Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Autumn Walking in the Brecon Beacons


My walking friends and I have a tradition of Birthday Walks and this year mine was an absolute corker!

A crisp, clear day with a blue sky heralded what was to be one of my most glorious October walks ever.
We started out from the Talybont side of Torpantau car park (about half an hours drive from Gliffaes), making our way steadily up the steep side of Craig-y-Fan Ddu alongside sparkling waterfalls.
Once at the top, the meandering path led us steadily along the Graig Fan Las escarpment with staggering views in all directions. We then continued around to the West towards Fan-y-Big, our destination. From this point onwards the views of all the Brecon Beacons peaks were absolutely stunning and it was so clear we could see for miles. At the summit of Fan-y-Big we stopped awhile to stand on the famous Diving Board, a huge feat for me as I am not keen on heights!
After a delicious lunch, cooked by our friend Sally on her mountain stove, we headed back the way we had come to finish at Torpantau once more.
This walk is about 8.5 miles. It takes about 5 hours if you include a lunch break!
You could go further than Fan-y-Big and take in Cribyn and Pen-y-Fan, but you would need a longer day.