Wye Valley Autumn Tour, 4-6 November 2022
Our starting point was lunch at the ‘Severn & Wye Valley Smokery’, an unusual and stylish restaurant, deli, fresh fish shop, commercial fish smokery, and coffee shop at Chaxhill 12m west of Gloucester.
Some of our line up at the Severn & Wye Smokery
Our first view of the River Wye was from the high walls of the imposing ruin of Chepstow Castle, a high above the river. The attractive Old Wye Bridge below the castle was built of cast iron in 1816.
Our home for two nights was The Old Court Hotel, at Symonds Yat West. The Old Court has kept much of its original charming character and was once owned by General John Simcoe, the founder of the City of Toronto, Canada in 1792.
Saturday was a day tour of around 110 miles, starting with a dual-carriageway warm-up to Abergavenny, entering the Brecon Beacons National Park. We took B roads via Crickhowell, Talybont-on-Usk where we filled the village shop café for a coffee break. The autumn colours were abundant in the Usk valley, though they were seen mainly through the dance of the windscreen wipers, keeping the light rain at bay. Then we drove north, joining the Upper Wye Valley near Hay-on-Wye. This town is famous for it’s bookshops, antique shops and annual Literary Festival in June. As there is considerable choice of cafes, restaurants and pubs in Hay, we planned a find-your-own lunch.
After this leisurely stop, we drove through ‘The Golden Valley’ and for most of us, there was a mix of very dark grey cloud, blue sky and rain showers – we saw five rainbows within an hour!
Two short stops were options: Brobury House Gardens at Bredwardine; and Arthur’s Stone Neolithic site. The gardens were laid out in terraces down to the River Wye in the 1880’s and despite the flowering borders being dormant, there was the reward of autumn colours in many specimen trees. Arthur's Stone is a neolithic burial site dating back over 5000 years, providing a surreal backdrop to Peter Yaxley’s wonderful Ti. This monument was a mile or so up a steep single-track road, leading to wonderful views for us and for those buried here. We returned for our second evening meal at the hotel, in the Tudor Hall dining room.
On Sunday morning we had a drive of c. 60 miles in the picturesque lower Wye Valley, from the hotel south towards Chepstow, and then returning north-easterly via the Forest of Dean. This route is outlined by the Tourist Authority as the ‘Leaf Peepers Drive’ to admire the autumn colours of the forests and woodlands.
Our first stop was Symonds Yat Rock, where we had a 500m walk from the car park to the viewpoint, rewarded by excellent views high above the River Wye and a group photo.
The optional stop at Tintern Abbey, an ancient ruin which lacks any roof, was not taken by many due to a heavy rainstorm as we passed. Several of us did stop at the Forestry Commission’s Visitor Centre at Beechenhurst in the Forest of Dean for a welcome cup of coffee.
We completed the morning drive just a few miles from where we began on Friday, our lunch stop at The Lyon in Westbury-on-Severn. We were delighted and honoured to be joined for lunch by Don MacLean and his wife Doreen. Don is a past Editor of the Giuliettaletta, still active but now partaking of less driving. A Sunday roast and sharing platters gave us an enjoyable lunch before we set off home in all directions- mostly in the rain again!
Many thanks to Duncan and Bridget for their perfect organisation! Thanks also to all who participated and made up a friendly, positive and chatty group of enthusiasts and charming wives, who together represent the core strength of our Register!
Roll call: six Spiders, four Sprints, one Ti Sedan, two Giulia Supers, and a Spider 2000.
