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gyrru ar antur ar gyrru leisure tour taith hamdden sir y fflint y sir hamdden taith a drive to explore Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:48 Page 1

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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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:48 Page 2

4 flintshire

M6 M58 M63 M60 M57 M53 M56 A55 A55 Holywell Bangor A5 5 A5

A470 Caernarfon Mold

M6 Betws- A487 3

8 y-coed A5 4 Porthmadog A 4 A470 A49 Bala

A5 Stafford Shrewsbury M54 Welshpool TeTelford l f o r d Machynlleth A4 7 0 Wolverhampton M6 A49 A458 A487 Birmingham Aberystwyth Newtown

M5 Contains data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk M42

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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] Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:48 Page 4

6 how it works

M53

River Llanasa Mersey

A5151 A548 River Dee

A5026 Holywell A55 Flint ENGLAND Caerwys A55 M56

A548 A5119

A541 C l w y d i a A494 n A541 R Cilcain a Hawarden n A55 g e A550 A525 Mold A5104 A5118 A494

Nercwys A550

A541

A494 A5104 A483 Caergwrle

0 2 km

0 1 mile

Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk

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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 Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 HoHolywell Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.ukBagillt 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 LeisureFlint Tour. There. Couldn’t be simpler. All Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Brynford we ask is that you drive carefully along our sometimes Pentre narrow country roads and through our lovely villages. After all, you wouldn’t want to miss anything. Babell Halkyn 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 showsNorthop where the tour connects with one of 25 Flintshire PentreRural Walks. Lixwm C Halkyn l w y d i Soughton a For more information or to bookHalkyn a bed call 01352 759331 n

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

Nannerch LoggerheadsCadole Country Park RhosesmorGwernymynydd

C l w y d Rhydymwyn i a Soughton n

R a Cilcain n g Gwernaffield e Buckley Mold

LoggerheadsCadole Country Park Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:48 Page 6

8 profile | mold

DENB RAIK 9 1 1 Flint IG ES 5 Theatr A H LA R O Cymru A D Queensferry GW E NORTH RN T A E FFIE E LD FLAN R ROA T D A S 54 DRE 1 H NG B AL I 5 L V K

4 I

0 0.5 km 4 EW

P 4 LA

W N 0 0.25 mile L E 104 L G Museum

L 4 A & Library LEAD 9 S H MILLS IG 4 44 A H 4 5 B

ST S G ET D T TRE OA R KIN S N R E ER YTO E T CLA T S CHE CH EARL RD EST ER R OA W D

R A541 E Chester H Town T X E EE H D N R A A D Park ST Y M RO 9 R A54 O W S S AD NE T D R N E A A5 E L 4 MOLDO T D 1 D O O

W

A L

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

OM

BR 19 94 51 A H A4 C Q O C U E YN E R N B UP R ’S P E ER PP L B U W A RY N N R E C E O X CH H AM RO AD

B5 444 A4 94

MOLD BYPA 94 SS A4 Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Wrexham Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:48 Page 7

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Main pic: shopping in Mold. Facing pics (left to right): Bailey Hill, 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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:48 Page 8

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section 1 | mold to holywell Greenfield distance | 11 miles Carmel Valley Holywell Bagillt Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 1 Brynford Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Start: on A541 Denbigh Road, Daniel Owen is Wales’s Charles Dickens and Mold’s Babell Mold, next to the Love Lane car most famous son. His statue Flint park. See street plan page 8. stands outside the library Sat nav: N53.17084°, W3.14102°. and museum. Pop inside to Pentre find out more about him - Lixwm or borrow one of his books. Halkyn Before you leave: have lunch See street plan on page 8. Halkyn or do a bit of shopping. Mold Halkyn has a fine range of shops, Mountain Flint Mountain restaurants and cafés. Or visit 2 Nannerch the world-leading Arthurian If you can find the Valley Works in Rhydymwyn Rhosesmor Collection of books at the County (detour at Tour Sign 1) complex (ring 01352 704400 you’ll be doing better than for an appointment). It has more enemy aircraft in World C l War Two. This chemical w than 2,000 items about King y weapons factory, now a d Rhydymwyn i Soughton Arthur and Avalon - which some nature reserve, stayed a n

