talking point - Rhondda Cynon Taf

...TOURING COUNTRY...
DISCOVER RHONDDA CYNON TAF...

WELCOME! • CROESO!
The Rhondda, the Cynon, the Taf, three rivers which have cut deep into the coalfield plateau to create
the distinctive landscape in which the teeming towns and villages of the valleys, strung together by
necklaces of terraced houses, are framed in the magnificent décor of the mountains which tower above
them, aloof and eternal sentinels to the parade of history below.
Silurian warlords, Roman legions, Arthur’s warriors, Welsh chieftains and Llantrisant bowmen; later,
awesome preachers ministering to the thousands of settlers who came from every part of the British
Isles and Europe to forge iron or win the coal from the rich seams which powered the world.
Now, in our own time, the great furnaces are cold and the mines and their spoil heaps are largely gone,
but the people are still here, still living in the old terraces, hewn from the Pennant Stone of the mighty
hills above. Nowhere else in the world will you find such a diverse country, or such pride and passion,
or such a warm welcome - we invite you to discover Rhondda Cynon Taf.
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www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk/visiting Tel. 01443 424085

STARTING YOUR TOUR
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We have devised five tours which will help you to
discover Rhondda Cynon Taf. All the tours start
from or are based in Pontypridd , 12 miles north
of Cardiff and 8 miles north of Junction 32 where
the M4 and the A470 expressway meet. From the
north the A465 Heads of the Valleys Road meets
the A470 at Merthyr Tydfil.
TAFF GORGE & PONTYPRIDD
HERITAGE AND HILLSIDE
WILDERNESS AND WATERFALLS
VALLEY AND VALE
CYNON COAL AND IRON

Tour 1
TAFF GORGE & PONTYPRIDD
Discover the Taff Gorge and Pontypridd, gateway to the Valleys
talking point
...the Welsh National anthem, Hen Wlad fy
Nhadau was composed in Pontypridd in 1856
by Evan James and his son James James
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www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk/visiting Tel. 01443 424085
Discover the Taff Gorge and Castell
Coch, the Marquis of Bute’s ‘fairytale
castle’ and Pontypridd, nestling at
the foot of steep, wooded slopes
where the River Rhondda joins the
River Taff, a bustling, traditional
market town, a place of curiosities
and characters, a town which needs
to be discovered on foot.

The A470 dual carriageway northwards from Cardiff, Wales’
bustling capital city, and home of the Millennium Stadium,
pierces the M4 at Junction 32 and enters Rhondda Cynon
Taf through the Taff Gorge where Castell Coch stands guard,
a Wagnerian folly well suited to its dramatic setting.
Pontypridd, our touring base, can be reached in a matter of
minutes, but it is well worth transferring to the old road up
the Taff Valley, the A4054. Taff’s Well was originally
developed as a small spa town, the spring has been noted
for its healing powers since the middle ages if not Roman
times. More recently Mynydd y Garth, the mountain above
the town was the setting for the Hugh Grant film “The
Englishman who went up a Hill and Came Down a
Mountain”.
Castell Coch
This late nineteenth-century 'fairytale'-style castle is
built on medieval remains and was designed for the
third Marquis of Bute by William Burges. It is
lavishly decorated and furnished in the Victorian
Gothic style; a Romantic vision of the Middle Ages
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Two miles further north we come to Nantgarw, once famous for its
China works, now commemorated in a museum. The brainchild of
William Billingsley who wanted to produce quality, soft-paste
China, the Works was established in 1813, but unfortunately the
manufacturing process was not perfected, and the high
proportion of reject pieces made his venture too costly to sustain.
Nantgarw China was produced for only a short period in the early
19th century, but the pretty flower patterns of Nantgarw Ware are
highly prized by collectors.
The A470 is easily re-joined from here although a short
detour along the A468 will take us to Caerphilly Castle, one
of the great medieval castles of western Europe and a
revolutionary masterpiece of military planning.
Pontypridd is then just a few miles further on, and
although the valley floor is heavily industrialised all the
way, the mountain slopes above are dotted with dairy
and sheep farms. A narrow road up to the right at
Dynea gives access to the slopes of Mynydd Eglwysilan
and Cwrt-y-felin Farm where Taff Valley Quad Bike
and Activity Centre offers a wealth of outdoor
sporting activities to visitors, including archery, claypigeon
shooting and buggy trails.
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During the19th century, Pontypridd was a
boom town, a centre of heavy industry and coal mining, and
built an enviable reputation for culture and sport which today is as strong as
ever. Pontypridd Rugby Club and the boot of record points scorer Neil Jenkins are
famous the world over, and there are excellent indoor and outdoor facilities at
the Hawthorn Leisure Centre. Opera stars Stuart Burrows and Sir Geraint Evans
and pop star Tom Jones were all born in the surrounding villages, whilst the
Welsh National anthem Hen Wlad fy Nhadau (Land of my Fathers) was composed
here in 1856 by Evan James and his son James James – there is a fine memorial
to them by sculptor Goscombe John in Ynysangaharad Park. The park is only a
stones throw away from the busy shopping centre and is a place of gardens,
putting greens and a childrens outdoor pool. Green spaces provide fine views of
the surrounding mountains and is the location for many major events, including
international cricket and pop concerts.

