Statistics: 15 miles, ascent 1800′, 6 1/2 hours.
To start the day, we strolled through the attractive streets of Llangollen enjoying the fresh, early morning. The nearby steam trains blew their whistles and a bakery beckoned us in with its array of tasty treats. We picked up a sandwich for our lunch and then John, our B&B host, drove us up to the trailhead. As we left town we had a view of Castell Dinas Bran, a medieval castle built in the 13th century on the site of an Iron Age hillfort, one of many such Welsh hillforts and ultimately captured by King Edward I’s forces in the 1270’s. It was not rebuilt into a defensive position for King Edward and was left as a ruin (with a bit of an ominous aura about it). 
We continued our walk on a scree path that hugged the beautiful cliffs known as the Eglwyseg Crags.
To add a little humor to our day, we observed an interesting sign as we walked through a chicken farm which was located on the trail.
The trail lead us past conifer forests, bracken fields, old, gnarly trees…
…and then, for the highlight of the day…a lovely purple blanket of heather covering the moors.
Even toward the end of the trail, we were still climbing over many stiles each day.
Our trail this day ended in the parking lot of the non-operational Clywd Gate Restaurant. As we were waiting for our B&B host to pick us up, we noticed that a “century” bicycle ride’s route (100 miles in a single day) was following the same road. Clearly, the riders participating in the century ride were exhausted at the end of the day and were misreading the signs, taking a wrong turn near where we were standing. Wanting to help, Sarah and I began directing them on the indicated, correct course. Eventually, the event organizers realized the problem and sent someone to relieve us from our self-appointed task. Having done our good deed for the day, we were glad to see our host come to collect us. This night’s B&B was another treat, Eyarth Station B&B. The B&B had originally been a train station for the Denbigh, Ruthin and Corwen Railway, built in 1864 and abandoned in 1962. The station was beautifully converted by the Cunninghams into a very inviting, comfortable place to stay. This evening, they prepared a very tasty, well presented dinner meal as well!
2 thoughts