Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
( 01550-740617;
www.redkiteswales.co.uk
; Llanddeusant; admission £3; feeding summer 3pm, winter 2pm)
A
former pub, now the licensed Red Kite Cafe, is also a feeding centre for the beautiful kites
themselves, who swoop in daily. You may see around 50 of the birds, alongside buzzards
and ravens.
National Showcaves
CAVE
Centre for Wales
( 01639-730284;
www.showcaves.co.uk
; adult/child £13.75/8; 10am-4pm Apr-Oct)
The limestone plat-
eau of the southern Fforest Fawr, around the upper reaches of the River Tawe, is riddled
with some of the largest and most complex cave systems in Britain. Most can only be vis-
ited by experienced cavers, but the
National Showcaves Centre for Wales
is a set of three caves
that are well lit, spacious and easily accessible, even to children.
The highlight of the 1.5-mile self-guided tour is the
Cathedral Cave
, a high-domed cham-
ber with a lake fed by two waterfalls that pour from openings in the rock. Nearby is the
Bone Cave
, where 42 Bronze Age skeletons were discovered.
Dan-yr-Ogof Cave
, part of a
10-mile complex, has interesting limestone formations.
The admission fee also gives entry to various other attractions on-site, including a mu-
seum, a reconstructed Iron Age farm, a prehistoric theme park filled with life-sized fibre-
glass dinosaurs, a shire-horse centre and a children's playground. The complex is just off
the A4067 north of Abercraf.
Beneath the hillside to the east lies the twisting maze of subterranean chambers known
as
Ogof Ffynnon Ddu
(Cave of the Black Spring), the deepest and third-longest cave system in
the UK (308m deep, with 30 miles of passages). This one is for expert potholers only, but
you can explore it virtually at
www.ogof.net
.
Penderyn Distillery
( 01685-813300;
www.welsh-whisky.co.uk
;
Penderyn; tours adult/child £6/4; 9.30am-5pm)
Before the as-
cendency of the chapels in the 19th century, the Welsh were as fond of their whisky as
their Gaelic cousins in Scotland and Ireland. Penderyn Distillery marks the resurgence of
Welsh whisky-making after an absence of more than 100 years (the Frongoch Distillery in
Bala closed in the late 1800s).
This boutique, independently owned distillery released its first malt whisky in 2004. It's
distilled with fresh spring water drawn from directly beneath the distillery, then matured
in bourbon casks and finished in rich Madeira wine casks to create a golden-hued drop of
liquid fire. It also produces Brecon Gin, Brecon Five Vodka and Merlyn Cream Liqueur.
DISTILLERY