Pottery of a different sort is made at the World of Groggs in Trefforest, just south
of the town centre on the A4054. Here, some 40 years ago, craftsmen John Hughes
and Richard Hughes began creating caricature figurines called Groggs and now
have a studio and business of international repute. Groggs have been made of pop
stars, politicians, miners and sheep, but the most famous ones are undoubtedly
those which celebrate Rugby players from Wales and around the world: Gareth
Edwards, Barry John, Neil Jenkins, Gavin Hastings, Laurence Dallaglio, Philippe
Sella, Keith Wood and many, many more!
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The performing arts in the town are well served by the Muni Arts
Centre where events as diverse as a tribute to Abba and a Jack and
the Beanstalk pantomime have taken place. Concerts also take
place in the many churches and chapels as well as at the
University. And like all market towns, Pontypridd really comes alive
on market days. Every Wednesday and Saturday the biggest openair
market in Wales fills the streets with bustle and bargains galore!
Meanwhile, in the indoor market, tables groan with fresh produce;
cabbages and cauliflowers are stacked high, and apples – real
apples; all the old varieties. There are local cheeses, butter fresh
from the churn, and bara lawr, a Welsh speciality formed from
healthy edible seaweed.
The story of Pontypridd is told at the Cultural and
Historical Centre which stands on the banks of the Taff,
next to the town’s famous Old Bridge. Pierced by six
elegantly engineered holes to direct the thrust of the
high, single-span stone arch, the bridge was built by
William Edwards in 1756, when it was the longest stone
span in Europe and so famous that Josiah Wedgwood
used it as a design for a dinner service commissioned by
Empress Catherine the Great of Russia.
Above Pontypridd Town Centre is the Common, a high plateau, strewn with boulders left by retreating glaciers
thousands of years ago. ‘The Common’, with its famous Rocking Stone and Gorsedd Circle has often been used for
rallies and public meetings: here the firebrand MP and miners leader William Abraham addressed his people in
the early 1900s, quelling hecklers by singing hymns!
To reach the Common, take the exit from the Llanover Arms roundabout signposted for the A4054 to Cilfynydd and
then straight ahead at the first crossroads. Beyond the Common, the road descends past the Round Houses, two
towers built by Dr William Price (1800-1893). Dr Price’s eccentricities are described in Tour 4, but it is a fitting
tribute to the man who secured the recognition of cremation that the first crematorium in Wales is just below the
Round Houses at Glyntaff: it was opened in 1924.
Above the Common, Pontypridd Golf Club enjoys a spectacular mountain setting fringed by woodland with longdistance
views west over Pontypridd town into the valleys of the Rhondda and Cwmnantclydach. The Club
welcomes visitors by arrangement to its 18-hole par 69 course.
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Tour 2
HERITAGE & HILLSIDE
Discover Cwm Rhondda and the Glamorgan Highlands
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www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk/visiting Tel. 01443 424085
The Rhondda – one of the most famous names in
Wales, home of world-renowned male voice choirs and
brass bands, cradle of a proud coal-mining heritage
and crucible of radical Non-Conformity, and also a
place of natural beauty on a heroic scale, forest and
crag towering over the terraced houses of the pit
villages below.
talking point
“Rhondda” was originally the name of two
rivers, the Fawr and Fach which flow in parallel
courses until they unite at Porth. When coal
mines were sunk and towns grew up around
the pits, the name was applied to the urban
area as well as the rivers and their valleys.

