Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
high. It too was probably once covered with a mound that is now long gone. As with
many such pre-Christian/pre-Celtic sites, St Lythan's has many local legends attached to
it. It was once thought to be a druid's altar and on midsummer's eve the capstone sup-
posedly spins around three times. The field it stands in is known as the Accursed Field.
While located on private farmland, both sites are freely accessible to the public and
each has an information post with a wind-up device that plays a recorded commentary.
Getting There & Away
You'll need your own car to get here and preferably a detailed road map. Head west of the
city to Culverhouse Cross and continue west on the A48 to St Nicholas, where the sites
are signposted. Turn left at the lights and look for a parking area to the right of the road
where you can walk across the field to the Tinkinswood chamber. Continue down this
road for a further mile and turn left at the end to find St Lythan's.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Caerphilly (Caerffili)
POP 30,400
The town of Caerphilly, with its fairy-tale castle, guards the entrance to the Rhymney Val-
ley to the north of the capital. Its name is synonymous with a popular variety of mild,
slightly crumbly, hard white cheese that originated in the surrounding area.
Sights
Caerphilly Castle
CASTLE
(Cadw; 029-2088 3143;
www.cadw.wales.gov.uk
; adult/child £4.75/3.60; 9.30am-5pm Mar-Oct, 10am-4pm
Nov-Feb)
You could be forgiven for thinking that Caerphilly Castle - with its profusion of
towers and crenellations reflected in a duck-filled lake - was a film set rather than an an-
cient monument. While it is often used as a film set, it is also one of Britain's finest ex-
amples of a 13th-century fortress with water defences.
Most of the construction was completed between 1268 and 1271 by the powerful Eng-
lish baron Gilbert de Clare (1243-95), Lord Marcher of Glamorgan, in response to the
threat of attack by Prince Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, Prince of Gwynedd (and the last Welsh
