Trolls Houses in the Celtic Rainforest

As the equinox approaches summer rains drift into autumn rains ... those springtime fires in the tinder dry undergrowth seem years ago. But it does get very atmospheric in the misty Celtic Rainforest especially when the sun warms the sodden ground. If the showers get too much you can always shelter in a Troll’s House.

Vale of Ffestiniog to top of Snowdon and back

From Plas y Dduallt to the top of Snowdon seemed quite achievable and on 24^th July 2011 the conditions were just right. Off we set with provisions and the GPS zeroised. I’d estimated 1 hour to Stwlan, 1 hour to Llyn Adar and a further hour to the start of the Watkin Path. Each leg was under-estimated and it took almost 3.5 hours to cover those 8.8 miles.

Despite being a fine and sunny Sunday at the start of school holidays the path was quiet. A few bathers splashing in the turquoise crystal pools above Hafod y Llan. The view across Llyn Llydaw was superb. For the first time in several years I approached the top free of cloud – on previous occasions it had been a scramble steeply through the mist but this time I was able to follow the more gentle angle to the ridge then turn right to the summit.

French, Welsh, English, German, walkers, train passengers, all shapes, sizes and ages... it was really cosmopolitan and busy, busy. By the time I squeezed my way onto the compass at the top it had been 5 hours and 51 minutes since leaving home 13.2 miles away and an estimated 1,600m altitude gain. 

A drink and some jelly babies before descending the ridge overlooking the Watkin Path towards Y Garn then into Caffi Gwynant (brilliant community cafe) for ice lolly and ‘Powerade’. Heavy legs plodded up the narrow lane then through meadows alongside streams to Llyn Llagi and up to the plateau between Snowdon and home. 

Evening sunshine Cwmorthin

At Rhosydd quarry we turned down into Cwmorthin, adding an extra mile, but avoiding the steepness from Stwlan. Weary legs back home 27.5 miles, 12 hours and 15 minutes since setting off. Fast asleep by 9 pm.

Kayaking Borth y Gest to Maentwrog

Launching from the slippery mud of Borth y Gest we paddled in a wide arc around the receding sandbanks on the corner to Portmeirion. Probably following in the wake of ferrymen from before the Cob (1811) and Pont Briwet (1860). Upstream, with Ynys Giftan on our right and Portmeirion to the left, but where had the Dwyryd gone? It looked as though we could have walked the whole way across without wetting our feet.

Setting off 2 hours and 45 minutes before high tide (based on 8.6m high water at Liverpool) was a good hour too early. We bobbed in the shallows being slowly nudged up the estuary. Had we missed a channel? A couple of times we dragged our kayaks, leaving furrows in the soft sand, to intercept newly formed channels. Fish were wriggling in the shadows, their backs breaking the water – were they sea bass?

Eventually we paddled beneath the grade II listed Briwet which will be converted to pedestrian use when the new £20m road and rail bridge is built. Construction starts this autumn (2011) and will cause motorists to detour 8 miles via Maentwrog for 12 to 18 months.

Salt marsh sheep graze the retreating shoreline. To our left the Gwaith Powdwr nature reserve with the settling shed looking down on us. Reconstructed after an explosion in 1988 in which two people were killed.  A little further on to Tyddyn Isaf, the largest of the slate quays, completed in 1828 at a cost of £289. At either end are 2 magazines for storing incoming black powder.

By now it was high tide at Borth y Gest with perfect paddling conditions up the river, smooth and mirror like. More slate quays and up the S bend scenically crafted by the Oakeleys to improve the view from Plas Tan y Bwlch. Towards the mouth of the Llenerch, which flows down from the lake at Trawsfynydd, paddling suddenly got harder as we battled the surge of water released to generate electricity.

Himalayan Balsam and  Japanese Knotweed galore. Is this going to be with us forever? Occasional jumping fish. Dragonfly. Family of young ducks. Squadron of swallows above. Couple of ponies. By the time Maentwrog church came into view the tide was definitely not helping us with the last couple of hundred metres  a hard paddle over shallow fast flowing waters until a bit exhausted we pulled out the kayaks at the bridge.

11.7 miles, 4 hours and 24 minutes after setting off from Borth y Gest. Next time we’ll probably go downstream on a spring tide.   

Double Hunslet and Gravity Train

There’s never a dull moment on the Ffestiniog Railway. Today, 23rd July, we saw Linda and Blanche, fresh from the Boston Lodge paint shop, in lined FR Green livery. This is the first time the two ‘ladies’, which date from 1893, have appeared together in pristine matching livery. As if that wasn’t enough excitement for one day we were treated to an exceptionally long gravity train!