From Pontypridd - follow the signs for A4058 Rhondda Valleys. Precipitous
hillsides immediately close in as rail, road and river compete for space in the gorge.
Then as the valley widens out, we pass Capel Rhondda where in 1904 composer
John Hughes wrote the tune “Cwm Rhondda” for a cymanfa ganu or hymn-singing
festival. Cwm Rhondda is one of the most famous hymns in the world, sung in
Wales with equal fervour at both religious services and rugby internationals.
Beyond the Chapel, the road straightens out. On the left is the delightful Little
Friends Pet Farm and Barry Sidings Countryside Park, a community walk through
the valley bottom woodlands, from Maesycoed to Trehafod, with a visitors centre in
the middle. The park is also the start of
many walks into the adjoining
countryside, providing excellent
views of the Rhondda Valleys and
surrounding areas, finally, the
chimney and winding gear of the
Rhondda Heritage Park appear
in front.
Situated next to the imaginatively designed buildings of the Heritage Park Hotel, the Heritage
Park itself has an attractive art gallery and cafeteria above a re-creation of a 19th century
street, but its fame rests on the portrayal of how coal was won at the Face, and how the
communities above survived all adversity.
A film narrated by Neil Kinnock sets the scene and then, accompanied by ex-miners who act
as guides, we don protective helmets to descend into the tunnels beneath the pit-head and
experience conditions underground. The tour ends with a nail-biting ride back to the open
air where the last dram of coal to be raised at Maerdy, the last pit in the Rhondda, is
preserved - a haunting reminder of a past now dead.
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Porth
And so to Porth, gateway to the two Rhondda
Valleys, dominated by the Thomas and Evans
Welsh Hills Works - this former home of Corona
pop has been turned into state-of-the-art recording
studios, hosting televised shows and concerts and
acting as the nerve centre for one of the world’s
top teams of recording engineers - who still trade
under the name of the “Pop Factory”!
Rhondda Heritage Park

Our route now enters the Rhondda Fawr, via the B4278 to Tonypandy. Here again there is a bustling
town centre, nowadays part pedestrianised: the town is famous for the riots of 1910 when the Army
was sent in by Home Secretary Winston Churchill to quell striking miners. The pits are now long
gone, but in the main street they have an evocative memorial by Howard Bowcott in the form of a
tapering column precisely 4.6 metres high: each millimetre represents 1,000,000 years in the
evolution of the Earth and a two-foot-nine inch band of slate represents the height of the coal
seam beneath the town.
Just to the north, at the side of the A4119 stands the inspirational statue of a Miner and His
Family by Robert Thomas, who was born in Cwmparc a few miles further up the valley. The
figures evoke grit and determination, but also hope and belief that things can, and someday
will be better - a moving homage to the men who won the coal which fired the boilers of
trains and ships throughout the world, men who worked in cramped and dangerous
conditions, and whose wives waged a constant struggle to bring families up in a world
of dirt and pain.
On the slope of the wooded mountain opposite, lie some of the
original miners’ cottages, the so-called Scotch Terraces,
named after the Scotch Colliery which was
developed by coal-owner Archibald
Hood, whose own statue
occupies a site high
above the road.
Although our route now follows the signs to Ystrad to rejoin the A4058, a detour of only a hundred yards along
the B4223 will allow a visit to the Glyncornel Environmental Centre, a Site of Special Scientific Interest where
visitors have free access to the ancient oak woodland and lake. Walks in these grounds are easy and pleasant, but there are longer and
more challenging walks organised all year round, offering locals and visitors alike the chance to discover the rare plant and bird life of
the magnificent uplands.
Back on the A4058, however, our journey takes us ever deeper into the Rhondda, one village leading to the next without break, all hemmed
in by great, green mountains. Notice St Peter’s Church in Pentre and the fine houses beyond with their ornamental fretwork iron balconies and
canopies, and then we arrive in Treorci (also spelt Treorchy), a small town built of local Pennant stone.
If the Rhondda is known for choirs in general, then surely Treorci Male Voice Choir is known the world over, although in fact this is only one of
four globe-trotting Rhondda choirs whose concerts have resounded from Moscow to New York and Sydney. A left turn will take us to the Parc
and Dare Theatre, built from the contributions of the miners of the nearby Park and Dare pits and still the centre of the cultural life of the
Rhondda, though our route lies straight on towards Treherbert.
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Tonypandy

