My Fishing Break at Gliffaes – Bob Polley 26th April 2012

It was a cold, wet day when we arrived at Gliffaes Hotel recently for a four day fishing break on various beats of the River Usk. We were met by Frank Williams our guide for the four days. Our first beat was to be the Lower Hotel water which was running quite high and slightly coloured. Frank asked if we were comfortable wading in the conditions and yes, we were. We fished for a couple of hours in quite difficult water but never the less picked up four nice fish.

Being pretty cold by this time we checked in. This is a wonderful Hotel with a genuine Edwardian feel to it. Each public room was warmed by a log fire, the best of which is main lounge , with afternoon tea being served as we arrived back. It could very easily have been 1923 such was the charm of this place.

Later we dined in a delightful room facing the river. The menu is reassuringly short as opposed to the usual thirty odd options generally found these days. Needless to say the food would not be bettered anywhere, I can only recall it being equalled on one or two occasions in the UK.

Second day found us on another Usk beat in the grounds of a large Italianate estate. Once again Frank has us into several fish with uncanny observation. We fished until lunch time on the lower beat before stopping for the packed lunches provided by Gliffaes. The upper beat was fished after lunch with a couple more fish caught, one falling to an olive dry after a very brief hatch.

My wild Usk Brownie.

Back to the Hotel for a repeat of the first night, the staff by now making us feel pretty spoilt. The following two days were equally productive with Frank demonstrating some modern nymphing techniques that we had not tried before. His skill at this is a revelation.

It was with great regret that we left Gliffaes on a sunny Monday morning. Both my son and I have been on countless fishing expeditions but this one will stand out for a very long time. If you love fishing as we do, a weekend at this splendid Hotel with Frank Williams will probably change your perspective for good.

Could I just assure any readers that I have no reason to write this piece other than I know the disappointment of trips that fall short of expectation. This one I can assure you did not.

Bob Polley  - 26^th April 2012

Seven miles around the Grwyne Fawr Valley

Despite living here for over 14 years I had never been up close to the Grwyne Fawr reservoir, I had only ever seen it from a distance from the tops of the Black Mountains. I was spurred into action when my friend Danny appeared on a rainy Wednesday from Bristol to go for a walk. Time to go and have a look at the dam I thought.

This huge piece of engineer was completed in 1928 with the purpose of supplying clean water to the South Wales valleys. There was quite a large temporary village established for the workforce when work started in 1912 and remains of  buildings still surround the site At one stage over a thousand people lived up here and some labourers made the eight mile trip to Talgarth daily on foot.

The route is a simple one. Drive up to the car park at SO 252 285, this is lovely drive from Gliffaes and is around 12 miles. Walk along the rough landrover track up to the top of the dam wall, a distance of about two miles and parallels the tarmac road to the base of the dam. The past few days having been very wet meant that a good deal of water was cascading over the top of the dam and made an impressive sight. Take time to explore  at the top of dam, you can walk across the top to have a look down over the edge. (This is the site where Princes William & Harry were caught making an ‘unauthorised’ absail in 1998 while under the charge of their nanny,Tiggy Legge-Bourke.)

Follow the path pass the reservoir  and up the valley NNE all the time following the line of the stream that feeds the reservoir. At the head of the reservoir is a small mountain bothy maintained by the Mountain Bothy Association, not easily seen from the path.The path can be wet and is almost a small stream in itself during wet weather. After crossing the stream you come out on top of the ridge in the area of the path junction at SO 204 327.

Head SSE on the oppersite side of the valley to which you came up on top of the ridge towards the peak Waun Fach (the highest point in the Black Mountains). Be warned it is VERY boggy around Waun fach and is best avoided by staying off the ridge and following your nose about 500 hundred meters below the ridge (along the 750m contour). The country side up here is bleak and wet and all we saw was a pair of grouse.

When you reach the northern edge of the Mynydd Du forest follow the spur west down hill back towards the road and the stream. Once at the bottom of the hill where the corner of the wood meets the stream (SO 247 291) cross the small stream to your right and follow the Grwynwe Fawr river through the woods for a short distance until you come to a foot bridge enabling you to cross the river to get back on to the metalled road and back to your car.

This took us just over 4 hours but we went pretty slowly and spent around 40 minutes at the damn wall. Of course we will be happy to mark up your map for you and send you on your way with a pack lunch.

James Wilkinson on the River Usk at Gliffaes

A Day’s fly fishing with guide Frank Williams

This was our third fishing trip to Gliffaes and our second under Frank’s guidance. I am 17 and my father takes me on an annual fly fishing trip as a treat. Unfortunately my home county of Essex is flat and so I do not get much time to practice on rivers between visits which is why time with Frank’s tuition and guidance is invaluable.

