Parking Restrictions

Powys County Council have come up with a scheme to encourage social distancing while out shopping by closing off streets to traffic. This is something that is happening all over the country - but I have friends in Rugby who report that the scheme there was revoked in a week because there were so many complaints.
There are complaints in Hay, too. The PCC want to close off Castle Street, Lion Street and the Memorial Square Car Park between 11am and 4pm every day, and restrict access to Backfold. Blue badge holders will not be affected by the restrictions. The pavements in Hay are narrow, so the idea is that pedestrians can spread out across the street (which happens anyway).
Ironically, the County Council have also launched a scheme to encourage people to shop locally.
Business owners in all these areas say they have not been consulted on the changes, which will directly affect their businesses, which are already struggling during the lockdown. Hay Council has been trying to find alternatives to the PCC scheme, but have been given very little time to do it. The Chamber of Commerce appears to be supporting the County Council scheme.
The person to contact at Powys County Council is vincent.goodwin@powys.gov.uk

Penywyrlod Neolithic Long Barrow

I went back to the hills above Llanigon to go further back in time than the historic farmhouse.
This time, I went by the lanes to Llanigon and turned up by the Old Forge Garage to go up the hill. It wasn't as steep as the footpaths across Hay Common, but I was still pretty sweaty when I got to the stile, so I paused for refreshment:

I'd been looking up details about the long barrow on the Modern Antiquarian website, and some of the people commenting there said that the barrow was very close to the stile. I knew that wasn't right, because I had a vague memory of finding the site years before, so I set off up the hill and followed a track across a couple of fields.
I was starting to wonder if I'd gone too far when I went through the next gate into a field where a flock of sheep were sheltering from the sun in the shade of a line of hawthorn trees. I gave them a wide berth as I climbed up the hill, so as not to disturb them - and at the top, there it was!

The ground around it is pretty disturbed, so it's hard to see the limits of the original barrow that would have covered the burial chamber. According to the plans made during the Woolhope Society dig of 1920 - 21, the chamber was towards one end of the mound. They didn't find much in the way of artefacts, but the methodology of the dig was criticised, and later other archaeologists came to look over the spoil heap of the original excavation, where they found some flint, fragments of Beaker pottery, a Roman coin and some blue beads from what is believed to be a 6th century AD Saxon burial - which shows that the mound was visible and there was some memory of it as a place to bury the dead up to historic times. [Edited to add: I was using the book Prehistoric Sites of Breconshire by George Children and George Nash, from Logaston Press].
The original barrow was built during the Neolithic period, so roughly 5,000 years ago. The views from the barrow are very good, up the Wye and Llynfi valleys.
I decided to go on just as far as the next stile, close by - and beyond the stile was a lane, which must have been where the Modern Antiquarian visitors arrived at the site. I walked down the lane back towards Hay. On the way, I noticed several Red Admiral and Comma butterflies, and at one point I heard a pretty little bird singing from a nearby tree. When I looked it up back home, it turned out to be a male Stonechat, possibly the first one I've ever seen in real life!

This is a stock picture - the one I saw was too far up the tree for my camera to get more than a distant dot.

Eugene Fisk's Grave

I walked over to Clyro the other day to see if I could find Eugene Fisk's grave, as I'd heard that the new gravestone had been erected. I especially liked the inscription around the edge of the stone "Art is the Manifestation of the Intangible".

