WALK LOCATION IN RELATION TO VALEWAYS’ MILLENNIUM HERITAGE TRAIL Porthkerry Park Photograph © Vale of Glamorgan County Council Valeways’ Millennium Heritage Trail covers a distance of over 100km, spanning over 6,000 years of history. It wends its way through a variety of beautiful landscapes. At its northern edge there are panoramic vistas of the Blaenau Morgannwg, while Footpath at Penmark in the south it skirts a spectacular cliffed coastline. Photograph © Vale of Glamorgan County Council The Trail is split into 16 easy to follow sections, each of which can be walked within a few hours.The surroundings are Cardiff Wales Airport diverse, often spectacular and steeped in history. Photograph © Vale of Glamorgan County Council Those who have never visited this part of Wales will enjoy walking through fertile, lowland countryside adjoining the spectacular Heritage Coast with its beautiful beaches.The route includes many fascinating historic features, from prehistoric burial chambers to magnificent castles, churches and mansions. Valeways has published a guide to the Millennium Heritage Trail. This colourful book describes the 16 sections which make up the Trail and comes in a package with 16 separate A3 maps.The guide can be obtained from Valeways for £8.49 including post and packing. Sculptures at Rhoose Point Housing and Lake at Rhoose Point Photograph © G.Woosnam Photograph © G.Woosnam WALK FEATURES • Porthkerry Park Walk No. 42, Rhoose & Penmark • Rhoose Point and Sea Views • The Bulwarks Earthworks Country Park to make tracks with • Cardiff Wales Airport • Penmark Castle and Church Norman Village Country Views Valeways • Distance: 9 miles. Valeways is a registered charity working in partnership with the community to reopen existing footpaths to create a network of enjoyable circular walks across the Vale of Glamorgan, linking towns and villages to the surrounding countryside and points of interest.We are indebted to the many volunteers who give up their time freely to provide this walk for your enjoyment. Valeways Partnership - Many thanks to the Vale of Glamorgan Council and the Countryside Council for Wales for their continued support. Obelisk marking the most southerly point in Wales Photograph © V.Warlow West Curtain Wall of Penmark Castle FOLLOW THE WALKER’S CODE • Guard against all risk of fire • Fasten all gates Keep all dogs under close control Valeways, Unit 7, Barry Community Enterprise Centre, • Skomer Road, Barry CF62 9DA • Keep to public paths on farmland Telephone/Fax: 01446 749000 make tracks with Use gates and stiles to cross fences, hedges & walls • E-mail: [email protected] • Take your litter home Website: http//www.valeways.org.uk Valeways • Protect all wildlife, plants and trees Registered Charity No. 1062031 Registered Company No. 3330088 Walk No. 42 Rhoose & Penmark Country Park to a Norman Village Key Features of Walk Early medieval Church & Castle; Country Park; Cliffed coastline; Most Southerly point in Wales; Cardiff International Airport. Distance 9 miles (basic route). Map OS Explorer 151 Cardiff and Bridgend. Parking Ample at Porthkerry Park (GR 08/09 66/67); Limited roadside at Rhoose (0666). Restricted at Penmark(0568). Public Transport Buses to Barry and Rhoose, train to Barry. Refreshments Six Bells, Penmark; Café, Porthkerry Park; Shop and Highwayman, Rhoose. To ilets Public conveniences at Porthkerry Park and at some of the refreshment locations. Rhoose Point during development START The café in Porthkerry Park. Photograph © Vale of Glamorgan County Council SCALE (APPROX): where a surfaced track leads off 1 Kilometre to the left . Follow this and turn PLACES OF INTEREST 1 Mile right when you reach some farm Porthkerry Country Park gates. Continue along the now Start/ Finish: This is a pleasant unsurfaced track, gently downhill, area of meadows and woods until you reach a stile adjacent to very accessible from Barry. It a field gate on the left. Cross the has a pitch and putt area, a field, lengthways, to a stream and pebbly beach and a café. Its ✝ stile. Cross the following field, most prominent feature is its G5 diverging slowly to the right from very late Victorian viaduct.This the hedge on the left, aiming for a is 110 ft. high and has 20 arches. clump of trees. Having reached the It carries the Vale railway line ' & trees, move on to the stile over the valley. immediately in front and head straight uphill, (farm outbuildings The Bulwarks are to your right). Climb over Earthworks of the Iron Age now another stile and move to the right consisting of overgrown banks hand side of the subsequent field. and ditches. Its occupation Staying on the right hand edge, extended into Roman Times as walk through two more