Get on Your Boots

In which The Author is planning a sponsored walk

I can't believe it's been nearly four months since I last posted anything. There are a couple of reasons for that, and neither of them are any cause for concern.

Primarily, I've been copy-editing and/or proofreading pretty much non-stop since the middle of November. The first half of the year saw me go from book to book with hardly a break, and things only slowed down because it was the start of everyone's holidays. They're obviously over, because in the past month I've proofread two historical novels, copy-edited a novella by Ben Aaronovitch, and I've just sent Peter Higgins' new fantasy novel back to Gollancz.

The other reason is that I've become more involved with Jacs Music Venue here in Aberdare. Between helping with the publicity side of things, writing content for their new website, and researching the history of Bryngolwg House in my rare periods of down time, it's become my second home at weekends.

The Blowout boys (Mitch and Connor) have done us proud in the last few months, bringing the lunacy of John Otway and the brilliance of Space to our little town. We've got Electric Six – an actual American touring band – headlining next Friday night. (Don't bother looking for the ticket link; it sold out within a couple of days.) In October, the wonderful Neil Innes is paying us a visit. I'm selling tickets for that one, if anyone is interested.

As well as the Blowout gigs, we're going from strength to strength in our own right. Despite my best efforts I wasn't able to persuade Caravan to take a punt on a Welsh gig, unfortunately. On the other hand, Fairport Convention are definitely interested. So is Mike Peters, the driving force behind the Welsh post-punk legends the Alarm. And the blue-eyed boys of Scottish soul, Hue and Cry, are visiting us in February. (That isn't one of mine, but I'll plug it anyway.)

My own Anthony Nolan fundraising gig at Jacs fell foul of double-bookings, festivals, and – the bane of every rock promoter – general Aberdare apathy. However, the comedy writers Rob Grant and Andrew Marshall very generously signed a brand new copy of their novel The Quanderhorn Xperimentations, which we raffled during the gig. That, along with donations on the night and in the ensuing couple of days, took our total to £142. Many thanks to Lazarus Moon, Windshake, Adelade, Black Aurora and Chris Noir for coming along and showcasing their fine music – even if it was pretty much to each other. We'll be doing another next year, and this time it'll all go according to plan.

We had a very successful gig last Saturday, when Steve Ignorant's Slice of Life headlined an evening of post-punk political music. Steve's previous visit to Aberdare (11 July 1984) was the last time the full Crass line-up shared a stage, at a miners' benefit gig in the Coliseum. He'd gone on record a while back saying that he'd love to return to the town where Crass ended their days as a performing outfit. A few of us cast the bait in his direction, and after a flurry of emails, he and I we able to sort out a date.

It was a pretty emotional evening for us all, but nobody more so than the man himself. We had a chat over a pint before the rest of the band arrived, and he was really thrilled to be playing here after all that time. In fact, he's asked if he can come back next year. Well, we're hardly likely to say no, are we?

I also managed to cast the bait out to Doctor and the Medics a couple of months ago, when I messaged the Doctor himself on Twitter. They're coming here in October, as part of our pre-Halloween fancy dress extravaganza. I've got a couple more irons in the fire as well, but more on that story later.

The sad news is that the Arthur Linton Challenge isn't going ahead this year, in spite of all my planning. The construction of the new road in Mountain Ash is causing so much disruption that it seems hardly worth trying to pin down a route. But in the absence of a cycling marathon (a velothon, in fact) some of us are planning a rather more sedate way to explore the valley.

September is Walking Together month for Anthony Nolan. As a result of exploring pretty much every footpath in the Cynon Valley while drawing up the Arthur Linton Challenge, I've been able to come up with the perfect way to get from Penderyn to Abercynon and fall a whisker short of 25 km. For the most part we're going to utilise the Cynon Trail, route 478 of the National Cycle Network. Because it's largely made up of disused railway lines and dedicated traffic-free rights of way, we'll be on the level for most of the distance. It'll cost each of us £5.20 for a Day Rider ticket on Stagecoach, which will get us to Penderyn for the start, and back from Abercynon at the end. If anyone feels that they can't manage the whole distance, the same ticket will get them safely home again. It sounds like a decent plan, doesn't it?

Starting from the Lamb Hotel at the southern edge of the Brecon Beacons, we'll take the old Mineral Line (a disused freight railway) into Hirwaun. From there we'll pick up the old tramway, which runs more or less alongside the river Cynon. After passing the historic iron bridge in Trecynon, we'll cross into Robertstown. I think there might be a refreshment stop at the Gadlys Arms, but that'll depend on how everyone's feeling.

We'll pick up the Cynon Trail on the other side of the river, and continue along the river to the new college. From there we'll cut across into the Ynys, and walk around the playing fields before arriving at the remaining stretch of the Aberdare Canal. This takes us to the A4059 at Cwmbach, where we'll leave the Cynon Trail for a little while.

The Cynon Trail proper follows the A4059 past Ysbyty Cwm Cynon, Mountain Ash School and the indoor bowls centre before reaching Mountain Ash itself. It's a horrible stretch of fast road, with heavy traffic, nothing exciting to see, and at best it's a necessary evil on a bike. We'll be on foot. It's no fun at all on foot.