Bronllys Well Being Park Housing Feasibility Study

The Bronllys Well Being Park held their AGM recently - I think they did it on Zoom - and part of the AGM was a long and detailed document on the need for affordable housing and what the Well Being Park could do about it.
They identified a need for homes for key workers, and for older people. The grounds of Bronllys Hospital could provide the land to build up to 100 houses, over several years, which would include sheltered accommodation for older people with live in carers.
The proposal for this is a 25 unit new build, rather than re-purposing existing buildings within the Hospital complex. These would be a mix of 2, 3 and 4 bedroom flats and houses. They would be family homes for families with members who need to be cared for, with a shared kitchen, dining room, play area, lounge, library, workshop and laundrette, with a possibility of specialist bathing facilities and something they call a Namaste room. The complex would be fully accessible and also adapted for people with dementia. It would also include a garden for growing vegetables and fruit.
They also want to renovate the chapel, which is Grade II listed, and which could be used as an arts centre, as well as the home of a community local radio station.
One idea for the building of new homes is Co-housing, which is an idea from Scandinavia where residents collaborate to design and manage the community, with some shared facilities between the homes.
A survey of local people showed that there was a demand for two bedroomed houses, and that a main reason for moving away from the Talgarth/Bronllys area was for better access to public transport and shopping.
The full 60 page report can be seen at the Bronllys Well Being Park website, www.bronllyswellbeingpark.org

Thursday Market

A bright, sunny day for the return of the Thursday Market. Most of the regular stalls were there, with volunteers holding bamboo canes to show everyone how far apart 2m is, and plenty of signs reminding people about social distancing. One stall had a roll of cling film stretched across the front to keep people back from the table, and other stalls were collecting money in little pots on sticks, or asking customers to put their cash in pots on the table rather than handing it over.
Some of the regular stall holders, who had made arrangements to sell from different locations around Hay over the past few months, are still selling from those locations rather than a market stall - so Kate with her pastries is round on Lion Street, selling out of the workshop near the Black Lion, for instance.
One stall I hadn't seen before was Oh Pioneer, selling beautiful hand-carved wooden spoons. Their flyer says that Stephen Lewis, the carver, only uses ethically sourced wood, from pruned wood or fallen branches. He has a website at www.ohpioneer.co.uk

I also happened to pass the chip shop the other day, and they are re-opening on 2nd July.

Scarlet Tiger Moth

This is a stock picture, but I've seen one of these in the garden and fluttering against my front window over the last few days. I don't think I've ever seen one locally before.
Also, I saw a black hairy caterpillar on the Warren the other day, and when I looked it up it seems to be of a Peacock butterfly.

Lockdown Loosens Further

More re-openings include the tennis courts on Brecon Road - but enter by the back gate because the children's playground is still closed.
Bartrums will be opening on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 9am to 4pm.
I saw Tim Pugh washing down the front of his shop on the Pavement (he showed me pictures on his phone of orchids he'd seen while out walking), so they're re-opening too.
The Cutting Room hairdressers will be opening from July 13th, but only for their existing clients to start with.

And here's the sanitiser station outside Addymans.

Marian Shrine

While St Mary's Church has been closed, this little shrine has been set up on one of the tombs:

More Re-opening

More shops are cautiously re-opening this week, or preparing to re-open soon.
They include Number Two and Flow among the clothes shops.
The antique shop opposite Kilvert's will be opening on Fridays and Saturdays.
I also saw Kooko's door open, by the British Legion Club, so they're starting to sort something out, and the chap at the Lion Street Art Gallery was washing his windowsills. Thru the Lens gallery is also planning to re-open.
Woodland Davies solicitor's office will be opening to customers on 1st July.
Work is going on at what used to be half of Rose's bookshop near the Clock Tower - I don't know what is planned for that space yet.
Angie's Takeaway opened without me noticing - during lockdown there were often people sitting out along the pavement outside, chatting across the road to each other, so I think she started off just doing coffees for friends.

Black Lives Matter in Hay

The first people arrived at the Clock Tower at around 11.30am to decorate the railings round the Clock with placards.
By mid-day, there were people gathered all around the Clock Tower, all the way up the Pavement and halfway back up Lion Street. Most of them had placards, most of them were wearing masks. There was a wide variety of slogans - "Black Lives Matter" and "I can't breathe" being the most common, with black clenched fists. Some were printed out, but most were hand written on pieces of cardboard.
There were families with small children, and people with dogs.
A couple of police officers stood at the back of the crowd in Lion Street, and I saw them later walking along Broad Street.

