9 miles

1 Could you run four very Start: at the crossroads in the hilly miles in under half centre of Cilcain next to Tour an hour? You might win the Moel Famau Sign 45. Mountain Race. It takes place every August Bank Holiday as part of the Before you leave: wander Cilcain Show, which through the churchyard at attracts a crowd of thousands. Cilcain. You’ll be quite safe – www.cilcainshow.org.uk it’s circular so that no demons could hide in the corners. Then go inside the church to see one 2 The clue’s in the name. of the finest carved oak Abseiling 120 feet down the Devil’s Gorge can be a hammer beam roofs in Wales. fearsome prospect. You could The door’s open until sunset. always just watch from the footbridge – then take a stroll along the Leete Path and have En route: a ruined shepherd’s a nice cup of tea at Loggerheads Country Park. cottage and a mountain that www.clwydianrangeaonb.org.uk cost nearly half a million pounds to save. 3 Flintshire Rural Walk 19 goes to Cilcain, Walk 20 to Moel Famau and Walk 21 to Moel Findeg. And they all start from Loggerheads Country look out for: Park (detour right at Tour Sign 49). Download them at The badgers in Cilcain’s Millennium www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for Woods. Don’t worry, you won’t startle a copy. them. They’re carved from wood.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 23

A 541 A5119 1 CilcainCilcain

45 MillenniumMillennium WoodsWoods PantymwynPantymwyn 2 4

GwernaffieldGwernaffield A49 MoldMold

B54 19 A51 44 CadoleCadole LoggerheadsLoggerheads CountryCountry ParkPark A494 GwernymynyddGwernymynydd 3 A494

54 MoelMoel NercwysNercwys FindegFindeg MaeshafnMaeshafn 4 NORTH

0 0.5 km NercwysNercwys 0 0.25 mile ForestForest 5 ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk

4 5

Everybody loves mountains. And the people Detour right after Tour Sign 53 to Nercwys of Maeshafn loved Moel Findeg enough to Forest and the evocative ruins of a shepherd’s help raise £465,000 to buy it and save it from cottage hidden among the trees. The shepherd’s quarrying. Now it’s a Local Nature Reserve. long gone. But he would have appreciated www.moelfindeg.co.uk the new hay meadow and restored dry stone walls. 24 section 6 | nercwys to caergwrle distance | 10 miles

1 In the churchyard of St Start: next to Tour Sign 54 on Mary’s at Nercwys you’ll find the northern outskirts of the great Nerquis Hall vault, Nercwys village. which encases the remains of local bigwigs in a sarcophagus Before you leave: walk of white marble. Look out for the “elaborate heraldic through Nercwys Forest to see cartouches”, or carved scrolls the pavement at Bryn Alyn. to you and me. There’s a That’s more exciting than it 1768 sundial, too, in case sounds when the pavement is you’ve forgotten your watch. very rare, made of deeply weathered limestone and the In Victorian times, 2 second-largest in Wales. So 450 men were employed to mine exciting, in fact, that it’s a Site coal and iron at of Special Scientific Interest. (detour left at Tour Sign 56). You’ll find reminders of this En route: a village where the rich industrial heritage Romans liked to take a hot as you stroll nearby Bridleway, bath after a hard day’s lead a former railway running mining. A hypocaust was through a 50-acre discovered at in 1870. nature reserve. www.treuddyn.org.uk

Flintshire Rural Walk 6 starts 3 in and takes in the remains of the pleasure grounds look out for: of now-demolished Nant y The road signs in Nercwys. Ffrith Hall. Download it at www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks A reminder of the day in 1956 or call 01352 759331 when the village decided to stop for a copy. calling itself Nerquis and revert to the original Welsh name.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 25 A494 A5118

B5444 PenyfforddPenyffordd 54 A541 NercwysNercwys A5104 1 PontblyddynPontblyddyn

A550 LeeswoodLeeswood

A541 CoedCoed TalonTalon

TreuddynTreuddyn HopeHope WaunWaun y LlynLlyn CountryCountry ParkPark A5104 Off a’s D 2 CaergwrleCaergwrle yk e 3 HopeHope 66 B5101 MountainMountain LlanfynyddLlanfynydd Cefn-y-beddCefn-y-bedd 4 FfrithFfrith 5 02 B51 NORTH B5430

