Fourteen Wick Wanderers met under gloomy January skies, at Wick Village Hall. Having confirmed everyone had directions, we car shared to the walk start at Bedford Park, Cefn Cribbwr. It was a pleasure to have Ruchard’s daughter and son in law, who are visiting form Connecticut, join the group. Arriving at the car park, we sorted ourselves out and set off on the trail. Much chatter and laughter ensued along the way.
The Park is a Site of Interest for Nature Conservation (SINC) The path took us through woodland, over stream and alongside a pond area, the latter of which brought to my mind, the marsh setting of ‘Where the Crawdads Sing (a novel I had read during lockdown!)
Early on the country path we stopped at the ruin of ironworks which were founded by John Bedford in the early 1770s. Moira kindly read out the history of the works from the information board which, being set inside the fencing around the ruin, was a tad too distant for the more shortsighted among us! The ironworks, along with the country park, is now owned by Bridgend CBC and is managed by a volunteer group Y Cefn Gwyrdd.
We followed the trail through the park with much discussion regarding the whereabouts of the railway line that would have transported coal from the mines to the blast furnace. Our questions were answered on a plaque spotted by David, marking the site of The Dyffryn, Llynfi and Porthcawl Railway Line which ran from Caerau to Porthcawl as a horse drawn tramway. Additionally, on our return route, we came across round metal plaques, set into the ground, confirming the previous information.
Although the skies were grey, the weather remained dry, allowing us to appreciate the bird life, particularly tiny robins. Also, a squirrel was spotted scampering across the path into the trees. We wondered at the facial woodcarvings attached to tree trunks along the path. A circular timber seating structure looked like an ideal photo opportunity, however, due to recent heavy rains, the floor area was to muddy for access Graham managed to organise all fourteen Wanderers, under a nearby tree, for the ‘shoot’
And so, we returned to our waiting cars where we agreed on coffee etc at Pyle Garden Centre where we enjoyed various refreshments. Thanks to everyone for coming along and contributing to an enjoyable walk.
wickwanderers.com 