We start straight on the water so Frank can see how much progress we have made over the past year. My father pulls out a decent fish almost immediately on a nymph but Frank has noticed Dark Olives hatching so he goes up river with me and we fish some medium running water with the matching fly and a nymph to see if  I can get in on the action. Within 15 mins I have pulled out a nice 9 inch trout. That was the first of 3 that day for me.
The next day we meet Frank early.  On the previous day he had noticed that our casting had become a bit rusty so we spent an hour on the lawn with casting tuition.  Then it was back down to the river where we fished faster water using a duo.  Again Frank showing me how he was thinking.  All the time teaching me watercraft – I pulled out 5 that day and I lost a monster 2 pounder with a broken line.  No one else on the river was even getting a bite!
Frank not only enjoys fishing but loves to teach. He is equally able to teach basic starters through to seasoned fishermen. Frank is also a competitive fly fisherman, meaning that his methods result in maximum action out on the river.
I look forward to fishing with him more over the coming years – I just wish there were more rivers in Essex.

James Wilkinson – Chelmsford, Essex

If you would like a day out with Frank Williams you can get get in touch with him via his website .

Frank is running a series of fly fishing courses, from beginners upwards, at Gliffaes, through out the season. Find out more. There is another good piece about fishing the Usk at Gliffaes with Frank on this ezine.

Keeping it in the family - Tim Wilkinson into a large Usk Brownie

Three Night Midweek Summer Offer

Everyone is trying to encourage you to take your holidays in Britain this year – a move which all hoteliers will support and which the government has helped by taxing flights to and from the UK through the roof.

Gliffaes Hotel has climbed on the ‘Holiday at Home’ bandwagon with a great value three-night, mid-week summer break.

We want you to arrive at Gliffaes in time for a sunny lunch on the terrace so that you can make the most of your holiday. So when you arrive you will get half a bottle of champagne and a plate of smoked salmon sandwiches to enjoy on the terrace.

The deal is three nights bed and breakfast with dinner on two evenings leaving you the opportunity to explore the growing number of truly great restaurants we have between Brecon and Abergavenny. South Wales is becoming very much a ‘foodies’ destination.

You can choose between a Standard Double Room and a Large Double Room for this offer.

3 Nights in a Standard double – £597 (per room for two people)

3 nights in Large Double – £696

So just to remind you the offer includes; smoked salmon sandwiches and half a bottle of champagne when you arrive, 3 nights in the hotel and 2 dinners in the Gliffaes restaurant. (includes VAT and service). Simple really and great value. We can recommend and book a restaurant for your third evening with pleasure.

This offer applies to Standard and Large doubles only and is valid from Sunday to Thursday inclusive from 1^st May 2012- 30^th August 2012.

Call us now on 01874 730371 or book on line and use the drop down menu to select the three day package for either a standard or the large double room.

Just how old was that oak tree?

Trees and Woodland at Gliffaes

Of  the 33 acres of ground at Gliffaes a good deal of it is planted over with trees. A lot of this is on steep sloping ground where we are starting to thin out the hazel and sycamore which has been badly damaged by squirrels over the years. This will let the light in to the forest floor, encourage woodland flowers and give more space for the bigger trees. However, the most wonderful feature of our garden is the the truly magnificent collection of mature trees both native and exotic, broadleaf and confier. It is clear to see that over the last 400 years successive owners of the property have carefully considered their tree planting. This was very true of my late father-in-law, Nick Brabner who planted hundreds of trees and nurtured many of the specimens along their way to maturity.

Behind me in the photograph is part of a strip of woodland which  was planted by Nick as part of a nationwide Millenium tree planting scheme. A three quarter mile long strip of both specimen and native trees was planted.  Not many of the specimen trees survived, but enough to make the planting still  interesting. It has been my task over the winter to begin thinning out the first stretch of this woodland. So far I have removed about 6 tons of timber which we will split and store for the fires in the hotel.

Susie and I are determined to carry on with Nick’s planting and careful nurturing of the trees at Gliffaes. We have enlisted the help of arboriculturist, Steve Clark, to develop a plan for the existing trees, help us with ideas for what else to plant and to help us create a ‘tree walk’. We would like guests to be able to take themselves around the grounds and discover more about the magnificent trees as well as us showing small interested groups around the Gliffaes trees. This is still very much work in progress. If you are interested in a tour of the trees then do please get in touch with Susie or I.

The age of that oak tree I am sitting on? 190 years old approximately.

The huge Lucombe Oak at Gliffaes

Birthday, Anniversary, Family gathering?

