The final part of our Welsh Weekend with the Grumpy Chums (Rick, Gordon, myself and Stu – the order of grumpiness) last year brought us down to the Brecon Beacons and Pen y Fan. The drive from Cadair Idris was a long one due to an accident ahead of us but we got there eventually and soon had a fire on.
We stayed at the Pentwyn Farm campsite (I can thoroughly recommend it) which is 7 miles from Brecon Town and within easy reach of Pen y Fan.
Heading for South Wales
We headed off from the car park at Cwm Gwdi (old soldiers may remember this as an army camp) and headed SSE up the track on Cefn Cwm Llwch ridge.
Day 2 – Pen y Fan
We had very little in terms of wind so the walk was pleasant enough as we ascended the ridge however we were soon in the clouds with very little visibility (I like this route as it is usually quiet).
A young couple did overtake us on the way up (sprightly things) but after about half an hour they appeared out of the clouds heading down hill. We congratulated them on getting to the summit so fast but they quickly admitted that they had not gone too far ahead and had kept us in sight as we ascended. They lost us at one stage (probably when we stopped for a break) and so got a bit concerned for themselves in the thick clouds – turns out they had no map and compass. Thankfully they carried on back down the ridge.
Flossie having Fun
We soon topped out and joined the masses coming up from the Storey Arms, had a dram and got a quick piccie of Flossie Ann before heading off down to Cribben. Along the way I did ‘splash about’ a bit – Rick had a few choice words for me 🙂
The boys having Fun – well I was 🙂
Once over Cribben (finally got a view) we were off down the Old Military Road back to Cwm Gwdi car park. Everyone had achy limbs by this stage and if you know this old road then you will know how we felt 🙂
As it was our last night we had a night out in Brecon Town where we downed one or two sherberts to toast our 3 days on the hills.
Endex
I had a great weekend with the Grumpy Chums heading over Snowdon, Cadair Idris and Pen y Fan and would thoroughly recommend this gentler 3 Peaks Challenge.
The beginning of this year was the end of an era for the Adventure Training team in London Area Sea Cadets: our bosses Perry Symes and Graham Brockwell were standing down from their roles as Area Staff Officers after many years of hard work.
So to celebrate we headed off to the Brecon Beacons here in the UK for a ‘Dining Out Weekend‘.
Dining Out
It was a weekend of many parts – once we had settled into our bunkhouse at Gilfach Farm it was time for a ceremony of handing out certificates to those students who had recently passed their Basic Expedition Leadership Award.
Kev Lomas awarded Perry and Graham a cuddly neck teddy each to carry about for the weekend. Then it was off to the pub to get some dinner (a beer or two) and to plan for the next day.
Friday Fun
After a good breakfast I had a wander outside and was greeted by a cracking view of Pen Y Fan in the distance. She had a light smattering of snow however the skies were clear.
We were soon off in the cars and mini bus heading for our start point at Cwm Gwdi car park (old soldiers may remember this camp). This spot allowed us easy access up onto Pen Y Fan without all the masses you will find on the route up from Storey Arms.
Saturday Start
The majority of the group were outdoor instructors and all had worked with Perry and Graham in one way or another over the years . Today though the emphasis was on ‘doing your own thing’.
Alan and Dave Lewis went for a low level walk as Dave was carrying an injury while the rest of us set off up the Cefn Cwm Llwch track on the northern slopes of Pen Y Fan. The going was wet underfoot at first however we soon climbed above the snow line.
We snaked along the path, well spread out, enjoying the views and chatting as we went along. I decided to record my very first Live Facebook video on this part of the walk. The videos were not top quality because of the weak signal and wind noise but I enjoyed making them.
Pen Y Fan – The Approach
I spent most of my time scouting out good photography positions and ordering the lads to pose for me 🙂 Kept me happy and I think everyone liked that they could for once go at their own pace and do their own thing.
The final bit of the track up to the summit was quite icy but safe enough if you took your time. Once on the top it was like Piccadily Circus with all the folk coming up from the Storey Arms. We soon got the pictures taken and Ben found time for a few push ups before we set off.
Pen Y Fan – The Summit
It was at this point we broke up into three groups. The first set off at breakneck speed to ascend Cribyn and Fan Y Big. I bimbled along with the middle group but soon left them, ascending to the saddle below Cribyn. After a break on Cribyn I descended off the hill on its Northern slope down the Bryn Teg track where I met the third group being led off the hill by Jacques.
Descent Time
Soon the teams met up again and while Jacques sped off to pick up the minibus James produced a rugby ball from his bergen (there was not much else in it). I asked him why he had not produced it on top of Pen Y Fan and he said he forgot (would have been an excellent photo opportunity). Anyway the guys had a good half hour mucking about and doing the odd ‘Dab’ on the side of a bridge.
Waiting for a bus
The Saturday evening was spent in the Red Lion pub in Llangorse enjoying a slap up meal. We were given the upper floor to use and it was probably a good move on the staff’s part – it got pretty noisy at times.
When I arrived though we were all downstairs in the bar and some of the guys were playing pool. They had been there a couple of hours to watch England play in the Six Nations rugby championship. I was standing at the bar when one of the locals approached. ‘Be careful,’ he advised me, nodding at my kilt, ‘There’s a bunch of rowdy English fans in the bar.’ I looked over his shoulder – then back at him – and said that it was OK, those rowdy English fans were my so-called mates 🙂 His face was a picture!