Blaencwm
The valley is now flat and straight: on the left,
the “hanging valley” of Cwmsaerbren, its
mouth left high and dry when a moving ice
sheet gouged out the main Rhondda Valley at
the end of the last ice-age; up ahead, the
sheer walls of Pen-pych, known also as the
Sentinel, guarding the head of the valley
above the villages of Blaenrhondda and
Blaencwm, reached by taking the left fork at
the end of Treherbert’s wide main street.
Craig-y-llyn
Just before the bridge into Blaencwm a track on the right leads to a
Forestry Enterprise carpark and picnic area at the start of the Waterfall
Walk. This is a gravel track which winds gently up Cwm Lluest to a series of
cascades issuing from the summit ridge. A demanding walk suitable for more
experienced walkers climbs up to the highest of the waterfalls, and continues to the top of
Pen-pych, but even from the gravel track there are spectacular views of dramatic steep sided cliffs and
sheer mountain shoulders.
From Treherbert the A4061 climbs steadily out of the Rhondda Fawr, offering fine views at every turn. Known as the Rhigos
Mountain Road this is one of the higher A-roads in Britain, topping out at 1618 feet above sea-level. There are carparks and picnic areas,
views out over the Brecon Beacons, and waymarked trails leading off into the forestry plantations. As well as access to the Coed Morgannwg Way west
to Port Talbot, to Route 47, and to the Highland Route back to Pontypridd, to the left is the 1969-foot Craig-y-llyn, highest point in Rhondda Cynon Taf,
which drops sheer into the waters of Llyn Fawr: when the lake was drained in 1909 to create a reservoir, two Celtic cauldrons and a horde of some of
the oldest iron implements ever found in Britain were discovered. These are now displayed in the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff.
As we descend onto the saddle of high land between the Cynon and Neath valleys we pass Tower Colliery, the only working pit in South Wales, and then
turn right to head for Aberdare. In the town centre, follow A4233 for Maerdy, ascending the ridge by a series of hairpin bends from which the views out
to the north are staggering, the Carmarthen and Brecon Beacons and all the mountains in-between lined up on the northern horizon for inspection.
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The road crosses a desolate moorland before making a gentle descent to Maerdy, at
1100 feet above sea-level one of the highest villages in Wales. Before the descent the
Route 47 cycle and walking trackway crosses the A4233 – carparks on both sides of
the road are excellent bases for mountain expeditions of varying length and
difficulty. The top of the Rhondda Fach is a tranquil, shallow basin filled by the
Lluest Wen reservoir: there is an ancient packhorse bridge just below the dam.
The upper Rhondda Fach is less built-up than the Fawr and the largest
settlement in the valley, Ferndale, is a comparatively isolated
community. Originally known by its Welsh name
Glynrhedynog, it is a friendly place with a busy High Street
and some particularly fine Victorian houses, though
Ferndale’s greatest assets are its three extensive parks, of
which Darran Park is a secret too long kept.
The Park is also the starting point for a
number of steep, though relatively short paths up
to the summit of Mynydd Ty’n-tyle with fine views
of the Brecon Beacons and Exmoor.
Meanwhile, a second park at the bottom of
the valley has memorials to Ferndale’s most
famous son, the actor Sir Stanley Baker, and
to the 231 victims of two pit disasters
which, in 1867 and 1869 ripped the heart
out of this tight-knit community: both
memorials can be reached from the road
to Blaenllechau, which is also the starting point for walks along
the river bank, up through the forests on the north side of the
valley to the site of a Roman marching camp, established in the
second century AD, and to Route 47 and the wilderness area
around Llanwynno described in Route 3.
Our touring route now heads down the valley to Tylorstown,
a mining village formerly home to world boxing champion
Jimmy Wilde, and birthplace of rugby legend John Bevan.
At the Tylorstown roundabout, we take the B4512 to Penrhys to gain the summit of Cefn
Rhondda, the ridge separating the Fach and Fawr where a carpark opens off the hilltop
roundabout. The Statue of Our Lady of Penrhys, cast down during the Reformation in 1538
and re-erected in 1953, marks an important site of medieval pilgrimage; on the hill below
stands the “Little Church” housing St Mary’s Well, a chalybeate spring once thought to offer
miraculous cures for arthritis and other ailments.
Penrhys
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It lies above the town in the mountain’s embrace, overshadowed by
the cliffs known as Craig Rhondda Fach. At every turn there are
spectacular views up through the ancient woodland, home to owls
and falcons, or out across the valley to the farms on the sunny,
south-facing slopes of Blaenllechau. And at the back of the Park,
underneath the crags, lies the mysterious, deep Llyn-y-forwyn, the
Maiden’s Lake. The “Maiden” was an enchantress called Nelferch who
left her home at the bottom of the lake to marry a young farmer,
only to disappear back into the deeps after a quarrel: a statue of
Nelferch, bare-breasted and brooding, stands mute amidst the trees
by the shore, in a place where the sun sets early behind the
mountain above, and the gloom of a long
twilight makes her spirit world palpable
and sinister.
The
road below
the Statue leads to
the Rhondda Golf Club,
a breezy, mountain-top
course of 18 holes over 6200 yards –
the Club welcomes visitors, and many of the
greens have breathtaking views down into the valleys and
out over mile after mile of mountain ridges.
Return to the Tylorstown roundabout and turn right down the valley
until you reach the turning up to the left signposted “Wattstown”. Here,
you can visit Tir Gwaidd Farm, the home of quad biking and outdoor
fitness training for all levels of ability and stamina.
And so by following the A4233 to Porth and rejoining the A4058 for
Pontypridd, our tour comes full circle.