02 0 1 km ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 B51 ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk 0 0.5 mile

4 5

Settled by the Romans, crossed by Offa’s Dyke The rare packhorse bridge in Road and a centre for 19th century lead mining, dates from at least the mid-18th century and Ffrith is packed with archaeological treasures. may even be medieval. At any rate it’s a Channel 4’s Time Team has joined forces with Scheduled Ancient Monument. And it’s the Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust to skewed. Which means it crosses the River create an interactive map of the village. Cegidog at an angle. www.cpat.org.uk 26 section 7 | caergwrle to hawarden distance | 8 miles

1 was Start: opposite Caergwrle begun in 1277 by railway station, shortly after Dafydd ap Gruffudd Tour Sign 66. and used as a base for his war against Edward I. For his Before you leave: walk across trouble he became the first nobleman to the 17th century packhorse be hanged, drawn bridge in Fellows Lane, and quartered in Caergwrle. It was built with low . walls to allow for the horses’ bulging side packs. And don’t 2 worry if you see a horse Within living memory, coming. You can wait in one of Caergwrle was a thriving spa town. the special V-shaped bays for In its heyday the now it to pass. defunct spa at Rhyddyn Hall produced 14,000 bottles of saline En route: the oldest church in fizz every day. Very Flintshire and a village with good for “purging”, apparently. curiously divided loyalties.

Flintshire Rural Walk 14 3 between Caergwrle and Hope includes part of Wat’s look out for: Dyke Way, a 61-mile linear trail from to Fly agaric, a toadstool which Holywell. Download it at grows in the acidic soil around www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks Caergwrle Castle. Don’t touch it, or call 01352 759331 for though. It’s poisonous and a copy. hallucinogenic.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 27 HawardenHawarden A494 A55 79

B5125 B5127 SaltneySaltney FerryFerry A550 BuckleyBuckley A5104

A549 BroughtonBroughton

A55

A5118 LowerLower KinnertonKinnerton PenyfforddPenyffordd A5104 6 HigherHigher A541 KinnertonKinnerton PontblyddynPontblyddyn

A550

LeeswoodLeeswood A483

04 A51 A541 CoedCoed TalonTalon 4 HopeHope NORTH WaunWaun y LLlynlyn 5 CountryCountry ParkPark 3 0 1 km Offa’sO f CaergwrleCaergwrle 2 DykeD fa 0 0.5 mile ’ yk s HopeHope 1 66 ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 e MountainMountain ProducedProduced by wwww.themaww.themappppiningcomcompanany.co.uk.co.uk 4 5 6 Hope Mountain may be 1,080 The villagers of Higher feet tall. But you can drive Kinnerton have to leave the most of the way up and park at country to visit Lower Waun y Llyn Country Park. A Kinnerton, a mile down the five-minute stroll and you can road in England. No passports see as far as the mountains of are required. . Detour left at Hope.

Hope Parish Church is the oldest in Flintshire, dating from 1180. And it was beginning to show its age. The £500,000 restoration in 2000 should it going for another millennium or so. 28 section 8 | hawarden to flint distance | 10.5 miles

1 Hawarden has two Start: at the T-junction in the . The Georgian centre of Hawarden at Tour mansion, private Sign 79. home of statesman William Gladstone Before you leave: and his descendants, open the is called the New door in the mighty battlemented Castle. And the 13th gate in the centre of Hawarden century ruin is, oddly village and step through. enough, called the Marvel at the views over Old Castle. Bilberry Wood. And take a short stroll, courtesy of the 2 Gladstone family, for a glimpse The Gladstone Library at of the ruined medieval castle Hawarden was founded on its prehistoric earthwork by four-times Prime embankments. Minister . With 32,000 of his own books. Now it’s En route: our record-breaking the National Memorial bridge. Who would have to his life and work. thought an inverted Y-pylon www.st-deiniols.com 118 metres tall could be so beautiful? Flintshire Rural Walk 4 is 3 a five-mile circular route through Hawarden village and surrounding woodland. look out for: Download it at www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks The bats in . On certain or call 01352 759331 dusky summer evenings you can for a copy. join bat walks and use detectors to hear their sonic squeaks.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 29 ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 River ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk Dee NORTH 98 FlintFlint A550 0 1 km

