Ty Cariad awarded Four Stars by Visit Wales

We were very pleased to hear that Ty Cariad has been awarded Four Stars as a Self Catering holiday cottage, by Visit Wales (formerly The Welsh Tourist Board).

timetable for Vale of Rheidol railway

I have added a link to the website for the 2010 timetable for the Vale of Rheidol railway, which runs from Devil's Bridge to Aberystwyth.

You'll find it here.

Tan-y-graig

Julie has started enquiring about the cottage through the archives.

The first discovery is that it used to be called Tan-y-graig (beneath the rock) which makes sense if you visit. It isn't clear yet if that is the name for the two joined cottages, or for our half.

The researcher has also looked back as far as 1841 to find stone masons and lead miners living there, so we still don't quite know when it got built.

Local news and weather

The Pontrhydygroes Commmunity Web Site doesn't seem to get updated very often, but it contains someuseful information.

We have already mentioned that the mobile phone coverage is very limited in the area, and although I have occasionally got a freak Vodafone connection up on the hills, the main coverage comes from Orange. Even so, down in the valley you will get no signal, more than likely.
This phone coverage map might give you an idea...

In addition to the weather station that I have linked to on the website, the Community site offers this Ystwyth weather station (not sure exactly where it is located) - which you might find interesting or useful.

Cold weather for birds

The snow has carried on, and birds of all kinds are highly visible around the feeder, and exploring around the gutters of the house.

You can just watch Red Kites from the fireside, they have been so close to the garden. Beautiful and bright against the snow. Stunning aerial displays.

Snow Fun

We have come up for a winter break, and we met ice on the hill when we arrived. Couldn't make it around that final, steep, hairpin bend until a kind neighbour took his wheelbarrow up to a salt and grit bin at the top of the hill, then skidded back down with it. The one on the corner was already empty.

But we made it. This morning the world is covered with snow, much to the bemusement of the dog.

As I looked out the window a red kite came in to land on one of the nearby trees, when I crunched out to see if I could get a better shot it didn't like being looked at, and took off...that is how close they come!

It sure looks snowy up there!

Snow on the mountains

I looked on the local webcam (only about a mile from the cottage) and it looked pretty snowy out there!

We will be going up in January for a visit ourselves, and to check out the facilities.

Gizmos and Moon Shadows

We do like to please people and make them feel at home, but we are still tweaking away, after our first year of sharing this beautiful place with others.

I just found a useful lantern (I kept worrying that people wouldn't bring a torch, or that ones we left would end with dead batteries, just when you need them). This is one of those handwound lanterns - not indestructible, of course, but perhaps enough for a day when a powercut happens, or the fuse blows, or you simply want to walk up the lane on a night of the new moon (you'll have no problem under a full moon on a clear night - the moon almost throws shadows it is so bright!)

Tweaks

I also noticed that the font on the front page of the website looked a bit odd and out of place - must have pasted it in from some other software - so it had a Times font. Have changed it to Arial to match the rest.

I know, I know - probably of interest only to myself - but Julie pays attention to lots of little details in the cottage - the least I can do is try to do the same for the website. Toby :-)