think was on Halkyn Mountain. top-secret throughout the R war. Call 01352 741591 to a Cilcain n book a visit. g Gwernaffield En route: romantic wild e Pantymwyn Buckley uplands, shaped by centuries of Mold industry, with stunning views 3 over the . The Age hillfort of Loggerheads Moel y Gaer commands Country Park spectacular views over the Gwernymynydd 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.

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A5026 NORTH B5121Greenfield 12 Valley River Dee Carmel 0 1 km A5026 A55 Holywell Bagillt 0 0.5 mile Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Brynford A5026 6 A548 Babell Flint

B5121 Pentre Lixwm Halkyn A548 A541 Halkyn A5119 Halkyn

Mountain B5123 Flint Mountain B5129 Nannerch 4 5 3 Rhosesmor B5126 Northop A541 B5125

C l A55 w A5119 y 2 d Rhydymwyn i a 1 A541 Soughton 4 n A49 R a Cilcain B5127 n g Gwernaffield e Pantymwyn A494 Buckley Mold 1 A549 LoggerheadsCadole 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. r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 10

12 profile | holywell

NORTH

A 5 21 4 1 8 5 B BA

0 1 km G IL LT D R 0 0.5 mile A O O A R D LD FIE N E E R G Greenfield Valley Heritage Park

A Bagillt 548 ET RE ST HOLYWELLL

D EL FI N E E A502 R 6 G

1 2

1 5

12 B St Winefride’s Chapel & Well

D T

R S W W AES ROAD E -M H ELL -Y

N PEN IT F W ORD ST A 50 26 A50 H D I A GH O 2 R 6 RIA ICTO ST V 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

R R

O

D A

R D Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 A55 D Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 11

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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 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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 12

14 section 2 | holywell to llanasa distance | 11.5 miles Prestatyn Ffynnongroyw 1 Llanasa Start: next to St Winefride’s Within 70-acre Greenfield Well on the B5121 in Holywell. Valley Heritage Park is a Glan-yr-Afon very special farm museum. Gop See street plan page 12. Not only does it contain Hill real live animals. Its combine Berthengam harvester is among the 10 Before you leave: count the most important in Britain. Maes Pennant And that’s official. Maen Whitford listed Georgian and Victorian www.greenfieldvalley.com Achwyfan buildings in Holywell town centre. There are more than 60 of them. Greenfield With nearly 100 mostly family- 2 Valley Basingwerk was Carmel run shops. And a market every founded in 1132 by Holywell Thursday in the High Street. Cistercian monks. Now it’s a romantic ruin that Brynford you can see for free every day. En route: countryside Babell www..wales.gov.uk Caerwys immortalised by Wales’s most

famous naturalist and the tallest Contains Ordnance Survey data Pentre © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Halkyn stone wheel cross in Britain, Lixwm 3 carved a millennium ago. A detour at Tour Sign 28 brings you to Gronant 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.

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15 PPointoint ofof AyrAyr 3 NORTH Talacre

Prestatyn A548 0 1 km

0 0.5 mile Gronant Gwespyr Ffynnongroyw Llanasa 6 River Dee Gwaenysgor 31 Glan-yr-Afon Gop Trelogan Mostyn Hill A548 Trelawnyd Berthengam A5151 5 Maes Pennant Maen Achwyfan Whitford Llyn 4 Helyg 2 A5026 1 B5121Greenfield A5151 12 Valley A55 Carmel A5026 Rhuallt Holywell

B5122 Brynford A5026 Babell Caerwys

A55 A541 B5121 Contains Ordnance Survey data Pentre B512 © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Afonwen Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Lixwm Halkyn 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. r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 14

