Wales Feed

Iolo's top 10 must-see locations

2016-01-08T09:52:03+00:00

The Brecon Beacons is an area I know well, having walked virtually every square metre of its mountains, woodlands and rivers during my 15 years with the RSPB and 17 years working in the media, but it's a place that always holds a few surprises.

Most visitors will head for the major tourist attractions such as Pen-y-Fan or the town of Brecon, but the National Park has so much more to offer.

Here are my 10 must-see locations in the Beacons.

1. Llanthony Priory This partly ruined priory dates back to around 1100 and is situated in the stunning Vale of Ewyas on the eastern edge of the park. Having barely survived several attacks by Owain Glyndwr, it never recovered from Henry the Eighth's dissolution of the monasteries in the 16th century.

The ruins of Llanthony Priory

2. Capel-y-Ffin The beautiful little chapel that gives this hamlet its name is dedicated to St Mary and dates back to 1762. Lying on the banks of the River Honddu, it is surrounded by the high tops of the Black Mountains.

3. Brecon Mountain Railway This is one of Wales' ‘great little trains' and runs 5.5 miles from Pant Station near Merthyr, through Pontsticill and on to Torpantau on the old abandoned Brecon and Merthyr line. On a sunny summer's day, the views are outstanding!

4. Llangorse Lake This is the largest natural lake in Wales and is famous for its coarse fishing, water sports and crannog, an artificial island dating back to the 9th century that was used as a dwelling. The lake is also excellent for wildlife and supports healthy populations of water voles, reed warblers and hunting hobbies.

5. Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal This 35-mile canal runs along the Usk Valley for most of its length and although originally built to carry coal and iron, today its rural character and tranquility attracts thousands of tourists each year. It's also a great place to see the elusive otter.

The Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal

6. Mynydd Illtyd This area of common land is conveniently situated adjacent to the Brecon Beacons Mountain Centre near Libanus. It makes for excellent low-level walking with an abundance of wildlife, and excellent, home-made food at the Mountain Centre cafe makes for a perfect end to the day.

7. Llyn y Fan Fach A small dammed lake on the northern edge of the Black Mountain, Llyn y Fan Fach is surrounded by the high peaks of the Carmarthen Fans and is steeped in Welsh legends. The walk up to the lake along the River Sawdde and on to the high tops is one of the most picturesque walks in the whole of the Beacons.

Overlooking Llyn y Fan Fach

8. Sgwd Henrhyd Henrhyd waterfall near the village of Coelbren is the tallest waterfall in south Wales. A lovely walk leads from the car park above the falls down the wooded Nant Llech valley. Henrhyd is best viewed after heavy rainfall and is a photographer's dream.

9. Beacons Way This 95-mile walk follows most of the high ridges from the Skirrid in the east to the small village of Bethlehem in the west. A recently-devised linear walk, it has become very popular with walkers from all over the world.

10. Pen-y-Fan Okay, so this is probably the best-visited site in the whole of the Brecon Beacons, but 250,000 visitors a year can't be wrong. At 886 metres (2,907 feet) above sea level, it is the highest peak in southern Britain and the 360 degree panoramic view from the top is absolutely spectacular.

Welsh castles top Visit Britain's 'must see' list

2011-01-13T10:54:06+00:00

A new survey by Visit Britain's suggests that Welsh castles are the main draw for foreign visitors to Britain.

Caerphilly Castle. Image by Sam Pritchard.

Researchers spoke to 10,000 holidaymakers from overseas, who put a tour of Welsh castles as their "must-do" activity on any trip to the UK ahead of a visit to Buckingham Palace, Harrods shopping, a Premier League football match or whisky tour.

Commenting on the survey results, Visit Britain director, Patricia Yates said: "It is striking that touring Welsh castles was so popular - and the top four choices were right across Britain, in Wales, London, Scotland, and England."

Those surveyed were given a list of 18 activities they could undertake while in Britain, and asked to pick the ones they liked the most. Welsh castles topped the list with 34%, ahead of visiting Buckingham Palace at 32%.

