Well…Christmas is over! It all went a little too fast in our opinion. But the New Year is upon us and it’s the Year of Discovery in Wales and there isn’t a better place to explore than North East Wales. However before you can explore and discover North Wales you need to shed some of that Christmas and New Year food. With North East Wales being the capital of accessible walking here are some walks that aren’t to strenous but will certainly get you back into the groove of walking.
(All walks taken from the Mud and Routes website, check them out for more walks)
Llanferres to Maeshafn Walk
A gentle countryside ramble in the Clwydian Range from Llanferres to Maeshafn in former lead mining country. There are a couple of pubs on the way with the Miner’s Arms in Maeshafn and the Druid Inn in Llanferres. It’s a straightforward circular walk with a good mix of woodland walking, countryside and gaining just enough height to enjoy some views across Dyffryn Alun.
Download the FREE guide for this walk
Easy Walk to the Horseshoe Falls
This walk to the Horseshoe Falls on the Afon Dyfrdwy (River Dee) starts from Berwyn, a station on the Llangollen Railway. The Horseshoe Falls, despite their popularity are actually a man-made feature built by Thomas Telford in order to feed the Llangollen Canal. The nearby A5 was also built by Telford as the main London – Holyhead road, now largely used by tourists.
The Chainbridge has recently been restored and makes an interesting and popular way to cross the Afon Dyfrdwy (River Dee) to the Chainbridge Hotel. It was built by the incredibly named – Exuperious Pickering – in 1814 to transport lime from the Llangollen Canal to the A5, but the original has been rebuilt and strengthened.
Download the FREE guide for this walk
Chirk and River Ceiriog Circular Walk
The Clwydian and Dee Valley AONB surprisingly extends all the way to Chirk Castle, and this walk takes in the best this area has to offer. Starting off from the station in Chirk, or the town centre, the route takes you initially to Chirk Castle which you should make time to visit. Chirk Castle was built by Edward 1 in 1295 as part of his Ring of Steel around North Wales, along with Harlech, Caernarfon and Conwy Castles. Unlike those castles, it was maintained and lived in and looks more like a stately home made to look like a castle than an actual genuine medieval castle.
Download the FREE guide for this walk
Llyn Brenig and the Alwen Reservoir
This route takes you first around Alwen Reservoir (not Llyn Alwen!) before taking on Llyn Brenig as well.
The Hiraethog are a relatively unknown area of upland, lower in stature than Snowdonia beyond and not as rich in walking as the Clwydian range to the east. They still make for some decent half day walks in the forests, as well as trail running and easy grade mountain biking routes.
This is a way-marked route around Cronfa Alwen Reservoir that makes a straightforward walk, trail run or blue graded mountain bike trail. Note that it’s narrow in places and to ensure safety it’s recommended that walkers set off in a clockwise direction, while cyclists go in the opposite direction.
Download the FREE guide for this walk