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.

Autumn Days Out

I thought I would list a few events and some ideas of my own of what to see and do over Autumn in the Brecon Beacons and surrounding country side of Mid Wales.
I was racking my brains of places to see really good Autumn tree colours and after pouring over maps and books Susie came along and said
"We have the best Autumn colours right here at Gliffaes and up and down the Usk Valley walk."
And she is right if you can get here for the last couple of weeks in October the leaf colours here are tremendous. The oaks, beeches and sycamores really via for attention but with some many specimen trees in the grounds there is something different around every corner.
So here we go with a few ideas:

1. The Brecon Beacons National Park has laid on several interesting days out over the coming weeks and here are three high lights.
   Saturday 9th October - Star Gazing
   Cardiff Astronomical Society will once again be hosting an evening of stargazing at the Visitor Centre. If skies are clear their telescopes will be focused on interesting phenomena in the night sky, or if cloudy there will be a range of talks and demonstrations indoors. Read more
   Saturday 9th October - Photo Friendly Waterfalls Walk
   Have you been on a walk with friends, family or in groups where you have carried your camera all day and not taken a single shot? Wish you had more time to take some photos along the way without holding up the group? Well this walk is for you. Read more
   Sunday 7th November - Remembrance Day Walk to a Wellington Bomber Crash Site
   A visit to the crash site of a Wellington Bomber R1465 for a Remembrance Day commemoration, followed by lunch at the Travellers’ Rest in Talybont-on-Usk. Please come suitably equipped for variable weather conditions. Read more
2. Foraging for Fungi in the Elan Valley
   This caught my eye as I have heard the leader of this fungi forage talk before, and he is very entertaining. He is running two one day beginners courses on Saturday 25th September and Saturday 9th October. Rhayder, where this takes place is about an hour from Gliffaes up the Wye Valley. Read more.
3. Take a drive through the Elan Valley

This sparsely populated and remote area of mid wales is home to many reservoirs built in Victorian times to supply water to the Midlands. The steep valleys are covered in Sessile Oaks and look stunning in Autumn. Head for Rhayder up the very picturesque Wye Valley and then on to the Elan Valley Visitor's Centre where you will find information on routes; walking or driving. While in Rhayder go and see the daily feeding of Red Kites at Gigrin Farm.

4. Come to the Brecon Baroque Festival- 22nd - 25th October

Inspired by the Georgian architectural heritage of Brecon, this four-day event features outstanding international performers, including violinist Rachel Podger, countertenor Stephen Wallace, flautist Katy Bircher, recorder player Pamela Thorby, and dancer Katy Sinnadurai, as well as guest vocal ensemble Trinity Baroque, director Julian Podger. The annual Baroque Ball, where the revelry is led by dance expert Peter Brock, takes place this year at Theatr Brycheiniog. The Festival opens with Monteverdi Vespers at Brecon Cathedral and concludes with a concert given by the Brecon Baroque Festival Orchestra, directed by Rachel Podger, which will include Bach's Brandenburg Concertos. More details.

5. Learn Grayling Fishing on the River Wye

The trout season finishes on the 30th September and salmon on the 17th October but you can still fish for Grayling, with a fly on the Wye right through the autumn.

For those wanting to gain more of an insight into autumn grayling fishing, the Wye and Usk Foundation, in partnership with Frank Williams Fly Fishing, will be running a series of tuition days on upper Wye beats close to Builth Wells later this year. Frank is a highly recommended, qualified instructor who will help improve success rates for those thinking of venturing onto the rivers during this spectacular time of year. The days will be held on the 24th October, and 7th and 28th of November. Places will be limited to 5 per day and will cost £65 per person, which will include fishing permits, tuition and a selection of flies appropriate to the techniques being taught. To book your place or for more information, please email Frank Williams at frank@frankwilliamsflyfishing.co.uk or call him on 07824363376.

6. Go for and Autumn Walk (or bike ride)  in Talybont Forest.

You can walk or ride from the hotel up and over Tor y Foel before heading through the forest down to Talybont on Usk for lunch in the pub and then back along the canal to Gliffaes. Alternatively, drive to the forest and do the waterfall walk. There will be plenty of Autumn colours in the woods and especially up the waterfall route.  We will help you with your route when you get to Gliffaes.

