Wales has such a breath of natural beauty it can be a bit overwhelming to pick somewhere to stop for the day. One place I’d highly recommend if you’re looking for an outdoor adventure either by foot, bike, or with a four legged companion, is Bwlch Nant Yr Arian (postcode SY23 3AB).
Bwlch Nant Yr Arian is just outside Aberystwyth, mid Wales. On a clear day you can even see Cardigan Bay and the Cambrian Mountains. The site is managed by Natural Resources Wales and contains a visitor centre with a shop and café, there are a few walking trails, mountain biking trails, running trails, play areas for the little ones, and best of all, daily red kite feeding with a viewing area.
There is plenty of parking at Bwlch Nant Yr Arian, you can park up all day for £5 and enjoy all the features the place has to offer.
Ridgetop Trail
After arriving at Bwlch Nant Yr Arian I grabbed a bite to eat and a drink from the café and headed along the Ridgetop Trail. It’s a circular 2.8 miles from start to finish containing a varied trail, from dense forest to vast open spaces with views over the valley.
I took my springer spaniel with me, and she loved every minute of it. The route was a moderate grade, ideal for intermediate walkers, all very easy to navigate as there are signposts the whole way along. The path is well maintained, I even saw two tree surgeons maintaining the forest whilst on my walk.
I decided to follow the route up the ridge line to begin with, there is a giant chair made of wood you can climb up into, to take in the stunning scenery. It was pretty windy the day I went, but I had my hat on and the dog didn’t seem to mind either. There’s lots of view points all the way along the top, then the path dipped into an enchanting forest carpeted in green moss and tiny pools of water. Such a majestic and quiet place to hear yourself think. The path meandered back into the open along the edge of a valley, eventually taking me back to the carpark where I began. I only saw a handful of people on my walk, so if you like a quiet walk, this is perfect.
Barcud Trail
After my walk over the Ridgetop Trail, I wondered over to the Barcud Trail which took me around the lake overlooked by the visitor centre. “Barcud Coch” means red kite in Welsh. It’s a very easy short walk, suitable for most people and there’s so much wildlife on the walk too.
There is a bird hide nestled into the trees on one side of the lake, and a viewing area on the opposite. At 2pm (GMT) and 3pm (BST) the red kite birds are fed daily, so after my walk I was in the perfect spot to catch a glimpse of the birds gliding into action.
Red kite feeding
I’ve never seen to many red kite in one space before, it was spectacular to witness. It’s reported that there could be up to 150 red kite per feed. I got my camera out and attempted to get some shots of the birds flying and feeding, but honestly, they were a quite quick for me to capture.
Red kite can have a wing span of up to 195cm, they have a beautiful reddish-brown body, angled wings and a forked tail. Their speed and manoeuvrability in the air is very impressive.
Worth the visit
We visited Bwlch Nant yr Arian in the middle of Winter and it was absolutely worth it, I can only imagine how pretty it will look in the Spring, Summer and Autumn too. If you’d like to visit you can find all the details on the Natural Resources Wales website.
Happy adventures!