16 section 3 | llanasa to caerwys Prestatyn Ffynnongroyw Llanasa distance | 10 miles Gwaenysgor Glan-yr-Afon Trelogan Mostyn 1 Gop Start: in the centre of Llanasa Llanasa parish church Hill contains two spectacular Berthengam village with the church on the stained glass windows Trelawnyd Maes Pennant left, opposite Tour Sign 31. from . Not to mention the final resting place of Gruffydd Maen Whitford Before you leave: soak up Fychan, father of Welsh Achwyfan the atmosphere. Llanasa is a hero and freedom fighter Owain Glyndwr. Mind perfect example of a small your feet. His sepulchral Carmel Welsh virtually slab is set into the floor untouched by time. It has a near the organ. Holywell fine 17th century gabled house Rhuallt called Henblas, an 18th century 2 Lepers weren’t entirely Brynford inn, tithe barn cottages and a welcome at Gwaenysgor Victorian former school. And church in the 14th Babell century. But they did the old village pump still stands have their own tiny Caerwys beside the pond. window through which they could listen to the service and receive the Afonwen Lixwm En route: Gop Hill, site of sacrament. Take a detour Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Queen Boudica’s last battle. at Tour Sign 32 to see it. Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk 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.

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17 A548 Prestatyn Ffynnongroyw River 3 Llanasa Gwaenysgor 31 Dee 2 1 Glan-yr-Afon Mostyn Gop Trelogan Hill 4 5 Berthengam Trelawnyd A5151 Maes Pennant

A548 Maen Whitford Achwyfan Llyn Helyg 21 B51 A5026 Carmel A5151

A55 Holywell Rhuallt

B5122 A Brynford 55

Babell NORTH Caerwys 40

B5121 0 1 km A541 Afonwen 0 0.5 mile Afonwen Lixwm Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk

4 5 On top of Gop Hill is a 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 Trelawnyd 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. r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 16

18 profile | caerwys

NORTH A55,

2 Holywell & 2

1

B5

0 250 metres

0 250 yards

T

EE

TR

S

H

T

R

O

N CACAERWYS

HOLYWELL ROAD DROVERS LANE

HIGH STREET WATER STREET

S

O

UT

PE

H N

S Y

T C

R

E

E F EET E CHAPEL STR N

St Michael’s T

R

O Church

A D

40

B 5 12

2 Coed Nant-plas-Isaf

Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 A541 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Denbigh & Mold Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 17

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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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 18

20 section 4 | caerwys to cilcain Babell distance | 7 miles Caerwys Pentre 1 Afonwen Lixwm Halkyn Start: at the top of South Flintshire Rural Walk 1 joins Caerwys with the fishing Halkyn Street B5122 in Caerwys at lakes of , created Ddôl Tour Sign 40. See street plan by the Earl of Denbigh in Halkyn page 18. 1904. Download it at Mountain www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/walks or call 01352 759331 for Nannerch Before you leave: have a pub a copy. meal, buy some freshly baked Rhosesmor bread or get yourself a haircut. 2 Not content with C Caerwys promotes itself under PPenycloddiau l having two naves, St w the banner “convenient, y Michael’s Church in d character, community”. Which Caerwys has a pair i a Rhydymwyn means you can expect a warm of lychgates, too. n The south-western Moel welcome and a little something Arthur R one still has an a for your journey into the original pre- n bargain. Reformation tie g Cilcain e beam. Pantymwyn

En route: a village made of Gwernaffield limestone leading to one of the Contains Ordnance Survey data Loggerheads 3 Nannerch sits on a © Crown copyright and database right 2010 biggest Iron Age hillforts in Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Country Park 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.