Visit Britain also listed the top 10 Welsh castles:

If you'd like to find out more about Welsh castles view our brief guide on the BBC Wales History website.

There are over 600 castles in Wales. You can read comprehensive guides and get visitor information details on Welsh castles on the websites below.

Past Master on BBC Radio Wales

2010-08-13T11:51:43+00:00

There's another chance to listen to Past Master on BBC Radio Wales over the coming weeks.

Presenter and BBC Wales History blogger, Phil Carradice delves into the famous and not-so-famous happenings and events in the history of Wales.

Listen again online as Phil explores the remarkable life of Welsh based cinematic pioneer William Haggar. A showman, singer, actor and filmmaker, he ran both a travelling cinema (bioscope) and travelling theatre before opening his permanent cinemas.

You can read Phil's earlier blog on the William Haggar as well as some of the great memories of Haggars cinema in Pembroke that people have commented on the blog. Feel free to add your own memories.

Phil Carradice and former employees of Haggar's Cinema in Pembroke

If you'd like to find out more about Welsh film history visit the BBC Wales Arts website.

Past Master is next broadcast on Monday 16 August at 6.30pm on BBC Radio Wales when Phil tells the story of Ralph Hancock, a Cardiff insurance clerk who created fabulous roof gardens in 1930s New York and London. Early birds can also catch the programme on Wednesday 18 August at 5.30am.

Feel free to comment! If you want to have your say, on this or any other BBC blog, you will need to sign in to your BBC iD account. If you don't have a BBC iD account, you can register here - it'll allow you to contribute to a range of BBC sites and services using a single login.

Need some assistance? Read about BBC iD, or get some help with registering.

Pier mania in our seaside towns

2010-04-06T09:38:07+00:00

The last 50 years of the 19th century saw over 50 piers built around the British coast - pier mania, if ever it was. The 1871 Bank Holiday Act gave workers the right to certain 'Bank' holidays and seaside towns quickly realised that, with more and more people pouring into the resorts, a pier was an essential centre of entertainment. Minstrel troupes, dancers, boats and paddle steamers - the piers had it all. And of course, one of their greatest attractions was that ladies and gentlemen could stroll along the decking or sit in deck chairs at the end, just contemplating the sun, sea and sky. To all intents and purposes they could have been at sea but with one vital ingredient missing - no sea sickness!

When, in 1893, there was a delay in building the pier at Penarth the suggestion was made that the town should buy a second-hand pier from Douglas on the Isle of Man. There was much support for the idea. As the editor of The Penarth Observer wrote:-

"Any pier would be better than none...We do trust that another season will not be allowed to pass without one of some sort being erected, but we understand that the one proposed will be altogether superior to the condemned one at Douglas."

The editor needn't have worried. A year later Penarth got its new pier and the second-hand one went, instead, to Rhos-on-Sea where it was set up to rival the new brand pier at Colwyn Bay. The longest pier in Wales was built at Llandudno but the most famous was probably the one at Aberystwyth. This pier was designed by Eugenius Birch, the doyen of pier builders, as renowned in his own field as Capability Brown and Josiah Wedgwood. Opened on Good Friday 1865, just a few months later over a hundred feet of this, the finest pier in Wales, was washed away in a storm. Its truncated inland half remains in the town to this day.

As the Aberystwyth disaster shows, the piers were not always as sturdy as they seemed. The risk of fire was an ever-present concern. Colwyn Bay pier was destroyed twice by fire, once in 1922 and again in 1933. Penarth pier was partially burned out in 1931 and then suffered the ignominy of being rammed by a cargo ship, the Port Royal Park, in 1947. Sometimes it was simple neglect that caused the problem. Tenby's pier, the Royal Victoria pier, was a regular port of call for the pleasure steamers of the Bristol Channel but little was done to maintain it and it was eventually demolished in the late 1940s.

These days people can still walk out along piers like Penarth, Mumbles, Aberystwyth and Llandudno. They are an essential part of our social heritage, as enjoyable now as they were at the end of the 19th century.