‘ALL THE VIEWS, NONE OF THE CLIMB’

In Welsh border country not far north of Hay-on-Wye are the Begwyns, modest hills in unspoilt surroundings with far views to the Black Mountains to the east and the Brecon Beacons to the south. This is National Trust land: you can see their Begwyns page HERE with a useful circular walk map.  A gentle uphill stroll takes you to a feature called The Roundabout, built for the Millennium. There is a trig point nearby with magnificent views through 270º. It must be wonderful on a sunny day; ours was not, yet we could see for miles. The photos are quite poor, however…

It’s an easy ramble up from the road to The Roundabout

To the east is the northern end of the Back Mountains – Hay Bluff and Twmpa

To the south are the Brecon Beacons, with the summit of Pen-y-Fan in the clouds

To the west are distant views towards Carmarthenshire

The Trig Pillar stands at 414m ASL. The first 2 views looks south to the Brecon Beacons

This view looks south east to the southern end of the Black Mountains above Crickhowell

The Trig Pillar and stone-built The Roundabout            

The Trig Pillar taken from inside the Roundabout

Within The Roundabout is a stone circle with seats round it, like a medieval meeting place

Sadly there’s no view from inside The Roundabout. Here’s the inscribed Millennium Stone