This was the first in what was intended to be a five-day backpacking expedition along The Ridgeway National Trail.
From the start of the trail at Overton Hill, I follow The Ridgeway for twenty-three miles as far as White Horse Hill, from which I would descend to reach my campsite for the night.
My Bank Holiday weekend had begun! This was to be the first of two major outings over the course of three days. I’d not been across to the Welsh mountains since a very wet day in January. For this weekend, the forecast promised undisturbed sunshine.
This walk began in the village of Chew Magna, where free use of the car park is available, provided you get there early. It’s an area I’m quite familiar with and a popular ‘commuter route’ linking the A38 with the A37 and beyond.
Bearing in mind this is less than a thirty-minute drive south of Bristol, it commands appreciation. My walk was to begin by following a portion of the local Three Peaks Walk, before looping back along previously unexplored footpaths.
So, to a Caerphilly. A South Wales town only a short distance north of Cardiff. An area I’d never visited and not one I would’ve considered exploring, when looking for a day walk of reasonable distance and duration.
Naturally, I’d be drawn further north to the mountains… But Matt (who always leads good walks) had devised a thirteen-mile route through the woods that we were destined to follow.
Walks With Olly 