David on the approach to Hay Bluff + Hatterrall Ridge in the Black Mountains
David by the Montgomery Canal near Llanymynech on Tuesday 10th October 2023
Delightful walk today…. flat all the way…. perfect after yesterday’s epic 18 miles in 10 hours!!
My overnight stay at the Bradford Arms Hotel was perfect! Bob was a brilliant host…. I loved hearing about his 22 years service in the RAF as an armourer on fighter jets.
My day started with a lovely walk along the towpath of the Montgomery Canal. It was abandoned in 1944 and no longer navigable but is now a haven for birdlife…. swans, geese, herons and ducks! However Carreghofa Locks have been attractively restored.
Eventually leaving the canal I entered the village of Four Crosses…. as a retired headteacher it was lovely to see the village school! I then headed across farmland…. Offa’s Dyke still visible but here it doubled as a flood defence system.
I then walked for several miles along the Tir-y-mynach Embankment…. it reminded me of my Macs ‘Via Francigina’ adventure last autumn following the meanders of the Po River in Italy…. today I was following the meandering levees of the River Severn.
Today I met three wonderful people….. David from Birmingham walking Offa’s Dyke south to north….. he was raising funds for a charity he supports in South Africa…. then ten minutes later Sarah from Sydney in Australia also walking south to north… she still has family in Western Cumbria….. Sarah + David had been bumping into each other since Monmouth. Finally just before Welshpool I chatted to Brendan from Peterborough…. he had already cycled and camped for 62 days from London following all the famous canals in England and Wales…. he still has 7 weeks before returning home for work. I love meeting fellow adventurers on my solo long distance walking trips!!!
I’m now relaxing in my accommodation…. the wonderful Royal Oak Hotel here in Welshpool.
Loving my Offa’s Dyke adventure!
Offa’s Dyke Path…. Day 8….. Llanymynech to Welshpool….. press play!
I love walking in heavy rain!!…. the sound of raindrops hitting the hood of my rain-gear…. it reminds me of when I was very young and going to sleep with rain pattering on the roof of our caravan… amazingly it was these very Welsh/English borders that we visited with our touring caravan every Easter holiday…. here I am walking through the same landscape over 60 years later!
Today was a very wet but brilliant day! There was one brief spell as I climbed up the steep hill to Beacon Ring Iron Age fort that the rain stopped….. this luckily meant I was able to stamp my Offa’s Dyke passport at the stamp box located at the southern entrance to the fort.
Here I met and chatted to Lee… he is the gamekeeper to the Leighton Estate on which Beacon Ring fort is located…. of course we discussed the current weather!
Ten minutes later I bumped into John…. he is the local dairy farmer…. he told me about his farming life and the poor price they get for their milk at the moment…. he had a great story of how his father sent him up to Glasgow at the age of 13 on his own by train to look after their prize cows at a big agricultural show….. they won first prize!!!
So as I descended into the forest…. the heavy rain and mist turned it into a film-set for ‘Lord of the Rings’….. saw fascinating tall monkey-puzzle trees…. the rain came on heavy and persistent!!!
Walking on a visible section of the Dyke I met Richard, Miles and John…. they are friends who are currently completing the second half of their Offa’s Dyke south to north journey.
Finally reaching Montgomery…. totally drenched on the outside but warm and dry inside I reached my wonderful B+B…. now starting to dry off!
David
Offa’s Dyke Path….. Day 9….. Welshpool to Montgomery…. press play!
Today’s walk was beautiful!! The weather was perfect for walking…. cool + dry. I decided to walk at a slightly slower pace absorbing the awesome beauty of the Shropshire Hills…. of course this landscape was the ideal setting for the poems of AE Houseman…. to be found in his book ‘A Shropshire Lad’ written in 1896.
Throughout the day my walk followed Offa’s Dyke either alongside it or along the crest of the dyke! It was the first time I really had a sense of the incredible scale of King Offa’s construction project requiring the backbreaking work of at least 5,000 men…. with each village leader given responsibility for completing individual sections of the dyke….. over 1,200 years ago!!
Before setting off this morning I took the opportunity to explore the Georgian town of Montgomery with its elegant town-houses and the impressive Church of St Nicholas.
As I left Montgomery I met and chatted to Myrtle (her walking name) from Birmingham…. each year she is completing a different section of Offa’s Dyke…. she is normally accompanied by her walking buddy but not this time due to Covid.
At midday I enjoyed coffee and welsh cakes at Mellington Hall situated just 200 metres from the Offa’s Dyke Path. Later I enjoyed meeting Philip + Rob from Bridgenorth in Somerset and finally Dan + Rachel from Surrey but originally from Yorkshire.
The afternoon involved several steep descents and ascents called ‘The Switchbacks’….. they reminded me of the coastal ‘up and downs’ on my South West Coast Path adventure back in 2021!!!
Late on I came across the sign-post showing that I had reached the half-way point on the Offa’s Dyke Path.
Around 6pm I finally arrived at my B+B….. Little Hall Cottage…. I enjoyed home-made pasta with chorizo and berry crumble with ice-cream!
A stunning day on Offa’s Dyke!
Offa’s Dyke Path…. Day 10…. Montgomery to Clun….. press play!
Today was a six hour walk in persistent heavy drizzly rain…. you know the kind I mean?….. its even wetter than heavy rain!!! I couldn’t see through my glasses so I decided to take them off! Apart from three brief moments I kept my iPhone safely away in its dry-bag…. so sorry not many photos today!
