Start:
The Beaufort Arms, Kittle
Destination:
The Beaufort Arms, Kittle
Distance:
6 miles
Walk Length:
3 hours
Walk Difficulty:
1 (Easy)
Parking:
Patrons parking at the Beaufort
C0nsiderations:
Always exercise caution when crossing roads and navigating steep paths.
Points of Interest
*Workmen found a Romano British stone hammer whilst digging a carpark for the Beaufort Inn.
* Ilston Quarry has an intriguing secret, the story behind a cache of Roman coins and the skeleton that was with them.
Also when the runway was extended during the second world war near Moorlakes, a Bronze Age burial mound was uncovered.
The nearby Langrove hoard , a large Bronze hoard indicating prehistoric activity in this area.
Starting from the village green in Kittle, walk along Kittle Hill Lane beside the Beaufort Arms, passing bungalows on each side.
Where the lane narrows, cross the stile on the right-hand side and go ahead over further stiles, following the line of the lane.
Exit through the kissing-gate by the Kittle Poultry Farm and continue on the road to the right, passing the Kittle Dairy Farm. Buzzards are often seen here.
The road continues onto Fairwood Common, meeting the main Swansea-Rhossili road (A4118) at a T-junction. To the right is Swansea Airport.
- Cross over the main road and enter the broad track, passing a cottage on the left.
The woodland on the right is Moorlakes Wood, a damp woodland largely consisting of oak and supporting many birds. Look out for violets, primrose, lesser celandine, wood oxalis, dog’s mercury, wood anemone, and bluebells.
The track passes over a stile beside a large gate; water draining off the high banks can make it damp here.
Gently descend through a metal gate to a small stream. This can be forded in dry weather, or crossed on the footbridge to the left. Look for buzzards.
Continue on the high-banked track uphill, which curves left to Courthouse Farm.
Before reaching the farmyard, turn right along the track, keeping the wall and hedge on your left. There are good views over the valley towards Cannisland Wood.
At the end of the wall, turn left along a grassy path between stunted hawthorns. Pass ahead through the gate into a banked lane (which may be muddy).
In season, honeysuckle, red campion, wild strawberry, and cuckoo flower thrive here.
Descend to Ilston village, entering the village with the Old Rectory on your right A beautiful Copper Beech tree will come into view. You now meet the main road through the village.
A small diversion but worth it! The Quarry face is a site of geological interest - At the junction, turn right (stream on your left). About 50 meters on the left, across a ford, is the Glamorgan Wildlife Trust’s Ilston Quarry Reserve.
Trees beside the road usually have tits, treecreeper, and nuthatch.
Retrace your steps to the village with houses on the right and the stream now on the left.
Cross the road and enter the churchyard. The church is dedicated to St. Illtyd and probably dates, in its present form, from the late Middle Ages. The ancient yew may be 600 years old. Note some interesting and beautifully engraved memorial stones.
Take the path through the churchyard with the stream on the right and enter Carey’s Wood by the black gate.
The path follows the stream, which in dry weather may flow underground in places. Debris in the bushes will indicate the heights it can reach in wet weather.
The path through Ilston Valley will take you to the Gower Inn, if you fancy a pub to pub walk, alternatively Ilston is the perfect place to explore and picnic before returning to the Beaufort Inn
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