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Sunday 28 July 2013

Mynydd Troed & Mynydd Llangorse

Walk Statistics
Walk Date - 28  July 2013
Walkers - Steve Smith
Accommodation - Brecon Youth Hostel
Start Point - Off road parking on col between Mynydd Troed & Mynydd Llangorse (SO16058 28313)
Start Time - 15:40
Finish Point - Off road parking on col between Mynydd Troed & Mynydd Llangorse (SO16058 28313)
Finish Time - 19:15
Duration - 3hrs 35mins
Average pace - 1.81mph
Distance Walked - 7.28miles
Height Ascended - 658.83metres

Peaks visited
Nuttalls (190W - 444E&W)
NONE
Hewitts (138W - 317E&W))
NONE
Marilyns (158W - 1550E,W&S)
Mynydd Troed (2W - 63E,W&S)
Mynydd Llangorse (3W - 64E,W&S)
Deweys (241W - 427EW&S)
Mynydd Troed (4W - 49E,W&S)
Mynydd Llangorse (5W - 50E,W&S)
HuMPs (364W - 2977EW&S)
Mynydd Troed (2W - 107E,W&S)
Mynydd Llangorse (3W - 108E,W&S)
W: Wales. 
E,W&S:England,Wales & Scotland

Other walks on this trip
2013
August
02nd Fan Nedd, Fan Fraith & Fan Gyhirych
01st The Black Mountains (South)
July
30th The Brecon Beacons (East)
29th The Black Mountains (North)
28th Mynydd Troed & Mynydd Llangorse

Other walks in The Black Mountains
Click on map to access these routes and accommodation available
Route
Walk Summary
One of two walks not included on the trip plan and kept up my sleeve in case I fancied a short walk on a rest day or I arrived early at the Youth Hostel on the first day. 

Well, checked in at hostel, supplies for the week bought from Morrisons in Brecon and packed away by 3pm qualifies, with the light summer evenings, as an early arrival and time for a 3 hour 7 mile walk to loosen the old bones (and muscles) for the weeks exertions.

No Nuttalls on the walk, though at 609m spot height Mynydd Troed is very close.

Earlier showers, low clouds over The Brecon Beacons to the south west and dark clouds above did not bode well for staying dry, but it was still warm enough to set off in T-shirt and shorts. A sharp shower after visiting Mynydd Troed whilst still above 500m on the Mynydd Troad ridge forced me to don the waterproof before chilling down,but surprisingly not cool enough to get out the long trousers, keeping on the shorts for now and in fact the rest of the walk. 

Difficult descent from Mynydd Troed to Blaenau-draw and similarly difficult ascent up Mynydd Lllangorse shortened the distance but extended the time of the walk to 3 hours 35 minutes making it more tiring than intended. But all good experience and two more Marilyns visited extending the Marilyn count to 64 and the Dewey count to 50.

Lessons
  • Try and stay on main footpaths where possible, especially in summer when less established paths can easily become overgrown and disappear completely. See point 6 below.
  • Once again, try and remember that public rights of way marked in green on OS Explorer 1:25000 maps do not necessarily exist on the ground See mountain safety for further information. See point 9 below.
Walk Description
 1.) Go through gate on north side of road following well established path up hill rather than the "Three Rivers Ride" to the left.
Walk start point and ascent route up Mynydd Troed
 2.) Avoid any paths to the left and down hill, continue steep ascent for about 500m and 15-20 minutes.
 3.) As rate of descent decreases stay on path which contours around right side of summit until you get sight of trig point above and to your left.
 4.) Stay on path to trig point and Mymydd Troed summit.
 5.) Follow path to the SW, away from trig point along Mynydd Troed ridge.
 6.) Stay on path along ridge, avoiding false trail down, which I mistakenly took, at 530m contour. I suspect this would have been an easier descent, unlike my own where I ended up on fairly steep ground which descended in to thick wet fern and an unmarked route off open access land. Incidentally the bridleway at SO176270 was completely overgrown with tree branches and bushes further complicating the exit off open access land.
Ignore this path down to Sorgwm Farm 
near the 530m contour line
 7.) Having reached the road along Cwm Sorgwm to Waun Fach village turn left then sharp right to the settlement of Bleanau-draw.
Proposed planned start point at Blaenau-draw.
Not really suitable
 8.) Go through Blaenau-draw and follow road up the hill until it turns sharply to the left.
 9.) I could not find the public right of way straight ahead so should have turned right then followed the marked path around the field to the left following the well established path up hill to the ancient cairn between Pen Tir and Mynydd Llangorse. Instead I followed the fence line where the right of way should have been, had difficulty finding a way out of the field and had to track left along the fence until I found a suitable exit point too far to the east.
Should turn right at top of road
then follow bridle way to the left
10.) From the cairn follow the well established path west until you reach the junction of a main way marked path and old marker stone.
Go straight on at waymarker for summit or
turn right past stone for trig-point
11.) Turn left and follow path for a short distance then after approx. 150m turn right on a path towards Mynydd Llangorse trig point. The path is not obvious but quite prominent as a raised length of ground. Alternatively do as I did and stay on the path then cut north and right to the trip point.
12.) From the trig point follow the path heading just east of north until you reach the Mynydd Langorse summit.
13.) The cloud dropped while I was on Mynydd Langorse summit and was not on an obvious path, so I headed on a bearing just east of north until I descended below the cloud line and reached a path along the ridge descending to Cockit Hill.
14.) From Cockit Hill I could see the car and made the final descent to complete the walk.
Wild horses?
Grazing on path down Cockit Hill to the car
More Photographs
Looking back at Lake Llangorse on the way up Mynydd Troed
Click on photograph to view slide-show