Cynghordy and the Cynghordy Viaduct

Sean Meek

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Cynghordy is a small village spread out over a large area, in a remote part of Wales just north of the Brecon Beacons. Despite all this, there is a railway station here on the scenic Heart of Wales line, where the walk starts. Just outside the village, the railway line crosses the Cynghordy Viaduct, which is one of its most impressive feats of Victorian engineering. The viaduct spans a wide valley, with 18 arches and rising to a height of 31 metres above the valley floor.

There are fantastic views of the viaduct as the walk heads along the valley bottom, passing right underneath the viaduct. The side of the valley is then explored, which is mostly on very gentle slopes, although there is one steep climb. There are some great views of the surrounding countryside, a mixture of farmland and forestry, with the Brecon Beacons in the distance, but surprisingly, the viaduct disappears from view, despite it being a huge structure.

There are likely to be some overgrown parts of the walk, including wading through long grass. There is also one ford crossing to be made, where the footbridge has been washed away. It is quite wide but not deep and can be crossed using rocks just below the surface of the water. However, crossing will be more difficult after heavy rain.

Wales - Mid Wales - Powys - Countryside

Features

Flowers, Great Views, Industrial Archaeology, Public Transport
4/24/2017 - John Acord

We did this walk in mid April 2107. It definitely needs to be reclassified from an easy walk to at the very least moderate and possible even strenuous! While the directions were good and clear, the path from waypoints 8 to 10 are in a really bad state: deep mud, fallen trees, barbed wire from collapsed fences, etc and many of the gates mentioned have to be climbed over as they have been tied shut with rope. The rope in many cases is all that is holding the gates up! Luckily there were two of us (both fit and forty!) as one person needed to hold the gate steady while the other person climbed over it. The climb at waypoint 18 is very steep, but luckily not very long. Be warned. The footbridge at waypoint 23 is still out of action and you need to wade across the ford. You will probably end up with wet feet no matter where you try to cross. Only upon reaching waypoint 24 do you find a sign (pointing the opposite way) saying that the footpath is closed! However, too late by then. While we did enjoy the walk, it felt a bit like a tough-mudder event at some points. Don't make the mistake of assuming that this is in any way and easy walk, and don't even attempt it without some stout walking boots (which we had!)