This sign, and poem, was in the Poetry Bookshop window.
I saw a couple of ladies from the Stitch and Bitch group, one of whom was handing out her home-sewn masks in a variety of gorgeous fabrics, and there were lots of familiar faces of friends and neighbours in the crowd. Emanation Smith took the photo of me that is now at the top of the blog.

As the Clock chimed noon, everyone went down on one knee and stayed there, in silence, for eight minutes and 46 seconds - the time it took George Floyd to die with the officer's knee on his neck.
Then everyone stood, still in silence, and did the clenched fist salute - and at the end, there was a round of applause.
A few people were moving through the crowd taking pictures, including one young man with a Press lanyard from Falmouth University.
There's something quite powerful about so many people standing and kneeling in silence for so long, and it was impressive to see so many people turn out for the protest in a small place like Hay.

This picture is by Kesri Smolas, which she shared to the event page on Facebook - because the picture I took was rubbish.

More Shops Re-opening

On Monday, 22nd June, the Sandwich Cellar in Backfold will be re-opening. They missed their tenth anniversary of running the café during lockdown, so they will be having a little celebration as they re-open instead.

Flow on Castle Street will also be re-opening, with some restrictions, on Monday.

The Cinema Bookshop will be re-opening at the beginning of July, again with new social distancing restrictions.

Scouts' Garden Party

The local Scouts have decided to hold a Garden Party, at the Walled Garden on Belmont Road.
It will be on Saturday 4th July, from 10am to 4pm.
There will be plants for sale, willow garden structures, and chainsaw carvings.
They will be preferring card payments, and will be adhering to social distancing measures.

Black Lives Matter in Hay, Hereford and Brecon

Peaceful protests against racism under the banner of Black Lives Matter have been taking place all over the world in the last couple of weeks. On Saturday 20th June, the first BLM peaceful protest will take place in Hay. The idea is for people to gather (appropriately socially distanced) at the Clock Tower in time for noon, when everyone will kneel for eight minutes and 46 seconds - the time it took for George Floyd to die when a police officer knelt on his neck, which was the incident that led to the world-wide protests.
The organisers are asking people to bring placards and banners, and to wear masks (because we are still in the middle of a pandemic).

There will be a similar protest meeting in Hereford at the same time.

Meanwhile in Brecon, a Black Lives Matter protest was disrupted by men who stood round the war memorial (did they think the protesters were going to pull it down?). Later that evening, some signs that the protesters had left on display in the middle of Brecon were pulled down, including a banner with a poem about slavery and racism by the black poet Marvin Thompson.
I hadn't heard of Marvin Thompson before, but it seems that he was born in London, has Jamaican ancestry, and now lives in South Wales. His poems have appeared in several literary journals, and he wrote this one specially for the people of Brecon.

There has also been a BLM demonstration in Knighton, as reported in the Brecon and Radnor Express, which was intended to celebrate difference and diversity in the local community, as well as opposing the government's "hostile environment" for refugees.

Local Businesses (and other things) Re-Opening

Brook Street Pottery is open online at the moment on www.brookstreetpottery.co.uk

Hay Market is planning to open, for food stalls, on Thursday 25th June.

The chip shop on Broad Street is planning to re-open at the beginning of July.

Fishing on the Warren opened yesterday, for coarse fishing.

And Hereford Council have opened their public toilets at Gaol Street car park and Union Street.

Walk to Penywrlod

It's been a long time since I walked up in the Llanigon area, so last week I took my map and headed off in that direction. I started off on the path by the Cemetery, going up the little dingle over the bridges to Hay Common. There are wonderful views along the Wye Valley from up there.
At the top of Hay Common is a house called Pen-y-Common, and the path runs round the edge of their garden. Carrying on up the hill (which is really quite steep) there's a stile from the field to a track, which leads over the brow of the hill and down to Penywyrlod farmhouse, with a path leading off it up to the long cairn. By this time the scenery had changed - Long Wood was to one side of me, and Hay Bluff seemed quite close above me - though I wasn't going to walk that far. It felt a lot further from Hay than it actually is.
I didn't see a soul the whole way, apart from a car coming down the track towards Hay.