Tour 3
WILDERNESS & WATERFALLS
Discover an Unknown Land of Precipice and Torrent
Valleys filled with winding streets of terraced
houses and chapels – the South Wales cliché,
but that picture in its frame of pre-conception
stands in a vast gallery filled with images of a
much wilder and lonelier landscape. Our third
tour therefore explores the remote tangle of
uplands between the Rhondda and
Cynon Valleys, and goes on to the waterfall
country and windswept
uplands of the Brecon Beacons National
Park, a place of big skies and broad heights
which fills the northern quarter of
Rhondda Cynon Taf.
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www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk/visiting Tel. 01443 424085
talking point
The remote area at the heart of Rhondda Cynon Taf is
the parish of Llanwynno, founded by Gwynno, a holy
man from Brittany who had joined a company of
monks who had fled to Brittany from Wales to avoid a
terrible outbreak of plague in AD547.

Taff Trail
Stretching from Cardiff, the capital city to the
Brecon Beacons National Park, the Taff Trail is
a network of linking paths, alternative routes
and circular walks. The 55 mile long Trail passes
through the heart of the County Borough, taking
you through some of the South Wales Valleys most
scenic and historic countryside.
From Pontypridd - we take the B4273 to Ynysybwl, where we are
greeted firstly by the terraces of the mining village and then, half-amile
further on, Old Ynysybwl, where the road bridges the edge of a
wooded gorge and a narrow lane leads down to the Old Ynysybwl Inn
which has nestled, stone-flagged and low-ceilinged in a glade next to the
river since before 1650.
Back on the main road, a wilder country closes in, and we take a lefthand
fork for Llanwynno and Ferndale. This challenging stretch of road passes
through St Gwynno Forest, but the drive is well worth the effort as the
valley is filled by woods of fir and beech, a quilt of green and gold in
Autumn, often mantled in snow during the Winter.
As the road emerges from the trees, there is a Forestry Enterprise picnic
area on the left which is a good starting point for several walks and
mountain bike trails. A track heads off into an uninhabited wilderness
giving a good idea of the landscape of pre-industrial South Wales. In
a clearing stands the lonely farmstead called Darwynno (also
Daerwynno) which is now run as an outdoor education centre by
a group of volunteers: activities include environmental
awareness, kayaking, orienteering, mountain biking,
walking, and climbing on a purpose-built concrete
rockface.
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Pistyll Goleu
Further on, the track comes to
the middle of the valley and by
following the Nant Clydach
stream downwards into the
gorge we can hike to our first
waterfall, Pistyll Goleu, hidden
in a dank, north-facing gully.

Back on the road, we soon reach the Brynffynon Inn and St
Gwynno’s Church, which are all that is left of the hamlet of
Llanwynno. The Brynffynon, relaxed and timeless with a
reputation for excellent food, dreams the years away in its
mossy glade, leather sofas round roaring fires in the lounge
in winter. The Church is thirteenth century, much rebuilt in
the late nineteenth, but standing on a site selected by St
Gwynno who settled here c. AD549. Inside the church there is
a 1,300-year-old stone cross, but most visitors come to see
the churchyard and the grave of Griffith Morgan (1700-1737),
known as Guto Nyth Brân after his farm near Porth. Guto was
a legendary runner who once covered the 13 miles from
Bedwas to Newport in 53 minutes to win a 1000 guinea
purse, but dropped dead when slapped on the back in
congratulation by his girlfriend Siân! Races in Guto’s
honour are still run round the streets of nearby
Mountain Ash by the light of flaring torches on
New Year’s Eve.
St Gwynno’s Church
From Llanwynno, the road wins
the open summit of Cefn Gwyngul by a
steep pull and then the world drops away in front
to reveal a vast panorama of mountain ridges marching
ever westwards, whilst to the left is Tylorstown Tip, a truncated cone
of colliery spoil which is a permanent feature in many landscapes from the
Brecon Beacons to Exmoor, like a prop which remains doggedly on stage during
different productions. There is a path to the summit with probably the best 360 degree
view in South Wales.
The stretch of the A4233 between Ferndale and Aberdare with its views of Carmarthen and
Brecon Beacons and its zig-zag descent into the Cynon Valley is described in Route 2 “Heritage
and Hillside” and Aberdare is covered in Route 4. Our present route takes us through Aberdare
Town Centre following the A4059 signs for Neath and Hirwaun for some three miles and then
choosing the A4059 for Brecon at the roundabout where the A465 heads off towards Neath.
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The A4059 leads us into our second wilderness area, and to the
true waterfall country of South Wales. The only village along the
road is Penderyn, a settlement which has grown with the
extensive limestone quarries in the area, and which is the home
of Welsh whisky or chwisgi. With a visitor centre due to open to
the public in 2006, Penderyn’s Welsh Whisky Company has
revived the ancient art of distilling in Wales after a gap of over
100 years by producing two high quality single malts, Penderyn
and Aur Cymru (“Welsh Gold”).
At the northern end of Penderyn is a crossroads in front of the
Lamb Hotel: the road to the left is a narrow lane leading up to
the ancient Llew Goch (“Red Lion”) Inn which stands just across
the road from St Cadog’s, another thirteenth century church
with several interesting monuments in the cemetery. The
vicinity of the Lamb Hotel is also a good place to park to access
the footpath to Sgwd-yr-eira, literally Snow Falls, where the
River Hepste thunders over a fifty foot cliff into a deep gorge.
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The path to the Falls leads over a sloping plateau with views of the wide, wild slopes of the Brecon
Beacons before entering a more rugged and remote land: here there is no sign of road or habitation,
only rock-strewn ridges clothed in pine, oak and beech. Great care should be taken on the precipitous
descent into the gorge as the steps are always wet and slippery from the waterfall’s spray – but finally
the path reaches the bottom, crossing the river by following a rock ledge actually behind the Sgwd-yreira
waterfall so that you can look out down the gorge from behind the veil of falling water, a truly
amazing experience! The further bank of the Hepste is in Powys and the path soon climbs steeply to a
circular walk along cliff edges to the many other waterfalls in the canyons of the Hepste and Mellte
rivers. However, returning to the Rhondda Cynon Taf side of Sgwd-yr-eira and climbing back up to the
lip of the eastern precipice, a footpath leads south-west above the gorge to Craig-y-ddinas, a great slab
of rock beneath which ancient warriors are said to sleep in fairy caves filled with treasure until the
time shall come when they are called to save their country: in some legends they are the
warriors of Arthur, in others they are led by Owain Lawgoch, the Welsh
nobleman who as Yvain de Galles is the hero of many a medieval
French romance as he fought against the English in the
Hundred Years War.
Back at Penderyn, our tour can be
completed either by following the A4059
out across a wide, barren wilderness with
the view dominated to the north-east by
Pen-y-fan, at 2906 feet the summit of the
Brecon Beacons and the highest point in
Southern Britain outside Snowdonia. Turn
right when you meet the A470 and look
out for the narrow lane to Garwnant
Forestry Centre about a mile beyond the
Nant Ddu Lodge Hotel.
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From Garwnant, return to the A470 and a
straight, fast road will bring you back to
our starting point in Pontypridd in about
half an hour.

