Terry played host to a group of eleven walkers, including Beryl from North Wales on a train ramble, setting off from Cardiff Central station for the journey to Carmarthen and after partaking of morning coffee on the train, the journey to Llansteffan was made by taxi.
Carmarthen is situated on the River Tywi around 6-miles from its estuary and between the 16th and 18th centuries it became one of the most densely populated places in Wales until the 19th century when people began to move away in search of work in the lucrative south Wales coalfields. It has a Roman fort dating to AD75 and nearby stand the remains of an amphitheatre, one of only two in Wales, which was excavated during the 1960’s and where the arena measures 50 yards x 29 yards.
Around 1094 the Roman noble William fitz Baldwin began to build a castle which had a short life span as it was destroyed by Llewellyn the Great in 1215. In 1223 it was rebuilt along with walls to protect the town until 1405 when both the town and castle was attacked by Owain Glyndwr. Carmarthen is also renowned for the Black Book, named after the colour of its binding which is a manuscript written in Welsh around 1250, containing poetry and stories of Welsh heroes including the legend of Arthur.
Standing on a headland overlooking the mouth of the River Tywi is Llansteffan Castle which began its life as a Norman earth and timber enclosure, standing within the defences of an Iron Age fort and controlling an important river crossing, which changed hands several times during fierce fighting between the Norman invaders and the Welsh. The stone castle was built by the Norman Camville family and after falling into the hands of Owain Glyndwr’s supporters for a short time, King Henry VII granted it to his uncle Jasper Tudor who let it fall into ruins.
Beginning their journey and after a climb towards the castle, the group joined the Wales Coast Path by the beach following it uphill whilst glimpsing views of the estuary through the trees.
Llansteffan is translated as the ‘Church of Stephen’ and the area is associated with Dylan Thomas, who although born in Swansea lived in Laugharne from 1938-41 and from 1944 until his death in 1953. During his youth, his parents took him to stay at Rose cottage in Llansteffan the home of his mother’s half-sister Anne Williams and his summers were spent on relative’s farms including Fern Hill, where his Aunt Annie and Uncle Jim lived and Blaencwm with Aunt Polly and Uncle Bob Williams. Whilst Laugharne has become a shrine to Dylan Thomas since his death, many believe and perhaps hope that Llansteffan was the inspiration for Under Milk Wood set in the small village of Llareggub, which ironically has to be read backwards to get the joke!
Stopping further on in the shelter of the hedgerow for lunch in brilliant sunshine, the path then led them downhill through a small wood and out onto the road where a speedy walk in single file led to another climb, fairly close to the old farm at Fern Hill the childhood haunt of Dylan Thomas.
But Fern Hill also hides another more sinister happening, as the local hangman hanged himself in the house upon discovering that his daughter, whom he kept locked up, had eloped with her lover.
A stile led into ancient woodland situated just northeast of Fern Hill (about which Dylan Thomas wrote a poem) and Green Castle Wood is owned and managed by the Woodland Trust with ash, hazel, rowan and some sycamore, but the mighty oak tree dominates.
Enjoying the lovely views towards Carmarthen, the Tywi Valley and Ferryside, the leader and back-marker donned High Vis vest tops for a stretch of walking along the main road, before turning off at the playing fields onto a paved area beside the Tywi and back across the bridge to the railway station, where as luck would have it, their timing was perfect as the train was already in the station awaiting their return.
