#3.Nant y Ffrith. 9-1-11.

As Julie was feeling ok after yesterday's walk we decided to do another short local walk.We parked in the Bluebell Pub car park and headed through the joinery yard to reach the Afon Cedigog and followed it until just after Rhewl Farm to reach a very icy lane,this side of the mountain is north facing so doesn't get any winter sun and there was still a lot of snow and ice about.We walked up the lane and stopped to quickly find a geo-cache and then headed back through the field's to Llanfynydd.The path then meander's up a beautiful dingle with mature tree's either side of the stream to reach a lane near Hafod-abley,but there is no access so we had to cross the most muddiest field we have ever encountered,our boot's ending up caked in mud by the time we reached the lane again the other side of the farm.We then passed another farm named Cae-ap-Edward and then the Troll'House,Ty Trol.

Just beyond the troll's house we took a delightful lane that lead's into the Nant y Ffrith wood's.The path was very muddy as a lot of mountain bike's use it but we soon reached the trig point on top of Pen-Llan-y-Gwr.It was very windy and cold and i spent 5 minute's looking for a cache but didn't find it.We took the path west off the hill to reach the meandering forest track and aimed for the old garden's of the now demolished Nant Y Ffrith Hall.The hall that use to stand here was built as a hunting lodge in 1850 by Thomas Fry,a Liverpool tea merchant.Fry soon died after it's completion and the new owner turned it in to a fine country residence.In 1865 it was sold to local ironmaster James Kyrke and was enlarged by his son but gradually it deteriorated and was demolished,an absolute disgrace,i have seen old photo's of the hall and it's ground's and it was beautiful.All that remain's of it's pleasure ground's are a few exotic tree's,old stonework wall's and a circle of yew tree's.We then took the long path through the wood's along side the Afon Nant-y-Ffrith back to Ffrith.The view's down the valley from up high were good.Found another 2 cache's along this path with 2 DNF's.We passed under the massive viaduct in the village and the short walk back to the car.Another 5 mile's with 1,100 feet of ascent.

MILES     20
ASCENT  6,150
TOP'S      10