After a spell of dry weather and some bright sunshine, the trees are bursting with leaves and the hedgerows and shrubs are blossoming, adding much needed colour, whilst the cool easterly wind is a reminder that it is still only April.
This set the scene when a group of nineteen ramblers and Pepper the spaniel met up with leader Geraint and his sheepdog Patch on a lovely sunny Easter Saturday morning in the beautiful garden beside Wenvoe War Memorial at the start of a pleasant ramble taking in the surrounding area with a visit to two ancient burial chambers.
The village of Wenvoe grew up around the 12th century St Mary’s Church, where above the main gate is an inscribed stone to the memory of Laura Frances Jenner of nearby Wenvoe Castle and many of the family are buried there.
Wenvoe Castle was most likely built as a fortified manor house but there is no trace of the original building however, several other constructions have since occupied the site, the last of which belonged to Hugh Jenner who was the first president of Wenvoe Castle Golf Club, founded in 1936 which surrounds the house.
The Jenner family are also prominently remembered in Barry giving their name to Jenner Road, Jenner Park School and Jenner Park football stadium, created after it was leased to Barry AFC in 1920 by Laura Jenner on land that was owned by Wenvoe Castle Estate.
Setting off and climbing gently up through Walston Road to join Pound Lane, the path deviated behind a house to enter Wenvoe Wood where wood anemone, wild violet, primroses and bluebells brightened up the woodland floor.
Then crossing a stile into the lane at Burdonshill a lovely green meadow led on to St Lythans. Fortunately for the group and quite unexpectedly the 12th century village church dedicated to St Bleddian was open, with both heaters and lights on as it was being prepared for Easter Sunday, so the group were kindly invited inside to admire the building which includes the Button chapel.
In the 16th century the ancient Manor of Worlton as Dyffryn was then known, was rented to the Button family who remained there for several generations and beneath the stone floor upon which the group trod, members of the Button family are laid to rest. This family produced the famous Admiral Thomas Button, a noted explorer who was the first navigator to reach the coast of America via the Hudson Straits. Upon leaving the church the group noted the initials ‘R’ and ‘B’ above the outer wooden door of the Button Chapel which is evidently not the original doorway, as can be seen from the surrounding stonework.
The group tramped the lane to Lodge House Farm and over the stile into a field where under the hedgerow dozens of pretty cowslips were in bloom.
Continuing through a meadow and reaching a gate they entered a woodland path through Coed Nant-bran where the ground was daintily contrasted with the white of wood anemone and yellow celandines. At the north-west end of this wood the path is renowned for being overgrown and the leader, also in his capacity as footpath officer took a quick look at the original line of the path, only to pronounce it was overgrown, so the group took a short cut into a field.
Crossing several more fields and descending to join the fairly quiet Dyffryn to St Nicholas road they turned northwards towards St Nicholas then south again through fields to Tinkinswood, passing several people who were returning from viewing the burial site en route.
The easterly breeze had a distinct chill so at the burial chamber coats were hastily donned before morning coffee was enjoyed amongst the primroses.
The burial chamber is fairly large measuring some 30-foot by 18-foot and is topped by a huge capstone which weighs around 50-tons, which is the largest in Britain. The chamber was excavated in 1914 and the remains of around fifty people were found and just behind the chamber is a stone-sided pit that may have been used as part of the burial process.
Legend states that if you sleep there on May Day’s Eve, St John’s Eve or Midwinter’s Eve you will go mad or become a poet which is a popular Welsh myth. Plus to the south of the chamber a group of stone boulders are believed to be women turned into stone for dancing on the Sabbath, so beware!
Making their way on through meadows containing horse paddocks and crossing the River Waycock, their route led on behind Dyffryn Gardens. In 1749 a Georgian manor house was built when the Dyffryn estate was sold to Thomas Pryce who established a walled garden and pools. In 1891 the estate passed into the rich coal and shipping Cory family and John Cory established the present house some two years later. Then it was sold to Sir Cennydd Traherne, who in 1939 leased it to Glamorgan County Council who are now the owners and after much restoration work the house and gardens are open to the public.
Carefully tramping the road north-eastwards and passing through a kissing gate they reached the burial chamber at St Lythans, situated in Maes y Felin or the mill field.
Originally covered by a mound of earth or stones, nowadays three upright stones with a capstone remain and legend has it that the capstone spins three times on Midsummer’s Eve whilst the stones go bathing in the river.
These cromlechs as well as being places to honour the departed were also communal sites where people would often meet to socialise, buy or sell new livestock or exchange gifts and after death bodies were left outside to rot before the bones, which were revered, were placed inside the chamber.
The wind was a little chilly with not much shelter, so after a quick spot of lunch the walk continued through fields containing inquisitive young cattle who queued up against the fence to get a better look at the intruders.
Further on the leader paused to explain the remnants of stone at the back of a dip in the field which were old lime kilns and that the process of making lime would take around a week. In the early days, limestone was crushed by hand and placed in the kiln in layers with wood or coal, then a fire was lit at the bottom which gradually spread upwards and after being burnt, the lime was cooled and raked out through the base.
Reaching fields adjacent to Goldsland Wood the track entered some woodland dotted with pheasant feeders before going uphill onto part of the Wenvoe golf course. Long distance views out across the Bristol Channel were obliterated by mist and the group were glad to get out of the hefty breeze as they returned to the shelter of the lane at Burdonshill. Then descending by quiet lane to enter the fields at the rear of Wenvoe Garden Centre, the warmth of the sunshine was welcomed as they returned to Wenvoe village after a perfect half day walk.
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