Tag: Explore Mid Wales

Explore Mid Wales

Drygarn Fawr: a trip to the gaping gap on the map (and three ways to reach the summit)

Distance: Routes vary in length between 3 and 10 miles. On a hike in a totally different part of Wales at a totally different time last year, Undiscovered Wales met, on the trail, what you could only describe as a true veteran of the hills. A hardened, rain-lashed, wind-grizzled walker who imparted a knowing look whichever part of Snowdonia, the Brecon Beacons or Mid Wales … Continue reading Drygarn Fawr: a trip to the gaping gap on the map (and three ways to reach the summit)

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

Traeth Bach: the cut-off cove that eludes almost everyone

No one could term the beach destinations of Llangrannog, bustling one-time hangout of Dylan Thomas, and Penbryn, home to one of Wales’ best beach cafes, off-the-beaten-track. Both are pretty popular when the sun comes out. But there is a sandy bay in-between attracting about three visitors to every 300 Llangrannog and Penbryn pull in, and is so Pirates-of-the-Caribbean-picturesque it makes even its beautiful neighbours seem … Continue reading Traeth Bach: the cut-off cove that eludes almost everyone

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

Gentle wilderness along Abergwesyn Common

It can be a wild, stark place, Mid Wales: sometimes too much so for day-trippers who prefer Snowdonia’s more Instagram-able blockbuster beauty. At Undiscovered Wales we love the wildness and the starkness. But sometimes, we crave a lazy, languid day out too: the pootling drive out to a jaw-dropping beauty spot to picnic, cool off in a river and dreamily look at the view. Abergwesyn … Continue reading Gentle wilderness along Abergwesyn Common

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

In search of the cave of Twm Siôn Cati, the Welsh Robin Hood

Walk length: 4km. In almost all countries, it seems, there is a Robin Hood figure, usually treading that hazy space between fact and fiction in history: someone who takes from the rich, gives to the poor and then gets heroised in popular culture. In Wales, it is Twm Siôn Cati: a canny 16th-century Mid Wales outlaw about whom reams of stories have been written but … Continue reading In search of the cave of Twm Siôn Cati, the Welsh Robin Hood

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

Scaling Mid Wales’ highest summit, Pen Pumlumon Fawr

Walk length: 8km. All around us is yellow – rise upon rise of unpeopled yellowness, save for a tiny oasis of green, our start point, far below and insignificant on the horizon. Sun beats down out of an absolute blue sky. We turn and head on into the wilderness, heads bent into the driving wind…not a snippet from one of our trips to the Sahara, … Continue reading Scaling Mid Wales’ highest summit, Pen Pumlumon Fawr

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

Between the sea and sky: Ynyslas Dunes

A vast, open expanse of sea and sky greeted us at the Ynyslas dunes. Rolling south of the Dyfi Estuary for as far as the eye can see, this dune dreamscape lifts gazes and spirits – particularly on a spring day, when a stiff breeze buffets the Irish Sea and clouds billow atmospherically in a sharp blue sky. Driving the Coastal Way, the 180-mile route … Continue reading Between the sea and sky: Ynyslas Dunes

Kerry Walker
Explore Mid Wales

Sacred solitude on Mwnt Beach

Sometimes, when you ask around in a local area for good off-the-grid recommendations of places to visit, you wind up disappointed or downright annoyed if you follow through with the suggestion and go there: local recommendations are not always great. Admittedly, Mwnt and its big USP, its beach, are a mere five miles from Cardigan, the second-largest town in the county of Ceredigion with its … Continue reading Sacred solitude on Mwnt Beach

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

The Caio Forest: the forest that foiled an English king

Discovering the truly undiscovered inevitably entails sometimes opening up the OS map, scouting out the sort of terrain you love, hedging your bets and just going there. So it was with the Caio forest for us: it had expanses of trees, some thrillingly close-together contour lines, a promising little network of marked paths and a proper parking place. So off we went. (The marked paths … Continue reading The Caio Forest: the forest that foiled an English king

lwaterson
Explore Mid Wales

Llyn Brianne: South Wales’ biggest body of water is a true recluse

When we moved to remotest Carmarthenshire, the place we heard recommended to us again and again for a day trip was Llyn Brianne. Some places fall far short of the hype. Some, you finally get there and think ‘OK, nice enough.’ Some just totally exceed expectations. Llyn Brianne belongs firmly to the latter group. This snaking reservoir nestles hidden in the upper Tywi Valley, spread-eagled … Continue reading Llyn Brianne: South Wales’ biggest body of water is a true recluse

lwaterson