Snow on the Gwent Uplands

 

The Arctic Blorenge

The mountain tops of the Gwent Uplands had a covering of snow this weekend. Early on Sunday morning I was stood near the Keepers Pond that lies on the border of Torfaen and Monmouthshire admiring a view that was  reminiscent of the Austrian Alps - Gwents own version.

Snow covered the Blorenge mountain and in the distance the peaks of the Skirrid , Sugarloaf and the Black Mountains all looked like a god had sprinkled icing sugar all over them. The skies were a beautiful blue with wispy streaks of cloud on the horizon. It felt fantastic to be out in the sunshine and breath in the crispy fresh chilled mountain air.

I had to trudge through almost a foot of snow in places to find a spot to fly my drone. I have been waiting an age for the opportunity to get some aerial wintery snow pictures and I was so pleased.

Super wide pano of the Blorenge and Pwll Du

The Canada Tips looked amazing covered in the white stuff. From above the whole mountain had been turned into an Arctic wasteland.

The Canada Tips.

I decided to change location and head southwards on the mountain to the Fox hunters car park so that I could get some views of Blorenge summit and trig point.

Looking towards to the masts and the Fox hunters Carpark

As I walked across the mountain it was like being transported to a whole new world. From the Fox hunters car park I looked down into the Usk Valley and it was covered in a veil of mist.

I flew the drone up to the Blorenge summit and the snow covered peak of the  Skirrid Mountain (Ysgryd  Fawr) could be seen.

The summit of the Blorenge

My next stop was to be the town of Blaenafon. I stopped at Big Pit and put the drone up from the top of the nearby old tip so I could get a nice view of it with the wintery landscape.

Big Pit.

Big Pit is part of my family history has several of my ancestors worked at this World Heritage Site. I whole heartedly recommend people to visit it this amazing museum. I have been down it several times and always enjoy it.

Garn Lakes

About a mile away is Garn-yr-erw and another place that I have an ancestral connection. In the past the landscape was dominated by the coal mining industry and huge swathes of the mountain was covered in black waste tips. Whilst there are signs every where you look of the locations industrial heritage it has now been transformed into a nature rich marvel of Gwent. The Garn Lakes looked absolutely fantastic in the sunshine surrounded by a winter wonderland.

I also checked out the nearby Blaenafon Ironworks and took an aerial picture. Another great place to visit and learn about how the iron forge and the birth place of the industrial revolution.

Blaenafon Ironworks Museum