28th October 2017 - Twmbarlwm Hill Fort

Today’s walk is one to do on a clear day. It covers the high ground to the north of Risca and Crosskeys and commands incredible views of the whole Severn Estuary. We set off from Twmbarlwm Car Par which is free but sadly a magnet for fly-tippers. We didn’t head straight up to the hill fort as I thought it would be best to save this until last. It was incredibly windy up on the ridge so we dropped down into the woods. Even up here though the views are stunning.

Lots of ferns on top.

The woods here are incredibly dense and the path follows next to them. You can’t see more than about 20 feet into them before it is pitch black. Once we got to the end though the wind came back with a vengeance. There is a car park with some picnic tables up here but I’m not sure how to get up here. It does offer an easier route to the hill fort for the less active. It also overlooks the reservoir which we didn’t go down to.

About to head off down the track.

Next we followed the route around Cwmcarn forest. This is a round route of a couple of miles. The woods are quite cut back so the views here are also very good. There are also some mountain biking tracks which honestly only look suitable for those with suicidal tendencies. They look more suitable for climbing gear than bikes.

A big log in the picnic area.

As we came around the southern edge we could see Mynydd Machen where we went a few weeks ago. I do enjoy this aspect of walking in the hills, seeing walks from a different perspective and picking out a walk you want to do from the actual ground, rather than just from a map. The woods really drop away at this point and there is some very interesting new plantations. The new firs looks oddly like cactus bringing about an almost North American dessert type appearance.

The view over Risca.

The final part of the walk is up to the hill fort itself. This impressive structure apparently kept the first Roman conquest of Britain at bay for 25 years. It’s not hard to see why when you get up to the top. It’s very steep and the view is truly spectacular. You can see all the way from the new M4 bridge to past Western-Super-Mare. 

Heading up to Twmbarlwm fort.

It was ideal weather too. Very clear but cold with low pressure giving great visibility. From here it’s just a quick drop back down to the car. This walk is ideal in clear weather, not one for when it’s raining. It’s also great if you just want a short walk but can also be drawn out for much longer as it is a very large area. I have feeling we will be returning here.

On top of Twmbarlwm.

7th October 2017 - Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal Walk

Today’s walk has a slightly urban feel to it. We decided to take a walk along the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal as Chuck is a real water baby and is always up for a swim. We parked in Car Park in Bettws. It was free very close to the canal. It gets busy quickly so get there early. We set out across a football pitch through a gap in the hedge. Very different to our usual vista.

There are lots of stone bridges along the canal.

The canal is sadly no longer in use. It looked a bit sad but thankfully didn’t have too much in the way of litter. The first section is very much still in an urban area. It’s quite pretty though with houses backing onto the canal and several old locks. The canal starts to leave the town but unfortunately then runs right next to the M4. It’s a nice view from here but the constant hum of traffic does not make for the most tranquil of walks.

And unsurprisingly, lots of locks too.

We left the canal after a bit and headed up into Allt-yr-yn Nature Reserve. The traffic noise was much quieter up here and it is a pleasant little wood. We dropped back down again and under the M4 once again. The canal leads up to Fourteen Locks Park. I didn’t bother counting them to see if it was a misleading name but there were plenty of locks. Sadly none of them in use. There was a large pool at the top and Chuck took full advantage and went for a dip.

Looks lovely with the M4 just out of shot.

This was poor timing on Chuck’s part as we went to a pub in Rogerstone next. Well, I think it was Rogerstone. It may be Highcross. It’s hard to tell where each ends. The pub was called the Rising Sun. Sadly it didn’t let dogs in. We sat outside and although it wasn’t particularly cold our poor wet dog was certainly feeling cool. We drank up quick as he was starting to shiver. We got back to the canal and Chuck jumped straight back in to warm up.

Getting away from the traffic noise now.

The canal heads out between the houses and feels more country-like the further you go. At one point we saw a rather tame heron sitting on the bank. It was posing as passers-by took photographs. We left the canal bank and headed uphill to the outskirts of Risca. We walked through a field of horses which is something you don’t see very often. The odd one or two maybe but there were loads of them. They looked like small shire horses. Any horse experts please feel free to comment below.

One of the Fifteen Locks. I can't remember which one.

We followed a small road to a woods. The woods turned out to be incredibly muddy. Our nice clean dog turned into a horrid muddy mess in quick time. Thankfully there was a stream at the bottom and he was more than happy to jump in. A freshly clean but rather wet dog. A half hour walk back to the car mainly dried him off though. 

The views get nicer further west.

The walk back through Bettws was….er…..not scenic shall we say to be diplomatic. When we got back to the car there were people waiting for our car parking space so as I said before, get there early. This was an interesting change to our usual walks. It just shows that even people who live in a big city, in this case Newport, can find a fairly rural walk right on their doorstep.

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