![Nant-y-Ffrith1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7e/Nant-y-Ffrith1.jpg)
Nant-y-Ffrith refers to a
stream and the wooded valley through which it flows on the border between
Flintshire
, settlement_type = County
, image_skyline =
, image_alt =
, image_caption =
, image_flag =
, image_shield = Arms of Flint ...
and
Wrexham County Borough
Wrexham County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Wrecsam) is a county borough, with city status, in the north-east of Wales. It borders England to the east and south-east, Powys to the south-west, Denbighshire to the west and Flintshire to the ...
in
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. The stream begins in
moorland to the east of
Llandegla
Llandegla or Llandegla-yn-Iâl is a village and community in the county of Denbighshire in Wales. In the 2011 census, the community had a population of 567.
Name
The village's name is Welsh for the "Parish of Saint Tecla", which honours th ...
. It passes
Bwlchgwyn
Bwlchgwyn is a village in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, on the A525 road, west of the city of Wrexham and south-east of the town of Ruthin. Bwlchgwyn is part of the community of Brymbo. In the 2011 Census the population of the village was ...
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
before entering a rather steep-sided, rocky
valley
A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams ove ...
. It passes under the
viaduct of a disused railway line before joining the
River Cegidog at
Ffrith.
The
woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (se ...
s contain some
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...
trees but are dominated by recent
conifer plantations planted by the
Forestry Commission
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England.
The Forestry Commission was previously also respon ...
after the second world war. They contain a range of flora and fauna including various
fern
A fern (Polypodiopsida or Polypodiophyta ) is a member of a group of vascular plants (plants with xylem and phloem) that reproduce via spores and have neither seeds nor flowers. The polypodiophytes include all living pteridophytes exce ...
s and
mosses and woodland birds such as
wood warbler
The wood warbler (''Phylloscopus sibilatrix'') is a common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe, and just into the extreme west of Asian Russia in the southern Ural Mountains.
This warbler is stro ...
and
redstart. During the 1950s, people travelled from miles around to park their cars on the Drofa (or hair-pin bend in English) overlooking Nant-y-Ffrith, and listen to
nightingale
The common nightingale, rufous nightingale or simply nightingale (''Luscinia megarhynchos''), is a small passerine bird best known for its powerful and beautiful song. It was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is no ...
s, whose song echoed in the valley.
There are several abandoned
silica
Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
quarries and
lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
mines in the area. Lead mining may have begun as early as
Roman
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
times and has left a number of caves.
Pre-Roman/Celtic Activity
The mountain on the Flintshire side of Nant-y-Ffrith in modern Welsh is called the Penllyn. Pen in Welsh literally means 'head' and is often used to describe a notable high point, a pinnacle. The name has its origins in ancient history. The Brythonic precursor to modern day Welsh used the word across Britain's landscape: 'Penmaenmawr', 'Penmachno' and the 'Pennines' in the Lake District. The ancient Welsh using the word to describe the mountain ties with evidence of roundhouse foundations discovered on the Penllyn sometime during the 1960-70s.
There are also other pointers to ancient Welsh history on the mountain in its name. On older maps there are variations of a full name, 'Pen llun y gwr' and 'Pen llan y gwr'.
![Nant-y-Ffrith footbridge](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Nant-y-Ffrith_footbridge.jpg)
The word 'gwr' at the end is interesting, meaning 'man' maybe an elder or leader in this context. 'Gwr' also appears in the nearby village of Caergwrle. The inclusion of 'gwr' in the hillfort's name may have provided a differentiation for the ancient Welsh with other nearby hillforts, Pen llan y gwr perhaps having been a seat of tribal governance or set up by an older generation. The closest high point across the valley in the village of Bwlchgwyn is the edge of a quarry where Fronheulog Hall once stood. This site, lower than the Penllyn, was the site of a Brythonic hill fort before it was quarried away in the 19th century. Being in such close proximity, both hillforts are likely to have been built by the same people. The 'llan' of this elder or tribe leader is unlikely to have referred to a 'church' or 'parish', as in modern day Welsh, and is more likely to be an abbreviation of the Welsh word 'llanerch', a woodland clearing. That would certainly fit with the tree clearing required to build of a hill fort. 'Llyn' in the current day Penllyn, meaning lake is an unlikely candidate as is 'llun', meaning picture, which is to be found on some maps.
