myguideBritain Blog

Welsh Water

January 18th, 2008

It was a foul day here in Wales when Juliana and I set off to mid Wales to visit one of the hotels that we use on our itineraries - The Lake Vyrnwy hotel in Powys, Mid Wales that has a great location overlooking the lake.

On the way we stopped off for morning coffee at Llangoed Hall, a country House hotel owned by Sir Bernard Ashley, widower of Laura Ashley. It was either that or The Little Chef in Builth Wells. No competition. Sorry Little Chef. There’s no reception desk at Llangoed Hall, so you really do feel that you’re walking into your very (very) rich uncle’s house. We wandered into the drawing room that looked out over the croquet lawn towards the farmland beyond, introduced ourselves to one of the staff, and ordered a coffee. I could have easily spent the rest of the day being waited on hand and foot reading the latest Grisham novel, but Lake Vyrnwy beckoned so off we set.

The rain didn’t stop on the journey north through the undulating Welsh hills giving them a mystical appeal as we headed towards Lake Vyrnwy and the hotel of the same name that sits overlooking this lake. This area of mid Wales if sparsely populated with no large towns so a great area for driving, where you can easily venture off the beaten track onto one of the side roads to find some amazing spots. No need for sat nav - just follow your nose.

Lake Vyrnwy is man-made and has major political significance in Wales as it was the first valley to be flooded to supply water for the industrial towns of England. The recipients of the water were (and still are) Liverpool and coincidentally on the day we visited, the dam was celebrating 111 years to the day since its taps (if that’s the right technical term) were closed to allow the water to start building and drowning the valley behind. As part of the project the inhabitants of the son to be flooded village of Llanwddyn were moved lock, stock and barrel to a newly built village a few miles below the dam. The iconic tower in the picture is part of the dam’s workings.

The hotel has an enviable position overlooking the lake and is a great base for exploring mid Wales. Anthony Rosser, General Manager had kindly invited us to lunch and as I sat there discussing Spa and Activity packages I could not help thinking that I was a very lucky fellow indeed to make a living doing this. The view over the lake from the hotel was stunning even though the weather was wet. Surprisingly there were still quite a few Gore-tex clad ramblers around. I guess that when you’ve got the right clothes there’s no such thing as bad weather.

This is a great hotel that make you feel immediately comfortable and at home - the sort of place in which to spend a few days to recharge one’s batteries. They have a fabulous newly opened spa with some amazing treatments and can offer a good range of outdoor activities ranging from walking tours to clay pigeon shooting. With enough dollars in your pocket they would also arrange some pheasant shooting for you. I can imagine that the shooting party made up of wealthy industrialists that were staying at the hotel when we visted would keep the hotel in pheasant meat for weeks to come as well as paying a handsome bill for the privelege

So two great hotels in one day that I would no doubt be seeing again in 2008 (with wife in tow of course). So it was that I set off on the journey home in a particularly good mood. In fact it was one of those “wonder were that road leads to” moods that meant, of course, that I got lost twice and reached home about an hour and a half later than expected. However on the up side I found myself in the small town of Montgomery, on the Wales England border, for the first time. With its bow windowed Georgian houses and cobbled pavements and dominated by a ruined 13^th century castle it was certainly worth getting lost for. If I’d had Sat Nav I never would have seen it. Thanks nose!

Entry Filed under: Activity, All of Britain, Countryside, Sightseeing, Spa, Sport, Wales