The day was quite overcast, so my photo is quite dark. There was a late medieval hall there, followed by the farmhouse which was built between the 15th and 17th centuries, with additions built in the 18th and 19th centuries. The most famous resident was William Watkins, a Parliamentary officer in the Civil War, who probably built the original farmhouse that replaced the hall. He held Puritan meetings in the farmhouse, and later local Non-conformists worshipped at a specially built Meeting House (now part of the holiday cottages). The "Llanigon church" was even mentioned in the House of Commons in 1646, in a sermon by Walter Cradoc, who said that "the Gospel has run over the mountains between Breconshire and Monmouthshire as the fire in the thatch."
The main focus of Non-conformist worship in the area was the even more remote Olchon Valley, and the oldest Non-conformist chapel in Wales was nearby at Maesyronen near Glasbury. After the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, though, these meetings became illegal, and people could be fined for not attending the Church of England services. The local congregations met in secret until the Act of Toleration in 1688, which allowed them freedom of worship.
In 2002 there was a fire which pretty much destroyed the house. It has now been rebuilt, with a plaque dated 2005, and it was done with a lot of the original stone. It was a Grade II* listed building before the fire.
Across the lane from the house is a row of cottages which can be rented for holidays by groups of between eight and seventeen people, though of course it's closed at the moment. These were originally the stables and the meeting house.

I came back to Hay by the lanes to Llanigon and then into Hay on the Brecon Road.
I have plans to go back to visit the Long Cairn, and I think I'll head out on the lanes and come back over the hills for that one.

Buses to Hereford - the Return of the T14

From today, there is a new T14 timetable between Brecon and Hereford, so it's finally possible to get to Hereford on the bus again!
The first bus is from Brecon at 6.25am, arriving in Hay at 7.24am and Hereford at 8.25am.
Then there's a bus that starts from Hay at 10.40am and reaches Hereford at 11.41am.
Another bus starts from Brecon at 12.30pm and terminates at Hay at 13.07pm.
And the final bus of the day in that direction is at 14.45pm from Brecon, arriving in Hay at 15.24pm and Hereford at 16.25pm.

The first bus from Hereford is at 9.30am, terminating in Hay at 10.34am (so it then turns round and goes back to Hereford).
Then there's a bus at 13.10pm from Hay, reaching Brecon at 13.51pm (so that's the bus from Brecon turning round and going back).
At 14.16pm, the next bus from Hereford sets off, reaching Hay at 15.25pm and Brecon at 16.06pm.
The final bus is from Hereford at 16.30pm, reaching Hay at 17.34pm and Brecon at 18.15pm.

The buses will run Mondays to Saturdays.

Housing Development Site

This is where the new houses are going to be built, if the planning application is approved.

More Houses Near the Co-op

I've been told about a new planning application just opposite the Co-op and Huws Gray builders' merchants.
The whole site is two fields, but Berry's, the developer, has only put in plans for ten buildings on a portion of the site - from the plans it looks like about a third of the land available. These will be houses with three or more bedrooms, in fairly large gardens. By extending the housing beyond Bookers Edge and Cherry Trees, the older house, it's a classic "ribbon development", where new houses are strung out along roads rather than in blocks of new development like the 80 houses built by Persimmon at the other end of Hay.
It's also slightly strange, because there is a gap in the plans opposite the entrance drive which is big enough for an eleventh house. Could this be to build a road to the rest of the site at a later date?
Because the proposed development is in Cusop, the planning application is under the jurisdiction of Herefordshire Council - and under their rules any development of ten houses or fewer does not have to build any affordable housing. So Berry's, on behalf of Mr Lloyd (who I presume is the owner of the field), can build ten three bedroomed houses without having to consider smaller houses which are more affordable for local people - and there is still a need for affordable houses for local people which was not filled by the last two housing developments in Hay and Cusop.

