Mountain View Cottages Carmarthenshire

Further Afield

“Carmarthenshire: The Garden of Wales”

Ours is a county of Castles & Hill Forts, Gardens & Nature Reserves bordered East & West by mountains, North & South by the Sea. Near Llandeilo are Newton House & Dinefwr Castle. Dinefwr Castle occupies a commanding site overlooking the River Tywi (famous for its fly fishing). When peace came to the country the Rhys Family moved to Newton House just a walk away. The National Trust have stabilised the decrepit castle & restored Newton House to its 19th Century condition. The setting is a landscaped park dotted with rare white cattle. A short drive from Dinefwr are both Aberglasney, a beautiful-restored walled garden (with an excellent tea-room!), & The National Botanic Garden of Wales. Like the Eden Project this has been created recently & features an award-winning & dramatic tropical house set in acres of exotic plantings. Dolaucothi Gold Mines are only twenty minutes away. These were working into the 20th Century & now offer underground tours.

The Black Mountain dominates our farm. At its Western end perches Carreg Cennen Castle - surely the most dramatically placed castle in Wales. To the East is Llyn y Fan Fach - the lake in the mountain - which is the source of much local folklore. There is exciting walking all over the mountain which offers spectacular vistas from its plateau. Brechfa Forest to the north contains over 40kms of specially created cycle paths including an extreme route.

Religion & spirituality have had a profound effect upon the history & the architecture of the locality. Talley church adjoins the ancient Abbey ruin. St Teilo’s in Llandeilo houses the archive of the 8th century Teilo Gospels. Strata Florida Abbey, Brecon Cathedral, St David’s Cathedral & Capel Soar y Mynydd are all wonderfully tranquil places.

Wildlife abounds on the farm but additionally there are many nature reserves in the vicinity. Llanelli Wildfowl & Wetland reserve is sited on the estuary, Cors Caron is an upland peat bog of international importance, Cilgerran Wildlife centre is 264 acres of reserve teeming with birds, insects & mammals & the RSPB Dinas nature reserve features sparrowhawks, merlins & peregrines. We frequently have Red Kite over the farm but if you wish to see them in numbers then visit the Red Kite feeding centre in Gwynfe.

The sea is less than an hour’s drive away. To the South the Gower Peninsula has huge sweeps of sand, sheer cliffs & good surfing beaches. To the North is Aberaeron & Aberystwyth & to the West is the Pembrokeshire coastal footpath.