Date walked: 13th January 2022

Map used: Ordnance Survey Explorer OL 14- Wye Valley and Forest Of Dean (having downloaded the route onto my phone).

Distance: about 9 miles.This is Stage 2 of The Monmouthshire Way

Website for path: There is no printed guide to the path but this website has the basics. 

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Driving through Trellech (current alternative spellings Trelech, Trelleck, Treleck – and that’s just the English ones), takes less than 5 minutes. Notwithstanding  the impressive steeple of  the C13th (in part) St Nicholas church…..

…. it is difficult to believe that when this church was originally built the settlement was one of the largest in Wales. By 1288 there were 378 burgage plots recorded in Trellech, which would have made it bigger than Cardiff or Chepstow at the time. There’s a little board in the main street that shows how the medieval town was laid out.

The village is on our route from home to Monmouth and I have driven through it countless times. When we moved into the area in 1987 there used to be a restaurant in the main street but it closed many years ago. It was called the Village Green but the green had gone by the time we arrived.

Ex restaurant, ex Village Green.

The Lion Inn was there, though and still is. And the licensee has, I think, been there as long as we have.

Good pub food, decent beer and accommodation

I can’t remember ever going into the church so at the start of the walk I made amends.

Apologies for ruining the pic by cutting the top off the spire

I was very surprised at how plain it was inside.

The main windows (apart from above the alter) are all plain so it was much lighter than churches with extensive stained glass.

I like church interiors as a rule but for me this one lacks atmosphere. It seemed, well, business-like. And of course it is in the business of being a focus for Christian celebration and worship. Despite the date the Christmas tree was still up and decorated which shocked and surprised me.

Apologies for poor quality of pic

I didn’t stop to explore the churchyard on my way out but one stone struck me as particularly attractive.

My Mum used to record graves and I was very shocked when she told me that they used to clean up the stones before recording them.

The path follows the road out of Trellech, taking the road between the Infant school and the Lion, passing a small estate of new houses.

The road climbs for about half a mile….

… the path then turning off to the left over a stile.

Crossing a field (intriguingly called “Peaked Land” on the map), ahead was one of the many railway goods carriages that dot the Welsh countryside.

We have one that is identical in design and size…..

…..but not in condition.

All my own work; you’d think it was a Tardis. Future Air BnB?

The field had some fine views out to the Brecon Beacons.

At the far side of the field the Way enters Trellech Common.

Natural Resources Wales entrances seem to require a remarkable number of signs these days.

The path takes a wide track through the woods for the best part of a mile….

… leaving it by a metal kissing gate at the edge of the village of The Narth.

The Village used to have a pub called The Trekkers which we went to a couple of times before it closed in 2004. So no refreshments to be found here. The Path reaches the road, turns right and after a few hundred yards enters the car park of Manor Wood where one needs to follow the signs for Manor Wood Walk.

A wide track from here descends gently through the woods, Manor Brook off to the right providing a pleasant soundscape.

After about half a  mile the view to the Wye Valley opens up…..

… and NRW have kindly provided an excellent bench and felled some trees to provide a view well worth the sit for.

From here the track bends sharply left back into the wood but our path turns right onto an unmarked and barely noticeable footpath.

Spot the footpath

This is a tricky bit because you need to find a 4- 5 feet deep gully off to the right, and even that I found to be blocked with some fallen trees at first.

This gully path is quite steep in places and the ground quite loose under foot.

It emerges in the village of Whitebrook opposite the Manor Brook Cottage. You might be forgiven for thinking that this little place has nothing of interest but historically it was a hive of water-powered industry and if you arrive here at lunchtime and you are well healed, feeling hungry and are still reasonably presentable you might see if you could have lunch (Fridays to Sundays) at the Michelin starred Crown at Whitebrook restaurant just up the hill.

Looking back from whence I came there was no signpost going up the path here  or any ahead so no one is making it easy for you to follow the trail here. The route turns off the road at a telegraph pole to enter the wood by Kingfisher Cottage….

… where you will find a finger post.

Turn right in the direction of Redbrook

From here the path climbs around the side of Lower Hael Wood. After a few hundred yards the Way takes a narrow path off to the right down towards the River Wye…..

Look out for this marker post

…. the damage caused by storm Arwen still in evidence.

When it reaches the flat the route is shared for the next two miles or so with the Wye Valley Walk. 

The river is quite close now, though still viewed through the trees. There are two choices here. One is to stay on the wide firm track that marks the route of the old Wye Valley railway line.

The route of the old Wye Valley Railway

But there is another path which runs closer to the river and  today, with the sun reflected in the water and illuminating the trees I was drawn to the latter.