Tour 4
VALLEYS & VALE
The Green Vale and the Ancient Home of the Longbowmen
talking point
Llantrisant was the home of the longbowmen
who served under Edward Prince of Wales. Their
skill annihilated a French army at Crecy in 1346
and so won the opening stage of the Hundred
Years War. The French King’s ally, blind King Jan
of Bohemia, was killed leading a desperate,
final charge, and in homage to his valour the
Prince of Wales adopted his three-feather
badge, later adding the motto “Ich dien”,
(Welsh “Eich dyn”) which means “Your Man”.
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www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk/visiting Tel. 01443 424085
South-west of Pontypridd lies the Vale of
Glamorgan, a broad swathe of rolling dairy country. Here the
climate is mild and soft, the grass a vivid green and the soil rich and deep,
and there are plenty of opportunities for horse riding, fishing and walking in a less
challenging environment than that offered by the airy routes across the mountain
ridges to the north. Standing sentinel over the Vale, the ancient town of Llantrisant
dreams away epochs and centuries on a high bluff, its main square presided over by the
statue of eccentric scholar Dr William Price. And on hot summer days the beaches of
the Glamorgan Heritage Coast are just a short drive away to the south.

From Pontypridd - take the A473 to Trefforest
which was originally famous for its tinplate
works and is now the home of the University of
Glamorgan. The road now rises to Tonteg,
where we turn right at the traffic lights to head
across to Upper Church Village where the
Church of St Illtyd, although dating from the
16th century, is on the site of a much older
foundation. A holy man who came to Wales
from Brittany in the sixth century AD, Illtud also
gave his name to the village of Llantwit Fardre
(Welsh Llanilltud Faerdref).
24
Church Village
Turn left at the church and then right
onto the A473 which now runs along the
northern edge of the Vale of Glamorgan
towards Llantrisant. In recent years this
area has become a dormitory for Cardiff,
but narrow lanes off to the left lead
deeper into the Vale where a mild and
sunny climate makes for excellent
farming country: prize-winning “Cariad”
wines are produced at Llanerch at
Junction 34 of the M4, and just north of
the same junction lies the Miskin Manor
Country House Hotel.

