Some interesting history on lanes and paths route
ON Saturday, September 25, Anne and Tony Emmerson led the Carmarthen Ramblers on a six-mile circular walk in the Nantgaredig area. The route covered local footpaths and quiet lanes and some interesting history.
The grey cloudy weather gave a couple of drizzling showers, but was generally dry with temperatures in the high teens.
The walk started from the rugby club car park from where they walked down the lane to cross the road at Dyffryn Towy into a lane then into fields – with some difficult stiles to negotiate between them. They also crossed the route of the old railway line (that could in time become part of the proposed cycle track between Carmarthen and Llandeilo) – before reaching the western banks of the Cothi.
Their route followed the line of the Cothi up river across the showground to reach the A40 in Pont-ar-gothi. They crossed the river via the road bridge then immediately turned right onto a country road that led them in a southerly direction now walking down river for just over half a mile where they stopped to admire the grand Abercothi House through the hedgerow whilst Morfydd Phillips related a little of its history.
A little further along, the road swung around to face eastwards and they then arrived at a 90-degree turn in the road. The road crossed a stone bridge over what was once a railway line – now dismantled but the group left the road at this point and continued in the same general direction along a track on the edge of the flood plain to reach Llwchgwyn where they came close to a bend in the river Towy before reaching the village of Llanegwad. They took some time to visit the church yard and learned of its history before setting off through the village to meet the very busy A40 which they crossed into a lane that took them to Tirdail.
The route circled around some fields to reach a track that crossed
Cwm Aber-salwach and a country road to access a rhododendron lined track that led passed Cilarddu. This joined onto a track that once linked Alltyferin Mansion with the main road and the group followed this in a south westerly direction back towards Pont-ar-gothi for about half a mile to reach the A40 again near the Salutation Inn and here they turned right to cross the bridge back into the showground where they stopped for lunch.
In the afternoon they retraced their steps across the fields for the last mile back to the rugby club to complete the walk.