While I was scoping out alternatives to this section for the Arthur Linton Challenge, I came up with a cunning plan. And that, slightly altered and reversed, is where we are going to go next.

From the Ynyscynon Inn (another possible refreshment stop) we'll head into the village of Cwmbach. It's a steady gentle ascent to the post office, where we'll veer off into Cefnpennar Road. Then the fun really starts.

I wasn't sure if the eastern section of Cefnpennar Road even was a right of way until I consulted some old friends. Geoff told me that he used to walk that footpath regularly when he was younger, but he hadn't been there for a long time. Luckily Mark W. lives in Cwmbach and spends a lot of time walking the hillsides around the village. He told me that it was possible to go over the top into Cefnpennar, but it wasn't a journey for the faint-hearted. On 1 September last year I caught a bus to Cwmbach, jumped off by the post office, and went on what councillors call a 'site visit'.

Have a look and tell me what you think of this right of way.

Intriguing, isn't it?

Anyway, that's the start of the ascent from Cwmbach to Cefnpennar. It's what you'll find if you continue past the Cottage Homes and the pedestrian lane into Bryn Hir. It's actually got a name (Cefnpennar Road), and it's marked on the Ordnance Survey maps and the Philip's Street Atlas as a right of way. As you can see from the sign, it isn't open to traffic. It's probably a good thing.

Who on earth would want to drive along here?

I came to this point and wondered if Mark had been pulling my leg. There was no sign of life, no 'right of way' markers, and the upward path seemed fairly rudimentary. But I started walking, wondering if anyone would be crazy enough to risk cycling this way. At least they'd be going downhill, if my plan went ahead. But would you want to cycle on terrain like this?

That's about as good as it gets, in fact. Further up it was like a river bed on an incline, with quite a bit of water running downhill. I'd been wondering if I really was going the right way when I saw a lady with two dogs coming towards me. She told me that the path levels out a little further on, and then cuts across a field to emerge at the top of Cefnpennar. I carried on for another couple of minutes, found the gate to the field, and then knew that the whole mission had been worthwhile. Look at the view from the top.

Aberdare Community School is more or less in the centre

Looking back towards Cwmbach and Aberdare

Looking across towards Mountain Ash

It's well worth making the effort, isn't it?

My friend Lee J. lived in Bryn Hir when we were in school, and he often used to tell me how he and his pals would go exploring by 'the mast' in Cwmbach. It's clearly visible from the northern half of the valley, but I was surprised to learn that Cefnpennar Road skirts right past it.

From here, it's a fairly steady descent into Cefnpennar itself. It was surprisingly mild for the time of year, and I fancied a pint when I arrived at the centre of the village. No such luck; the pub was closed, and there was no sign of its being open during the evenings either. But it did provide me with yet another photo for my collection of the old Aberdare Local Board of Health street name plates. I'd always assumed that Cefnpennar would have been in Mountain Ash, but apparently not.

The main street itself feels as though it belongs in the Yorkshire Dales, rather than above a former mining valley in South Wales. It's a rather odd little settlement, all told.

I walked to Cwmpennar, a little further down the hill, and then a bus came along. I decided to jump on, and we went on a magical mystery tour of Caegarw and Newtown before eventually arriving in Mountain Ash itself.

We'll be on foot, of course. If the Cefnpennar Inn isn't open we can walk down into Caegarw and have a cheeky livener at the indoor bowls centre. The Cynon Trail goes off-road again opposite the centre, so it's the ideal place to rejoin the path.

It passes underneath Mountain Ash Bridge, skirts the river as far as the George Hotel (another possible refreshment stop), and then weaves its way between the A4059 and the river Cynon as far as Pontcynon Industrial Estate. We'll be back on the road briefly, as far as the Quarter Mile Bridge, then the path drops past Abercynon Sports Centre and follows the railway line south, emerging at the end of River Row. It's a short walk from there to the Navigation Inn, and the end of our journey.

I've used the plural pronoun throughout because it's called 'Walking Together' for a reason. The whole idea behind the fundraising project is to get people out in groups, so I've been putting some feelers out. So far I've managed to recruit Rhian, Geraint and Jonathan from Dapper FM, Clint and Ros (our resident gig photographers), Gavin and Kate from Jacs, and Jude, Andrew and Liam, who are all keen walkers as a family. Jason W. said he was interested, depending on the date; Rebecca and Lee might come if they haven't got a gig; Alexis and Kevin are checking their diaries as well.

The last weekend in September is Cwmfest, so that's out for starters. We've got a big charity gig in Jacs on 1 September, so we can rule that out as well. It looks as though the optimum date for everyone is 22 September. We'll be looking for sponsors in the old-fashioned way, with pen and paper, but we're also doing the high-tech alternative via JustGiving. We'll each have our own page linked to the Walking Together event. Here's mine, if you fancy chipping for a very worthwhile cause.

If you live too far afield to join us on the day, why not round up some friends and organise something similar in your own area? Go to the Anthony Nolan website and you can sign up for a fundraising pack. It's going to be a great way to get some exercise and fresh air, make new friends, and explore your community in more detail. Go on, you know you want to!