keeping right at a junction in 350 metres into the hamlet of Cwmhiraeth, a former mill village.
Immediately before the bridge over the Nant Brân, bear left along a track, passing a property known as Glanrhyd and immediately in front of the house called Troed-Y-rhiw, bear left onto a footpath running to the rear of the property before climbing steadily through woodland to a junction with a track. Bear right along the track, continuing ahead when it joins a surfaced lane and proceeding directly ahead again after 80 metres, on a continuation track with fine views to the southwest over Moelfre. At a junction with a lane go left and descend quite steeply into the attractive hamlet of Cwmpengraig, nestling in the Esgair Valley.
Old mill buildings in Cwmpengraig now make an attractive house
Cwmpengraig was another very important centre for the woollen industry, with several mills in the valley and most of the houses acting as domestic weaving workshops. One of the mills, Coedmor Mill, sited next to the chapel but now a ruin, was the first in the area to develop mechanised carding and spinning mules using water from the Nant Esgair to power the machines. The mill burnt down during the Depression, but was immediately rebuilt, only to burn down again in 1951. Fire was always a major problem in the mills and factories, with all but two of the mills suffering from fires over the years. The problem was that wool is full of lanolin, all the machines relied on heavy grease for lubrication and over time all the timbers in these wooded buildings became impregnated with a mixture of grease and lanolin. Add to this the wool and a highly volatile mixture is created.
Pass Soar Chapel on the left, cross the bridge over the Nant Esgair, which is the spawning ground of Sewin (Salmon Trout), walk up to the main road through the valley and bear right along the road to reach the national speed limit signs on the edge of the hamlet. Go left here, off the road, onto a narrow footpath that climbs steeply through woodland to reach a junction with a track and follow this to the left, passing between attractive buildings at Ty hen. Proceed through a gate directly ahead and along a hedge lined track between fields to reach a lane which is followed to the left before taking the first lane on the right which leads to the isolated Penboyr Church and the remaining mound of the Norman Tomen Llawddog Castle. To visit the church and mound, continue past Maesllan Farm for 250 metres. Go left through an iron kissing gate just before the farm, joining a grassy track through a pasture just left of farm buildings. Just before reaching the far hedge, bear right to a stile in the corner of the field which gives access to a broad, farm track and go left along this to eventually reach a stile on the left at the termination of the track.
Once over, join a footpath running through woodland above the Bargod Valley that was known locally as ‘The Coffin Trail’.
This footpath passes the site of the Swigod Arms (Blue Tit Arms), a hostelry that was a frequent refreshment stop for bearers and mourners as they passed along here on the way to and from funerals at Penboyr Church. Sadly, the pub poured its last drink over 100 years ago!
The path eventually reaches a stile on the left and once over walk round the right edge of a field before descending through more woodland to another stile, giving access to a pasture, which is crossed, to a stile beside a gate on the opposite side. Once over, ford a small stream then swing away rightwards on a grassy track, keeping left where it forks, but where it swings sharp left, back on itself, go right along the top of a steep bank with views to the right over farms and houses on the outskirts of Drefelin. The path soon begins to descend towards the valley, but at a waymarker sign bear left and descend through woodland, going left at the bottom, along a track which zigzags down to the right, then left, before reaching a pedestrian gate leading onto a footpath between fences, soon joining the road through Drefelin.
As the name suggests Drefelin (Milltown) was once a bustling village with several mills powered by the Nant Bargod and was known as the Huddersfield of Wales due to its high levels of flannel production; more than any other in Wales. Today, few of the mills remain, but many of the weavers’ cottages that lined the road still stand.
Bear right along the road, but immediately after crossing the Nant Bargod, go sharp left along a track, going left through an iron kissing gate just beyond the first property on the right and walk along the right edge of two fields with the remnants of an old leet (a manmade mill stream) to the right. Pass through another iron kissing gate and join a lane that runs past the old Dolwion fulling mill, built by the Adams family of Massachusetts. At a T-junction in Drefach, alongside the cemetery, turn left down to the main road through the village, then go right along this back to the National Wool Museum.
Drefelin
WALK 4
Llandysul and the Afon Tyweli
| Start/Finish | Public car park, Llandysul (SN 418 405) |
| Distance | 11km (7 miles) |
| Ascent | 195m (645ft) |
| Time | 3–4hrs |
| Maps | Explorer 185 |
| Refreshments | Pubs and cafés in Llandysul |
| Public transport | Bus 40C Carmarthen–Pencader–Lampeter, then bus 621 Pencader–Llandysul; or bus 460 Carmarthen–Saron–Newcastle Emlyn–Cardigan, then bus 613 Saron–Llandysul (services Wed and Sat only); or bus 612 Newcastle Emlyn–Llandysul (services Tue only). |
Starting on the banks of the Afon Teifi, which forms the border between Carmarthenshire and neighbouring Ceredigion (formerly Cardiganshire), the walk quickly crosses the river in the market town of Llandysul, back into the ‘home’ county. The majority of the walk follows quiet country lanes and a long section of the now dismantled Carmarthen to Cardigan railway that ran along the valley of the pretty Afon Tyweli before joining the Afon Teifi. With only a very short section of potentially boggy ground, this is a suitable walk for the times of year when many footpaths are impassable and traffic along the lanes is at a minimum.
From the public car park in Llandysul, walk away from the town on a surfaced footpath, signed to the Picnic Area, with the church over to the left and playing fields to the right. The footpath soon runs alongside the Afon Teifi, which forms a looping meander that initially flows away from the town before swinging back towards it. The path eventually bears right, away from the river and passes between houses to join New Road in Llandysul, which is followed to the left and to a junction with Bridge Street.
Llandysul, nestling on the banks of the river Teifi, is a traditional, unspoilt market town that has been built around its ancient church and which takes its name from the Celtic saint Tysul, who is reputed to have founded the church here in AD426. Before the days of electricity, the rushing rivers of the Teifi and its tributaries drove many waterwheels in the area and Llandysul was no exception. While none still operates commercially, several buildings can be recognised as former mills. Today the town is famous for the salmon and sewin (sea trout) that are in abundance in the River Teifi.
Go left again, crossing the Afon Teifi via the footpath on the right hand side of the road bridge, which has stood here since the Civil War. The original bridge here was destroyed by Royalists trying to protect the town from being attacked by a force of Cromwell’s Roundheads. Set across the river to the right are a series of slalom poles used by the local canoeing centre.
On the far side of the bridge, bear left alongside the first building on the left, currently a canoe hire shop, and walk through its car parking area before bearing slightly right on an initially surfaced footpath that runs to the right of an artificial pond, used by the canoe school for teaching purposes. The path soon becomes un-surfaced and is squeezed in between the river on the left and a fence on the right, before reaching a stile leading into a sloping field. Walk up through this to reach a quiet lane and
