Bank Holiday Stroll

For once Bank Holiday Sunday started off with glorious sunshine and a lovely warm breeze, so we 

headed out at 9am for a stroll up to Blaen Y Cwm.  The map shows our route but as we didn't have a clear plan it's a bit convoluted to say the least!

  This path up to Penpych is a lovely start to the walk, nice and flat with a great view of the mountain.

 We carried on to the bus station in Blaen Y Cwm, where a friendly goat trotted over to say hello 😃

Then through the gate and on to the mountain. But instead of carrying straight on up the path we turned immediately to the left, then left again. 

And were almost instantly rewarded with these amazing views over the valley
across Blaen Y Cwm towards Penpych.

We carried on following the path past the few  sheds where we were greeted by a friendly horse

and another goat and a few ducks and chickens.

 The views over Penpych and looking down the valley are incredible in any weather but when the sun is shining it really is beautiful.

 The path doesn't go very far so we soon turned around and retraced our steps

And arrived back at the bus station

We then crossed the stream on the left and headed towards the Penpych woodland park, so now we were on the other side of the valley

From the car park in the Woodland Park we just followed the path up towards the waterfall

It was great to be under the trees in the shade, by now the sun was getting quite hot.

There are a few places where the path divides in two but we stuck to the right all the way up.

This bench with a view is always welcome in very hot weather, it's a bit shabby now but still a great place to stop for a rest and a drink.

And pretty soon we arrived at the lookout point, down to the left is a small waterfall which is easily accessible.

And up ahead is the bigger waterfall which is another 10 to 15 mins walk away.

But for today that was as far as we intended going so we turned and retraced our steps back down to the car park for the walk home.

It was an 8 mile walk in total, nothing strenuous and a perfect way to start the Bank Holiday.

Here's a link to the route we walked, We walked from home in Treherbert but it can easily be accessed from anywhere along the route.

https://www.endomondo.com/users/431324/workouts/1382199986

Penpych waterfall walk

Today's plan was to walk up to the top of Penpych from Blaen Y Cwm, past the waterfalls and down in to Blaenrhondda and back to my starting point.

https://www.endomondo.com/users/431324/workouts/1365200312


The mountain I'm aiming to climb, hopefully I'll soon be standing on top looking down the valley.

This is the route I walked.

Starting and ending at the car park in the Penpych Woodland Park

The walk starts off very gently with views up to the top of Penpych, just to to give you a glimpse of where you're headed.

If you carry on following the path it's an easy to follow not to steep walk up to the wooden fence where you get your first glimpse of the waterfall in the distance above you. If you take a moment to look down to your left here you'll also see a much smaller waterfall below you, although it's quite overgrown at this time of year.

From here the path gets a little bit steeper as you take the stone steps leading off to the right, and they can be wet and slippery after rain (which isn't often far away in this part of the world ) so you do need to take a bit of care. You'll soon be rewarded with the sight of the second of the waterfalls off to the left, although again this can get overgrown in the summer.

As you continue to climb you'll soon be rewarded with the magnificent sight of the Nant Lluest waterfall.

It's well worth spending some time here watching this magnificent waterfall, and leaving the path to get a closer look, but when you've finished taking in the incredible sight and turn to get back on the path you're rewarded with the view back down into the valley below and the village of Blaen Y Cwm.

The path continues upwards here but is still very easy to follow, and gives you excellent views back over the waterfall, so don't forget to turn and look back now and again  at the way you've just come 

As you approach the summit of the mountain ( don't worry, you're not quite there yet, there's still a small incline to go ) you'll come to a signpost and a fork in the path. Take the right hand path and you'll be walking along the front of Penpych with incredible views down into the valley below.

carry on for a minute or two and you'll come to another small wooden sign pointing the way to a path leading off to the right. Ignore this as it will take you down the front of the mountain, a very steep path that will bring you back to where you started. Instead carry on for a few metres and you'll come to another small fork in the path. Take the right hand path here and you'll carry on along the front of the mountain.

Although the path here is well defined and easy to follow you need to watch your footing as you're very close to the edge of the mountain with some very steep drops. But you'll soon be rewarded with this view over Blaenrhondda, Tynewydd, Treherbert, Treorci and all the way down the valley, as well as over to the Rhigos on the right.

After taking a while to admire the fabulous views, turn around and head for the right of the trees in front of you, where you'll find another signpost pointing the way.

Carry on following the path and you'll come to a dry stone wall in front of you. I always think this is a perfect picnic spot, the climbing is all done and it's downhill from here. Just the other side of the wall you'll see another signpost pointing the way down to the right.

I always love this spot, it's so peaceful and the views at this time of year are beautiful when the heather is out.

This is where the descent starts, and it's pretty steep in places. Not too bad when it's dry but after rain it can be very slippery, and it can often feel as if you're walking down hill through a stream.

As you continue downhill you come out into a clearing of pine trees which are covered in moss and lichen , it's very surreal and has the feel of being in an enchanted wood, especially if you're there in the mist. I always spend almost as long here as by the waterfall!

Carry on following the path down and you'll soon come to junction marked by a stone on your left. If you take the left hand turn here you'll come across another waterfall above the top of Blaenrhondda, but for today I took the right hand turn and carried on down into the valley.

Carry on going and you'll come to another almost identical fork in the path, again with a stone marker on the left, and again you need to take the right hand path.

You're on the lower slopes of Penpych now and the path is entirely different, with broad leaved trees and lovely dappled light. In the spring the woods here are full of violets, sorrel and bluebells

After an all-too short stroll through the woods here you'll come to another small fork in the path with the houses of Brynhenllan to the left, but again you need to keep right. The path does become rather overgrown here but is still easy to follow.

From here it's a very short stroll through the woods and you're back on the path you started from.

 

Turn to the left here, and before you know it you're back in the car park .

It's a fabulous walk with great views, easy to follow and well defined paths, but does require a moderate level of fitness and proper footwear. I hope you go, and enjoy it as much as I did.