Last weekend we helped Gliffaes fan Donald Lamb throw a fantastic 40th Birthday weekend  at Gliffaes. There was very little Donald had to do;

1. Choose the date.
2. Send out the invitations.
3. Pay the bill.

We took care of everything else, Donald even let me choose the wine for the celebration dinner on the Saturday evening. Most of the guests arrived in time for a sunny lunch on the terrace before  an introductory archery session in the grounds . This turned out to be great fun, suitable for everyone and competitive  enough for the boys. There is far more to archery than meets the eye and everyone had a good time. Cheaper and a lot quieter than clay pigeon shooting to boot. The other advantage is that archery, unlike clay pigeon shooting can be done in the grounds of the hotel.

In the evening we made over the drawing room to Donald and his friends as a private dining room. The drawing room is ideal for parties up to 20 people. Karl Cheetham, head chef laid on a terrific dinner for the occasion;

Home cured Gravadlax with Dill Scone. (2009 Riverstone Chardonnay – J Lohr – Monterey California )

***
Confit Shoulder of Breconshire Lamb, Pan Fried Sweetbreads, Baked Rhubarb & Rosemary Jus. (2008 Trinity Hills, Hawkes Bay Tinity – New Zealand)
***
Warm Chocolate Fondant &  Vanilla Ice Cream
***
Welsh Cheese Board to share.

As the clocks went forward on Sunday morning breakfast was a pretty late affair with most people enjoying coffee and the Sunday papers in the unseasonably warm sun on the terrace. The a short walk along the river before heading back home again.

If you fancy the idea of arranging a weekend for friends and family to celebrate an important event we would love to help. We can help with ideas for your group to do during the day and of course we will take care of the food and drink. You can find out more here or call James on 01874 730 371.

Looking upstream on the River Usk on the Gliffaes Top Beat

Fishing Opens on the Usk

The fishing season started yesterday (3rd March – 30th September for trout and 17th October for salmon) and the Usk looked pretty good at Gliffaes, all be it, with pretty low flows, at about a foot above summer levels. We have had rain overnight so I expect the water to be higher today.

I took the opportunity to clear up the all the litter on the Gliffaes top beat, coming away with a good bag of plastic and the lone obligatory shoe. I will finish off this task over the next couple of days.

Early season fishing in the cold weather is not easy, the fish will not really start to move much before mid-morning and then only for short periods. Be careful not to spend too long over lunch.

We have got a great early season fly fishing package running currently at the hotel until the end of April.

What chance a salmon?

This is the advice from the Wye and Usk Foundation newsletter from yesterday.

“Currently the rivers are low for the time of year and water still quite cold. For salmon fishers on the opening day, there is always the chance of a fish having pushed up earlier in the year and so we would not be surprised to hear of fish caught anywhere from Builth or Abergavenny downstream. The smart money however is on the lower beats of both rivers. There is a bottle for the first on each river so please email us.” So not much chance of a salmon at Gliffaes at present.

Find out more about the fantastic Wye and Usk Passport - available from Gliffaes – and explore miles of great fishing.

A 6 mile walk over Hay Bluff

A Stunning Drive from Crickhowell, up through the Llanbedr Valley, past Llanthony and through Gospel Pass and a Circular Walk including Hay Bluff and Lord Hereford’s Knob.

It was my turn to decide on a Birthday walk to do for one of my walking friends today.  As it was a surprise, I didn’t want to do something too obvious, so decided to pick up the ladies in Crickhowell and drive the stunning route up through Llanbedr to Llanthony and then on through Gospel Pass to the bottom of Hay Bluff. Even the fog this morning didn’t last too long and the views were spectacular over towards Hay-on-Wye and beyond.

We set off straight up Hay Bluff, a good steep ascent to the trig point and to fabulous views of the Wye Valley and the hills and mountains of mid Wales. From there we headed South West and gently descended to Gospel Pass, crossing the road and climbing steeply at first. The gradient then eases and it was easy to reach the summit of Twmpa or Lord Hereford’s Knob.

Having taken in the views from the cairn at the top, we descended and eventually met the quiet and picturesque lane, which would lead us back to the car. From there one could easily continue driving and stop in Hay-on-Wye for a coffee or lunch and then carry on via Llangorse and back to Gliffaes.

The circular walk is about 6 miles long, with two steep ascents and takes approximately 3 hours. The drive from Gliffaes via Llanthony takes about 50 minutes. Coming back from Hay-on Wye via Llangorse takes about 30 minutes. If you would like to do the walk when you are at Gliffaes we will be happy to mark up your map for you and give you more detailed instructions.