Where the A473 meets the A4119, a right turn will take us towards the ancient town of Llantrisant.
A detour straight on, following the A473 for Bridgend and then the A4222 for Cowbridge will take
us through Pontyclun where the Talygarn Equestrian Centre have riding for all abilities. However,
back on the A4119 going north, the hills rise abruptly on either side of the Ely Valley plain, with
Llantrisant topping a high bluff. On the left we pass New Parc out-of-town shopping development,
with supermarkets, factory outlets, designer stores and ample carparking.
Llantrisant
At the traffic lights at the entrance to the valley we turn right up the
hill past the Leisure Centre and then sharp left to zig-zag up the cliff
until another left turn leads to Llantrisant’s main square, known as
the Bullring, and to a carpark.
Today, Llantrisant is a sleepy town, but its heart still beats to the
martial drum of history, for in 1346 the town’s bowmen, serving
under Edward Prince of Wales, rendered invaluable service to the
English King in his wars against the French. At the battle of Crecy, it
was the superior range of the Welsh longbow which allowed the
archers to destroy the French army without ever coming within reach
of enemy fire: a grateful King Edward III then gave a charter to the
men of Llantrisant and their descendants giving them the right to
graze cattle on Llantrisant Common free of all taxes in perpetuity, a
right which still exists today under the watchful eye of the Town Trust.
But for Llantrisant, 1346 is but a landmark in a much longer history,
the town being one of the oldest in Wales. At the top of the Bullring
stands the Model House, originally the Workhouse where inmates
were expected to lead a “model life” but now housing a centre for the
production, exhibition and sale of crafts of all kinds, which can also
be seen nearby at the Hill Top Studio and at the Butchers Arms
Gallery. Also fronting onto the Bullring are several delightful shops
and tea rooms, including a traditional General Store, a restorer of
dolls and teddy bears and the Bakehouse Pottery Studio.
25

Just below the main entrance to the Model House is a
statue to Dr William Price, the eccentric surgeon and scholar,
who, when over eighty years old, fathered a son whom he
named Iesu Grist (“Jesus Christ”). When his son died, he
successfully tested the legality of human cremation by the
simple method of selling tickets to the infant’s cremation
ceremony and winning the subsequent court case.
Stroll up the hill beyond and the streets are lined with charming 18th and
early 19th century cottages. The church is thirteenth century and dedicated
to Saints Gwynno, Illtyd and Tyfodwg who are commemorated in the town’s
name, which means “Church of Three Saints”. Also in the thirteenth
century, Richard de Clare, Lord of Glamorgan, built Llantrisant Castle: all
that remains today is a broken tower and a section of wall, but the Castle
Green is a pleasant place to rest, and is also the site of the Guildhall of
1777, now the headquarters of the Town Trust.
26

Royal Mint
From every street corner there are wide views out over the Vale of Glamorgan or north to
the higher hills of the Rhondda, and we now have a choice of routes into those distant
Highlands. A left turn at the bottom of the Bullring will take us to Beddau: the route back
to Pontypridd lies straight on at the roundabout in the centre of the village but a
detour to the left soon leaves houses and people behind and enters a
heavily wooded valley with access to Tri-Nant trout Farm. Set in 45
acres of countryside, the farm has four purposebuilt
lakes, stocked daily with trout and
triploids, as well as a B&B and
restaurant serving home
cooked fayre.
Returning to the roundabout at the centre of Beddau,
turn left to complete our route via the hilltop village of
Penycoedcae and a long, dramatic descent into the
centre of Pontypridd. At the top of this hill, a sideturning
called Maindy Road leads to the Fforest Uchaf
Horse and Pony Rehabilitation Centre about a quarter of
a mile on the left. The Centre caters for many animals in
distress and is open to visitors on weekdays from the
beginning of May to the end of September.
A longer route into the Valleys from Llantrisant involves
returning to the A4119 and following the road north up
the Ely Valley. A mile above Llantrisant the road passes
the Royal Mint where coins and medals for the United
Kingdom and many other countries are made, and then
continues to Tonyrefail and Porth via the A4233 and
another hilltop village, Trebanog, before a very steep
descent into Porth through a harsh, rock-strewn valley –
a complete contrast to the lush meadows of the Ely
Valley. From here it is a short drive back to Pontypridd,
with time perhaps to visit the Rhondda Heritage Park
which is described in Route 1.
27

Tour 5
QUEEN OF THE VALLEYS
Discover where the Coal, Iron and …Film Industries Began
talking point
In the opening years of the twentieth century, Aberdare was
briefly the centre of World Cinema. Film pioneer William
Haggar challenged sedate Edwardian society by sending up
figures of authority and making his murderous villains likeably
human; there are hair-raising police chases on trains and
groundbreaking use of camera techniques much copied in
France and the USA.
29
www.rhondda-cynon-taf.gov.uk/visiting Tel. 01443 424085
The River Cynon is born on a high saddle of land between the
southern edge of the Brecon Beacons and the northern
escarpment of the Blaenau Morgannwg or Glamorgan Highlands,
and flows south-east to join the Taff at Abercynon. The Cynon
Valley was famous for iron as well as coal, the furnaces of Aberdare
and Hirwaun dating from the start of the Industrial Revolution in
the late 1700s.

