Day 21: Betws-y-coed (Snowdonia)

Our first stop this morning was The Ugly House which is owned by the National Trust. Some claim the name, Ugly House (Tŷ Hyll in Welsh), is a corruption of ‘Llugwy’, the name of the river burbling away on the other side of the road. Or maybe it’s the big, crude boulders that give the house its name; the word ‘hyll’ in Welsh can mean rough or crude, as well as ugly. Tŷ Hyll is a house full of history, legend and mystery; no one really knows who built the house, or when. In any case, we enjoyed a delicious morning tea here before exploring the 6 acres of woodland surrounding the cottage.

Front view of The Ugly House

Back view of The Ugly House

Tree entwined with climbers in Ugly House woodland

Then it was on to the charming village of Betws-y-coed nestled within large deciduous woodlands. The village included a number of boutique shops selling a variety of goods including one of my favourites, Dutch stroopwafels although they called them Welsh toffee waffles here! We visited the 14^th Century St. Michael’s Church where the yew trees are around five centuries old. The church is the oldest building in the village.

St Michael's Church

Graves at St Michael's Church yard

From here we drove to Llanrwst where we had lunch in the Tu Hwnt l’r Bont Tearooms another National Trust owned building.  Built as a residential dwelling in 1480, Tu Hwnt I’r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) is actually considerably older than the Inigo Jones bridge it stands beside. Some years later the building was used as the Courthouse for the surrounding area.

 

Tu Hwnt I'r Bont Tearooms

Replete, we headed to the long established woollen mill in Trefriw where we took a self-guided tour. The mill produces a beautiful range of distinctive Welsh tapestries and tweeds all manufactured using older machinery powered by a mechanical water wheel.

Weaving machine at Trefriw Woollen Mill

Spooling machine at Trefriw Woollen Mill

Greg's new tweed cap (he's attempting to grow a beard!)

We finished the day by taking a short walk to view the Swallow Falls. This waterfall on the Afon Llugwy has become a familiar natural celebrity over the past 100 years and has featured on film, postcard and canvas.

Swallow Falls