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| View over Gwydyr Forest to Moel Siabod |
From the Cairngorms National Park to Snowdonia National
Park, a train journey of over ten hours, leaving in rain, arriving in rain. The
reason for this trek south was the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild AGM
Weekend at the Plas Y Brenin national outdoor centre. A rainy day indoors at
the centre with interesting conversations, a workshop on the challenges of new
media, a thankfully straightforward AGM, an excellent dinner and the awards
ceremony. A good day, ending with a lift back to my B&B in Betws Y Coed
(the friendly and cosy Grove House) courtesy of Mark Richards (thanks Mark!).
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| Rushing stream in Gwydyr Forest |
Sunday morning and the rain still fell and the sky was thick
and dark with low clouds. OWPG members were going for a walk. I might have
joined them but missed the only bus to Plas Y Brenin. I didn’t mind. After a
day with people I was happy to wander off on my own and the wooded hills round
Betws Y Coed looked interesting. And so they proved. The woods aren’t old and
much is plantation forestry but overall the mix of trees, including big oaks
and Douglas firs, and the steep hilly terrain with many hidden crags makes for
pleasant and varied walking. After all the rain the rivers and streams were
splendid too. The rain kept up all day, starting as drizzle but becoming heavy
in the afternoon, and the wet forest glowed in the soft light and smelt wild
and wet.
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| Hafod mine |
Whilst the woods now are quiet and gentle this is an old
mining area as it is rich in lead and zinc. A hundred years ago it was heavily
industrialised. The last mine only closed in 1963 though most were gone long
before then. In the woods there are many remnants of the industry, dark barred
shafts leading into crags, channelled streams rushing down leats and, in
places, the last ruins of smelting mills. I wandered through the tiered
remnants of Hafod mine and passed the site of Parc mine. The latter was the
biggest mine and the last to close. Now it’s hard to tell it was ever here. In
the sixty years since it closed the forest has taken over. The lakes in the
forests were utilised for mining too, some purpose built, others enlarged. Now
they add to the beauty of the landscape.
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| Llyn Parc |
Rain dribbled down as I made my way to the railway station
for the long journey home. The air was still sullen and heavy. Along the North
Wales coast though the sun shone and the beaches were bright and the sky blue.
It didn’t last and for most of the journey the rain lashed down. Aviemore
station was dark and wet. I drove the last miles home with the wipers on full.
Yes, I know it quite well round there — very pleasant, interesting and, as you say, varied walking.
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