It has been a long day and everything has become a bit of a blur.
I set off before 7am to tackle the hill that daunted me yesterday before then leaving the heather and gorse of the high hills behind as the ground became a more gentle picture of green pasture and sheep, dotted with the occasional small plantation. The inclines may have become less severe but I still felt them and they still took their toll on my body, burning my legs when going up and jarring my knees when going down. The fact I was currently on grassy paths helped somewhat.
I finally said farewell to the Clwydian Range, looking back at the last humps of bracken-brown hills, from a long section of path that clung to the side of a high green valley. My route was now generally following rather than fighting the contours and I was walking another soft grass path, both of which lifted my spirits after the climbing of the last couple of days.
I eventually left the high ground for the valley floor and to the tiny village of Llandegla. It was a gentle descent into the village, crossing small streams, pasture and skirting woods on branch strewn paths, evidence of the last two days of storm winds, and once there I made for the general store-cum-cafe with the aim of eating a hot meal. It was shut. Just for today. For refurbishment. They did kindly fill my water bottles, my main concern, and sold me a pie as I had cash, a pie which a little later down the route I realised I had left behind.
Llandegla is the book destination for day 2 and although I am not walking to a timetable the start and end points of the legs are so far the only places with any services at all: in between it is all empty countryside and hills. The legs in the book are therefore important points in my planning as they are the only places for food and, more importantly, water. If I am to wild camp along the route I need to be mindful of having enough water for both a day of walking, the evening’s cooking and for getting me through at least part of the following day. I have brought a water filter, intended to help me keep my water topped up as I walk, but there seem to be no suitable water sources higher in the hills that I can use.
I headed along the short Llandegla high street, out of the village and up into the plantation behind: more uphill, more hard work on my part. My legs are not yet hill-hardened and it was an effort to make even the more gentle ascents in the forest. When I looked at the map of the route while planning this trip the contours showed a rugged topography so hills came as no surprise - for me the surprise is how I am coping with them. At that time, in my mind I had interpreted that rugged landscape as dramatic and scenic but the for the last two days it has been more brutal and draining.
But just when my existence seemed solely about tackling hills - and I will admit had me doubting my ability to complete the route so heavily loaded - the afternoon brought in a welcome change. I left the plantation and entered an expanse of open, rolling moorland which for some reason brought to mind Dartmoor and the Hound of the Baskerville's. I now had more of a spring in my step as I walked a couple of miles over the empty and largely featureless landscape following a mostly flat flagstone path to keep me off the peaty ground. The moor led to a dramatic and enjoyable walk for some miles under the cliffs of the Eglwyseg mountain; sheer grey walls of rock and scree towering above the thin sliver of path that clung part way up and weaved its way around a series of re entrants.
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| Across the moor |
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| Cliff walk |
I have ended my day camped high above the river Dee in a very scenic position two miles from the outskirts of the small town of Trevor. Trevor is home to the famous Pontcysyllte aqueduct, a slender construction towering above the river and spanning the valley. It is still carrying canal traffic after well over two hundred years. I had hoped to make it to Trevor this evening but I am too weary and a cursory look for accommodation revealed nothing close to my route. When I saw this flat grassy pitch away from the quiet and isolated road that I was walking the temptation to stop proved too much. My plan now is for a quiet night in the countrywide and hopefully a breakfast in town tomorrow.
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