Plans to Re-open the Library

The Library should be re-opening, on a limited basis, sometime within the next two weeks with a Call and Collect non-contact scheme. This is for library users who are unable to use the online e-books and e-audio service, Borrowbox. Anyone with any queries about this service can contact library@powys.gov.uk
The library user should phone 01597 827460 to request a selection of books in broad interest areas, or they can complete a form on the Council website. Library staff will put the books together, and books will be loaned for one month with automatic renewal, so no fines will be charged if the library user can't get the books back in time.
The Library service will also be working with PAVO to deliver bags of books to people across Powys.
Books will be quarantined for 72 hours after being handled, and members of the public will not be allowed into the library buildings yet.

Captain's Walk, Brecon

The toppling of the statue of Edward Colston, the Bristolian who was a major figure in the slave trade, has been all over the news - but there's something similar right here in Brecon.
When Captain's Walk was renovated a plaque was put up to commemorate the person who first created the Walk - Captain Thomas Phillips of Havard House, Brecon (more recently the Ursuline Convent). The plaque said that Captain Phillips was the author of A Journal of a Voyage Made in the Hannibal 1693 -94 to Africa and Barbadoes.
What the plaque doesn't say is that the Hannibal was packed full of slaves, and the horrific treatment of those slaves was detailed in Captain Phillips' Journal.
The plaque has now gone missing, allegedly thrown into the river.

Captain Phillips worked for the Royal Africa Company, which had the monopoly on trade (mostly meaning slaves, but also ivory and gold) along the African coast. Edward Colston was the Deputy Governor of the company.
Seven hundred slaves could be packed into the hold of the Hannibal - on the voyage in the journal, 328 of them died, as well as 18 of the crew. Some died of dysentery, and some of smallpox. The only treatment given for smallpox was as much water as the sick person wanted to drink and palm oil to sooth the sores, but they were still kept packed in the holds in terrible conditions.
Twelve of the slaves deliberately jumped overboard and drowned. Others refused food and deliberately starved themselves to death. Captain Phillips records that the death of each slave lost the RAC £10, and the owners of the ship £10 and ten shillings - a loss totalling around £6500.
Captain Phillips was advised by others in the trade to "cut off the legs or arms of the most wilful, to terrify the rest" but he decided not to do that, recording that he believed they were God's creatures, despite their "want of Christianity and true religion". He was quite happy for them all (including the children) to be branded on the chest with the letter H for Hannibal before they were brought aboard, though.
Phillips was himself affected by the diseases that ravaged the ship on that voyage, and became permanently deaf. He retired to Brecon and never sailed again. He died in 1713, aged around 48.

The plaque to Captain Phillips was only put up in 2010, so it's not a historic monument. In the discussion on FYI Brecon's Facebook page one person said that bad things should not be airbrushed out of history (so the plaque should remain in situ) - but the plaque is itself an example of airbrushing bad things out of history, because it didn't have any mention of the purpose of the voyage or the great loss of life. The book exists, and is an important document in the study of the slave trade - removing the plaque has not changed that.
If the Council decides to replace the plaque, maybe they could have one with more honest wording next time. There is a petition asking that the old plaque not be reinstated, and an acknowledgement to the victims of slavery be placed there instead.

A peaceful protest is planned for 14th June in Brecon for Black Lives Matter, at 1pm. The organisers ask everyone attending to wear masks and maintain social distancing. They will not be gathering in a big group, but there will be designated areas around Brecon where protesters can leave signs, such as by the Cat Soup Kitchen, around the Wellington statue, at the library and so on. Brecon Tap has agreed to open their doors for the day so that their toilet facilities are available to the protesters.

The Wellington statue also has a mention of General Picton, a Welsh officer who died at Waterloo.
Before that he was Governor of Trinidad - he was put on trial for his illegal torture of a fourteen year old girl, and was convicted, though the conviction was later overturned, partly because the conviction depended on the differences between Spanish law (which covered Trinidad at the time) and English law.
The victim was a free mulatto girl (the term then for mixed-race) called Luisa Calderon, who was suspected of assisting in a burglary. She was suspended by one arm and lowered until her foot was resting on a spike set in the ground, which took her weight. She did not confess, and was imprisoned for a further eight months before she was released. She gave evidence at Picton's trial. Picton had also executed several people without due legal process, but was not brought to trial on those charges. He also made a lot of money personally from the slave trade while he was governor.