My day started with an uphill muddy walk on a bridleway from my B+B near Clun for an hour to rejoin the Offa’s Dyke trail. Most of the day I was following Offa’s Dyke….. there was one section where the dyke was not covered with trees or bushes…. it was probably the clearest view of the dyke so far…. I did attempt a few photos in the pouring rain!
I did cross over the highest point on Offa’s Dyke …… Llanfair Hill 432 metres (1,417 feet)…. but there is a higher point on the trail itself over the Black Mountains.
Finally as I descended into Knighton I could see the River Teme was swollen, muddy brown and flowing rapidly…. I took the video of the river near to Knighton itself…. minutes later I found the location of the line of the England/Wales border where you can stand with one foot in each country. The Welsh name for Knighton means ‘the town on the Dyke’…. it is also regarded as the halfway point on the Offa’s Dyke Path…. although I crossed the actual halfway marker yesterday!
At last I found my B+B….. the ‘Horse and Jockey’ in the centre of Knighton. The lovely landlady put the heating on in my room…. I was able to dry off my waterproofs, boots and rucksack.
It had been a wet and soggy walk but I still really enjoyed seeing the wonderful landscape through rain, mist and low cloud. The weather forecast for the next few days is looking good!!
David
Offa’s Dyke Path…. Day 11….. Near Clun to Knighton….. press play!
Swollen River Teme near Knighton . . . press play for video!
My day started before breakfast with a quick walk back up to the Offa’s Dyke Centre to get the stamp for my passport…. It was a beautiful sunrise…. after yesterday’s soaking in the constant rain I was excited about the fine weather ahead of me! At breakfast I chatted to Juliette + Derek from Melbourne in Australia…. they are walking Offa’s Dyke south to north.
After a steep climb out of Knighton I was soon walking alongside the undulating Offa’s Dyke…. it was now quite high, tree covered with a well defined ditch. I met locals out for a walk…. Trish with her dog and Andy + Kate from Knighton.
A few minutes later I met Craig from North Carolina. We became ‘walking buddies’ for the rest of the day! He had arrived in Knighton yesterday after a long flight to the UK… he is walking south to Chepstow.
Crossing over Hawthorn Hill and Furrow Hill the views became totally awesome….. we could see for miles!! The air was crystal clear affording incredible clarity all around us….. from the summit ridge beyond Rushock Hill the open vistas were breathtaking….. the distant Black Mountains in the south-west sharp on the horizon with the stunning rural landscape of Shropshire and Herefordshire to the south and east!
We then began the long descent into Kington. It had been a real pleasure walking with Craig. We decided to ‘team up’ again tomorrow for the 15 mile walk to Hay-on-Wye.
In the evening I reflected on what had been a truly awesome day on the Offa’s Dyke Path!!
Offa’s Dyke Path…. Day 12…. Knighton to Kington….. 15 miles…. press play!
Just before leaving Kington this morning we spent a few minutes in the beautiful Parish Church of St Mary’s…. its tower dates back to the 12th century…. it was warm inside ready for the morning service….. the font was decorated for the Harvest Festival….. it has been used for baptisms for over 900 years!!
During the first part of the morning we walked over the stunning Hergest Ridge…. we enjoyed walking on the springy turf of this common ground grazed by sheep and wild ponies over the centuries….. there were dozens of bales of harvested bracken used as bedding for animals.
We came across an unusual clump of ‘monkey -puzzle’ trees high on the ridge…. it is interesting to realise my that jet bracelet from Whitby is made of fossilised ‘monkey-puzzle’ wood.
We admired the exteriors of the churches in the villages of Gladestry and Newchurch. Finally on entering the Wye Valley we walked through a wonderful forest…. Craig said how it reminded him of home in North Carolina…. except here there were no black bears or coyotes!!!
At last we saw the River Wye still swollen from recent rains….. we crossed over the high bridge into Hay-on-Wye…. we enjoyed a refreshing beer in the 17th century Three Tuns pub to celebrate the end of a great day’s walk. We each then headed off to find our B+B’s after agreeing to walk together tomorrow.
Offa’s Dyke Path….. Day 13…. Kington to Hay-on-Wye….. press play!
After a delicious breakfast at my B+B I walked back into Hay-on-Wye to meet Craig and get a stamp for my Offa’s Dyke passport. The town is known as the second-book capital of the Western world!!
We had a steady climb up onto the awesome spine of Hatterrall Ridge…. it is the highest point on the Offa’s Dyke Path at 703 metres (2,306 feet)…. its an incredible ridge walk of many miles of wild moorland at a continuous altitude of at least 600 metres (2,000 feet). We even had our first distant view of the Bristol Channel on the south-west horizon. I found it a very mindful and reflective walk along this extensive moorland ridge! We were delighted to meet Claire and Peter from Ruthin who today were celebrating completing their Offa’s Dyke Path after doing it in stages over 3 years!!!….. plus 50 years of marriage! Congratulations!
We finally descended down into Longtown where I am staying at The Crown pub.
Craig and I enjoyed a meal reflecting on our last three days together as walking buddies! We said our goodbyes as his taxi arrived to take him to his farm B+B further down the valley…. he will be further ahead of me in the next few days.
Another awesome day on the Offa’s Dyke Path!!
Offa’s Dyke Path…. Day 14…. Hay-on-Wye to Longtown…. press play!
"Somewhere along the journey, we find the reason why we choose to walk!"
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Regards
David