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My original (= a long long time ago) plan had been to do the Eastern Black Mountains, the Brecon Beacons and the Western Black Mountain in a single big push over 2 or 3 days. But that plan was hatched before I got ill, and since then I've had reluctantly to accept that I can no longer manage such big walks.
The next plan was to do each of the three ranges separately, and Dr Frank and I had managed to visit the Eastern Black Mountains and the Beacons in June 2018; but for some reason I don't now recall we hadn't got around to the Western Black Mountain.
Early 2019 saw the crystallization of a plan to walk this last link in the chain with Dr Frank, Chris and Jenko, bivvying overnight. Unfortunately both Dr Frank and I had to pull out of this at the 11th hour due to a family emergency; and then the pandemic arrived, so in June 2021 I still had not visited these hills.
Now that he's fully retired, Dr Frank was up for joining me in principle. But rather than the Western Black Mountain, the first Wales walk we opted to do together post-pandemic was a couple of stages of the Wales Coastal Walk at the beginning of the month. Unfortunately he was then away on holiday for the first spell of fine weather after our coast walk, and I was desperate to get into the hills again - which meant re-planning the logistics: it's a linear walk, so ideally one needs good public transport links, or a couple of cars. I couldn't find decent public transport, so, being solo now, a bike-and-hike was going to be the only solution; and I knew that 2 days carrying my gear, and starting with a 55km bike ride to the walk start would be too much, so it would have to be two separate shorter one day walks. starting with this, the west leg.
However, when refreshing my memory of the route, I'd been pleasantly surprised to discover just how close the hills were - just over 2 hours drive to my planned bike start location for the west leg - not such an onerous drive therefore. So I didn't need to bother with a very early start - and in fact I didn't actually leave home 'til about 06.00am. The roads were still beautifully clear as I drove down through central Wales, arriving at my planned start point in the middle of the Glasfynydd "Forest" (= monoculture plantation) at about 08.15, where I enjoyed a leisurely breakfast in the sun - nothing like this kind of view to set the mood for the day!
20210615_084129(2). This is looking east from my parking spot towards the future second leg.
And this is the route I took.
First, the bike part...
Bike Profile
27.8km.
736m ascent.
2.3 hours duration.
Then the walk part...
Walk Profile
21.9km.
1052m ascent.
8.3 hours duration.
The first 80% of the bike route was wonderful: mainly downhill, with only gentle uphills. But - astonishingly - the long descents ended in a very (for me) tough 500m climb. The day seemed to be a fancy cars day: a bunch of Ferraris passed me coming down the hill on my way up the final climb - mainly 458s I think, but also one Superfast (what a numpty name!!??!!) - as did half a dozen or more vintage E Types travelling up the hill - heavens, what beautiful things! - though I really wouldn't have exchanged the planned day in the hills for a day in the creaky leather seat of a vintage E-Type, much as I love them....
Arrived at the car park at the top of the big hill, I wheeled the bike up into the disused quarry above the car park looking for a tree to which I could attach the bike. There were none, so I concealed it as best I could, and wound and locked my chain around it.
The great thing about the big climb is... ... that you end up in a car park that's only 80 or so metres below the first Hewitt summit. Here' looking back to the car park just after I'd set off up the (fairly gentle) hill.
20210615_113408(2).
And in no time, there I was, on the summit of Garreg Lwyd...
20210615_121334(2).
...with a fair way still to go
This is looking more or less in an easterly direction.
I haven't be able to find out anything about the cairn/ruins on the summit. If anyone knows anything I'd be really interested to hear.
20210615_121816(2). Again looking in an easterly direction.
20210615_124509(2). ...the next goal being Foel Fraith, which doesn't feature on the main summit list, but is nonetheless a clear feature, and an obvious walking goal.
20210615_124918. And indeed the summit cairn is a deal more prepossessing than very many Welsh summit cairns.
20210615_125333. Ahead - a goodly way ahead - ENE - the Garreg Las ridge.
20210615_131303. Looking back WSW after a couple of km walking east from Foel Fraith...
20210615_134205. ...towards Garreg Las in the far distance.
