Offa's Dyke

21-Oct-97 Route Diagram Acorn

Day 8

Knighton - Dolley Green - Ditchyeld - Rushock - Kington

Route section 13.5 miles

Business over at the Post Office close to the Clock Tower, we set off at 09:24, our time not quite agreeing with Knighton's!

Under the arch of the Knighton Hotel and through its car park we were climbing up the small road to Ffrydd Terrace.

It was a much brighter day than yesterday but still quite windy; the sun was struggling to break through.

After the tarmac section we were making our way between buildings to find the stile leading to the path towards the woods. We looked back over the town towards Panpunton Hill where we'd stopped for a break yesterday afternoon. It was particularly dry in the deciduous woodland and we noticed that we were already beginning to dry out and our colour was returning.

The path kept to the western boundary of Knighton Golf Club on Ffryth Hill before leading to a stile which emerged onto the grassy dyke itself. Over the dyke there were long views westwards and we now regret using this old film.

There were wonderful southerly views now that we were walking downhill with the hedge on our left which "produced" long shadows from the bright, low sun. To our right the first few fields we passed mainly contained herds of cattle.

Arriving at the B4355 again we paused to look at the 19th Century "Offa's Stone" at the roadside which states that the Dyke was built in 757 AD which was the first year of Offa's reign. "Could the dyke have even been conceived at that time, let alone executed?" asks author Mark Richards in his Through WELSH BORDER COUNTRY.

Crossing the road we read the display board about the Dyke and then picked our way carefully through an area of dense gorse. The sun was shining quite well now but it was still blustery but the gorse and trees afforded shelter so we stopped here for refreshment - always good to put the rucsac down!

In the next field there is a monument to the left of the OD Path to the memory of Sir Richard Green Price (local MP) who brought railways to Radnorshire. The monument stands on the lower eastern slope of Hengwm Hill and overlooks the village of Norton in which he lived.

Rising towards the summit of Hawthorn Hill, we walked very carefully as the path was "strewn" with rabbit holes although there were fine views all around including silhouettes on the skyline.
We regret the quality of these black/white pictures;
the roll of film was well passed its sell-by date!

Pleased to have put a new roll of film into the camera and possible one which would do more justice to the day's now almost perfect weather, walking along this part of the route was wonderful; it afforded superb views over the patchwork of fields towards the Black Mountains.

The notes read "... over stile and SHARP R to pass dewpond and old Dutch barn." What a great structure - its remaining sheets of corrugated iron hanging and flapping noisily in the wind. We dropped down from the path into the field for the photo and returned to the right into the field corner; the OD Path travels along the fence behind the barn.


Walking along the top of this ridge was some of the best walking of the day if not of the whole walk! All the way towards Gilfach Hill, the ground's undulations combined with shadows to provide some marvellous land profiles. We spotted Lorna and Reg walking in our direction from a long way off. When we met they said that they were staying in the village of Whitton on the B4356 just below the ridge and were out on a circular walk. They live in Keynsham, Nr Bristol. Coming off the ridge, we dropped down into Dolley Green and after crossing the road, we made our across the footbridge over the River Lugg and then two fields.

On a farm track we met Anna and Konrad with their Uncle Steve. They were walking part of the OD Path during their half-term holiday. They said that they were enjoying their walking but Konrad was reported as saying that the flat bits were hard on the feet, the down bits hurt his knees and the ups were just tiring but apart from that, the food was good! We know the feeling.

Happy New Year, Anna!

We carried on - starting a long climb on top of the now high dyke until it weakened towards the top of the hill. Here at 13:00 we stopped and enjoyed both lunch and the superb view, towards the west-south-west and Cascob, for twenty minutes.

Gradually ascending towards the summit of Hilltop Plantation, we stopped to look at a fairly young calf on Pen Offa Farm. After passing over the top of the hill and starting the descent on quite a narrow woodland

path, we met a group of four from Sussex on a walking tour from MARCHES WALKS.


It was dark in the woodland descending south-westwards in the direction of Evenjobb; once out of the wood the path continued to descend gradually on a tree/hedge lined narrow dyke (known locally as "Barland Bank") with open field on either side towards the road but now to the south-east. Once over the road, a left and right turn brought us to a gap in the hedge where one could look back and see the line of Barland Bank. We were now on a wide vehicle-width track with woods and the Burfa Hill Fort above on the left.

After passing several buildings including farm buildings, we arrived at the medieval Old Burfa Farmhouse which had been restored; it had a pleasant arrangement of lines/shapes centrally beneath its tall main chimney.

Rounding the southern edge of Burfa Woods, we came to Ditchyeld Bridge on the B4362 where a new road bridge has been built alongside the 17th Century one - now a footbridge.

Turning right over the bridge the road was winding and quite narrow in places with blind corners as it made its Ľ mile way to Lower Harpton. Once passed the farm buildings we had one more cottage to pass before woodland. Walking cautiously in front of this cottage (warning notice BEWARE OF DOG) and the sheds with neat

arrangements of farming implements we met THE DOG which needed some restraint as we conversed with its owner albeit with some difficulty as he explained that he was deaf with continual noises in his ears.

There was a superb late afternoon view from the side of Herrock Hill down towards the Hindwell Valley before all views were contained by the western end of Knill Garraway Woodland. The path up onto Rushock Hill was steep and channelled amongst the bright autumnal bracken which had overtaken the hillsides; many groups of sheep kept us company - at a discreet distance.


The views to the front and rear as we climbed eastwards onto Rushock Hill were very different; on the summit at 15:55 we contoured round the earthwork anti-clockwise and descending towards the south-east, before swinging southwards, the views were long and glorious. It was dropping down this part of Rushock Hill that we came across the Mortimor Trail waymark; the route runs from Kington to Titley and here the path headed towards Titley.

Descending over fields with the sun in our eyes we kept too near the field boundary on our left and ended up thirty metres or so too far to the left of the necessary stile

unfortunately at the head of a "convenient" valley near The Bower Farm. We travelled a short distance down this track until realising the mistake, we returned to the gate at the top and followed the left boundary uphill untill we came to the OD Path stile. In our defence, the sun was in front of us and there was no white at all on the OD acorn! Poor excuses really.

The final descent overlooking Kington, after the golf course on Bradnor Hill, was much enjoyed with the sun on our right casting extremely lengthy shadows.

At the end of the field, through a kissing gate, along an enclosed path and we were on the busy Kington by-pass. After crossing this road and a footbridge, we were in a narrow road with houses on our right with lovely gardens; there was also a stream with ducks on it.

We met Kathleen going home from her work as a seamstress and she showed us the way into the town square where we found our lodging at exactly 17:00. The day had possibly been the best day's walking so far.

During the evening we learned of KC3 - a community IT project which is a unique (as far as they know) concept. It's a combination of public and private enterprise. It is an experiment.

The question posed by the experiment is what happens when you invest a large amount of state of the art technology in a small declining rural town.

Needs checking for errors! If you find any, please tell us!

Walk Statistics
Day	Hr	Min	Mins	Miles	Ascent	Conversations	Photographs	Mins per mile	mph
8	7	36	456	13.5	2150'	5	60	33.8	1.78

B & B Details

G & B Johnston, Swan Hotel, Church Street, Kington, HR5 3AZ
Tel: 01544 230510

Warm welcome; hot drink facilities in room.

B & B 17.50

Meal : Crispy deep-fried vegetables with brown bread & butter, vegetable lasagne & salad, apple pie/ice cream, coffee.
Food very good & superb value for money. 6.50

Drink : 2pts of local brew 2.60

Packed Lunch/flask of coffee 2.50

TOTAL Ł29.10

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