“Stepping Westward”: Rambles with the Poets in Wales

Day 1: Friday 1 May, Swansea

• Dylan Thomas Centre
• Dylan Thomas Birthplace: guided tour of the house with the President of the Dylan Thomas Society
• Walking tour of Uplands area
• Dylan Thomas Birthplace: pre-dinner drinks and poetry reading
• Welcome Dinner

Meeting Point: in the foyer of Morgans Hotel, Swansea @ 10 am

Dylan Thomas packed a huge amount into his relatively short life – drinking, womanising, travel, friendships and, of course, writing poems, short stories and radio broadcasts. He liked to think of himself as a “roistering, drunken and doomed poet” but his works actually enjoyed huge popularity during his lifetime.

We will begin our rambles by walking in the footsteps of this extraordinary writer and the most important Welsh poet of the 20th century. The Dylan Thomas Centre in the Maritime Quarter of Swansea was opened by former American President Jimmy Carter who was a huge fan. It is an arts centre dedicated to the life and writings of Dylan Thomas and we will view its permanent collection as an excellent introduction to our Dylan Thomas rambles.

After lunch we head to Dylan’s birthplace. He was born in the front bedroom in a modest house at 5 Cwmdonkin Drive, Swansea, on 27 October, 1914. He would later describe himself as ‘the Rimbaud of Cwndonkin Drive’ because, like French poet Arthur Rimbaud, he wrote his best poetry in his early years. Dylan’s father was a senior English teacher and gave his son a love of fine writing. It was this home that features in A Child’s Christmas in Wales and it was in what he described as “a small, not very well painted, gateless house” that he wrote about two-thirds of his published work.

Our visit ends with drinks and a poetry reading. Dylan, who once defined an alcoholic as “someone you don’t like who drinks as much as you do”, would certainly have approved of such a combination. His poetry is best when read aloud by someone with a lilting Welsh accent, and we can enjoy some of his finest poems, before we return to the hotel and our Welcome Dinner. (Overnight Swansea) D

Day 2: Saturday 2 May, Swansea – Laugharne – Fernhill Farm – Llansteffan – Swansea

• Ramble 1: Dylan Thomas in Laugharne incl. the Boathouse and the writing shed (7km)
• Endurance: Dylan’s Walk to the northeast is over relatively level ground for most of the way. The route is surfaced as far as Dylan Thomas’s writing shed and Boat House. Further along there are fields and short uphill sections on rough farm tracks. Sir John’s Hill is hillier in nature, with a short flight of steps, grassy tracks, fields to cross and a short section of country lane. Distance: approx. 7km.
• Lunch at Brown’s Hotel, Laugharne
• Fernhill Farm, home of Dylan’s Aunt Annie
• Village of Llansteffan

This morning we drive to Laugharne (pronounced ‘Larn’), gloriously situated by Dylan’s “heron priested shore” and with its “castle brown as owls”. In his brilliant play for voices, Under Milk Wood, he turned Laugharne into Llaregyb (‘Bugger all’ spelled backwards, almost). He moved to what he called “the strangest town in Wales’, with his wife Caitlin, in 1938 and spent his last four years writing in what is now preserved as the Boat House, a blue-painted work shed overlooking the estuary. Here he wrote Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night, here he created the legendary characters of what he called his “Welsh Ulysses” (he was inspired by James Joyce to create Under Milk Wood, the 24-hour story of a town). His Boat House (that “seashaken house on a breakneck of rocks”) is now a wonderful museum.

In Laugharne we will also visit Dylan’s grave at St Martin’s church, and take a special literary ramble that was created in 2014, the centenary of Dylan’s birth. In 1944 Dylan Thomas wrote Poem in October, about his 30th birthday walk by the water, through the wood (Milk Wood) and up to the shoulder of St John’s Hill. It’s a poem about his love of Laugharne and about getting older and what the future might bring. Today the walk is marked with plaques that display quotes from this magical poem (find it on youtube and listen to Richard Burton read it!)

Dylan’s ‘extra’ home in Laugharne was Brown’s Hotel, where he spent too many hours drinking pints and propping up the bar (he even gave out the hotel’s phone number as his own). Our lunch will be enjoyed in this Grade II listed building, where the landlady supplied Dylan with anecdotes for Under Milk Wood and which was the venue for his wake.

In the afternoon we visit Llangain, a small village between Carmarthen and Llansteffan. Dylan’s mother came from this area and it is here visitors can find Fernhill Farm. Dylan’s poem Fern Hill is a glorious evocation of childhood innocence and the inevitable loss of it. The poet described it as a poem “for evening and tears”. The place also inspired a poem about his aunt, After the Funeral (in memory of Ann Jones).

The magnificent beach at Llansteffan, with its castle on the cliff, was another important place for Dylan Thomas, who stated it was “a breeding box” for the Thomas family. Llansteffan features in his short story A Visit to Grandpa’s. He was a poet heavily influenced by the landscapes of his homeland – images of fields and shores, birds and buildings, seeped into his poetry.

