Explore the Monmouth & Brecon Canal
This winsome waterway creates a 56km corridor of gentle verdure along the eastern flanks of the Brecon Beacons. You can walk or cycle along the towpath through the wood-fringed farmland below the peaks or – better still – chug its length in a narrowboat. Brecon Park Boats near Llangattock hire out vessels.
Hike to Llyn y Fan Fach
This hike delivers you to one of the area’s most majestic natural sights: the mythical glacier-formed lake of Llyn y Fan Fach, presided over by a sheer-sided cirque scored with ribbed veins of rock. The spot holds a place in local folklore for its lady of the lake legend. From the car park it’s a 3.75km out-and-back walk up to Llyn y Fan Fach or a 14.8 km circuit rounding this lake and another, Llyn y Fan Fach, and returning along the vertiginous ridgetop.
Dine at The Walnut Tree
Michelin-starred The Walnut Tree is everything you could wish for in a gourmet escape. Chef Shaun Hill – who once served Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath – believes in food that is simple in presentation and yet complex in preparation: a bourride (bouillabaisse) of sea bass, monkfish and turbot, perhaps, or a quail confit with potato purée and stuffed morel. All this is in the shadow of one of Bannau Brycheiniog’s most distinctive peaks, the Skirrid. There are even three cute cottages onsite, stashed with tantalising fare to make your own breakfast.
How to get there Public transport
Park gateway town Abergavenny has the best public transport access. You can be out on the trails within an easy walk of the train station. Arrive here by train from London (two-plus hours, changing at Newport), Cardiff (45 minutes) or Manchester (under three hours). There are services hourly on all routes.
Bus X3 connects Abergavenny with Cardiff (southwest) and Hereford (northeast). Llandeilo on the park’s western edge has train services via the Heart of Wales Line to Swansea (one hour) and Shrewsbury (three hours) several times daily.
Driving
Driving from London, it’s a 3-hour run to Abergavenny via the M4, A449 and A40. From Cardiff, driving time is one hour and from Birmingham it’s under two hours.
Where to stay Peterstone Court
This dignified 18th-century country house in Llanhamlach near Brecon boasts extensive grounds spilling down over several terraces to the River Usk, a spa, outdoor pool and restaurant. The eight main house bedrooms are a capacious 35 square metres; a further four await in a converted stable block. Doubles from £220 (01874 665 387; peterstone-court.com)
Felin Fach Griffin
Lodging at this renowned restaurant-with-rooms is an enticing option. After dining on dishes featuring beef and lamb from the nearby hills, game from the park’s Welsh Venison Centre, cheese from Carmarthenshire and veg grown on the considerable on-site garden, there’s really no reason to leave. The eight rooms in the ruddy-hued 17th-century former coaching inn come with homemade biscuits and rolling rural views towards the mountains. Doubles from £182.50. (01874 620 111; eatdrinksleep.ltd.uk)
Aber Glamping
Sleep enveloped in secluded countryside life at Aberhyddnant Organic Farm in one of three geodomes, kitted out with wood-burning stoves, kitchenettes and firepit areas. Sheep trekking and farm animal petting sessions take place on the property, and there are various ways to spice up your stay, such as hiring a pizza oven hire or purchasing a BBQ hamper with homemade burgers and sausages to grill on the open flames. Geodomes sleeping up to 6 from £140. (01874 636797; aberglamping.co.uk)
On a budget
Bannau Brycheiniog has a great selection of campsites and hostels for the budget-conscious. One of the most idyllic campsites, Llanthony Court Camping, near the splendid Llanthony Priory ruins in the Black Mountains, costs only £5 per person per night, while YHA Brecon Beacons, within hiking distance of Pen y Fan, offers dorm beds for £20 and private rooms for up to four people for £75.
Meanwhile, all the walks, including up Pen y Fan, are free: it’s only parking that costs. The Big Pit is another gratis attraction and lots of the ancient historic sites like Y Garn Goch hillfort also incur no charge.
When to visit
For outdoor activities, April to September has the driest, sunniest and least boggy weather. This is Wales, though, and Bannau Brycheiniog is among the soggier parts of it with annual rainfall averaging between 1500 mm and 2600 mm depending on the area, according to the national park authority: so be prepared for rain at any time.
Major events include May’s Hay Festival, a literary-themed extravaganza in Wales’ book town Hay-on-Wye, August’s Green Man Festival (near Crickhowell) and September’s Abergavenny Food Festival. Generally, April, May and September provide conditions that can be just as pleasant for walking as those in the July-August high season, only with fewer crowds. Come mid-week even at peak times and you will find the countryside – away from tourist hotspots like Pen y Fan – quite quiet.
Source link : https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/ultimate-guide-to-the-brecon-beacons-uk/
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Publish date : 2024-06-04 03:00:00
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