Beacons in the mist

24 November 2012

Our 25th anniversary treat was a short break in the Brecon Beacons. Set off for the drive south at 8.30 and immediately into the fog and started to feel some consternation about whether we would get any walking in at all. The drizzle and poor visibility continued all the way to Brecon, and we changed our plans when we got to the outskirts and headed for Storey Arms on the A470 on the basis that this was likely to be a safer ascent and easier to find. 

Once we got to the car park at the Storey Arms - an outdoor centre run by Cardiff city council - we saw lots of walkers coming down off the hill having completed the ascent. Perhaps we were mad after all, but we weren't the only ones clearly. 

After quick coffee and trusty flapjack we donned full waterproofs and set off up the path. It was pretty obvious which way to go as the path was laid with stone most of the way and is presumably packed solid in good summer weather. But today it was only 2 degrees. A flock of field fares were spotted just after a stone marking the handover of the Brecon Beacons to the National Trust by Eagle Star in1965. 

As we got nearer to the top the visibility worsened and we just about caught a glimpse of the first target, Corn Du, during a brief cloud break. Here the wind really whipped up as we were now at the top of the ridge and Sue had trouble staying upright on the short climb up Corn Du. My rucksack cover also disappeared in the wind but fortunately I spotted it 100 yards away and managed to get there before the next gust. Lesson learnt; tie up the rain covers as they just act like a balloon in the wind and fill with air. 

On Corn Du.

The rain was now really whipping in as well and the right side of our faces was being stung at every step, but after the short scramble to the summit, it was calmer and we found the level tabletop surface of old red sandstone. The path on top was further reinforced with stone, presumably because of the numbers coming up here in the summer and a small cairn marks the Summit. We took a couple of photos here and some on the phone to text to family to show how much we we enjoying our 25th!

Pen yFan summit.

Our next target was Pen y Fan itself although we couldn't see it at all. We worked out which path to take from the map and headed back into the stinging rain. At the top, the highest point in the Brecon Beacons and southern Britain, we found the stone marker post and took a photo for a couple of guys and they reciprocated. One of them kindly offered us some dried mango, which we didn't take but it sounds an interesting food to carry, shall have to try it some time. We decided to try and have some food ourselves but quickly realised that was a bad idea. Having bare hands in these very cold conditions is not a good idea and we instantly froze and gave up. Both of us had sodden gloves by now so when we got to a bit of a windbreak we retrieved spare gloves from the packs - well prepared, eh! 

Dry gloves. Bliss. 

It was then an easy walk downhill to the car, although when we got there, at 1.15pm, we realised that both waterproof jackets had failed miserably and were soaked through. Our waterproof trousers were brilliant though. 

Clearer views on the way back downhill.

Top of Shropshire at last

4 November 2012

Despite being in and around Shropshire for around 25 years, we have to admit that we have never scaled the county's highest peak, until today.

The Clee Hills have always seemed to be tucked so far away in the far corner of the county that we've just never got round to it, but having done plenty of walks on and beyond the Mynd we thought we really need to get to the top of Brown Clee.

Our route is a circular one around The Shropshire Way, found on shropshirewalking.co.uk. A drive across the lanes to Abdon took us down roads and through villages we never knew existed, something that is all too common in Shropshire. Having parked at the village hall at 11.30am, which actually looks more like someone's house but has a reassuring sign, we set off on the path towards the hill. Although the walk goes to the highest point in the county at 540m, the ascent is not that tough as you are already quite high up at the start. We negotiated the first couple of stiles OK but then ran immediately into navigational issues. The footpath sign and the map suggested we head across a field but it took us a while to work out how to get on to the next path which is in a gully and is either a sunken green lane or a stream, perhaps depending on the season.

Once on our way up we got a good view across to the Shropshire Hills and the Long Mynd before the path joined the lane at Abdon. Community action is clearly alive and kicking in this village (hamlet?) as a former red telephone box was now playing a role as the community library. "Borrow a book and leave one  for someone else', reads the sign and the locals have decked it out with shelving and a neat tiled floor. A modern, rather soul-less BT telephone sits alongside. 

