It's another lazy morning in Welshpool, the very nice Couchsurfer Clare who has allowed me to make her house a temporary home while I'm here. We're sitting here at half ten drinking tea and eating chocolate eclairs. I have almost no impetus to go and walk at all...only the fact that if I stay too long she might actually raise an eyebrow and remind me that this isn't her house and could I stop using the facilities please.
This is the second version of this post as the first one didn't save - yet more reasons to sit here, drink tea and not walk, dear oh dear.
So. It's the end of another phase, I've finished the Glyndwr's Way; a 135 mile circuit through north Powys, I started in Welshpool and walked through Meifod, past Lake Vrnwy, Llangadfan, Llanbrynmair, Cemmaes Road, Machynlleth, Dylife, Llanidloes, Abbey-Cwm-Hir, Felindre and around to Knighton. It's a glorious, gorgeous walk: I recommend that you all get out and try it as soon as you can. Coming from Aberhosan over Foel Fadian and around Glaslyn - wonderful, even more so when I could almost see my old house from the highest heights.
The days walk from Llangadfan to Llanbrynmair is totally beautiful, taking in all elements of the north Powys landscape, hills, moorland, two miles through pine forest and finishing off with a hill walk overlooking Llanbrynmair from about 150 metres up.
I spent the last two years living in Machynlleth so this was home ground for me - the familiar landscapes of moorlands, farmed hills and pine forests. I was hosted almost everywhere; so much that I almost felt bad. I'd sit down to eat food that friends had cooked for me and they wouldn't let me even wash up, I could just get up from the table and pretty much go straight to bed. Mind you, when you see me in the evenings it's not suprising; just getting up from the table takes about a minute of creaks and groans. I'm usually incredibly achy and can only shuffle around in the evenings (saying "I'm fine! I'm fine!") but by morning, after a good night's sleep I am transformed again into a steely walking machine.
Today I set off from Welshpool heading north on the Offa's Dyke Path to Prestatyn then over to Conwy on the Coastal Path, up the river Conwy to the source, over a mountain to the source of the river Dee then down the river Dee to the estuary.
Then, as if that wasn't enough for you to take in, I'll walk to Basingwerk and begin a 602 mile inland circuit of Wales, following a path called the Cistercian Way.
It's going to be harder, by that I mean more camping, fewer friends a phonecall away. But that's ok, I think I've just been treated really well on the Glyndwr's Way.
I even had an extra couple of days off when I had to go back to Machynlleth to see the dentist; one of my teeth has cracked but the dentist has put in a temporary filling and we're going to wait and see if it moves any more. Hurray! That's an ironic hurray; irony being particularly difficult to express in a blog post.
Well, then, I can't drag this out any more - by the way, I am actually really enjoying the walk, despite the slightly suffering nature of these posts. It's just that sometimes it's enjoyable in an epic and intensely memorable way, rather than a relaxed, pottering kind of a way.
Wish me luck!
This is the second version of this post as the first one didn't save - yet more reasons to sit here, drink tea and not walk, dear oh dear.
So. It's the end of another phase, I've finished the Glyndwr's Way; a 135 mile circuit through north Powys, I started in Welshpool and walked through Meifod, past Lake Vrnwy, Llangadfan, Llanbrynmair, Cemmaes Road, Machynlleth, Dylife, Llanidloes, Abbey-Cwm-Hir, Felindre and around to Knighton. It's a glorious, gorgeous walk: I recommend that you all get out and try it as soon as you can. Coming from Aberhosan over Foel Fadian and around Glaslyn - wonderful, even more so when I could almost see my old house from the highest heights.
The days walk from Llangadfan to Llanbrynmair is totally beautiful, taking in all elements of the north Powys landscape, hills, moorland, two miles through pine forest and finishing off with a hill walk overlooking Llanbrynmair from about 150 metres up.
I spent the last two years living in Machynlleth so this was home ground for me - the familiar landscapes of moorlands, farmed hills and pine forests. I was hosted almost everywhere; so much that I almost felt bad. I'd sit down to eat food that friends had cooked for me and they wouldn't let me even wash up, I could just get up from the table and pretty much go straight to bed. Mind you, when you see me in the evenings it's not suprising; just getting up from the table takes about a minute of creaks and groans. I'm usually incredibly achy and can only shuffle around in the evenings (saying "I'm fine! I'm fine!") but by morning, after a good night's sleep I am transformed again into a steely walking machine.
Today I set off from Welshpool heading north on the Offa's Dyke Path to Prestatyn then over to Conwy on the Coastal Path, up the river Conwy to the source, over a mountain to the source of the river Dee then down the river Dee to the estuary.
Then, as if that wasn't enough for you to take in, I'll walk to Basingwerk and begin a 602 mile inland circuit of Wales, following a path called the Cistercian Way.
It's going to be harder, by that I mean more camping, fewer friends a phonecall away. But that's ok, I think I've just been treated really well on the Glyndwr's Way.
I even had an extra couple of days off when I had to go back to Machynlleth to see the dentist; one of my teeth has cracked but the dentist has put in a temporary filling and we're going to wait and see if it moves any more. Hurray! That's an ironic hurray; irony being particularly difficult to express in a blog post.
Well, then, I can't drag this out any more - by the way, I am actually really enjoying the walk, despite the slightly suffering nature of these posts. It's just that sometimes it's enjoyable in an epic and intensely memorable way, rather than a relaxed, pottering kind of a way.
Wish me luck!
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