There are many great walks in Wales from the wild majestic mountains to the rugged coast, however, many of the guidebooks do highlight the same routes. As a result, on any sunny bank holiday, every man and his dog descend on an area making it a far from a pleasurable experience to park and to walk. Just look at the recent pictures from the top of Snowdon.
Fortunately, there are many other walks which are only really known to locals. Secret walks which take you through beautiful wild nature reserves and back in time past many long-forgotten medieval towns, castles, Welsh industrial heritage and relics from World War II.
So let’s have a look at 5 of our favourite walks in South Wales, even on the busiest bank holidays these routes are all relatively quiet.
Porthcawl To Merthyr Mawr
This circular route is about 6 miles long, starting and ending in Newton Village, Porthcawl. The walk takes you across Newton Burrows and if you look carefully you can see signs of the old rifle range. The burrows become part of the Merthyr Mawr Nature Reserve which has some of the highest sand dunes in Europe.
As well as the remains of the Candleston Castle, a 14th-century fortified manor house, stone age burial mounds, pottery from the bronze age and Roman remains have also been discovered in the area.
Kenfig Nature Reserve Circular Walk
Kenfig Nature Reserve is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and is the location of Kenfig Pool, Glamorgan’s largest natural lake. The dunes are part of the huge dune system that once stretched along the coast from the Ogmore River all the way to the Gower peninsular.
The length of the walk varies on which path you choose to take but for our 6-mile route, we chose to walk via the buried castle of Kenfig. This marks the site of the medieval town of old Kenfig which was buried by the encroaching sand hundreds of years ago.
Margam Walk – Monks Murder & Mountains
This walk takes you from Margam Abbey and the Margam Stones Museum up the mountain to the mysterious ruins of the church, Capel Mair. The walk is not particularly long, only about 3 to 4 miles depending on the exact route but it is quite steep in parts.
As well as the remains of Capel Mair you pass the Monks’ Bath, a little stone building which probably started as a holy well dedicated to St Mary. In the corner of Margam Abbey graveyard look for the grave of Robert Scott, he was a gamekeeper on the Margam Estate who was murdered by a poacher in June 1898. His ghost is still meant to haunt the gothic staircase of Margam Castle.
A Walk Through Industrial South Wales – Cefn Cribwr To Parc Slip
As you walk this route with its tree-lined paths and varied wildlife it is hard to imagine the area was once covered with dirty ironworks and coal mines.
Starting at Bedford Park, Cefn Cribwr which was an ironworks dating back to the 1770s, the walk follows the old railway line down the former tracks to the old Cefn Junction Signal Box. Then it’s past the remains of Cefn Clip Colliery and then on to Parc Slip Nature Reserve.
As you walk through the nature reserve you’ll see the memorial to the Parc Slip mining disaster. Early, on August 26th 1892, a faulty Davy lamp caused an explosion in the mine which killed 112 men.
The Glamorgan Heritage Coast, Nash Point
This walk can be as long or as short as you want it to be as it follows the Glamorgan Heritage Coast along the Wales Coast Path. For our walk we start at Nash Point Lighthouse and head east towards the Vale Of Glamorgan town of Llantwit Major, the return trip is just under 6 miles.
On the way, you will pass St Donats, the former holiday home of the American newspaper tycoon William Randolph Hearst. He was the inspiration for Orson Welles in his character Citizen Kane. We also cross the haunted Tresilian Bay, the bay once had an inn which was said to be frequented by smugglers and pirates.
So these are just 5 of our favourite local walks which are not really mentioned in the guidebooks. Hopefully, when you visit Wales you’ll have the chance to leave the crowds and experience these fascinating walks for yourself.