Nant-y-Ffrith Hall
Nant-y-Ffrith Hall was originally built as a
hunting lodge in 1850. Successive owners enlarged the building and created landscaped gardens. An open day and garden party was held each year for local villagers. The hall gradually fell into disrepair; it was used for ammunition storage in the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
and finally demolished between 1947 and 1950. The only signs of it today are a clearing in the woods, scattered stones and some exotic vegetation such as
rhododendrons.
Nant-y-Ffrith Waterfall
![Nant-yFfrith waterfall middle tier](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Nant-y-Ffrith_waterfall_middle_tier.jpg)
Roughly halfway down the gorge, approximately 100m upstream of a small wooden footbridge that crosses the stream, there is a large four-tier cascade waterfall hidden amongst the trees. The waterfall is approximately 15m in total height, with the final drop being between 4-5m high. It is the largest in the
Flintshire
, settlement_type = County
, image_skyline =
, image_alt =
, image_caption =
, image_flag =
, image_shield = Arms of Flint ...
/
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
area, the nearest other sizable waterfall being
Dyserth
Dyserth ( cy, Diserth) is a village, community and electoral ward in Denbighshire, Wales. Its population at the 2011 United Kingdom census was 2,269 and was estimated by the Office for National Statistics as 2,271 in 2019. It lies within the ...
falls in
Denbighshire
Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. Its borders differ from the historic county of the same name. This part of Wales contains the country's oldest known evidence of habitation – Pontnewydd (Bontnewy ...
.
![Nant y Ffrith falls circa 1900](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Nant_y_Ffrith_falls_circa_1900.jpg)
Despite the waterfall's size and significance, access is poor and public information is very limited. Access to the bottom of the falls is from a small path on the south side of the valley accessed about 20m upstream from the wooden footbridge. Access to the top of the falls is from a bend in the forestry track next to a sign warning of steep and dangerous ground. Both paths are steep, uneven and slippery.
File:Nant-yFfrith waterfall middle tier.jpg, The middle section of the waterfall
File:Nant y Ffrith falls circa 1900.jpg, Upper tier photographed around 1900
During the heyday of Nant-y-Ffrith Hall in the second half of the 19th century steps were built up the rocks on the north side of the falls allowing viewing and access to all parts of the falls. Unfortunately, like the hall, the gardens and these steps fell into disrepair and they are no longer present, except for one section just below Wedding Cave, alongside the artificial section of the waterfall.
Nant-y-Ffrith Reservoir
This is a small
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
near the source of the stream. It provides water to the villages to the west of
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
. Work began on it in October 1868 and it was supplying water by February 1871. It was built by Brymbo Water Company and is now owned by
Hafren Dyfrdwy.
Breeding birds on the reservoir include
great crested grebe
The great crested grebe (''Podiceps cristatus'') is a member of the grebe family of water birds noted for its elaborate mating display.
Taxonomy
The great crested grebe was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in t ...
and
coot
Coots are medium-sized water birds that are members of the rail family, Rallidae. They constitute the genus ''Fulica'', the name being the Latin term for "coot". Coots have predominantly black plumage, and—unlike many rails—they are usually ...
with
sedge warbler
The sedge warbler (''Acrocephalus schoenobaenus'') is an Old World warbler in the genus '' Acrocephalus''. It is a medium-sized warbler with a brown, streaked back and wings and a distinct pale supercilium. Sedge warblers are migratory, crossing ...
and
reed bunting
The common reed bunting (''Emberiza schoeniclus'') is a passerine bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a group now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae. The genus name ''Emberiza'' is from Old German ''Embritz'', a ...
in the surrounding vegetation and
lapwing
Lapwings (subfamily Vanellinae) are any of various ground-nesting birds (family Charadriidae) akin to plovers and dotterels. They range from in length, and are noted for their slow, irregular wingbeats in flight and a shrill, wailing cry. A gro ...
and
curlew
The curlews () are a group of nine species of birds in the genus ''Numenius'', characterised by their long, slender, downcurved bills and mottled brown plumage. The English name is imitative of the Eurasian curlew's call, but may have been in ...
in nearby fields.
References
*Clwyd Bird Recording Group (various years) ''Clwyd Bird Report''.
*R. J. Jones (1957) ''Maes Maelor'', Gwasg John Penry, Swansea.
*Raymond Lowe (2002) ''Lost Houses in and around Wrexham'', Landmark Publishing, Ashbourne.
External links
www.geograph.co.uk : photos of the Nant-y-Ffrith and surrounding area
{{authority control
Forests and woodlands of Flintshire
Rivers of Flintshire
Rivers of Wrexham County Borough
Valleys of Wrexham County Borough
3Ffrith