Wales forest trail: following miners’ path on new green walk

A new long-distance path through the south Wales valleys is inviting walkers to discover upland terrain that once seemed closed off from the mining communities below. The Llwybr Coedwig Cymru Trail, also called the Wales Forest Trail, is a 50-mile (80km) pilot route running from Porthkerry Park, near Barry, to Pont Walby, close to Glynneath. It represents the first stage of what the National Forest for Wales envisages as a future trail connecting woodlands throughout the country — a wooded equivalent of the Wales Coast Path.

From coast to forest

On the plateau of Tarren y Fforch, bracken and heather stir in the breeze. The view stretches to Gower and the ochre peaks of Bannau Brycheiniog (formerly the Brecon Beacons). Down in the Ogmore valley, terrace houses resemble small constellations, while up on the hill only a handful of sheep share the ground, stepping between bilberry tufts. That this corner of the valleys feels remote from its coal mining heritage is, in part, deliberate. The author's father was raised in one of the valleys' mining villages, and childhood visits made clear how cut off these post-industrial communities were from the wild hills towering above them. Mountain bikers have long recognised the area's potential, yet walkers have generally favoured the better-known routes through the national parks or along the coast. The pilot trail offers a reason to try lesser-used footpaths. The walk begins at the oak leaf sculpture marking the trailhead, with the sea at the walker's back. A viaduct that once carried coal to Barry docks now stands above Caffe Matteo, where dog walkers drink cappuccinos. Beyond the park, a fern-lined path follows a stream to the edge of Barry. The following stretch is less appealing — a lengthy run of roadside pavement — until Hensol Forest, where sunlight filters through old pines and needles soften the ground.

Woods, villages and a warm welcome

Passing between forest and fields, the route delivers the calm of a long forest-bathing exercise before the Vale Resort appears. The hotel draws golfers but offers walkers two strong attractions: a spa where tired hikers can swim, sauna and steam, and a bar serving Welsh rarebit with ale mustard, Dragon cheddar and charred leeks. Refreshed, the next morning's walking follows leafy lanes and footpaths as the M4 grows louder. The route passes beneath the motorway into Coedwig Gellihir, a small broadleaf wood, then heads north into Pontyclun before descending to the river at Ynysmaerdy Forest and joining an old railway path to Coedely. The trail includes sections suited to cyclists, pushchair users and horse riders, along with more pavement walking and, at Thomastown, a reminder of the difficulties facing post-industrial communities. Beyond the village, a rocky path opens up soaring views over the Ogwr Fach Valley. Helping communities reconnect with nearby woodlands is one of the National Forest for Wales's goals. At Blackmill, the trail passes Coed Bach Dimbath, a community wood where local groups have created an otter hide, an outdoor classroom and accessible paths. "The woodland there had been inaccessible for decades, and now people can access it," says Rhodri Hewitt of Natural Resources Wales, the trail's project lead. "The valleys can feel desperately poor in places, but the River Ogmore is another world entirely." North at Nant-y-Moel stands Blaenogwr Farm, a Georgian farmstead surrounded by the village, where the author stays in a cosy holiday cottage. Dinner across the road at the Blaenogwr Hotel brings fish with buttery potatoes, laverbread and cockle sauce.

Moorland, rainforest and the road's end

The final day opens with a climb to the plateau on Tarren y Fforch. Hewitt notes that parts of the route trace paths miners used to cross these hills to pits in neighbouring valleys — a welcome antidote to the darkness and danger underground. The day's walking feels uplifting: through an old gate onto open moorland, up the escarpment with meadow pipits calling, across the plateau and into Afan Forest park, a large commercial woodland containing wind turbines, a peat restoration project and mountain-biking trails. Drawn inside the forest rather than skirting its edges, the author detours to the trig point at Craig y Llyn, the valleys' highest point at 600m. Beneath lichen-draped branches, another viewpoint opens as the land falls to Llyn Fach and Llyn Fawr, with Corn Du and Pen y Fan softened by drizzle behind them. The finest stretch comes next. Cwm Gwrelych is a geological site of special scientific interest for its nearly complete 300m-year-old rock strata, yet it resembles rainforest, threaded with waterfalls, a dark glossy river and dense broadleaf woodland. The last couple of miles to the trail's current endpoint — the Isambard Kingdom Brunel-designed viaduct at Pont Walby — feel wholly green. A stop at the Sgwd Gwladys pub with rooms in nearby Pontneddfechan is a reminder that this is a trail still beginning, not finished. The next morning, boots on once more, the author sets out to find the waterfall the pub is named after, as mist lifts from the river, sunlight turns the leaves amber and a heron glides past.