The route then joins The Shropshire Way and turns left up onto the side of the hill. A noisy group of five ravens were busy over the top of Abdon Burf and a feisty crow decided to take on a majestic hovering kestrel and continued hounding it until it disappeared over the top. The route circles the hill through a beech plantation and then joins the former railway track to the summit. We stopped at the foot of the track to have lunch at 1pm, having gone about 4.4km, a bit slower than expected but we had stopped for quite a few photographs.

The tram route takes you right up to the top of Abdon Burf, the highest of the twin summits of Brown Clee, although the other one, Clee Burf, is only 30 metres less. What does burf mean? The evidence of the hill's industrial past is everywhere to be seen on the top with the remains of the dhustone mine buildings including one where only the fireplace is left standing. The ruins are juxtaposed against the radio masts which now dominate the hilltop, with the distinctive sight and sound of redstart everywhere.

One of Brown Clee's claims to fame is the astonishing fact that looking due east, there is nothing higher until you get to the Urals in Russia. a difficult one to believe, and the cyclist who we met at the trig point didn't believe it either and vowed to check it when he got home. It was now 1.30pm and we had gone just over 5km.

Just beyond the summit the path became very muddy.

We had read about the bog on Brown Clee and now we'd found it. It didn't seem to bother the ponies though, a group of five were grazing close to Abdon Burf, and we found more near Clee Burf - a group of eight, seven brown and one grey. The path had skirted around Clee Burf but we decided to detour to the top where there are more old industrial buildings and clear evidence of the mine workings, as well as a radar installation that is linked to the ones on top of nearby Titterstone Clee.

The view to the west had been terrific up till now but suddenly it was clear that rain or something worse was on its way. We jogged down the hill to Nordy Bank, a great example of a hillfort, and then the white stuff appeared. It might have been hail or sleet but it was certainly sharp and wet, but no sooner had we got waterproofs on, than it passed over. 

Once at the foot of the hill, we found the footpaths leading across the fields without too much difficulty and returned to Abdon, completing around 10km in a very leisurely time. Great walk though and we will be back to Titterstone Clee at some point.

Across the Breiddens with the LDWA

28 October 2012

Our first event with the LDWA was an enjoyable 12-mile tour of the Breiddens. We worked out that it was probably 23 years since we'd last been to Rodney's Pillar. But this time I was carrying waterproofs, coffee and rolls in the backpack instead of our daughter. 

The group assembled near Crew Green and 17 of us set off across the bridge and along the Severn Way. Soon we reached the confluence where the Severn and Vrynwy meet, having seen a heron and cormorant just before. The group debated the difference between a confluence and a bifurcation - a new term to us - for a while and then continued on the path leaving the Vyrnwy behind and following the Severn. 

Inquisitive ram.

Woolly-bottomed sheep.

Cuddly-looking sheep on Severn Way.

The approach to Rodney's Pillar looked exceedingly steep but our friendly walk leader Margaret assured us that we were circling round a bit and the climb would be gentler than it looked from here. The river path was unsurprisingly very squelchy, but the rare breed sheep were an entertaining diversion and worth a photo or two. We left the river and headed towards the foot of the hill at Criggion, stopping for coffee and flapjack before the ascent which we were warned was 30 minutes. It was fairly steep but not too bad and there was even a brief first appearance of the day for the sun as we got close to the summit. 

Quick sustenance before the climb up to Rodney's Pillar.

LDWA group at Rodney's Pillar.

After another food stop we headed on over the ridge past the quarry and then down a very nice path through the forest, although we realised that Margaret had planned to take us right down to the bottom again before the next climb back up. The route was not that easy to follow, but Mike's occasional interventions kept us on track even if one of the groups' GPS informed us that we were not always on rights of way. 

On route down from Breidden Hill.

