The April 2023 ‘Slow Train Coming’ outing was to Llantwit Major.
Another fantastic turnout – thank you all for coming. Once again we were blessed with fine weather with just a few spots of rain.
Our train out was a Sprinter on temporary lease from Northern Rail. I was impressed by how people managed to quell their excitement for that fact!
Our first stop was the Town Hall where we learnt about the many uses it has had over the years.
Then it was on to the wonderful St Illtud’s church with all its rich history and beautiful Galilee chapel housing the Celtic stones.
hidden away in the church itself was the Medieval statuette of a virgin and child and the Jesse Niche. Saint David and Saint Patrick were pictured in one of the stain glass windows but there is a lot of conjecture about whether they attended St Illtud’s.
We split up then for lunch with some people going to the nearby pubs.
A small group of us reconvened after lunch, looked at the Gatehouse, Old Police Station and Dovecot before heading off to the beach. I believe some others stayed in the town and followed the Llantwit Major blue Plaque trail.
The myriad of paths, stiles and mud made the beginning of the walk tricky but it eased out and we were welcomed by the café being open on the beach. We returned using what I thought was the more even, flatter path parallel to the road. The first part was perfect but it then turned into a muddy quagmire which the local cattle had trampled. I’m being kind by referring to it as mud!
I think we were down to about 7 people who caught the 16.55 back to Cardiff and the minor hitch of the train unexpectedly terminating at Cardiff Central.
I attach a copy of my notes for those who didn’t make it on the trip or the after-lunch segment of the walk.
I leave the last word to the Vicar who stopped me when I went back into the church after lunch and asked where I was from. I told him Cardiff. He said USA. I said, no u3a. He said, no USA – ‘uther side of Aberthaw’.