Under the Bridge

A few nights ago, some of the musicians who live on Bridge Street moved their instruments down under the bridge for an impromptu concert - they've performed several times by the road (memorably on VE Day).

On another day, Justin waded out to the island in the middle of the river to rescue a sick swan. It was taken to a nearby garden and the RSPCA were called.

Harpython

This year the Harp Summer School will not be happening, but Glasbury Arts have found something good to do instead.
As part of the Summer School, Glasbury Arts got together with Gwernyfed High School so that ten pupils could learn to play the harp. They want to extend the programme to at least two more schools, and over a three year period rather than one year.
Learning the harp is expensive - they estimate it costs between £8,500 to £10,000 to provide two harps plus tuition for a year. There are grants from the Welsh Assembly to assist music teaching in schools, but it's very difficult for children in State schools to be able to learn what is, after all, the Welsh national instrument. At the moment, the organisers say that harp playing would die out in Wales if it were not for tuition in fee-paying schools.

So the idea is that harp players should get together to raise money, by playing in the Harpython. They can play on their own or in groups on Facetime, Skype or Zoom for two hours on the following dates: 27th or 28th June and 4th or 5th July, between 10.30am and 12.30. Solo harpists can play for one hour, and they get people to sponsor them via Just Giving.
For further information, contact john.fitzgerald@glasburyarts.co.uk

The project is dedicated to the memory of Jeffrey Babb.

Ecological Disaster on the Wye

The water of the River Wye looks fine where it passes through Hay, and I've been enjoying going down to the bridge to spot fish in the water - but that's not the case elsewhere on the river, as reported in the Brecon and Radnor Express. There are places where the River Wye looks like thick green soup because of algal blooms.
The algae kills the aquatic plants that provide habitat for fish and other species, including birds, and reduces the amount of oxygen in the water. Combined with the recent high temperatures, that can kill a variety of fish.
The cause of the algal blooms appears to be extra phosphate in the water. Phosphate is used as fertiliser on farms - but it also comes from chicken manure, and since 2008 farmers have increased the numbers of chickens they keep in the catchment area of just one of the Wye's tributaries by an extra ten million. The amount of phosphate in the river has doubled in the last six years, and the river is now above the permitted levels under the EU Habitats Directive. One of the areas of concern is the catchment area of the River Lugg, which feeds into the Wye.
Locally over the last few years there have been protests about the erection of new chicken sheds on farms in the area, and it seems that Powys County Council have not been considering the cumulative effect when they have granted planning applications.
It's not just the Wye, either - other rivers in South Wales like the Usk are also affected by agricultural intensification. In 2018 the organisation Afonydd Cymru lodged a formal complaint with the European Commission about the lack of regulation in Wales, inappropriate planning and lack of Water Protection Zones.
The river is also a Special Area of Conservation under EU law and an Area of Outstanding Beauty, with two Sites of Special Scientific Interest along its length, one of them covering the upper Wye from Hay. In Radnorshire, it is also part of an Environmentally Sensitive Area - and even with all these legislative protections, it is not safe. And after all the floods of the winter which presumably flushed out any pollution, the levels of phosphate that are now causing the algal blooms must have come into the river since the floods went down.
The spokesman for Powys County Council in the Brecon and Radnor Express article said that the council assesses the planning applications carefully - but if that's the case, why have the phosphate levels in the river risen so fast? The River Wye is one of the most beautiful rivers in the UK, and used to be one of the cleanest - that's no longer the case.

Bulfinch Found

One of the wooden sculptures that was stolen from the Riverside Path has been found - it had been thrown into the river nearby.

