An interesting area - here you will see evidence of an incredible amount of past heavy industry. Adjacent to the car park you'll see a short row of well kept terraced houses. Today, this is the headquarters of the South Wales Caving Club (more about that later). Believe it or not, back in its industrial heyday, there were over 200 houses here in Penwyllt to house the workmen and their families, such was the level of quarrying that was taking place here. Today, this is all that's left of the housing (along with the 2 houses not too far away) here.
Location 1: N51°49.618 W3°39.433
As you walk to the first virtual cache, look at the pock marked hillsides around you. Over the years, these hills have been chiseled away for the limestone that is found everywhere around. Limestone has many uses over the years, including (from Wikpedia and hence American spelling):
- The manufacture of quicklime (calcium oxide) and slaked lime (calcium hydroxide)
- Cement and mortar
- Pulverized limestone is used as a soil conditioner to neutralize acidic soil conditions
- Crushed for use as aggregate—the solid base for many roads
- Glass making, in some circumstances
- Added to paper, plastics, paint, tiles, and other materials as both white pigment and a cheap filler.
- Toothpaste (yuk)
- Suppression of methane explosions in underground coal mines
- Added to bread and cereals as a source of calcium
No wonder this place was such a busy location in the 19th and 20th century - indeed it's still being quarried today - just to the east of the car park is an active quarry, providing aggregate for the gas pipeline currently being carved through South Wales...
And the clue. Read the information board that you'll find at the above coordinates. As well as providing much information about the nature reserve you're in, there's a phone number which reads:
0300 ADG 3000
Match the letters with the missing numbers - you'll need those later.
Also, look for the welcome greeting in Welsh. E is the number of physical letters in the third word of Croeso i ? (Note to Welsh speakers, letters in the Welsh alphabet that comprise of two physical letters when written, count as 2 separate letters in this case).
Location 2: N51°49.576 W3°39.568
A strange place to stop - there doesn't seem to be much of interest to see here - or is there? Look at the ground around you. Doesn't it look like it's been hit by several bombs based on the craters around you? These aren't man made, nor are they a result of the quarrying. However, Limestone is the culprit here again. They are in fact shake holes and are very common in limestone areas and are probably one of the best indications that you're standing above a cave system. It's where the water has dissolved the surrounding rock as it flows into the porous limestone. Sometimes these can have a stream flowing into them - then they become known as sink holes. They're usually a good sign of the fact that you're probably standing above limestone caves.
And indeed you are. You're standing on top of the Ogof Ffynnon Ddu cave system (Cave of the Black Spring), the deepest and third longest cave in the UK with well over 40 miles of discovered passageways and no doubt many more to be discovered! Mind you, real caving isn't quite the same thing as the Dan Yr Ogof show cave across the valley where you can wander around the lit passageways to catch a glimpse of the wonders that lie beneath. Oh no - real caving is a lot more fun involving squeezing through tight passageways, rock climbing, absailing - but the rewards are worth it!
I digress. The main reason for this area to be declared a nature reserve isn't what's above ground (though that is indeed also important) - the real nature reserve is beneath your feet, the cave itself which is still under threat from being damaged or destroyed by quarrying.
To the clue again. From this point you have a great view of the back of the cottages. Count the number of windows on the upper floor to get HB.
Location 3: N51°49.621 W3°39.563
Down to the floor of a more recent quarry. At this coordinate is a curious little hatch. The hatch actually has 2 stories to tell us. Firstly, it shows how close the quarry came to destroying a part of the cave system - indeed if you look closely at the quarry walls around the hatch, you can make out the outline of a moderate sized cavern - completely obliterated by the quarry. The hatch is located in a pile of boulders that now fill the original cavern.
The second story is more interesting now though - why is there a hatch there in the first place? Well - this is now an entrance to a cave known as Cwmdwr Quarry Cave; very convenient for the spelunkers staying in the nearby cottages. A decent length cave ranging from some tight crawls to some spacious passages, a link to the main Ogof Ffynnon Ddu system has been proved but this involves negotiating some sumps, so probably not the best entrance if access to OFD is what's needed.
Oh - I've wandered off on a tangent again - the cache. Erm. Count the number of handles on the hatch (include the one with the padlock). That'll provide you with C.
Location 4:N51°49.494 W3°39.950
On your way here you'll pass two locations that were important in the past but are now completely derelict and almost forgotten. Firstly, you'll walk across (and briefly along) the path of the Neath to Brecon Railway, one of the many railways now lost because of the Beeching Axe. There was once a station here at Penwyllt - you can see its station house just east of the crossing point (or west of where the road crosses), now refurbished as a holiday cottage.
As you walk towards the houses near the coordinate, look to your left - a rather impressive looking mound which on closer inspection turns out to be lime kilns - well worth examining, but if with children, under close supervision as there are some deep drops from the top.
At the coordinate, another group of houses. Maybe now isn't the best time to inform you of a more frightening role that these houses (and indeed the caver's club's cottages have played in recent years... Fans of the Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood may have already identified this location as the one used in the series 1 episode Countrycide . Unlike all other episodes (to date) this is the only one to be filmed entirely on location outside Cardiff and more frightening, not involve aliens - rather, rogue humans...
Apparently the entire film crew were camped in the quarry for quite a few days according to cavers I spoke to - they also took over the SWCC cottages for filming.
These isolated houses look different to the other ones. This building is in fact the former Penwyllt Inn, known locally as "The Stump" and it's now occupied by the Wealden Cave and Mine Society and Swindon Caving Club.
These cottages are also part of the South Wales Caver's property as far as I'm aware and you're allowed to walk around this land.
For the cache, all you need to do is count the number of windows on the rear of the (semi detached) houses in front of you. This'll give you F.
The cache
Well, you've put up with my wittering on about some of my other interests (industrial history and caving). It's now time to find the cache - something we all have in common, I hope!
Use the letters you've collected in previous locations to determine the final location:
N51°49.GCB W3°39.EDA