0 0.5 mile A54 8 A 548

19 4 A51 DeesideDeeside IndustrialIndustrial PParkark FlintFlint MountainMountain

B51 29 Connah’sConnah’s QuayQuay A548

A55 ShottonShotton 41 B5126 WepreWepre B54 5 ParkPark

NorthopNorthop B5125 DeesideDeeside QueensferryQueensferry

19 6 4 A49

A51 EwloeEwloe GreenGreen B512 EwloeEwloe A550 9 SoughtonSoughton 4 HawardenHawarden A49 79 27 2 1 B51 3 A B51 54 A 25 1 A494 55 550 A BuckleyBuckley A5104 MoldMold 9 A54 A54 9 BroughtonBroughton

4 5 6 Welcome to the iconic image In 1257 Llewelyn the Last of Flintshire. With a span of built “a castle in the corner 200 metres the £40 million of the wood”. Castle Dee Crossing is the largest is still there. Still surrounded asymmetric cable-stayed by trees. And less than a bridge in Britain. And all around mile from the Wepre Park you is Industrial Park, car park. one of the biggest in Europe. Wepre Park has 160 acres of ancient woodland. It has pools, waterfalls and wildflower meadows. And it has a pet cemetery containing Rector the dog, who was shot because he “ate without stint lamb without mint”. It’s worth the detour at Tour Sign 96. www.flintshire.gov.uk/countryside 30 profile | flint

PrestatynPrestatyn NORTH

A 5 48

0 0.5 km

H O 0 0.25 mile LY W EL L FlintFlint CCastleastle

RO A A

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R O Dee A RailwayRailway SStationtation Red Wood D 98

A5 STREET 119 EARL O L C D H E L S O T C T ER N H D T APE ST O S STREE N H L S R T DUKE O RC A U D H T C S C N O Y W R K IN NIS L D T RO A S R AD H O D R D D IST A R RN O I CO R C VE H P ES O FLINTT T E H R T R R O A O D N

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5 A ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rrightight 20102010 MoldMold ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk 31

Main pic: cycling at Flint. Facing pics (left to right): riverside walk, Town Hall, the “Footplate” sculpture, .

This is where it all began. In 1277 medieval Brian Fell’s sculpture entitled “Footplate” may Europe’s most ambitious building project not have quite the same gravitas. But it started here at Flint. generated a little shock and awe of its own when it was installed in 1999 at the nearby King Edward I was known as Longshanks railway station. because he was so tall. The Welsh probably had a few other names for him when he began As you’d expect from a steel foot that’s 11-foot a campaign to crush their independence with high. A bike chain protruding from its hollow an “iron ring” of castles along the ankle, it celebrates Flint’s vital place in the coast. National Cycling Network. From one Longshanks to another, you might say. It included the World Heritage Sites at Conwy, Caernarfon, Harlech and Beaumaris. But Flint Castle was the first.

It took 2,300 men just seven years to build. And it’s still there, brooding spectacularly beside the Dee Estuary. www.fflint.co.uk 32 section 9 | flint to mold distance | 10.5 miles