7. Gather sloes, chestnuts and rosehips.

The hedges around Gliffaes yield quite and abundance of sloes and rosehips and we have a lot of chestnuts from the trees in the gardens. Feel free to gather up some berries and nuts to make rosehip syrup, sloe gin or even take some chestnuts home to roast on the fire.

A Walk around Cwm Mawr ( The Big Valley)

My wife suffers from what she calls, "ridge envy" and the condition is brought on by gazing up to the top of any stunning ridge, plenty of them in the Black Mountains around Gliffaes, and on spotting a tiny speck of a walker or two, she immediately turns green and wants to swop places with them. The treatment is swift and pretty tiring - you have to climb the ridge. Saturday morning and a beautiful spring day, perfect conditions for a bout of ridge envy. We had to get her to the top.

Where the lane leading up to the hotel meets the main road (A40) you pause for a second to look left and right for traffic but your eyes are always drawn upwards to the magnificent ridge that runs between Pen Cerrigcalch to Pen Alt-mawr, and at 650 meters high that was our target. With two old friends of Gliffaes staying at the hotel we set off at around 10am for this 5 mile circuit of Cwm Mawr (the big valley). A 5 minute drive from Gliffaes finds you at the parking spot somewhere in the region of 203 213 (OS map 13) this has the advantage of a height gain of some 250 meters, every little helps.

The route is a simple one. Straight up hill for about 1 mile following the ridge towards Pen Cerrig-calch (217 225), no need to climb right to the top, when you see the flat saddle on your left, between the two high spots, head left along the ridge towards Pen Gloch-y-pibwr (203 233) before descending the opposite ridge you went up. These two ridges frame a perfect, steep sided bowl shaped valley. This area was once used for grouse shooting and the old grouse bouts are very much in evidence. We saw no grouse but did see plenty of sky larks and welsh mountain ponies. It was a perfect day and we had stunning views all the way across to Pen y Fan.  At the bottom of the ridge you meet the mountain wall and the Beacons Way path, turn left for the short stroll back to your car. One case of ridge envy dealt with.

Notes: Do this walk before the bracken gets too high, so avoid late summer and autumn. I will be happy to mark up your map and give detailed instructions to any guest wanting to go on this walk. It can be very windy on top and I have been snowed on here in June.

Waterfalls Walk

 Guests often ask us where they can walk and see waterfalls and with all the rain we have had lately I decided to take a wander up Blaen-y glyn and the Caerfanell river, the stream that feeds the large Talybont Resivoir. This stream runs down hill through quite a steep gorge and over a series of about eight waterfalls varying in size from about two meters to about 15 meters. A walk of about an hour takes you to the most upstream waterfall from where you can either re-trace your steps back down stream or strike on into the Brecon beacons.

From Gliffaes, drive through Llangynidr and on to the village of Talybont, turn left over the canal, signed Talybont Reservoir and carry on right to the far end of the reservoir where, after crossing a small bridge, you will see a car park sign saying, 'Waterfalls'. (map reference SO 065 171). Park here and go back on to the lane, cross the bridge and begin walking up stream on the obvious path, it won't be long before you get to your first waterfall. There are several good picnic spots and for the more daring a swimming hole. I think the last  fall is the best and from the top of the gorge you get good views of the central Beacons, which yesterday were covered in snow.

If you want to make a circular walk back to your car, carry on upstream to what was once a small building at map reference SO 059 186, cross the stream (so you are now on the west bank) and head up hill till you get to the path running through the tussock grass under the steep slope of Craig y Fan Ddu. Follow the path south towards the forestry, over the stile into the woods and keep going south. The track will bring you out at a another car park above the one you left your car at. Just before the gate on to the main road pick up the path downhill throught the woods to return you to your car.

All in all about 2 hours walk at a very reasonable pace.

