The Vale of Neath (or Neath Valley,
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
: ''Cwm Nedd''), one of the
South Wales Valleys, encompasses the upper reaches of the
River Neath
River Neath ( cy, Afon Nedd) is a river in south Wales running south west from the point at which its headwaters arising in the Brecon Beacons National Park converge to its mouth at Baglan Bay below Briton Ferry on the east side of Swansea Ba ...
in
southwest
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
. In addition to the River Neath, it is traversed by the
Neath Canal
The Neath and Tennant Canals are two independent but linked canals in South Wales that are usually regarded as a single canal. The Neath Canal was opened from Glynneath to Melincryddan, to the south of Neath, in 1795 and extended to Giant's Gra ...
and the
A465 dual carriageway.
Settlements in the valley include
Neath
Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a po ...
,
Cadoxton,
Tonna,
Aberdulais
Aberdulais is a village and electoral ward in Neath Port Talbot, Wales, lying on the River Neath, in the community of Blaenhonddan. The village grew around the Aberdulais Falls, the site of successive industries and now a hydro-electric statio ...
,
Resolven
Resolven ( cy, Resolfen) is a small village and community in Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. It is located in the Vale of Neath.
Location
The village is situated in the Vale of Neath, north east of the town of Neath, next to the A465 ...
,
Blaengwrach
Blaengwrach ( ; ) is a community near Glynneath and Resolven in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It is also the name of an electoral ward of Neath Port Talbot county borough, which is a larger area than the Community. The principal ...
,
Glynneath
Glynneath ( cy, Glyn-nedd "valley of the River Neath"), also spelt ''Glyn-neath'' and ''Glyn Neath'', is a small town, community and electoral ward lying on the River Neath in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It was formerly in th ...
and
Pontneddfechan
Pontneddfechan, also known as Pontneathvaughan (pronounced ) ("bridge over the Little Neath" in Welsh) is the southernmost village in the county of Brecknockshire, Wales, within the Vale of Neath, in the community of Ystradfellte and in the prin ...
.
Coal mining
Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...
was an industry in the valley with mining operations being located at
Aberpergwm
Aberpergwm is the site of a colliery in the Vale of Neath near Glynneath in south Wales.
Mine history
The site at Aberpergwm had been worked since 1811 as a series of drift mines, but full commercial working began from the 1860s when W. William ...
and
Pentreclwydau near Glynneath.
Waterfall Country
![Picturesque Europe14](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d5/Picturesque_Europe14.jpg)
"
Waterfall Country" is a nickname given to the Vale of Neath due to the diverse number of waterfalls in the valley.
YouTube - Vale of Neath waterfalls
/ref> In the upper reaches of the valley, at the foothills of the Brecon Beacons, are the waterfalls of four or five rivers: the Afon Hepste
The Afon Hepste is a river in Powys, Wales, though partly forming the county's border with Rhondda Cynon Taf. It runs wholly within the Brecon Beacons National Park.
Its headwaters, the Afon y Waun, Nant y Cwrier and Nant Hepste Fechan, rise ...
, Nedd Fechan
The Nedd Fechan is a river almost wholly within the county of Powys, Wales, currently administered as part of the unitary authority of Powys. It rises on the eastern slopes of Fan Gyhirych in the Fforest Fawr section of the Brecon Beacons National ...
, Afon Pyrddin
The Afon Pyrddin is a river forming a short section of the boundary between the counties of Brecknockshire and Glamorgan in Wales, Great Britain. It also forms a part of the boundary of the Brecon Beacons National Park, and the boundary of the unit ...
, Afon Mellte
Afon Mellte or the River Mellte is a river in south Wales. It is formed by the confluence of the Afon Llia and the Afon Dringarth. It then flows south through the village of Ystradfellte to Pontneddfechan where it joins with the Nedd Fechan ...
and Afon Sychryd
The Afon Sychryd is a river in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Although it is a relatively short river, with a total length of , it is notable for the gorge and two waterfalls through which it flows.
Course
The river has two upper arms, the first arise ...
. In the lower valley, waterfalls can be found at Melincourt and Aberdulais
Aberdulais is a village and electoral ward in Neath Port Talbot, Wales, lying on the River Neath, in the community of Blaenhonddan. The village grew around the Aberdulais Falls, the site of successive industries and now a hydro-electric statio ...
.
Vale of Neath Railway
Currently partly used as a goods line the Vale of Neath Railway
The Vale of Neath Railway (VoNR) was a broad gauge railway company, that built a line from Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare to Neath, in Wales, chiefly to transport the products of the Merthyr iron industries to ports on Swansea Bay.
The railway focus ...
once served the area for passenger trains.
Notes
External links
Aberpergwm Drift
www.geograph.co.uk : photos of the Vale of Neath and surrounding area
Neath
Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a po ...
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