Official opening of The Pengwern

Friday, July the 8th, sees the official reopening of The Pengwern in Llan Ffestiniog.

After the Pengwern Arms Hotel closed its doors, in February 2009, Pengwern Cymunedol was set up as a community enterprise to buy, reopen and develop the pub and hotel. Since the end of March 2011 the community owns and runs The Pengwern. A large number of volunteers have worked to renovate and improve parts of the building so that by now the pub and function room have been reopened.

Representatives of the press and media are welcome to attend the official opening. The S4C programme, Wedi 7, has confirmed that it will broadcast live from the Pengwern on the opening night.

The programme for the evening will start shortly after 6.00pm. The local Welsh Assembly Member, Dafydd Elis Thomas, will perform the opening ceremony at around 7.00pm. Representatives will be present from Gwynedd and Ffestiniog councils and from other agencies which have been supportive of the venture as well as local shareholders, volunteers and supporters of Pengwern Cymunedol.

A variety of local talents will perform during the evening followed by a jamming session with local musicians.

For further details about the Pengwern social enterprise see the Pengwern Cymunedol Information Sheet.

CONTACT Sel Williams sel@bangor.ac.uk   Ffôn:  0776 049 0081

Y Pengwern, Sgwar yr Eglwys, Llan Ffestiniog, Gwynedd. LL41 4PB

E mail:                      pengwerncymunedol@googlemail.com

Website:                   www.pengwerncymunedol.btik.com

Pub Website:            www.pengwern.org.uk

Pengwern Tel:          01766 762200

Balmy Barmouth, Blue Lobster and Blenny

50 years ago there were 14 boats fishing for lobsters off Barmouth and, not surprisingly, the population declined. At that concentration it just wasn’t sustainable. Today there’s just the one, skippered by John Johnson, the man who also runs fishing charters on Viking II and supplies tackle from his shop on the high street.

He welcomed me on board to see how, with the help of veteran lobsterman Ray Lewis, he goes about his business. I was lucky to be motoring out of harbour with still water and blue skies – frequent high winds had meant slim pickings for most of May and June.

About a mile out we reached and hooked a marker buoy and winched up a string of 12 pots. 1, 2 and 3 were lobsterless, temporary home to small fish, crabs and jellyfish eggs. Pot number 4 produced the first lobster.

Like a production line, each pot was opened, emptied and baited with a chunk of plaice then stacked in sequence on a bench ready for launching off the stern. Maybe 15 minutes to raise and relay the dozen.

Some pots were empty whilst others were crammed full of life, not just lobsters but edible crabs, spiders, hermits, velvet-backed crabs, butterfish, blennies and whelks to name but a few. The fisheries ruler was used to measure the length of the lobster’s main shell from eye-socket to the start of the long tail. Any less than 87 mm were returned to the sea, about 75%, and many of these were so frustratingly borderline.

After about 3 hours we had 36 decent sized lobsters in the oxygenated tank with their claws held fast by strong rubber bands. Not for fear of humans being bitten but to limit the injuries they would inflict on each other. Some were so brilliant blue whilst others had more of an orange tinge – the difference between those that blend into a background of rock as opposed to shale.

John’s mobile rang and half were sold to the Lobster Pond (01341 281234), the quayside shop for live or cooked lobsters. The others would be buried beneath the waves in one of the chests, ready for the dealer from Bangor, who sources up the coastline from mid Wales. From Bangor they go to Spain where lobsters reach respectable prices.

Before returning to port John switched to fishing prawns in a similar fashion. A string of tubular prawn pots baited with ripe herring. 4 or 5 kilos were harvested and secured in the submarine stash.

Back ashore, slightly lobster pink despite my factor 30, I had much more respect for this noble crustacean. For summer occasions and anniversaries there’s nothing quite like a fresh lobster from Barmouth caught by John or Ray. So much better than frozen supermarket lobsters from Canada.

Woodpeckers in the Vale

Oak trees make perfect homes for woodpeckers. These shy and nervy birds shun publicity, hiding behind trunks, but the whimpering of young chicks gave away the location of this precision drilled nest. Turn on the volume to hear them plead for more food with mum and dad flying in parcels every 5 minutes or so.

I watched on and off for a couple of weeks until one day there was a different pitch and tone coming from inside. A while later the father flew off and the youngster stuck his head out with a plaintive call. It was as if this was the last chick in the nest refusing parental encouragement to fly. Maybe it was complaining about the rain or the cameraman sheltering beneath his umbrella. A day later the nest was empty.

Meanwhile another of the chicks slammed into our kitchen window taking a full 5 minutes to regain its composure. Flying at speed is a tricky business. 

Thanks to The National Trust for this beautiful nature reserve which is lovingly cared for by the wardens of CCW.