Newbridge-on-Wye to Rhayader

I would love to report that we awoke from a refreshing night's sleep but alas no! Rhayader came alive last night with noisy revellers late into the night. To add to the dilemma, the town clock struck every hour AND the light in our room, when turned off, became like a full green moon. That's Allan's report of the night, I slept fairly well. Turns out that the green light is a safety thing in case of fire, so you can see where to go to get out. Our taxi picked us up at 9:30 this morning to take us back to Newbridge-on-Wye so we could walk back to Rhayader (where we are staying). Sounds crazy but that's what we did!

Our walk today is described as a pleasant mix of farmland, old roads, woodland and open hills. We met an older couple in our journey today. She was having difficulty managing a step on a slight slope. We wondered how they were going to manage as they seemed to be really struggling. Anyway they pressed on and walked with us for a while. They told us they were walking the same walk as us without any rest days. Then they said that they had walked the Coast to Coast twice. That's when we realised they were going to be fine.

Graham and Ammie seem a bit confused but they aren't preparing for a dual. Graham's binoculars have been very helpful in spotting gates and signs in the distance, so we did find the correct course through the fields.

I love the way some of the houses are tucked into the landscape, either down in the valley or up on the side of the hill.

This is Doldowlod House in the valley, a beautiful estate.

As we walked we could see across to the other side of the river where a large gathering of mobile homes sat. We saw two of these and decided that they were caravan parks, perfectly situated for fishermen, walkers and bike riders.

After about two and a half kilometres we walked into a little hamlet called Llanwrthwl. And of course there was an impressive church to greet us.

As we left the village we began to climb up into the hills. Looking back through the valley meant we could see where we had walked; very satisfying. That's the Brecon Beacons in the distance. There was a poster outside the church that told us to look out for Red Kites and as we climbed there they were, effortlessly gliding on the air currents.

They flew low so we could see them quite well. They are much bigger than I first thought with an amazing wing span.

The scenery just kept getting better as we kept climbing. But Allan was feeling the strain of all the climbing. You could say that the scenery was breathless.

A lovely moss covered cluster of rocks was perfect for lunch. We weren't at the top yet but we needed a break. This was our view and the red kites kept circling above us. Grahan cracked the whip and called us back to the trail. We still had work to do. We came across this reminder of Wales' history of mining.

Next was a very steep descent, firstly on grass. I found the best way to handle it was to zigzag across the track. This helped to control the downward momentum which just wanted to send you hurtling down the hill. Then through a gate and into a sunken, rocky track where every step required careful thought.