This was a glorious day's walking with beautiful scenery when it finally appeared, trilling birdsong and burbling Brooks. Oh, but it was tough and because of the many steep and long ascents, appeared very long, when in fact I finished it in good time. After a dodgy start, the weather held up and, apart from one small shower, the sun came out to play.
Leaving Machynllth there is a narrow bridge over the River Dovey on which there is no pavement. I was caught with cars on both sides and had to stand with the rucksack leaning over the parapet, at which point a strong gust of wind blew my hat off my head and into the river. Joanna's favourite hat was last seen heading for the Atlantic.
Leave town, cross the bridge, turn left for a few hundred yards and you are faced with a stonker of a climb to breast the range of hills you will be walking through. Running over a mile and rising to almost fourteen hundred metres, in hot sun it was a killer. At the top of the road you leave to begin a cross-country section where the climbing continues on the open hillside before entering a forest for a walk on a forest track of two or three miles. The birdsong on this section was lovely and although hemmed in by the trees and with no view to speak of, after the tough climb the easy-walking, primarily downhill, was la pleasant interlude.
Exiting the forest on to a quiet road you pass through the village of Pennal, where the path runs through an estate on which there is the Y Garth health and spa service. I stopped here for an early lunch, knowing there would be nothing else between there and Aberdovey.
Leaving the spa village there was another cross-country section before a section of road and track back on the hillside that rose steeply before settling in to a pattern of rise and fall. I was walking above a narrow, green valley and the scenery was breathtaking. Later, when the land opened in front of me the view over the river and estuary was stunning. It was late afternoon and with the sun slightly lower in the sky the light effects over the sea, the river and the huge expanse of exposed sandy was a delight. On the last road section, while I was taking a breather by the roadside, I met Paul from Plymouth and we finished off the last bit of road together. Paul was very pleasant company and after a day on my own it was nice to be taken out of myself.
The end when it came was sudden as you cannot see the village of Aberdovey until you actually step in to it. I parted company with Paul and set about to find my accommodation, delighted to find it only two minutes away. It had been a hard day and, on top of yesterday, all I wanted was to be off my feet and horizontal. Within two minutes of booking in, job done!
Leaving Machynllth there is a narrow bridge over the River Dovey on which there is no pavement. I was caught with cars on both sides and had to stand with the rucksack leaning over the parapet, at which point a strong gust of wind blew my hat off my head and into the river. Joanna's favourite hat was last seen heading for the Atlantic.
Leave town, cross the bridge, turn left for a few hundred yards and you are faced with a stonker of a climb to breast the range of hills you will be walking through. Running over a mile and rising to almost fourteen hundred metres, in hot sun it was a killer. At the top of the road you leave to begin a cross-country section where the climbing continues on the open hillside before entering a forest for a walk on a forest track of two or three miles. The birdsong on this section was lovely and although hemmed in by the trees and with no view to speak of, after the tough climb the easy-walking, primarily downhill, was la pleasant interlude.
Exiting the forest on to a quiet road you pass through the village of Pennal, where the path runs through an estate on which there is the Y Garth health and spa service. I stopped here for an early lunch, knowing there would be nothing else between there and Aberdovey.
Leaving the spa village there was another cross-country section before a section of road and track back on the hillside that rose steeply before settling in to a pattern of rise and fall. I was walking above a narrow, green valley and the scenery was breathtaking. Later, when the land opened in front of me the view over the river and estuary was stunning. It was late afternoon and with the sun slightly lower in the sky the light effects over the sea, the river and the huge expanse of exposed sandy was a delight. On the last road section, while I was taking a breather by the roadside, I met Paul from Plymouth and we finished off the last bit of road together. Paul was very pleasant company and after a day on my own it was nice to be taken out of myself.
The end when it came was sudden as you cannot see the village of Aberdovey until you actually step in to it. I parted company with Paul and set about to find my accommodation, delighted to find it only two minutes away. It had been a hard day and, on top of yesterday, all I wanted was to be off my feet and horizontal. Within two minutes of booking in, job done!