Moel y Golfa monument.

Coming down off Moel y Golfa.

The route was taking us to the far end of the Breidden Hills and then back along the ridge path. The climb up to Moel y Golfa was a tough one and included a minor scramble. We stopped again for a food break although it was probably not quite brief enough as we cooled down very quickly when not moving. The monument at the top is an interesting commemoration of a  traveller who was a renowned bare knuckle fighter and the stone edifice was apparently organised by his son with contemporary newspaper tales of him 'kidnapping' people to help him build it. 

Friendly pony.

Rodney's Pillar from Middletown Hill.

Corndon in distance from Middletown Hill.

Track up to Middletown Hill.

The next section was a lovely route across to Middletown Hill with a brief down and up bit, followed by a rewarding 360-degree view from the summit. The Stiperstones and Corndon were clear landmarks to the south and much of the central Shropshire plain was there to see. A final descent across Blithy Hill, Kempster's Hill and Bausley Hill were next and then we dropped back down to rejoin the river and the bridge back to the starting point. 

Across the final path from Middletown Hill.

All in all a very pleasant tour of the Breiddens in good company. It was the first time we'd been on a group walk like this but it was good fun and we met some great characters and gained lots of tips about walks and equipment. 

Don't stray into the dingle!

20 Oct 2012

Beacon Ring on the skyline

We've returned to Marton for the second week running for more familiarisation in the area ahead of the South Shropshire Circular. This time we were heading west from Marton and started off on a path through the caravan park at Marton Pool. The path is reasonably well signed although it does zigzag around the caravans and we did head off in the wrong direction at first. 

Once through the park we entered some extremely boggy fields. It's essentially a flood meadow which has been drained but then grazed by cattle which have made it pretty much a mud bath again. Fair to middling signage meant we held the path pretty well, guessing that the plastic covering over an electic fence meant a crossing point and after passing a couple of walkers going the other way, we made it to Lower Wood and the lane to Betton. 

And then it all went pear-shaped. A simple enough looking path through Betton Dingle, a nature reserve, was our aim but we should have noted the hesitation in the voice of the angler who said, 'yes there is a path up there'. He was right; there was no such path, just some footpath signs which led into a dense thicket. With fallen trees and rampant brambles barring the way, we fought our way through for about an hour before finally giving up and deciding to go back. However, this was easier said than done as there was no discernable path and so we couldn't find our way out again. Eventually, in desperation, we climbed a tree and hurled ourselves over a barbed wire fence to escape. It was then we realised we had gone hardly any distance at all and must have been going round in circles. I feel an email is imminent to whoever is responsible for Betton Dingle.

After escaping from the bramble jungle of Betton Dingle we retraced our steps back to Betton, and then made good progress along the lane to Bromlow Callow, which has connections with Mary Webb's Down to Earth. It was now 3pm,  and we had only gone 7km but this was a recce after all. Once we went past the Callow Inn, looking like it was being refurbished, we found good signs and a footpath from Ganderbeach which led to  Castle Ring, another hill fort, and on to Valley Knoll, a very interesting heathland landscape. We took a path, after a forced diversion along a sheep track, towards Stapeley hill and eventually reached the stone circle at Mitchell's Fold. This lies under the shadow of Corndon and according to the sign at the stone circle, there are a number of important prehistoric sites in the immediate vicinity. 

Bromlow Callow

Forested promontory of Ganderbeach

Castle Ring hill fort

It was now 4.30pm however and we needed to get back before dusk as we had had not bargained for dark and had no head torches in our packs. A simple path led west and we found the lane to Rorrington and on towards Marton fairly easily, arriving back in the village at 5.45. A rather longer walk than it should have been, but such is the joy of navigation. 

Next time we will probably take in Corndon and Lan Mawr.

Valley Knoll

Rorrington Hill

Mitchell's Fold Stone Circle with Corndon in the background

Corndon

Part of the prehistoric stone circle of Mitchell's Fold