Best Walk near Gliffaes

The Crickhowell Walking Festival ended on Sunday and I think was generally regarded as the best yet, with about 1100 people taking part in some form or other and some 65 lead walks organised over the ten days. The second walk Susie and I led on Thursday of last week is really one of the best walks to do while staying at Gliffaes. It is about 11 miles long and will take about 5 hours to do with a good stop for lunch. It can be shortend very easily down to about 8 miles.

 The walk starts just behind the small village of Bwlch (SO161 224), about a 5 minute drive from the hotel. There is a short steady climb to begin with up on to Mynydd (mountain) Llangorse. The path then follows a glorious ridge for about 4 miles north with great views of Llangorse Lake and the Brecon Beacons off to the West and the Black Mountains off to the East. The ridge is home to a heard of Welsh Mountain ponies who live up there all year and is also a great spot to collect wimberries in the late summer. The route takes you down the end of the ridge and then straight up the steep south face of Mynydd Troed, a lovely hill not yet overrun with bracken but still covered in heather. We stopped on a sunny bank here for lunch. Come off the hill at the SW end and cross the lane at Blaenau- draw before picking up the obvious bridleway back to where you parked you car. The shorter version would be perfect to do with children as we can show you how to avoid the two steep climbs.

Crickhowell Walking Festival

It's Wednesday and it is smack in the middle of the Crickhowell Walking Festival - a ten day long event of daily walks guided by locals around the Black Mountains and Brecon Beacons. This is the third year of the Festival and it gets bigger all the time with over 60 walks this year. It is a community event put on by local volunteers. The idea is to bring people into the area at a quite time of the year, trouble is the locals enjoy it so much not a lot of outsiders get a look in.

Susie and I are leading four walks between us, the first was today, a circuit of Tor y Foel, a distance of around 10 miles. We each had a group of about 15 walkers with us and set off with a 15 minute interval between the groups. This is a great walk to do right from the hotel's front door and has a good mix of terrain and nice steady climb to the top of Tor Y Foel from which you get wonderful views of the Beacons and the Usk Valley. It was chilly but clear on top with ice on the puddles. Home via the Brecon Canal in time for tea by the fire, about 10 miles in total. In fact, the walk works as a marketing exercise as well. We get everyone to meet at Gliffaes, so they get a look at the place and we time the walk to finish just as we are serving afternoon tea! It is well worth thinking about for next year if you are keen walker. If you give us enough notice Susie or I would be happy to take you out into the hills around Gliffaes.

Useful links:
Crickhowell Walking Festival 

The Gruffalo Walk

Once a week I meet up with a couple of friends to walk for about 2 to 3 hours and enjoy the hills we are so lucky to live in.

Today, I revisited the Hermitage walk which starts in the Vale of Grwney, just above Llanbedr and takes you alongside the beautiful Grwney Fechan which winds through the valley between  the East side of Pen Allt-mawr and the West side of the Myndd Du Forest in the Black Mountains.

This circular walk is about 6-7 miles, depending on where you start, and includes some walking along a small lane which took me past the ruins of the Hermitage.

From the Hermitage we ascended into the stunning valley where the towering ridge of Pen Allt-mawr can be seen on one side and Waun Fach looms up ahead.

It was the first bright day for some time and yet there was still a sprinkling of snow on the tops of the surrounding mountains.  The crisp air, winter sunshine, deep blue sky and crystal clear views for miles filled me with the idea that spring is not too far away!

Walking down towards the small river the Tal-y-Maes Bridge comes into view. This simple but picturesque little stone bridge must be one of my absolute favourites and spans the gurgling Grwney Fechan. We crossed here and headed up into the hills on what is known as McNamara’s Road (apparently he built this path in order to cross Pen Allt-mawr and visit his mistress who he kept at Hermitage!). We walked up here for a while before turning and walking back along this other side of the valley.  Our walk took us through Park Wood (which always puts me in mind of the Gruffalo Wood from the children’s story) and then out the other side and down the steep edge of Cwm Banw to a sharp bend in the lane, where there is a handy parking pull in.

I would be delighted to show you this walk and longer versions of it on a map at Reception and set you off with a packed lunch too.

Susie Suter