ramblers routes ramblers routes Britain’s best walks from the experts Britain’s best walks from the experts

Wales 08/08/2013 15:44 05 Llangattock, Powys 06 , l Distance 11km/7 miles l Time 3½-4hrs l Type Hill l Distance 13km/8 miles l Time 5hrs l Type Canal and hill NAVIGATION LEVEL FITNESS LEVEL NAVIGATION LEVEL FITNESS LEVEL walk magazine autumn 2013 walk magazine autumn 2013 plan your walk plan your walk

POWYS l Liverpool l

l Bangor Builth Wells DENBIGHSHIRE

LLANGATTOCk troP LLANGOLLEN troP l Gloucester l Shrewsbury

Aberystwyth l l Cardiff Bristol l

Where: Circular walk Where: Circular walk from from Llangattock via Llangollen via Castell Dinas oNa BarL FI PhotograPhy: the Craig y Cilau National Brân, Valle Crucis Abbey, FIoNa BarL PhotograPhy: Nature Reserve. Velvet Hill, Horseshoe Falls The dramatic limestone cliffs of look) and turn L, keeping L at the This highly scenic route is a longer the canal and cross the bridge over Start/end: Car park near and the . Craig y Cilau National Nature fork up the road to the canal. Turn version of the waymarked circular it to a T-junction. Continue ahead the church in Llangattock Start/end: Llangollen Reserve form part of the L and follow the towpath. Llangollen History Trail, and up the steps (note the Llangollen (SO210178). International Pavilion car Llangattock escarpment on the includes a stretch of the Offa’s History Trail waymark). Follow the terrain: Canal towpath, park (SJ210426). northern edge of Mynydd 2. At bridge 112 (Pont y Parc), Dyke Path below the impressive enclosed path heading uphill, field paths, grassy and stony terrain: Hill tracks and Llangatwg, overlooking the Usk cross the canal and head across limestone cliffs of Eglwyseg and crossing a drive en route. The path hillside paths and tracks, and lanes following stretches of Valley. Large-scale quarrying of two fields to the road. Looking the ridge-top path over Velvet Hill. is easy to follow, being clearly short stretches along quiet the waymarked Offa’s Dyke limestone took place here, so back you can see the flat-topped It’s a classic walk providing superb signed for Castell Dinas Brân. On country lanes. Path, Clwydian Way and sections of the cliff are dug out Table Mountain. Bear L along the views from Castell Dinas Brân and reaching a lane, carry straight on MapS: OS Explorer OL13; Dee Valley Way (along the while others remain in their road for a short distance then R up later from Velvet Hill, and takes up the track to go through a metal Landranger 161. Llangollen Canal towpath). natural state. The nature reserve the drive to Ty Mawr, going L you past the impressive ruins of kissing gate. Fork R and continue GettinG there: Mainline MapS: OS Explorer 256; includes woodland, scrub and through a gate along a grassy Valle Crucis Abbey, founded by on up to an information panel, trains to Abergavenny, from Landranger 116 & 117. moorland. It is renowned for its track. The track leads steadily up, Cistercian monks in 1201 and once and then up the zigzag path to where the X43 bus travels GettinG there: Bus X94 plants, including several species of becoming stony and passing a the second richest abbey in Wales the top and the picturesque to Brecon via Llangattock from Wrexham to rare whitebeam growing on the building used as a bat roosting site. after Tintern. The name means ruins of Castell Dinas Brân – a (✆ 0871 200 2233, www. Barmouth goes via cliffs. And some 50 species of bird Near the top you bear R past the ‘Valley of the Cross’ and refers to medieval castle sited within an Iron traveline-cymru.info). Llangollen. Mainline trains can be seen here. The limestone is house at Laswern Fawr and follow nearby Eliseg’s Pillar, a 9th-century Age hillfort. There are wonderful eatinG & drinkinG: The connect to Wrexham peppered with caves, and one of the drive that leads to the road. stone cross erected in memory of views from here of Llangollen and Vine Tree Inn, Llangattock (✆ 0871 200 2233, them, Agen Allwedd, is home to a an early ruler of Powys. The last the Dee Valley, the Llantysilio (✆ 01873 810514); The Bridge www.traveline.info). colony of lesser horseshoe bats. 3. Turn L for a short distance until leg of the walk is an easy one range, Berwyn Mountains and End Inn, Crickhowell eatinG & drinkinG: The This walk begins with a stretch of you reach the entrance drive to a along the towpath of the Eglwyseg escarpment. (✆ 01873 810338, www. Wynnstay Arms, Llangollen the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal car park on your R. Follow this up Llangollen Canal. thebridgeendinn.com), plus (✆ 01978 860710, www. and takes you along the former and, as it swings round L into the 2. At the far end of the hill you’ll others in Crickhowell. wynnstay-arms.co.uk); route of the high-level tramway. car park, keep ahead along a 1. START You can access the canal find some steps down. Descend SleepinG: Good choice The Bridge End Hotel grassy track past a barrier. At a towpath from the north side of the open slopes to a gate and

of hotels, B&Bs and (✆ 01978 860634, www. 1. START Exit the car park fork before a ruined kiln (ahead L), the car park (SJ210426). Turn R down more steps. The footpath

self-catering, such as bridgeendhotel.com); (SO210178) through a gap in the keep R and continue along the alongside it towards Llangollen. leads down to a lane where you

