Tag: Ceredigion

A tour of our old cottage

The front of our cottage with hand-painted house sign

We mentioned in a blog post last week that we’ve recently moved house and business. So, what’s tempted us away from Todmorden?

Sitting room with original Victorian red & black chequerboard floor tiles

Well, it’s this lovely old cottage in Ceredigion, mid-Wales.

Dining room showing the wood-burning stove and ladder up to loft bedroom

Having spent 20 years in Yorkshire, we felt that a change of scenery would do us good.

View from library into dining room showing the wattle & daub wall and slate flagstone floor

We’d been on a few holidays here, so we knew we liked the area. And, by a whole string of chance meetings and coincidences, we had an offer accepted on this fabulous place.

The kitchen with rustic stone floor, whitewashed stone walls and original Cardiganshire hood over the stove area

It was formerly two cottages. One side was built in around 1840 – the other side is actually even older than that.

One of the bedrooms in the loft

The house is full of original features – such as stone walls, slate flags, pottery tiles, wide wooden floorboards, exposed beams, wattle & daub walls, ladders to the bedrooms, pretty windows, Cardiganshire chimney hood and inset bread oven. As you can tell from the photos, there’s not a straight line or right angle in the place. It’s wonky and slopes back & forth…. but we love it for that!

The garden room with arch windows and French doors

We’ve also got a small veg plot, young fruit tree orchard, greenhouse and pretty garden with paths and seating areas. It’s just the thing for us. We hope to be here for many years – giving the house some TLC whilst retaining all those features we mentioned earlier. We’ll be able to potter round the garden when we need a break from the paint brush…. and of course run our business. It’s the perfect place for our cottage industry!

The elevated vegetable plot at one end of our cottage The mini-orchard at the back of our cottage

And Troed Rhiw Haidd? Well, it’s the original house name – and it means ‘Foot of the Slope of Barley’.

We’ve moved!

Exterior view of Troed Rhiw Haidd

You may have noticed that we’ve been a little quiet of late – that’s because we’ve moved house and business! After twenty happy years in Yorkshire, we’ve upped sticks from Todmorden and relocated to rural Wales. It seemed like a good time in life to have a bit of a shake up.

Having spent holidays here in Ceredigion, we came to thinking that we’d love to live here permanently. It’s been quite hard work – lots of sorting, packing and logistics, but we’re settled in now. We’re very happy to be in our little old cottage. It’s surrounded by woodland, rolling hills & lush river valleys… and a 15-minute drive from the Cardiganshire coast.

Adelle & Justin outside Troed Rhiw Haidd

The house is full of character and interesting features. We’re going to give it a bit of sympathetic TLC – if you’re interested in following our renovation escapades, we’ve set up a dedicated Instagram account.

A day out to Cors Caron National Nature Reserve

Cors Caron raised bog boardwalk in early July 2019

We took a trip to Ceredigion in Wales last week – we think that’s our 4th visit in the last 12 months.

Cors Caron information board

We love the variety of walking on offer in the area – woodland, farmland, riversides and coastal scenery are all within easy reach.

Wooden signage showing different walks at Cors Caron

One rather special and rare habitat that we visited was to be found at Cors Caron National Nature Reserve. It’s a large, open expanse of ancient peat bog – with various footpaths, gravel tracks and raised ‘decking’ walkways to explore. It covers an area of approximately 2,000 acres in total. The raised bogs built up from deep layers of peat have taken around 12,000 years to form.

Cors Caron raised bog boardwalk in early July 2019

This was the first time that we’ve actually visited the site in mid-summer – and really beautiful it was too.

Raised bog

It was green and lush with huge, clear blue skies above.

Raised bog

We strolled slowly around the reserve taking in the scenery and wildlife. Bees, butterflies, dragonflies, damselflies and all manner of other insects flitted and buzzed around. An incredible 170 bird species have been recorded here and you could here various songs and calls as you walked. We particularly loved the sound of the curlew that drifted across the site. We didn’t see any otters on this visit, but apparently they do roam these waterways – along with other mammals such as water voles and polecats.

Heron in a raised bog

We stopped for a moment at the hide – what a view! From inside the dark, enclosed hide – the outside seems to stretch out in Techni-colour before you.

Hide along the Cors Caron raised bog boardwalk

The Cors Caron reserve is also home to many interesting, and sometimes rare, wild flower species such as the bog asphodel (pictured below), cotton grass and sphagnum moss.

Yellow bog asphodel growing in a raised bog

If you’re ever in the area be sure to stop and take a wander. There are walks of varying distances on offer, you’ll come across wonderful sights on all of them.

Wildflower path

It’s an uplifting, life affirming place. Hopefully we’ll return very soon!

Wildflower path

If you click on the panoramic image above, you can see it in greater detail. Additionally, if you’re planning a visit, you can download a PDF copy of the map here.

An afternoon walk around the Hafod Estate

Hafod Estate walks way marker | H is for Home

We’ve visited Wales three times in the last 6 months. In fact, we can narrow it down further – we’ve been to Ceredigion three times in the last 6 months. One of the aspects that we particularly love is the countryside. On our last visit, we spent a day walking on the Hafod Estate (pronounced ‘Havod’). The area has a fascinating history and stunning scenery. It’s fully open to the public to wander around and enjoy.

Eglwys Newydd (Hafod Church) at Hafod | H is for Home

We parked up near picturesque Eglwys Newydd (Hafod Church).

Information board for Eglwys Newydd (Hafod Church) | H is for Home

There are a number of trails to choose from of varying distances and difficulties. You can also mix different trails to get the perfect walk for you. We combined the full red trail with half the blue, which took about 3 hours or so.

Information boards in car park at Hafod | H is for Home Information boards in car park at Hafod | H is for Home

You can click on the map below to go to a large, downloadable PDF version – you don’t want to get lost!

Hafod Estate walks route map

The trails are well signposted, but still feel natural and wild. There are woods, pastures, rivers and streams criss-crossed by numerous bridges. Rocky outcrops and waterfalls are dotted throughout the landscape.

Justin standing in pine woods | H is for Home Looking down to Afon Ystwyth | H is for Home Rustic bridge crossing a stream | H is for Home

There are certainly lots of perfect spots to stop for a cup of tea or sandwich.

Adelle crossing a wooden bridge | H is for Home Justin crossing a wooden bridge | H is for Home

…unfortunately, we forgot to bring one!

Justin in a field | H is for Home Adelle beside a stream | H is for Home

The red trail, or Gentleman’s Walk (‘Rhodfa’r Bonheddwr’, in Welsh), culminates at Cavern Cascade.

Adelle in the cave looking across at Cavern Cascade | H is for Home Adelle in the cave at Cavern Cascade | H is for Home

Mere still photos don’t do the falls justice. You can hear the force of the water in our film clip below.

The Gentleman’s Walk rejoined the Lady’s near the quaint Pwll Pendre (Hawthorn Cottage).

Pwll Pendre (Hawthorn Cottage) available as a holiday let | H is for Home

If we’ve got you excited about visiting the Estate, this cottage is available as a holiday let. It’s a beautiful cottage in a spectacular location, overlooking a pretty little pond. Now, that really would be a perfect place for that cup of tea and sandwich!

Pwll Pendre white picket gate | H is for Home

We really enjoyed our day at the Hafod Estate – and can thoroughly recommend it if you’re ever in the area. We’ll certainly be visiting again!