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21 A5026 Babell 2 B5122 Caerwys 40 1

B5121 A55 Pentre Afonwen Lixwm Halkyn Halkyn A541 DdôlDdôl Halkyn 3 Mountain B5123 Nannerch

Rhosesmor 4 C A541 Penycloddiau l w y d i a Rhydymwyn n R A541 a

n 5 NORTH g Cilcain e 45 Pantymwyn 0 1 km 0 0.5 mile Gwernaffield Contains Ordnance Survey data Loggerheads © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Country Park

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 Moel Arthur, the hillfort next door, as well. www.heatherandhillforts.co.uk r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 20

22 section 5 | cilcain to nercwys distance | 9 miles Cilcain Millennium Woods Pantymwyn 1 Could you run four very Start: at the crossroads in the hilly miles in under half Gwernaffield centre of Cilcain next to Tour an hour? You might win the Moel Famau Mold Sign 45. Mountain Race. It takes place every August Bank Before you leave: wander Holiday as part of the Cilcain Show, which Cadole through the churchyard at attracts a crowd of Loggerheads Country Park Cilcain. You’ll be quite safe – thousands. www.cilcainshow.org.uk Gwernymynydd 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. Abseiling 120 feet down the of the finest carved oak Moel Nercwys Devil’s Gorge can be a hammer beam roofs in Wales. Findeg 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. Nercwys Forest cottage and a mountain that www.clwydianrangeaonb.org.uk Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 cost nearly half a million Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk 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 Woods. Don’t worry, you won’t startle or call 01352 759331 for a copy. them. They’re carved from wood.

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A541 A5119 1 Cilcain

45 Millennium Woods Pantymwyn 2

Gwernaffield A494 Mold

B5444 A5119 Cadole Loggerheads Country Park A494 Gwernymynydd 3 A494

54 Moel Nercwys Findeg Maeshafn 4 NORTH

0 0.5 km Nercwys 0 0.25 mile Forest 5 Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Produced by www.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 r stone walls. Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 22

24 section 6 | nercwys to caergwrle

distance | 10 miles Nercwys 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 Hope 1768 sundial, too, in case Waun y Llyn That’s more exciting than it Country Park you’ve forgotten your watch. sounds when the pavement is Off a’s very rare, made of deeply D Caergwrle yk 2 e Hope weathered limestone and the In Victorian times, Mountain second-largest in Wales. So 450 men were employed to mine -y-bedd exciting, in fact, that it’s a Site and iron at of Special Scientific Interest. Treuddyn (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 Coed Talon Bridleway, bath after a hard day’s lead a former railway running Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 mining. A hypocaust was through a 50-acre Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk discovered at Ffrith in 1870. nature reserve. www.treuddyn.org.uk

Flintshire Rural Walk 6 starts 3 in Llanfynydd 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.

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25 A494 A5118

B5444 Penyffordd 54 A541 Nercwys A5104 1 Pontblyddyn

A550 Leeswood

A541 Coed Talon

Treuddyn Hope Waun y Llyn Country Park A5104 Off a’s D 2 Caergwrle ykke e 3 Hope 66 B5101 Mountain Llanfynydd Cefn-y-bedd 4 Ffrith 5 B5102 NORTH B5430

02 0 1 km Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 B51 Produced by www.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 r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 24

26 section 7 | caergwrle to hawarden Hawarden

distance | 8 miles

1 Buckley was Start: opposite Caergwrle begun in 1277 by Broughton railway station, shortly after Dafydd ap Gruffudd Tour Sign 66. and used as a base for his war against Edward I. For his Lower Before you leave: walk across trouble he became Kinnerton the first nobleman to the 17th century packhorse be hanged, drawn Penyffordd bridge in Fellows Lane, and quartered in Higher Caergwrle. It was built with low England. Kinnerton Pontblyddyn walls to allow for the horses’ bulging side packs. And don’t 2 Leeswood 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 Coed Talon Hope it to pass. defunct spa at Rhyddyn Hall produced Waun y Llyn Country Park 14,000 bottles of saline En route: the oldest church in fizz every day. Very Offa’s Caergwrle Dyke Hope Flintshire and a village with good for “purging”, Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 apparently. Mountain Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk 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.