1 Start: Flint Castle was built in Flint at Tour Sign 98 by Edward I, painted where Church Street joins the by Turner and A548. See street plan page 30. described by Shakespeare. Fish Before you leave: wander the out your camera and immortalise it some streets of Flint. Even today more. they follow the grid pattern of the bastide, or fortified town, created by Edward I in the Flint is slap bang on 2 13th century. It’s a busy National Cycle Route 5. Which means you can shopping centre now. With an ride east to open-air market every Friday along the banks of the in Market Square off Holywell River Dee - or start pedalling west along the Road. North Wales coast. Stop when you get to En route: “the nearest thing , though, or you’ll get very wet. to a National Theatre of www.sustrans.org.uk Wales”, according to the Sunday Times. It’s on a hilltop 3 above Mold. The battlemented tower of St Eurgain and St Peter’s Church in Northop is 98-foot tall. That’s about the height of seven double-decker buses. look out for: No wonder it’s one of Little egrets and spoonbills. Or at Flintshire’s landmarks. least an oystercatcher. The Dee Estuary is one of Britain’s best spots for wading birds.

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour 33 A50 A 548 NORTH 26 River A 98 55 1 Dee FlintFlint 2 0 1 km 0 0.5 mile PentrePentre HalkynHalkyn A548 548 A HalkynHalkyn A5119 DeesideDeeside HalkynHalkyn FlintFlint MountainMountain IndustrialIndustrial ParkPark B5129 Mountainountain B51 23 Connah’sConnah’s QQuayuay WepreWepre 4 A55 B5126 ParkPark RhosesmorRhosesmor NorthopNorthop 3 ShottonShotton B5 DeesideDeeside A541 5 125

RhydymwynRhydymwyn A5119 EwloeEwloe GreenGreen A494 SoughtonSoughton EwloeEwloe A5 4 A494 1 7 6 B512

PantymwynPantymwyn A 4 55 49 GwernaffieldGwernaffield 104 A BuckleyBuckley MoldMold A549 A549

B54

44 ContainsContains OrdnanceOrdnance SurveySurvey datadata © CrownCrown copyrightcopyright andand databasedatabase rightright 20102010 CadoleCadole ProducedProduced bbyy wwww.themappingcompany.co.ukww.themappingcompany.co.uk 4 5 6 Northop used to have seven Clwyd Theatr Cymru is the when it was a staging leading producing theatre in post on the to Holyhead Wales. It also has a cinema, mail route. Back then Plymouth art gallery, recital room, House was called The Yacht. book shop and restaurant. Not It’s since featured on BBC2’s to mention a bar with a view House Detectives. And it’s part that’s a performance in itself. of a heritage trail around the www.clwyd-theatr-cymru.co.uk village. www.northop.org.uk

Flintshire Rural Walk 7 from Northop to Soughton offers glimpses of two historic houses – Gwysaney Hall and Soughton Hall. Download it at www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for a copy. 34 directory

Tourist Information Wat’s Dyke Way

You may not be able to see the whole of Sixth century Wat’s Dyke is even older than Flintshire in a day. But don’t worry, it will still be Offa’s Dyke but a little less famous. Possibly there next morning. The Tourist Information because no one knows who Wat was. This 61-mile trail follows his mysterious handiwork Centre in Mold will help you book a bed. And from Shropshire to Basingwerk Abbey at answer just about any question you might have. Holywell. www.watsdykeway.org 01352 759331, www.flintshire.gov.uk/tourism

Clwydian Range Area of Outstanding Cycling Natural Beauty

Pedal power is a great way to get around the One of just five AONBs in Wales, this landscape county. From Flint you can ride to Chester on of heather-clad uplands crowned with a series National Route 5 and come back along the of Iron Age hillforts is shared between banks of the River Dee on Regional Route 89. Flintshire and neighbouring . Or you can follow the North Wales coastline all www.clwydianrangeaonb.org.uk the way to Holyhead. www.sustrans.org.uk Discover Flintshire

Offa’s Dyke National Trail Flintshire's tourism website, hosted by Flintshire Tourism Association, tells you all This epic path passes though eight counties on you need to know about the history and its 177-mile journey from Sedbury Cliffs near culture of the county. And there are lists of Chepstow to . And one of them is where to stay, where to dine and what to do. Flintshire. www.nationaltrail.co.uk/offasdyke www.discoverflintshire.co.uk

For more information or to book a bed call 01352 759331 or email [email protected]

www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour