Magical MID WALES

Kerry Walker takes a road trip through Bannau Brycheiniog National Park

- KERRY WALKER

As I tread through the ancient woods, morning light trickles between tree branches. Skirrid - or Ysgyryd Fawr, as it's known in Welsh - was formed during the last Ice Age, and this ridge in the east of the Bannau Brycheiniog (formerly the Brecon Beacons) National Park delivers drama greater than its modest 486-metre height suggests. I reach the summit in under two hours and am left breathless, in every sense.

I watch as the sun illuminates a patchwork of gold-green fields. Looking west, I pick out the heights of the Brannau (peaks in Welsh), while to the south the Severn Estuary glimmers. It's early morning and the only sound is the whistle of the wind.

Pubs and old ruins