Kilvay Hill, Swansea

In all the time I lived in Swansea I had never been up Kilvay Hill.  Its on the eastern outskirts of the city and the feature that causes the exit road to hug the coast line.

We approached it by parking in Port Tennant and taking one of the many footpaths that seen to go up the hill on the seaward southern side of the hill keeping just below the farmland for most of the way up. 

A dreary view over Swansea with only the Ferris wheel adding any brightness

At the top there is now the inevitable mast compound and an old concrete wind shelter.  The trig point that used to be up here has now gone but we were able to find the old base it used to stand on.

On top of where the trig point used to stand

The previous evening my friend had suggested we go down to Langland Bay for some Laverbread, an old Swansea delicacy made from seaweed.  I was expecting to go to a shop to buy some and was taken aback when we suddenly headed for the beach.  He meant that we were going to collect the laver seaweed from the beach and make our own laverbread.  This involved washing it and then putting it in the bottom of the oven overnight before frying it in bacon fact in the morning and adding oats. 

Washing the laver seaweed before cooking

Port Talbot Marilyns

Time for a bit of a walk after the excesses of Christmas.  Also time to try to complete the Marilyns on Section 32C.  I parked in the side streets of Aberavon and walked up the Avon Afan to Cwmafan watching the cormorants on the way.

Cormorant fishing in Avon Afan

After negotiating the streets of Cwmafan I was onto the narrow lanes tat led me up onto Foel Fynyddau which I approached for the last half mile along a footpath from the west.  There were no views from the top as the mist was down. I could hardly see the nearby masts. All I could hear was the occasional voice in the distance but I didn't see anyone.  The trig point looked in good condition.

The misty top of Foel Fynyddau

Back on the lanes, I headed south and then along footpaths and up to Mynydd Dinas, the hill that overlooks Port Talbot.

Abandoned farm vehicles adding to the bleakness of the day.

In all the years of driving past Port Talbot I have never been up here and neither have most people by the looks of it.  Although there are footpaths leading up the hill the way to the actual trig point and summit is far lass clear and not easy to find.  Again the trig point looks in good condition.

Trig Point on top of Mynydd Dinas

There is a steep decent back down to Port Talbot that needed care in today's damp conditions with snow left over from the pre-Christmas falls. once below the cloud level I could see the town of Port Talbot looking gray and dreary, reminding me of that Max Boyce line:  Is that the sun or the moon?  I don't know I'm, from Port Talbot.

A dreary view over Port Talbot steel works.

Section 32C of the Marilyns now completed.