Bordering on Perfection
Ask any non-Welshman what they know about Wales.
Sheep, Snowdonia, the coastline and maybe the South Wales valleys will be the answer.
What is not realised is that there is an area of spectacular scenery and rich cultural heritage, all within an hour's drive of Liverpool and Manchester.
The North Wales borderlands with its flagship town Llangollen is Wales' best kept secret.
Until the last Century the area was blighted by industrial quarrying.
Ugly slate quarries were hewn from the mountains and loaded onto dusty horse-drawn trams.
The slate was hauled down to canals and later to railway lines to be transported around the world.
Fast-forward to today, and the legacy of that industrial period has become one of the area's biggest assets.
Building the slate canal was one of Thomas Telford's greatest engineering feats.
It was built so well that it is still in excellent condition two hundred years later.
These days, slate doesn't go out on the canal - tourists come in! The Llangollen canal must surely be one of the most picturesque in the country.
It culminates in the source of the canal at the Horseshoe Falls on the River Dee, a truly magical place.
The old slate trams have long gone, but they have left their legacy in the old tramways which have now become roads and footpaths.
The Llantysilio tramway is one of the most spectacular.
It used to ferry slate from the top of the Horseshoe Pass down to the canal, and the top section is now a level footpath near the mountain tops offering wonderful views and picnic opportunities.
The railway line is also long gone.
However, a section of it was restored by enthusiasts and is now the Llangollen steam railway.
The line follows the River Dee up towards Corwen and is popular with adults and children alike - especially when Thomas the Tank Engine pays a visit! Going back a little earlier, Plas Newydd, a timber-framed mansion from the Georgian period, is open to the public.
The house was best known as the residence of Lady Eleanor Butler and Sarah Butler, the "Ladies of Llangollen".
The two ladies had "eloped" from Ireland in a barely hidden scandal and settled at Plas Newydd.
Their notoriety was such that many famous people came to see this "odd" couple, including the Duke of Wellington and William Wordsworth.
Today, the house is well worth a visit and the grounds have been restored to their former glory.
Going back earlier still, evidence of more violent times is ever-present in the towering form of Dinas Bran castle.
The castle dominates Llangollen and was once the stronghold of the Welsh princes before succumbing to an English invasion.
Valle Crucis Abbey was built around the same time and despite being destroyed during the reformation, enough of the ruins survive to fire the imagination.
Sheep, Snowdonia, the coastline and maybe the South Wales valleys will be the answer.
What is not realised is that there is an area of spectacular scenery and rich cultural heritage, all within an hour's drive of Liverpool and Manchester.
The North Wales borderlands with its flagship town Llangollen is Wales' best kept secret.
Until the last Century the area was blighted by industrial quarrying.
Ugly slate quarries were hewn from the mountains and loaded onto dusty horse-drawn trams.
The slate was hauled down to canals and later to railway lines to be transported around the world.
Fast-forward to today, and the legacy of that industrial period has become one of the area's biggest assets.
Building the slate canal was one of Thomas Telford's greatest engineering feats.
It was built so well that it is still in excellent condition two hundred years later.
These days, slate doesn't go out on the canal - tourists come in! The Llangollen canal must surely be one of the most picturesque in the country.
It culminates in the source of the canal at the Horseshoe Falls on the River Dee, a truly magical place.
The old slate trams have long gone, but they have left their legacy in the old tramways which have now become roads and footpaths.
The Llantysilio tramway is one of the most spectacular.
It used to ferry slate from the top of the Horseshoe Pass down to the canal, and the top section is now a level footpath near the mountain tops offering wonderful views and picnic opportunities.
The railway line is also long gone.
However, a section of it was restored by enthusiasts and is now the Llangollen steam railway.
The line follows the River Dee up towards Corwen and is popular with adults and children alike - especially when Thomas the Tank Engine pays a visit! Going back a little earlier, Plas Newydd, a timber-framed mansion from the Georgian period, is open to the public.
The house was best known as the residence of Lady Eleanor Butler and Sarah Butler, the "Ladies of Llangollen".
The two ladies had "eloped" from Ireland in a barely hidden scandal and settled at Plas Newydd.
Their notoriety was such that many famous people came to see this "odd" couple, including the Duke of Wellington and William Wordsworth.
Today, the house is well worth a visit and the grounds have been restored to their former glory.
Going back earlier still, evidence of more violent times is ever-present in the towering form of Dinas Bran castle.
The castle dominates Llangollen and was once the stronghold of the Welsh princes before succumbing to an English invasion.
Valle Crucis Abbey was built around the same time and despite being destroyed during the reformation, enough of the ruins survive to fire the imagination.