Llangollen Wharf Tea Room ▲

The Old Rectory Hotel, ▲ ▼

track below the old spoil heaps When you reach the Wharf, leave turn L to a T-junction and the ▼ wall opposite the church (worth a 55-56 walk40 RR Wales.indd 1 55-56 walk40 RRWales.indd2 Ordnance Surveymapping©Crowncopyright.AM34/08 Ordnance Surveymapping©Crowncopyright.AM34/08 Continued... START (✆ 01978 860702); Abbey 4 1 FINISH Farm Tea Room, near Map not to scale. Valle Crucis Abbey Representation of OS Landranger (✆ 01978 861297, www. MAP 161 1:50,000 theabbeyfarm.co.uk). www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk SLEEPING: Lots of choice in or near Llangollen, such as Bryn Meirion B&B (✆ 01978 861911, www. llangollenbedandbreakfast. co.uk); Plas yn Ial, self-catering 5 5 2 (✆ 01490 450239, www. yalehall.com); Abbey Farm, cottages, caravans & camping (see above). For a wider selection, visit www. northwalesborderlands.co.uk. VISITOR INFORMATION: Llangollen TIC, Y Capel, Castle 6 St (✆ 01978 860828, www. 3 northwalesborderlands.co.uk). GUIDEBOOK: Walks around START 2 4 Llangollen & the Dee FINISH Valley by David Berry 1 (£4.95, Kittiwake, 3 ISBN 978 1908748010). Map not to scale. LOCAL RAMBLERS GROUP: Representation of OS Landranger Berwyn Ramblers MAP 116 & 117 1:50,000 (✆ 01978 852741, www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk Continued... To download this route and hundreds of others, www.berwynra.org.uk). visit www.ramblers.org.uk/routes To download this route and hundreds of others, (✆ 01873 810373, www. route of the Offa’s Dyke Path. rectoryhotel.co.uk); (ignoring a path that descends R). boundary, then across an area of visit www.ramblers.org.uk/routes Park Place Guest House There are glorious views north open common and up past 3. Turn L again and follow the (✆ 01873 810878, www. across the Usk Valley. When the another Reserve information quiet lane beneath the Eglwyseg then a track until you reach a gate grassy slopes to the top of Velvet parkplaceguesthouse.co.uk); wide grassy track disappears and board. On reaching a track, go L to cliffs. Ignore the fi rst turning on on the R and a sign for Abbey Hill. Turn L along the ridge, and Cwmbach Farm self- you reach a bouldery area, follow a the road. the L and carry on past Rock Farm Farm Tea Room. Turn R, go down descending to the road. Bear L at catering (✆ 01874 730839, small stony path down on your R, (or take the more direct footpath) the steps and cross the footbridge. the fork and soon go down steps www.cwmbach-farm.co.uk). which leads to a wider path. Turn 5. Cross the road and continue to the next junction where there’s Keep ahead through the caravan on the L to the Chainbridge Hotel VISITOR INFORMATION: L, soon entering the Craig y Cilau down the footpath, which leads an information panel about the park to Valle Crucis Abbey (open and canal. A brief detour R leads to Crickhowell TIC, Beaufort National Nature Reserve (information through some woodland and then area. Turn L. 1 April–31 October). Fork R past the Horseshoe Falls, designed by Street (✆ 01873 812105, board). The track follows the line of along the fi eld edge by the trees. the Tea Room up to the main road in 1806 to supply www.visitcrickhowell.co.uk). the old tramway below the cliff. Before descending to the valley 4. When the road starts to bear R (A542). Eliseg’s Pillar is a short water to the canal. GUIDEBOOKS: Brecon bottom, swing R and head east and drop downhill, keep ahead distance along the road on the R. Beacons and Glamorgan 4. Look out for a yellow waymark along the edge of fi elds, skirting along a drive with a no-through 6. Follow the canal towpath back Walks by Brian Conduit & and follow the path down, round Cilau Farm. Turn L when you road sign. It’s signed for Valle 5. Cross the road and turn R to a to the start. Neil Coates (£11.99, Crimson, keeping R at the next fork down reach the road which leads back Crucis Abbey and you’ll see a stile. Cross and bear L up the path Route devised by Fiona Barltrop ISBN 978 1854585578); to the bottom, where there’s a down to Llangattock. Clwydian Way waymark, the white for a short distance, then turn R Walking in the Brecon junction of paths near a holly tree. Route devised by Fiona Barltrop disc featuring the buzzard. The and climb steeply up the smooth Beacons by Alastair Ross Bear L along the Reserve drive leads past houses on the L (£4.95, Kittiwake, and continues as a track along the ISBN 978 1902302577). hillside and then through trees LOCAL RAMBLERS GROUP: IN ASSOCIATION WITH IN ASSOCIATION WITH beside a fenced plantation on the LADIES’ ALTA II JACKET MEN’S QUITO JACKET AWARD-WINNING WALKING JACKET North Gwent Ramblers LIGHTEST MEN’S ANALOGY R. At a fork, bear R then go R over WITH UPPER ARM VENTS, MAP (✆ 07976 913 083, www. WATERPROOF, WITH UNRIVALLED

08/08/2013 15:45 a stile and L over another stile. POCKET, SUPERB HOOD AND A northgwentramblers.co.uk). TEMPERATURE CONTROL FROM Continue along the fi eld edge and CONTEMPORARY LOOK. GENEROUS VENTING.