Black Lives Matter in Hereford

There have been protests right across the United States and in many places in the rest of the world, sparked off by the recent murder of George Floyd by a police officer.
On Thursday there was a Black Lives Matter protest in Hereford, and about 800 people turned up. As far as I can see from the videos of the event, there was a good effort to maintain social distancing while listening to speakers, who stood beside the Hereford Bull statue. They also knelt to observe an 8 minute and 46 second silence, which was the length of time that the police officer knelt on George Floyd's neck to kill him.
There was lively discussion on the Hay Community Facebook page, which seems to have disappeared. It had run to 90 comments the last time I saw it.
There's a good report on the Hereford Times website, though, with pictures of the event.

On Sunday 7th June, from 10am to 11am, a group called No Going Back Sundays is organising a protest - but this is not going to be a gathering. NGB organise events on different themes every Sunday in which people stand wherever they happen to be with placards about the issue of the day, and share photos. Normally, the themes are around Climate Justice but, as they say, Climate Justice and Racial Justice are entwined issues, because the people who suffer most from climate change tend to be the people with black and brown skins, in the poorer countries. This Sunday the theme is Black Lives Matter.

Shepherds' Takeaway

Shepherds re-opened yesterday to do takeaway coffee, ice cream and cakes - they will be open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Businesses for Sale - and Re-opening

Wales Online had the news a few days ago that the Old Black Lion is on the market.
When I first came to Hay John and Joan Collins, the owners at the time, took me and my ex-husband down to the cellar to show us the medieval cobbles there - they were very proud of the way they had restored the building from the rather unsympathetic modernisation it had undergone in the 1970s.
The building has passed through several hands since then, but remains full of original features and lots of timber framing on display internally.
I last ate there just before the lockdown - a lovely treat with delicious food and interesting conversation.

Meanwhile, a few miles away in Glasbury, Wye Valley Canoes is up for sale, along with the River Café and The Boat House, along with the five bedroomed owners' house. They have the bunkhouse with the big internal slide!

Also in Glasbury, the Old Railway Line Garden Centre has now re-opened, with lots of social distancing measures in place, including a one way system.

Daisies Down Cusop Dingle

Walking Above Clyro

It was another hot day on Sunday, so I looked on the map for somewhere shady to walk, and realised I had never been up the hill behind Clyro School. The first part of the walk was in the full sun, of course, along the road from Hay to Clyro.
Clyro School was rebuilt at the same time as Hay School, so looks quite similar except that there is no library as part of the building. Just above the school is Pete's Pirate Playground, which looks quite fun, but is presently closed.
Going up the hill, there is Forest Wood above the lane, mostly conifers, and Cwmsirhwy Wood below the lane. I was right about the shade. It's all dappled sunlight and birdsong, and not too steep. Eventually I emerged from the shade, high up the hill - not far from the telecommunications mast. There's a little cluster of cottages and bungalows on Llowes Common, and a little way beyond that a sign to Clyro Sawmill. By this time I was looking out for somewhere to sit to have my lunch - and there was a log set up as a seat, beside a small oak wood. As I ate my sandwiches and drank my Vimto, a jay flew out across the road. And then I turned back. I always like going out uphill because that means that when I turn back it's downhill all the way - well, apart from the long climb from Clyro to the top of the hill by Radnor's End. I had another short break at the bench opposite Clyro Castle, with the amazing view down the valley towards the Brecon Beacons - the wood of the bench is pretty rotten, but I managed to find a safe place to sit for five minutes to take in the view and drink some more Vimto.

Pandemic in Mali

It seems that the pandemic has now reached Timbuktu.

The people there are in great need of stuff that we take for granted - including a reliable water supply - so Hay2Timbuktu have started an urgent appeal to raise £5,000 to send basic hygiene supplies to Timbuktu.
The sort of things they want to send include face masks, alcohol gel for hand washing, and washing up bowls and kettles. Some of the money will also go towards providing water stations where people can collect fresh water.
Hay2Timbuktu are working with the Association Malienne Pour La Survie au Sahel, or AMSS.
Donations can be given at www.hay2timbuktu.org/donate