Midway up the Valley, Mountain Ash is chiefly famous for its
annual Nos Galan or “New Year’s Eve” Races which are run around
the streets of the town during the evening to commemorate the
career of legendary runner Guto Nyth Brân. Guto is buried three
miles away in Llanwynno Churchyard (see Route 3) and so the
races are inaugurated by a group of athletes who run from his
grave to Mountain Ash by the light of flaring torches, an
unforgettable sight on a cold December night.
30
From Pontypridd - we join the A470
north to the roundabout where the
A4059 branches off into the Cynon
Valley. A detour just before the A4059
roundabout allows access via the
B4273 to Abercynon, terminus of the
first ever steamtrain journey: in
February 1804 Richard Trevithick, an
engineer at the Penydarren Ironworks
in Merthyr Tydfil, ran his steam
engine and wagons on rails between
Penydarren and the canal basin at
Abercynon, covering the 9 miles in 4
hours and 5 minutes, twenty years
before Stevenson’s “Rocket”
performed a similar feat in England.

Across the river from the Town Centre is a right turn leading into Cwmpennar, a
side valley with a hamlet of the same name, idyllic cottages hidden away from
the bustle of the valley floor with tiny gardens full of flowers and a sylvan
outlook. Meanwhile the A4059 offers a fine route into Aberdare, known as the
Queen of the Valleys because, unlike other valley towns, it occupies a broad
vale with an open aspect. Here, film-maker William Haggar produced some of
the world’s first ever feature films, beginning with The Maid of Cefn Ydfa in
1901 and followed by over forty melodramas and thrillers which, with their
violence and police chases were especially popular both in Britain and America,
where they influenced the Keystone Cops!
31
The town centre is crowned by the 180-foot spire of St Elvan’s Church,
completed in 1852. Around the church are the main shopping areas,
including Victoria Square which has a fine statue of the choral conductor
Caradog, baton raised, at one end, and the Cenotaph built by Sir Edwin
Lutyens as a prototype for the one in London’s Whitehall at the other. The
shopping streets are packed with small shops, some of them, highly
specialised, and as the focal point for the whole of the Cynon Valley,
Aberdare also boasts a large number of restaurants and cafés,
pubs and hotels.
Much of the shopping area is pedestrianised, and no stroll through the
town would be complete without a visit to the Indoor Market, which
offers a fantastic range of goods and bargains – everything you
always forget to remember to buy! There is also a plaque
commemorating the life of William Haggar on the
Market Hall wall as this was the site of his
first Cinema.

At the edge of the town
centre, the Church of St John
the Baptist is largely unaltered
since its completion in about
1189, whilst nearby the Cynon
Valley Museum and Gallery is
housed in the surviving
buildings of the historic
Gadlys Ironworks. The
Museum tells the history of
Aberdare and its people, and
also offers the chance to
watch William Haggar’s “Life of
Charles Peace”. The Museum
also acts as an Art Gallery,
showing the work of local
artists, and has an excellent
restaurant.
32
The B4275 leads northwest
to Trecynon and to
Aberdare Park. For a few days every
July, the Park is the setting for International
Motorbike Racing, but the rest of the time this
is a haven of peace with tree-lined walks and
a lake, very much a traditional Victorian park
with bands playing at the weekend in the
ornamental bandstand and fine displays of
roses. Close to the Park gates are the
Coliseum Theatre with a year-round
programme of films, concerts and shows,
and the Rose and Crown Inn where the
choral conductor Caradog, whose statue
stands in Victoria Square, was born.

WILLIAM HAGGAR 1851-1925
William Haggar spent many years travelling before settling in Aberdare, where he married the daughter of the
owner of the Bird-in-Hand pub.
During the late 1890s, when film-making was in its infancy, Haggar operated a travelling cinema showing films
made by others, but then decided to make films for himself.
Between 1901 and 1908 Haggar made over forty feature films, choosing exciting stories for his subjects. His two most influential
films seem to have been A Desperate Poaching Affray and A Life of Charles Peace, where innovations included the use of
panning shots and stunts. Both films were shown widely abroad, where they influenced the development of the Keystone Cops.
The History of Charles Peace can be seen at the Cynon Valley Museum and
Gallery, and there is a plaque to Haggar’s memory on the
wall of the Market Hall.
33
In a hidden side valley above the town lies Dare Valley Country Park.
Accessed by following the A4233 for Maerdy out of Victoria Square and
turning right where the houses end, the Park offers a peaceful retreat
with Visitor Centre, restaurant and accommodation, also the
Greenmeadow Riding Stables which, in addition to cross-country treking,
offers courses for children and riding for the disabled. The Park is also
the starting points for some exhilarating walks, including the strenuous
ascent of Craig y Bwllfa, giving long-distance hikers access to the Coed
Morgannwg Way stretching all the way to Port Talbot, thirty miles distant.
Continue on the A4233, described in tour 2, and from there continue on
to Porth and finally our starting point Pontypridd.