The village is also the burial place of Welsh poet Glyn Jones (1905 – 1995). We will return to our hotel in Swansea at the end of the day. (Overnight Swansea) BL

Day 3: Sunday 3 May, Swansea – Gower Peninsula – The Mumbles – Swansea

• Ramble 2: Rhossili Bay, Worm’s Head and Mewslade Bay (5km)
• Endurance: coming soon. Approx. 5km
• Lunch at The King Arthur Hotel, Reynoldston
• Neolithic tomb of Arthur’s Stone
• The Mumbles
• Evening concert by the Morriston Orpheus Choir (to be confirmed)

National Geographic voted the Rhossili coastline as one of the best in the world. Dylan Thomas knew and loved the Gower Peninsula and went camping at Rhossili “in a field above the sweeping five-mile beach”. His story Extraordinary Little Cough is set there. The ‘Helvetia’, what remains of a Viking ship, is still there, and we will walk to the great rock of Worm’s Head promontory, where “at the end of the humped and serpentine body, more gulls than (Dylan) had ever seen before cried over their new dead and the droppings of ages”. He often went there with his friend and fellow poet Vernon Watkins.

In the afternoon we will visit Arthur’s Stone, a large double-chambered Neolithic tomb dating from 4,400 BC. According to legend, King Arthur was travelling in Carmarthenshire when he was troubled by a pebble in his shoe. When he removed it, he threw the stone across Loughor Estuary and by the time it reached its final resting point at Cefyn Bryn, it had become a huge boulder. In whatever manner this 25-ton capstone got to the top of Cefyn Bryn Common, it is considered one of Wales’ most famous prehistoric monuments.

We return to Swansea via the fabulously named Mumbles. Here Dylan was a regular at the Mermaid Hotel and at the Antelope and he thought Mumbles “a rather nice village, despite its name, right on the edge of the sea”. His memories of Mumbles remained important in such writings as Holiday Memory – watching cricket at the pavilion, chatting up local girls, attending local fairs, and “rattling along” on the Mumbles Railway.

Music has always been a vitally important part of Welsh culture and the country is famed for its male voice choirs. Tonight, we hope to enjoy a concert presented by the Morriston Orpheus Choir. (Overnight Swansea) BL

Day 4: Monday 4 May, Swansea – Black Mountains – Abergavenny

• Ramble 3: Henry Vaughan Trail, Talybont-on-Usk (5km)
• Endurance: Considered an easy route with some sections with slightly looser surfaces, slight gradients and gates but no stiles. It is a pleasant stroll through the beautiful countryside surrounded by abundant flora and fauna. 5 km in length with rising to a maximum elevation only 50m above its starting point on the canal bank in the village. Distance: 5km approx.
• Lunch at The Star Inn, Talybont-on-Usk
• Ramble 4: J.R.R. Tolkien Walk around Bwlch (4km)
• Endurance: At Buckland Hill near Bwlch village, short walk through some beautiful woodland, emerging out onto a small moor that, if the weather permits, gives wonderful vistas over the Usk Valley and the mountains beyond where Tolkien was thought to have been inspired. Distance: 4km approx.
• Poetry reading with author Owen Sheers

The Black Mountains spread across southeast Wales, and the Brecon Beacons are in southern Wales – both spectacular regions have long been popular with walkers.

Today we walk first in the Brecon Beacons in the footsteps of Henry Vaughan (1621 – 1695), a Welsh metaphysical poet and doctor who was known as ‘the Swan of Usk’. He was born in the area and English was not his first language, although he chose to write in English. He published many religious poems, and yet also celebrated the landscape of his childhood, and his writings influenced Wordsworth, Tennyson and Siegfried Sassoon. The official ‘Henry Vaughan Walk’  leads us through Talybont-on-Usk and the Vaughan Garden (to see examples of the medicinal herbs he would have used), with interpretation panels along the way and the pretty Afon Caerfanell river to admire.

After enjoying a pub lunch, we move on to the Black Mountains. J.R.R. Tolkien holidayed in this area and much of his depiction of ‘the Shire’ in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings was influenced by the landscapes of this region. He even named the Hobbit settlement of Crickhollow after nearby Crickhowell. Our afternoon walk at Buckland Hill will offer superb views, a small moor, and views of the mountains that inspired Tolkien.

