A day out to Cors Caron National Nature Reserve

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

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

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.

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

…unfortunately, we forgot to bring one!

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

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).

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!

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!

A birthday week in Malham

We’ve just returned from Malham in the Yorkshire Dales – a little getaway to mark Adelle’s birthday!

We stayed at Tennant Cottage, a traditional stone house which we found online.

It has a wonderful location, right in the heart of the village, the bubbling beck flowing out front.

It’s only a short drive from our home in Todmorden to Malham (just over an hour); however, Malham is a magical little place, so you still feel like you’re having a holiday!

The high, upland moors of the Dales are very similar to our own Pennine moors, but at lower levels the area has a very unique appearance and feel.

The pale limestone rock plays a major part. In fact, it has the classic limestone scenery taught in geography & geology lessons in classrooms worldwide. Justin came here on school field trips in his youth – now an old man, he returned to sit on rocks where he had his packed lunch 40 years ago!

There are lots of craggy outcrops, cliffs, gorges, pavements, streams and caverns – and the famous dry stone walls and farm buildings are all constructed from this local rock.

It’s very pretty in the summer; however, the winter months can be stunning too – it has a stark beauty.

We enjoyed our many walks with Fudge, especially when the sun shone. There were lots of tempting paths that drew us through the glorious countryside.

Weather-wise, we had three nice sunny days and three ‘challenging’ ones. The scenery was still dramatic on the harsh days, but driving wind & rain isn’t great for taking it all in. You find yourselves hood ups, heads down, looking at your walking boots!

Still, it was late November, so a mixed bag has to be expected.

Back in the village, we had a choice of places to relax. Our cottage was warm & cosy so that was one option. We also had a choice of pubs and cafés on the doorstep.

And when we say on the doorstep, we really mean it. You could actually see most of them from the house – and a tempting sight they were too!

There are a couple of good pubs – The Buck Inn and the Lister Arms Hotel. We frequented The Lister Arms in particular – we loved its country style and traditional feel.

It had a great fire too, where a fair few refreshing pints were supped!

There’s also Beck Hall with it’s lovely wood panelled snug – that’s a must for your Malham shortlist. In addition to its snug and garden room, it has some outside seating areas alongside the river which will no doubt be glorious in the summer.

Everywhere seemed to be dog friendly which made life much easier for us.

Despite his advancing years, Fudge was really in his element and loved the long walks.

It’s perfect dog walking territory actually – paths, picnic spots and places to get drinks on the move.

In addition to the outdoor activity, he was equally fond of all the attention he got – not only from us, but fellow walkers, pub-goers, business owners and staff.

We could happily spend the days in and around the village, but we took a drive through the Dales midway through our stay, getting as far as Hawes in the north of the area. There are endless country lanes, villages and valleys to explore. We’ve always loved the Ribblehead Viaduct when we’ve seen it on photos – what a joy it was when it came into view on our little jaunt out.

The Yorkshire Dales National Park is a special place – Adelle will always remember this birthday in beautiful Malham.

Out & About… Bingley

Last Sunday we went Out & About in Bingley, West Yorkshire. The walk was organised by Natalie on behalf of Turtle Mat. It brought together various bloggers from the Yorkshire area.

Bingley is a town we’ve always wanted to see a bit more of; we’ve driven through it a couple of times, but have always been on our way somewhere and couldn’t stop.

Our guide for the day was Cedric – originally from France, but a firm Yorkshire fan and indeed, Bingley resident. We can say straight away that from first impressions it’s a lovely little place.

We all met up at the train station and, from our brief view of the town centre, we could see that there were lots of beautiful buildings & interesting corners to save for later visits. A river & canal run through its centre and there seems to be real history all around. By the looks of things, there’s no shortage of shops, pubs & cafés too.

Within a few short minutes of setting off, we’d found ourselves in an attractive open park, then passed some charming & well-tended allotments – then into pretty countryside and the grounds of St Ives Estate.

We stopped to take in the view on rocks overlooking the valley and Ilkley Moor beyond.

From here, we dropped back down into town to have our lunch at the Brown Cow pub. We started with a well-deserved pint from a good range on offer. Adelle chose bubble & squeak with poached egg and watercress sauce.

Justin opted for traditional fish & chips – Fudge was hungry too and was hoping for a dropped chip!

Despite not having much space left, we couldn’t resist dessert to finish. Treacle tart with raspberry coulis for Adelle…

…and waffles and ice cream for Justin.

We were each given a Turtle Mat to take home… perfect for post-walk muddy boots and dirty paws.

On the day of the walk we enjoyed beautiful warm sunshine, so no mud to speak of that day. We’ve had plenty of opportunity to test out the mat since though – well, we live in the Pennines after all!

It’s found the perfect home by the front door and it really does work wonders. Our carpets and rugs might now stand a chance of staying clean!!

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Tag: walking

A day out to Cors Caron National Nature Reserve

An afternoon walk around the Hafod Estate

A birthday week in Malham

Out & About… Bingley