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27 Hawarden A494 A55 79

B5125 B5127 Saltney Ferry A550 Buckley A5104

A549 Broughton

A55

A5118 Lower Kinnerton Penyffordd A5104 6 Higher A541 Kinnerton Pontblyddyn

A550

Leeswood A483

A5104 A541 Coed Talon 4 Hope NORTH Waun y Llyn 5 Country Park 3 0 1 km Offa’s Caergwrle 2 Dyke Caergwrle 0 0.5 mile Hope 1 66 Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Mountain Produced bbyy www.themawww.themappingcompany.co.ukppingcompany.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. r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:49 Page 26

28 Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 section 8 | hawarden to flint Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk distance | 10.5 miles Flint

1 Hawarden has two Start: at the T-junction in the . The Georgian centre of Hawarden at Tour mansion, private Industrial Park Sign 79. home of statesman Flint Mountain William Gladstone Before you leave: open the and his descendants, Connah’s Quay is called the New door in the mighty battlemented Castle. And the 13th Shotton Wepre gate in the centre of Hawarden century ruin is, oddly Park village and step through. enough, called the Deeside Marvel at the views over Old Castle. Northop Queensferry Bilberry Wood. And take a short stroll, courtesy of the 2 Green Gladstone family, for a glimpse The Gladstone Library at Ewloe of the ruined medieval castle Hawarden was founded Soughton Hawarden on its prehistoric earthwork by four-times Prime embankments. Minister . With 32,000 of A5 his own books. Now it’s En route: our record-breaking the National Memorial Mold Buckley bridge. Who would have to his life and work. Broughton 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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 27

29 Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 River Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Dee NORTH 98 Flint A550 0 1 km

0 0.5 mile A54 8 A548

19 4 A51 Deeside Industrial Park Flint Mountain B5129 Connah’s Quay A548

A55 Shotton 41 B5126 Wepre B54 5 Park

Northop B5125 Deeside Queensferry

19 6 4 A49

A51 Ewloe Green B512 Ewloe A550 9 Soughton 4 Hawarden A49 79 2 1 B5127 3 A B51 54 A55 25 1 A494 0

A55 Mold Buckley A5104 A549 A549 Broughton

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”. 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 Deeside 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 r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 28

30 profile | flint

Prestatyn NORTH

A 54 8

0 0.5 km

H O 0 0.25 mile LY W EL L

RO A A

D

B E

R River

R O Dee A Railway Station Red Wood D 98

A5 STREET 119 EARL O L CH D E L S O T CHAPEL ST T ER N D ST O STREE N H ST R DUKE O RC A U D

CH T S C YN W OR IN NIS LK 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 O AD N

Pen-goch

Hill D A

O A5 R 4 C 8 O N E Y D K ON L N A RO H A

k D

o

o

r

B

D

d A r a O Queensferry i R

h P c in O H

w T

S R

O

N

9

1

1

5 A Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Mold Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 29

31

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

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 North Wales 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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 30

32 section 9 | flint to mold distance | 10.5 miles Flint Pentre 1 Halkyn Start: in Flint at Tour Sign 98 Flint Castle was built by Edward I, painted Halkyn where Church Street joins the by Turner and Deeside A548. See street plan page 30. described by Halkyn Flint Mountain Industrial Park Shakespeare. Fish MMountain Before you leave: wander the out your camera and Connah’s Quay streets of Flint. Even today immortalise it some Wepre more. Park they follow the grid pattern of Rhosesmor Northop Shotton the bastide, or fortified town, Deeside 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 Rhydymwyn shopping centre now. With an ride east to Chester Ewloe Green along the banks of the Soughton open-air market every Friday Ewloe in Market Square off Holywell River Dee - or start pedalling west along the Road. North Wales coast. Stop when you get to Pantymwyn En route: “the nearest thing Holyhead, though, or you’ll get very wet. Gwernaffield Buckley to a National Theatre of www.sustrans.org.uk Mold Wales”, according to the Cadole Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Sunday Times. It’s on a hilltop Produced by www.themappingcompany.co.uk 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 Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 31