fields and evidenced by the discovery of their stiles to reach the main two Roman buildings in the coast road. 1968 excavations. G4 Turn to the left for a short distance.Then cross the busy road Rhoose Point S to a stile opposite the Welford Regeneration G1 Court Guest House. Once over Here 240 acres of land despoiled this double stile head to the right, from 1913 onwards by quarrying keeping the mid-field telegraph post and cement manufacture are to your left. Bear left downhill in being restored to worthwhile the next field (brambles and mud G2 use. Housing, possibly a small are sometimes hazards here). golf course, the conservation Cross the stile that you will reach of wildlife in the lakes that have on your right to enter an open formed in the quarry floors and field. Continue downhill.You will the planting of lime tolerant pass a metal bridge on your left. G3 vegetation are features being This offers a longer, but sometimes developed. drier, route into Porthkerry Park (see broken line on map). A short The fine sea cliffs are distance further on, move to the composed of Liassic limestone left hand side of the stream and and shales. Here is the most THE ROUTE point in Wales .From here walk the Airport.Walk on with the carry on downhill to cross a stile southerly point on the on, hugging the coast, until you airport boundary to your right and into a wooded area. (This area can mainland of Wales, marked with S From the café in Porthkerry Park reach a wooden footbridge. Here landing lights to your left. Swing be very muddy in wet weather). a Standing Stone and Stone head seaward along the path turn right and proceed inland, slightly to the left and head for a Cross the stream to enter Circle. then bear right across the open gently upslope, along a concrete gap in the field boundary. Once Porthkerry Park via a newly Cardiff International ground towards the coast and its path to reach a level crossing. through this continue across the constructed bridge. Proceed left pebbly beach.Take the cliff path, After this continue along a street field to reach a stile that leads to along the path. Go under the Airport with its rather stiff but short climb to reach the main road in Rhoose. a road underpass. Immediately viaduct to reach the Café, - your The fast growing and largest through the woods, to reach a The Spar store is to your left. after the underpass climb a bank starting point. airport in Wales. grassy field.To the right are the on the right to arrive at a stile. Now turn right and cross the Penmark Bulwarks .Cross this to a gap in Carry on, with the road embank- road into Brendon View Road. The Church of St Mary lists its the hedge where you enter a ment to your right, for about a Proceed along the pathway to reach vicars back to 1242.The fact caravan park.Turn left at the Drive another road ( Reader’s Way). third of the field, before crossing it that it once lay within the curtain and proceed westwards on it Cross this to enter and follow diagonally left to reach a stepped wall of the adjacent castle helps through the caravan park. Leaving another pathway.You then turn stile leading onto a road. Here turn explain its size - rather large the park follow the Drive, as it left on this pathway and follow it right, downhill, around a bend to a 3 for its current population curves away, leftwards, from the for about ⁄4 mile as it works its stone stile on the left. catchment. road bridge you can see to the way around the perimeter of the Walk up the slope to a waymark th right.Then just before the ruined Cardiff International Airport . post and continue on a course that The castle is 13 century walls of old buildings, turn right, Eventually you emerge on to a leads you to the top left hand corner arising out of an earlier off the Drive and go back on road.You will see a pub, the of this long field. Cross the stile and wooden structure. It was built yourself on a path that leads into Highwayman, a short distance follow a narrow path that leads you and inhabited by generations of scrubland. Follow this meandering away to the right of the road. into a street (Croft John) and then the Norman De Umfraville path around with the new housing Walk past the pub and turn right onto the main road in Penmark. family. On its western flank are developments to your right. at the next road junction. Turn right noting the pub, church the remains of a tower.The Continue along the coastline, Just past where this road bends and castle ruins en route . discovery of cannon balls in its using the, in places, stepped path, left, take the stile on the right hand Continue on the main road (ignore vicinity has led to the theory until you reach the standing stone side of the road.