In times not long ago, the area was a busy transport corridor. The Cambrian Railways came in 1862, and a year later the branch line opened from Abermule to Kerry. On 26th January 1921, 15 people were killed at Abermule in a head-on train crash. The branch line was closed in 1955, but trains still pass along the main line between Shrewsbury and Newtown. These days, Abermule is a peaceful place: the main road bypasses the village, the railway halt is long gone, and there is little river or canal traffic.
There were once a number of corn and flannel mills in the area. Just north of Abermule is the ruin of a sawmill that was in use until the early years of the 20th century. Not far from it, at Brynderwen, is the site of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle.
You cross the River Severn over the second iron bridge to be erected in Montgomeryshire, built in 1852. Dolforwyn to the north means 'Maid's Meadow' and was the setting for an ancient drama that gave the Severn its Welsh name, Afon Hafren. Hafren was a maid who was drowned in the river.
The story goes that Locrinus, the son of Brutus, had a daughter by his mistress, Estrildis. When his giant-slaying father-in-law, Corineus, died, Locrinus set aside his wife, Gwendolen, and made Estrildis his queen. Understandably furious, Gwendolen raised an army, killed Locrinus in battle, took over the kingdom, and had Estrildis and her daughter, Habren (Hafren), drowned here. In Milton's Comus, Habren becomes the river goddess and is to be found:
"Under the glassy, translucent wave,
In twisted braids of lilies knitting,
The loose train of thy amber drooping hair."
The more mundane canal was dug as part of the link between the Severn and the Mersey. Opened in 1821, the Montgomeryshire Canal (part of the Shropshire Union system) is now a haven for wildlife. There are kingfishers here, while in summer pink valerian on the banks attracts peacock and red admiral butterflies.
Towards the end of the walk is Dolforwyn Castle. This is the site where Prince Llywelyn ap Gruffudd once tried to establish a market town just below the castle. It was the last castle to be built by a native Welsh prince, but it fell to English forces under Roger Mortimer in 1277, and by 1398 it was a ruin guarded only by squirrels and buzzards.
Acknowledgment: Text derived from the Out and Out Series; Discovering the Countryside on Foot. Pictures courtesy of Wikipedia.