In summer the trees on the wider path, being in full leaf, almost completely obscure the views of the river. On the other hand in winter this lower path was soft under foot and much more effort to walk.

The surface of the river is remarkably swirly here, and favoured by many water birds who fly off noisily when disturbed.

Can you see the birds?

I tired after a mile or so on the riverside path and climbed the bank back onto firmer ground (not easy), the sun glorious through the trees…..

…. and casting long shadows of me on the path.

The Valley Valley walk is popular for walkers….

My people pics are always taken after they pass me.

……and I have done this stretch often around Christmas with a friend made at work called Dave. We would walk from Bigsweir Bridge to the Boat Inn at Penalt (coming up), collecting mistletoe on the way back and playing cribbage in the pub. Sadly Dave died 5 years ago from bowel cancer diagnosed shortly after he retired.

Dave in his walking crombie

This two mile section of the path is enjoyable in all seasons, due partly to the banks of evergreen ferns.

I decided to return to the river for the last bit, finding a stone lined culvert bringing a stream under the path to the river.

This part river bank has exclusive fishing rights.

Ahead, the village of Redbrook was benefitting from the winter sun.

A wonky footbridge over a stream suggests that this is not used nearly as much as the main path.

The path passes right under the old railway bridge and for a minute I wondered if I would have to retrace my steps……

… but immediately after the bridge there is a short steep path up to The Boat.

It really is a gem of a pub with friendly staff, beer served straight off the barrel and good pub food. But I was short of daylight and besides I’m not fond of drinking alone so I took the footpath over the bridge pausing to enjoy the misty river.

The footpath from the bridge passes underneath it….

… and takes you through the car park…

… to meet the A466 and to join the Offa’s Dyke Path for the rest of this stage.

Regular readers here will know that I have walked this section of Offa’s Dyke Path before so if you’d like to be reminded of it from August 2017 click on this link.

The Way skirts the back of Redbrook to emerge on the road in Upper Redbrook that goes towards Coleford.

After a few hundred yards on this road the Way turns off left to take a steep lane …..

… that leads to  Duffield’s  Farm which is part of the Jamie’s Farm group.

For those of you who watched the recently broadcast and rather annoying “Wonders of the border” TV series (annoying because it misleadingly suggested that it was about places of interest on the Offa’s Dyke Path when most places weren’t on the Dyke Path at all), exceptionally, its presenter did visit here. Basically it is a thoroughly good organisation doing useful and therapeutic work with young people.

They, like sheep

The road becomes a wide track here called Duffield’s Lane which, illuminated by this late winter sun was a beautiful walk…..

….making even a dead oak tree look special.

I like to see dead trees like this even when the light isn’t special

The Way passes another smallholding/farm where horses, goats and donkeys were sunning themselves…..

… and then leaves the track to climb gently through some fields….

…. to become a narrow path by Harper’s Grove wood.

From here the path narrows even more and, passing through a metal kissing gate…..

…. arrives at the car park for The Kymin. Technically The Kymin is a hill but it is most commonly known for the Naval Temple and The Round House.

For my money these two combined would definitely count as a “wonder” of the Offa’s Dyke Path (perhaps to be included in, god forbid, series 2).

According to the National Trust, the The Naval Temple is unique in the world. That would count as a wonder wouldn’t you think?

I expect the National Trust will remove the car park in the near future.

The trouble is that it is described by the Trust as “a patriotic symbol of Britain’s naval supremacy at the height of the British Empire.”. Oh dear, You can see why it might not wish to be bigged up in these Times of Woke.  It gets worse. The Round House was constructed for a private picnic club for the most posh gentlemen of Monmouth.

The Trust used to open it but don’t any more

The Trust make no reference to its elitist history on their website.

I arrived there at the perfect time of day and already two photographers were making the best of the late sun shining over the Wye Valley.

I sat and ate a couple of bananas and then did my bit to record the beautiful scene.

If I were a travel writer I would describe the view as “breath-taking” but I’m not so I wont.

I think that’s Pen-Y-Fan on the horizon on the left and Sugar Loaf right of centre

From The Kymin, the path descends through Beaulieu Wood….

… crosses some fields ….

Backlit cherry and beehives

…..

… and then continues its descent through Garth Wood…..

… to meet a road heading into Monmouth.

It was nearly dark when I crossed over the bridge over the Wye.

From there I knew the route through the town to the bus station (it’s quite well signposted as Offa’s Dyke) where I arrived with time to get a hot chocolate and and bun at Costas  before the last bus returned me to Trelleck. Now that was a great little walk.

Since this entire walk is based in my home county I thought it would be nice to offer some links to our garden website. Here is one from our blog area about a visitors impressions of the garden, recorded and then transcribed. With pics, of course.

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