33 A50 A548 NORTH 26 98 River A55 1 Dee Flint 2 0 1 km 0 0.5 mile Pentre A548 Halkyn 48 5 A Halkyn A5119 Deeside Halkyn Flint Mountain Industrial Park B5129 MountainMountain B5123 Connah’s Quay Wepre 4 A55 B5126 Park Rhosesmor Northop 3 Shotton B5125 Deeside A54 5 1

Rhydymwyn A5119 Ewloe Green A494 Soughton Ewloe A541 A494 6 B5127

Pantymwyn A55 Gwernaffield 104 A494 Buckley Mold A549 A549

B5444 Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2010 Cadole Produced by www.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. r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 32

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 Prestatyn. 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]

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win a two-night break

You can’t possibly see all of Flintshire in a day. And you certainly can’t drive the entire Flintshire Leisure Tour in that time. Not if you want to take in all the sights, get a bracing stroll under your belt or stop for a pub lunch.

So you might be interested in a two-night stay for up to four people. In a beautifully restored miner’s cottage with a four-star Visit Wales grading. All absolutely free.

Larchwood Cottage in the tiny hamlet of Cadole is on the edge of the Clwydian Range Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Right next door to Loggerheads Country Park and a very short drive from the market town of Mold.

That makes it the perfect spot for a family break, especially if you’re into walking or cycling. Not that anyone will mind if you just want to kick off your shoes and relax.

All you have to do is complete the short form overleaf and send it back to us. We’ll put all the entries into a big hat and draw out the winner. It could be you. Even if it isn’t, your answers will help us make Flintshire an even better place to visit.

Closing date: 31st December 2011. Prize to be taken during 2012 subject to availability.

The prize will be awarded to an entry drawn at random by competition organisers FlIntshire County Council. Their decision is final. No cash alternative. The winner will be notified by post. Employees of Flintshire County Council or their families are not eligible. Only entries from those over 18 years of age will be accepted. r Bil.Eng.ART.FLT.2010 25/11/10 13:50 Page 34

For your chance to win a two-night break in Flintshire, just complete this form and send it to: Flintshire Leisure Tour Competition, Tourist Information Centre, Earl Road, Mold, Flintshire CH7 1AP. Title (please circle) Mr Mrs Miss Ms Name Address

Postcode Telephone Email address

1. How did you get to know about the tour?  Brochure  Internet  Saw sign  Word of mouth  Other

2. Are you a:  Day visitor  Staying visitor  Resident

3. If you are a staying visitor, what is your type of accommodation:  Hotel  B&B /Guesthouse  Self catering  Caravan Park (static)  Caravan Park (touring)  Tenting How many nights did you stay? Is your accommodation in Flintshire?  Yes  No

4. Are you doing the tour:  Alone  As a couple  With family/friends  Please specify number in group

5. Into which of the following age bands do you/your group fall?  Under 18  18 – 24 years  25 - 34 years  35 – 49 years  50 – 54  55 – 64 years  65 years and over

6. Which section(s) of the tour have you travelled?  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9

7. While on the tour did you stop to:  Dine  Shop  Take refreshments  Visit an  Refuel your vehicle

8. Would you recommend the tour to others?  Yes  No If no, why not?

9. Did you visit www.discoverflintshire.co.uk/tour?  Yes  No

10. What was your: Favourite aspect of the tour Least favourite aspect of the tour

Thank you for taking the time to complete this form.

We may send you special offers and information about Flintshire. Please tick here if you do not wish to receive mailings.  We may also send you information by email. If you’d like to receive emails please fill in your email address. Bi.CovSecFLT 25/11/10 14:12 Page 2

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

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

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

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

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

Orange Imaging, White Fox, Colin Varndell, Talacre 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 Ysgrifennu copi, dylunio a chynhyrchu: a dylunio copi, Ysgrifennu

credydau Goleudy’r Parlwr Du Parlwr Goleudy’r

Lighthouse at Point of Ayr

credits Copywriting, design and production: White Fox 01352 840898 www.whitefox-design.co.uk Photography: © Crown copyright (2010) Visit Wales, 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