I bumped into the first walker of the day along this stretch. We paused and blethered a bit, and it quickly became apparent that he was a local man. When I mentioned that I was doing a bike-and-walk he asked me where I'd stashed my bike; and when I told him I'd left it in the quarry he raised his eyes to heaven and suggested I might be very lucky indeed to find it still there when I returned. Well, I couldn't do anything about it at that point anyway, so I didn't dwell on it for the rest of the walk.
20210615_134750. Looking back from approximately the same point - quite bleak!
Two astonishingly large bronze age cairns... We've no idea why the folk of that time - presumably more or less subsistence living - put all the necessary effort into building these... I read elsewhere that the mean temperature was a couple of degrees higher in the bronze age, and that people had settlements and grew crops on the top of these hills, so maybe it related directly to a settlement..??
20210615_142027. Looking forward to the next stretch - bit of a drop, before the ascent to Waen Lefrith and Bannau Sir Gaer.
20210615_144747(2). Looking back WSW to Garreg Las - the "pimple" on the skyline, just visible.
20210615_145848(2). The same view, from the ascent towards Waen Lefrith, shortly before the top.
I traversed to the left - north - in order to get as much of the view from the edge of the scarp slope, and it was well worth it, as I hope the following pics demonstrate.
20210615_150926(2). This is looking east along the main scarp slope across Llyn y Fan Fach. Really rather marvellous.
20210615_151403(2). Same view a little further along the escarpment edge path.
20210615_151836. It's an easy path - gentle ascents - with the most spectacular views.
20210615_152828(2). Looking back west along the path I'd just walked along. Astonishingly few people, given the superb weather.
20210615_153013. Ahead: Picws Du....
20210615_153534. Looking back east, the route I'd come...
20210615_153545. The same in pano.
20210615_153545 - And labelled.
20210615_154407. Bannau Sir Gaer - Picws Du, pic taken looking north towards Usk Reservoir (sadly surrounded by the mandatory green desert of conifer monoculture
).
20210615_154434. The same, looking east towards Fan Brycheiniog.
20210615_155933. From Picws Du there's a 100m drop into Bwlch Blaen-twrch, followed immediately by 150m of ascent to Fan Foel, and from thence to Fan Brycheiniog.
20210615_160317. Looking back east towards Picws Du from Bwlch Blaen-twrch.
20210615_163338. The cairn on Fan Foel. Behind it in the background, Picws Du.
[img]20210615_163422. The path continues to follow the escarpment edge, affording superb views all the way - this featuring Fan Brycheiniog in the middle background.
20210615_163940(2). Looking west towards Fan Foel from the summit of Fan Brycheiniog....
20210615_164131(2). ... from which the path continues east towards Fan Hir - only 40m lower than Fan Brycheiniog but looking like it's quite a bit lower than this.
20210615_164826(2). Llyn y Fan Fawr is a wonderful deep blue.
20210615_164915. The path descends about 100m into Bwlch Geidd, after which it's roughly 60m climb to ...
20210615_170112....Fan Hir summit viewed looking east - as so often in Wales, marked with a wonderfully underwhelming few stones (yes, it's the 3 or 4 small stones in the foreground, just left of centre!
)
20210615_170019. Pano looking west.
20210615_170448. Then back the way I came towards Bwlch Geidd, from where a path splits off the main ridge route...
20210615_170645. ...winding its way down the scarp to the east end of Llyn y Fan Fawr.
20210615_171651(2). Looking back at the escarpment from the east end of Llyn y Fan Fawr, the path is just visible on the LHS.
From here I left the path, making a yomp across the slightly boggy roughs, aiming for a point half a kilometre or so east of the west end of the Glasfynydd plantation.
20210615_175332(2). Looking back up at the escarpment, shortly before I enter the plantation, following a forestry path back to where I've parked the car.
On the way back to collect my bike from the walk start, the views of the escarpment continued to impress.
20210615_1905124(2).
Notwithstanding the pessimistic prediction of the walker earlier in the afternoon, the bike, together with helmet, cycling shoes, and spares bum-bag, were still there. Someone had evidently come over to look at the stuff, because they'd left a large empty Macdonalds paper cup next to it!
So no bad end to a really excellent day.
3D of route.
