What would Karl Pilkington of “An Idiot Abroad” have made of them? He owned up to visiting Wales prior to going off to visit the Seven Wonders of the World. I cannot but help wonder if the real reason he was not bowled over by the Taj Mahal, was that he had already been won over by the beauty of St Giles’ tower.
If you Google ‘Seven wonders Wales’ you will come across a rhyme that I was taught in Primary School:
Pistyll Rhaeadr and Wrexham steeple,
Snowdon’s mountain without its people,
Overton yew trees, St Winefride’s well,
Llangollen bridge and Gresford bells.
The writer was that well known poet Anonymous, maybe it was Karl’s great, great grandfather? Perhaps he/she was English, but what is certain, is that in exploring Wales, Anonymous seems to have failed to discover Mid and South Wales. One of my future posts will attempt to compile my personal Seven Wonders of Wales, but until I do, let’s take a quick tour of the existing ones.
Pistyll Rhaeadr Waterfall
First up from the rhyme, is Pistyll Rhaeadr Waterfall, near Llanrhaedr-ym-Mochnant. The waterfall can be found at the end of very rural drive into the Welsh Marches and through locations for the film “The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain“. The road from Llanrhaedr-ym-Mochnant is single track with passing places, which means that it is best avoided if you don’t have much patience or are poor at reversing. The car park for the falls costs £1.50, but you can park on the side of the road before you get to it, if you manage to find a space. At 74 metres, Pistyll Rhaeadr is the highest waterfall in both England and Wales and is fed by plentiful water from the Berwyn Hills. If you wish, you can take a footpath to the top of the waterfall.
St Giles’, Wrexham
St Giles’ Church, Wrexham makes it to the list due to its Steeple, which is in fact a tower. Along with the towering concrete Wrexham Police building, it is visible from all around the town. There is even a half size replica of the tower at Yale University, which includes a stone from St Giles’ tower. Just in front is the tomb of Elihu Yale benefactor of Yale University, USA. The university now carries his name, some cynics think that Jeremiah Dummer probably raised more funds for the university, but for some reason they chose to name it after Yale.
Snowdon Mountain
Snowdon is the only one off this list, that I personally would include in a Present Day version of the ‘Seven Wonders of Wales’. The highest mountain in England and Wales comes in at 1085 metres. It can be climbed by a variety of routes. A popular one being the main path from Llanberis, if only because of the Tea rooms just outside Llanberis, halfway up and again at the summit. For other routes, you can park up and get the Sherpa buses to drop you off at Pen-y-Pass and take the Miners’ or the Pyg track. There are many more, some involving scrambling or mountaineering skills and equipment. The easy way up is on the Snowdon Mountain Railway from Llanberis. Everyone getting to the Summit can have have a drink or meal at the Hafod Eryri visitor centre, protected from the weather, which can be surprisingly cold up there, even in summer.
Yew Trees, Overton-on-Dee
Overton-on-Dee’s yew trees are old, very old. The oldest are believed to be between 1,500 and 2,000 years old. However there is one that was planted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1992. The tree held up by the wooden posts is the oldest.
St Winefride’s well, Holywell
At Holywell, the wonder is a holy well. Legend has it that Winefride had her head chopped off when she refused to yield to a would be rapist. Where her head struck the ground a spring appeared. Her uncle, St Bueno replaced her head and his prayers restored her to life. The waters have been renowned for their healing powers ever since and the site has become known as the ‘Lourdes of Wales’. It is one of the few Welsh Wonders with an entrance fee, currently about £1, but also includes an exhibition explaining the history of the site and even displays crutches left by some of the cured pilgrims from the Nineteenth and early Twentieth Centuries.
Llangollen bridge
Llangollen bridge would now not be considered exceptional, but it was the first stone bridge to span the River Dee. Built by John Trevor I, Bishop of St Asaph, or rather under his direction, it has been upgraded many times, the last time in the 1960′s, but each time in keeping with the original design. It is at its most impressive when the river is high, with white water breaking over the rocks above the bridge. Beautiful setting though. Did I mention that Llangollen was my birthplace?
Gresford Bells
Gresford All Saints Church’s wonder is not the church but the bells. To actually appreciate them entails a visit on a Sunday or Tuesday evening.
Visiting the Seven Wonders of Wales
The easiest way to visit these sights by car, especially Pistyll Rhaeadr Waterfall. You can take a bus to within a short walk of another five, but to get to the summit of Snowdon will require a ticket for the mountain railway or a long hike.
What would you include in a list of the present day ‘Seven Wonders of Wales’?
All photos by the author.
Nice, one John. Didn’t even know some of these existed!
Thank you Alex.
My wife and I will be visiting Wales from South Africa in July of this year and we will try our level best to get to some of these beautiful sites.
Have a lovely trip in Wales Derek. I’m glad they have inspired you.
Each one makes me say “Wow!” – inspirational.
Pleasance, you are too kind. Remember to look up some of your faves when in North Wales.