Local author Owen Sheers is a poet, playwright, actor and TV presenter, and he enjoys the distinction of being the first ‘writer in residence’ ever to be appointed by a rugby team. His award-winning novel (and film) Resistance imagines failed D-Day landings and a Nazi takeover of Wales. Owen will join us before dinner to read some of his acclaimed poetry, which conjures up the majestic landscapes of the Black Mountains. His 2016 work The Green Hollow was a heartbreaking tribute to the victims of the Aberfan disaster. (Overnight Abergavenny) BL

Day 5: Tuesday 5 May, Abergavenny – Llanthony – Hay-on-Wye – Abergavenny

• Ramble 5: Llanthony Priory Walk (8km)
• Endurance: description coming soon. Distance: 8km approx.
• Llanthony Priory, Vale of Ewyas
• St Mary’s Chapel, Capel-y-Ffin
• Scenic drive via the Gospel Pass
• Village of Hay-on-Wye, the Town of Books
• Pre-dinner talk on Wordsworth and Coleridge in the Wye Valley

The partly-ruined former Augustinian Llanthony Priory lies in the secluded Vale of Ewyas in the Black Mountains. It was once one of the great religious institutions of Wales, but it decayed after the dissolution of the monasteries. In 1807 the estate was bought by Victorian poet Walter Savage Landor (best remembered today for his poem Rose Aylmer), who began building a house there. Wishing to be a model country squire, he improved the roads and even imported sheep from Spain, but his home was never finished. However, there is still an avenue of trees known as ‘Landor’s Larches’. Landor was the model for the litigious Boythorn in Dickens’ Bleak House.

Later, one of Llanthony’s nearby buildings was lived in by artist and important type-face designer Eric Gill. We will eat a picnic lunch in the ruins.

Hay-on-Wye, right on the border of England and Wales, is famed as a ‘Book Town’. Since 1988 it has hosted the Hay Literary Festival, which attracts top writers from around the world. It was also a town well known to diarist Francis Kilvert, who recorded his outings there in Kilvert’s Diary. There will be time to browse some of the many bookshops in Hay before we transfer back to Abergavenny and a pre-dinner talk on Wordsworth and Coleridge in the Wye Valley. (Overnight Abergavenny) BL

Day 6: Wednesday 6 May, Abergavenny – Tintern – Monmouth – Symonds Yat – Abergavenny

• Tintern Abbey
• Time at leisure in Monmouth
• Ramble 6: Monmouth to Symonds Yat along the Wye River (9.5km)
• Endurance: description coming soon. Distance: 9.5km approx.
• Afternoon tea at The Royal Lodge, Symonds Yat

Tintern Abbey, on the banks of the Wye, was founded by the Cistercians in 1131 and was a hugely important religious house. Today it is a ruin, but an incredibly picturesque one. It was painted by Turner, visited by Willian Gilpin, Robert Southey, Coleridge and, most importantly, by Wordsworth in 1798. His poem Lines Composed a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey is a founding work of Romantic poetry. We will see the “steep and lofty cliffs’ which he praises, and his “sylvan Wye” and have time to explore the ruins and learn about the way monks once lived in this religious community.

The market town of Monmouth is situated where the Wye joins the River Monnow. King Henry V was born in its castle and the gated stone bridge is a lovely structure. Writer Geoffrey of Monmouth who wrote History of the Kings of Britain is believed to be from the town. It was his book which introduced the story of King Arthur to the world, as romantic invention rather than history. There will be time at leisure and for lunch in this charming town.

Our next Ramble tales us along the riverbank of the Wye, through an area designated as being of Outstanding Natural Beauty. En route, we will see 12th century St Peter’s Church, ancient salmon fishing sites, a Roman hill fort, ruins of ironworks and King Arthur’s Caves where evidence has been found of man’s presence going back 12,000 years.

Afternoon tea will be at Symonds Yat, a beautiful village just across the border in Herefordshire. Bones of mammoths and sabre-toothed tigers have been found in nearby caves, and Symonds Yat Rock offers spectacular views along the Wye Valley (both Rock and village have been popular film locations in recent years). (Overnight Abergavenny) BL

Day 7: Thursday 7 May, Abergavenny – Tintern – Chepstow – Abergavenny

• Ramble 7: Tintern Abbey to Chepstow in the Wye Valley (9.5km)
• Endurance: description coming soon. Distance: 9.5km approx.
• Chesptow Museum: curator-led tour
• Time at leisure in Chepstow
• Farewell Dinner

This morning we drive to Chepstow in Monmouthshire with its magnificent castle (often cited as the oldest stone castle in Britain). Travel writer William Gilpin visited when he was forming his ideas on the ‘picturesque’. Our day’s Ramble takes us to see such picturesque sites as The Grotto, Druid’s Temple and Lover’s Leap, all overlooking the beautiful River Wye. It is such scenes that inspired Wordsworth to write:

“Therefore am I still
A lover of the meadows and the woods,
And mountains; and of all that we behold
From this green earth; of all the mighty world.”

After lunch we visit Chepstow Museum, where curator Anne Rainsbury will explain the past of this fascinating town, where wine and salmon were traded and ships were built. The museum’s collection of 18th and 19th century paintings shows how often the gorgeous scenery attracted notable artists.

We return to Abergavenny for our Farewell Dinner of the tour. (Overnight Abergavenny) BD

Day 8: Friday 8 May, Abergavenny – Monmouth – Bristol