North Wales Pilgrims' Way - Stage 5 (Eglwysbach to Llanfairfechan)

I'm waiting!

So the forecast was for a dry bright morning. As we drove along the A55 the rain intensified, our windscreen wipers flashing across the window at top speed. We revised the day's plan, from Eglwysbach I would run as far as Rowen and have a rain check there! At least we would have crossed the Afon Conwy which would feel like a significant achievement. Skip didn't seem worried one way or the other as we set off down a watery track spotting a large piece of slate perched on some rocks with an interesting handrail. What could this have been? A bus stop? On our return to Eglwysbach sometime this summer - to go and have a pint in the Bee Inn of course - we must ask if any of the locals know what this was for. We slogged onwards towards Rowen, the rain showing no sign of abating.

But there's no one here!

The sky seemed a little less grey by now and descending into Rowen village things looked slightly more positive. At the rendezvous with our wonderful driver Vicky, we decided to press on. Of course half a mile out of the village the heavens reopened, there was nothing to it but to crack on upwards onto the hills. At the top of a particularly steep climb (about 200m in 1.5K) we came across the remarkable ancient church of St Celynnin. Apart from one property a few hundred yards away there's not much else around here as far as human habitation goes so there's no regular worship taking place. However the church is still in use, what's more a female priest was ordained here fairly recently by the Bishop of Bangor. Apparently Bangor Cathedral was unavailable due to COVID restrictions so Bishop and novitiate together with one or two guests hiked up the mountain to perform the relevant ceremony. I nipped inside to say a prayer and sign the visitor book on behalf of Skip and myself and returned outside to find that the rain had disappeared!

Wind and rain outside - peace and quiet inside.

Where are they all going?

We started to make good headway across the tops, I knew some of these tracks from the various fell races that take place over these hills. The Tal y Fan race from Rowen and the Penmaenmawr Fell Race in particular are known for runners misdirecting themselves, in the low mists that are common up here it's easy to go wrong and I have been slightly guilty of this myself in the past. With map and compass at the ready I was well prepared - but the air was clear, the sky was blue by now and we found our way. The photo is evidence of the criss crossing pathways up here, several of which converge near the Penmaenmawr Stone Circle one of many prehistoric ceremonial and burial sites which litter the hillside. (Why did so many folk live up here at that time? Perhaps it was warmer back then!) So on this way-marker post we can see advertised the North Wales Pilgrims' Way, the North Wales Way, a Conwy Trail and the Wales Coastal Path, although we are well away from the coast right here. I won't ask any more questions.

Our day's ramble finished with a steep descent to the Nant y Coed Nature Reserve at Llanfairfechan. Closed at the moment due to fallen trees blocking access it nevertheless looks a pretty spot and has been appreciated by visitors for over a century with its waterfalls and stepping stones and varied wildlife. It's known in particular for its population of sessile oak trees. This are just like regular oaks but the acorns are not on stalks, rather they are attached directly to twigs - this picture shows how it's done (it's not my photo, wrong time of year!) At the entrance to the nature reserve was an informative signboard in Welsh and English, I was puzzled however by the comment that overhead "you may hear the mewing of the vulture-like buzzard"! I suppose that this means that most of today's visitors are more familiar with vultures rather than buzzards - too much TV perhaps?