I’m embarrassed to say I’ve never heard of some of these either! Will have to make a point of visiting them
Huw, nothing to be embarrassed about. They are a list of North Wales’ attractions. Plenty to see in South Wales too. What would you include on a Seven Wonders of South Wales list?
Brecon Beacons – visited them for the first time last weekend and they astounded me.
Mike, I’m ashamed to admit that I have never hiked in the Brecon Beacons. They don’t look very daunting when compared to Snowdon, but the SAS train there so it must be tough.
Well done!
( my gal is from Acrefair )
Brad, yes close to the UNESCO World Heritage site of Telford’s Aqueduct. That was a wonder in its time, maybe even today. Its a lot more impressive than Llangollen Bridge.
You can’t beat Barry Island on a sunny day!
Ah! Barry Island. Brings back memories of a “Ode to Barry Island” by Max Boyce. Barry Island certainly made to Max’s list of wonders
I visited Llanberis for the first time last year and fell in love with it! It was late Autumn too, probably not the best time, but it was really really beautiful.
Llanberis has a lot going for it. Snowdon of course, but also the Slate Quarries, Electric Mountain, a Welsh castle, Narrow gauge railway, slate museum. Just had inspiration for one of the modern Seven Wonders
How did Portmeirion not make the 7 Wonders? Or the Ffestiniog Railway? Or how about the Valleys…
Tim, the 7 Wonders in this post refer to those in the rhyme, which is about 200 years old. I plan to produce a post of my personal Seven Wonders of Wales for the present time. Expect to see one of the “wonders” in your comment included.
Great to see the less obvious here, fantastic. Would love to see more.
Andrew, very much so. They are all interesting places to visit, but there is so much more to see today.
An interesting collection, but highest waterfall and mountain in England and Wales? What does this mean. Ben Nevis would never be described as the highest mountain in England and Scotland, would it?
Thank you Gary, I see your point. Ben Nevis is best described as the tallest mountain in Britain, but I might describe it as the highest in England and Scotland, if Snowdon was the highest mountain in Britain.
Seems that the waterfall record for Wales might not be held by Pistyll Rhaeadr. There are two waterfalls with bigger single drops and bigger sums of falls. Waterfall measurement seems not to be an exact science.
This is a great list. I am about to go on a weeks holiday to Wales and I would like to visit some of these spots too. Thanks for sharing…
Thank you Colleen. Hope you have an enjoyable week.
An inspiring list and frankly I would prefer Wales to some of the spots Karl visited. Was not aware of the gorgeous waterfall that I won’t even begin to attempt to pronounce or spell, thanks! These lists are difficult to put together because you can never make everyone happy and someone is bound to have a moan because you neglected their ‘neck of the woods.’ Well done anyway!
Thank you! This list was drawn up by someone a long time ago. His or her identity is forgotten but the rhyme lives on. Meanwhile I am working on my own version of the Seven Wonders of Wales.
I am a regular traveller to Wales, but the only place I’ve been out of all of these is Snowdon. I feel rather sheltered! I love the look of St. Winefride’s Well. Perhaps when I head to my parent’s house in Tywyn next year, I can convince them to take me to all these places. Heather of Photos of Wales
I think all of Wales is well worth visiting. Hope you get to see these and more!
PS There are some fantastic photos of Wales on your site.
My husband and I have actually been to several of these wonders. We have spent many visits staying long term in Wales and feel in love with it. Here’s another “wonder”: as one drives north into Harlech there’s OhMyGod beach! We were told it was called that before we ever visited and chuckled. Then we rounded that last corner coming into Harlech, saw the five mile crescent of white sand and both exclaimed: Oh my God! Then we really hooted with laughter.
Another favorite is St. Melangell’s Shrine (also has extremely old yews) This one is especially good because of her story.
One last offering that I’ve only ever read of: the Offa Dyke trail(?) that runs all the way from the north of Wales to the very south of Wales sounds as if it is truly a wonder.
Vero, love your additions to the suggestions. I hadn’t heard that particular beach was called that. But there are some fantastic beaches in the area.
St. Melangell’s Shrine is a favourite of mine. You really get off the beaten track don’t you?
The Offa’s Dyke trail was the original long distance trail across Wales, but now it has plenty of competition. The Pembrokeshire Coastal Path is longer, but there is a scheme to create a trail around all of Wales’ coastline.
“The highest mountain in England and Wales”? No No No No No! It is not the highest mountain in England And Wales, it is the highest mountain in Wales! If it was in England, would you still call it the highest mountain in England and Wales? No, thought not! And it’s called Yr Wyddfa, to give it it’s proper name…
Yes Yes Yes Yes If it was was one of the Seven Wonders of England, I probably would. I didn’t write the rhyme which is the inspiration for this post, which refers to Yr Wyddfa as Snowdon.
I have been to wales once .my maternal grand,and great-grandparents were born in Gerswallyt Wrexham,and my gr grandfather was a collier and died in a mining accident and is buried in Gerswallyt wrexham churchyard! I knew none of this when I visited can’t wait to go back and see my ancestral homeland again!
Hi Nancy, it is a small world. I started my career as a collier at the last mine in Wrexham. Get that trip planned now!