Dinner Time
The evening was a great success with good food, plenty of wine, speeches, and a few war stories before retiring to the bar downstairs.
In the morning there may have been one or two fuzzy heads as we packed up and made our way to Dinas Rock located in the South of the Beacons. The plan was for some of the guys to do some Mountain Leader ropework on the rocks while the rest of us headed off to the waterfalls at Sgwd Yr Eira. In the end no one got there as we all kind of split up (after going the wrong way initially) and did our own thing.
I found a nice spot to sit in my hammock by the river while Jacques as usual dived in.
Sunday Stroll (top left picture courtesy of Ed Juanrude – top right courtesy of Dave Lewis)
It was a fantastic weekend and it was great to be part of it. I think the pictures confirm that Perry and Graham had a great time. Below, pictured in between Perry and Graham, is Ben McDonald, the latest Mountain Leader to the team who has taken over Perry’s role as Sea Cadet Area Staff Officer (ASO) for Adventure Training in the London Area. Perry aims to stay on as the Assistant ASO for a year before stepping back totally.
Mid May found me heading to the Brecon Beacons in South Wales with my good friends Gordon, Rick and Stu. We all have volunteered together with the homeless charity Crisis for nearly 20 years now and for a variety of reasons we are known as ‘The Grumpy Old Men’s Club’. We like to get away together once a year just to catch up and have a bit of fun (in our usual grumpy old way).
We camped by the Dan yr Ogof show caves in the lovely village of Glyntawe. On the Saturday morning we drove over to the car park in Taf Fechan Forest and walked up the track to the east of the Upper Neuadd resevoir onto the area known as ‘The Gap’. On the map you will see this as Bwlch ar y Fan.
Set up and away
From The Gap we headed west around Cribyn and up onto Pen y Fan. There was little wind here and lots of cloud cover making excellent walking (I do not particularly like hillwalking in sunny conditions – must be a Scottish thing). We took our time but we were soon all at the top.
We did not hang around long and via Corn Du we headed South again by way of the ridge on Craig Gwaun Taf. This route has much less traffic on it and soon we were on our own again. The windswept peat banks made for a bit of fun along the way.
Pen Y Fan
As we moved down Craig Gwaun Taf we could see clearly now the resevoir at Upper Neuadd. It looked as though someone had pulled the plug hole in it.
South via Gwaun Taf
Further down the track near Twyn Mwyalchod (grid SO021176) we came across a Trig Point painted with a Welsh dragon and two little plaques dedicated to fallen soldiers from the Afghanistan war. Quite a moving site in such a beautiful location.
Commemoration Trig Point at Twyn Mwyalchod
Our descent took us through a conifer plantation that had been felled a couple of years ago (there was significant re-growth). It was tricky going in places but we took our time and were soon by the Taf Fechan river (translates as the Little Taff).
We could not cross due to the high water level so we headed downriver to find a bridge near the road. By the road we came across an abandoned campsite that had been left in a poor condition. Everything had been bagged up but just left there. Also along the way we spotted that the billberries were coming through. Not ripe yet but definitely coming through.
Descending into Taf Fechan forest
Needless to say there was plenty of time to sit and relax or as usual to stroll around and take pictures.
Chill time
After an enjoyable evening and a night in my hammock (the other guys got the tipi) we packed up and drove over to Ystradfellte to walk the ‘Along the Waterfalls’ route.
As you can see the drive took us a little time but we were in no rush.
The road to Ystradfellte
The spring flora was well displayed along the River Mellte. Wood anemones were in abundance ( top left below),’ the ferns were just unfurling, the cuckoo flowers (bottom left) were everywhere and I was especially happy to spot an area of water avens (bottom right) along the river bank.
Brecon in Bloom
The biggest and most spectacular falls on the walk are to be found at Sgwd yr Eira (Waterfall of the Snow) and it is safe to walk underneath the overflow. When you near the falls you have to descend some steep steps and it was when we were nearing here we started to hear some shouting.
The shouting turned out to be a local Kyokushin Karate club doing waterfall training. They have been doing this since 1980 and come down every year. For a while we watched them doing training under the spray of the waterfall and then one by one, as you can see below, they jumped into the river. This type of training is common in Japan, apparently.
Finding the falls at Sgwd yr Eira
Once we had finished here it was a slow climb out of the ravine and we headed back upstream to find some of the other waterfalls.
Mooching upstream
There are quite a number of waterfalls on the river and I normally come to Sgwd y Pannwr (Fullers Falls) to sit and have lunch. It has a lovely flat area of rock to sit on and you can paddle in some of the shallow areas. Today however there were a lot of outdoor groups canyoning and I got some fantastic pictures of the guys leaping off the side of the waterfall.
Airborne at Sgwd y Pannwr
The last waterfall had a large group climbing down the side of it and when they got to the base of the falls, one by one they disappeared into it. We did not hang around to see them emerge, but as I heard nothing in the news all must have made it safely out 😉
The falls at Sgwd Clun-Gwyn
We were soon back at the car park ready for the trip home.
This was a great weekend with the Grumpy Old Men’s club and I look forward to many more.
