Coed Rheidol

The Rheidol valley is altogether one of the most spectacular landscapes in Wales. Coed Rheidol itself is an excellent example of the sessile oak woodland that is typically found in Wales, although the woodland also contains other trees such as birch, rowan and hazel.

Coed Rheidol NNR is part of the Rheidol Woods and Gorges Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and the Coedydd a Cheunant Rheidol Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

Grid Ref: SN745783 Area: 165.91 hectares

Coed Rheidol

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Visiting

There are a number of public footpaths through the reserve that allow visitors to appreciate the plants and animals of the woodland and the exciting landscape in which they are set.

OS Landranger 135
OS Explorer 213
Devil’s Bridge Grid Ref: SN741770

Please keep to these paths as the steep terrain and past mining activity on the site makes it very hazardous in places.

At Devil’s Bridge you can get great views of the gorge and woodland by visiting the Waterfalls Walk. The walk is privately run and there’s an admission charge.

North of Devil’s Bridge the valley is a steep sided gorge through which the river Rheidol rushes.

_{Photo by Mike

Alexander,©CCW}

Coed Rheidol

Follow the river’s path and you’ll see it turns to the west at Devil’s Bridge before entering a ‘U’ shaped valley formed by glacial action during the last Ice Age, 12,000 years ago.

At this point, the river takes on a more leisurely pace as it meanders to the sea at Aberystwyth.

How to get there

There is no main access point to the reserve and this is partly due to the dispersed nature of the area.

_{Photo by Mike

Alexander,©CCW}

Coed Rheidol

Access is relatively easy from the A44, which runs to the north of the site. Bangor visitors can access the western part of the NNR by leaving the A44 in Capel – and this includes access to Coed Simdde Llwyd.

By leaving the A44 at Ponterwyd the northern section of the reserve can be accessed at either Ysbyty Cynfyn or at Devil’s Bridge.

Transport
The number 525 bus service between Aberystwyth and Llanidloes passes through Ponterwyd. Additionally, the Royal Mail post bus – number 596 - runs a limited service between Cwmystwyth and Aberystwyth, calling at Devil’s Bridge.

The Vale of Rheidol narrow gauge steam railway also runs through the reserve on its route between Aberystwyth and Devil's Bridge, between April and October.

For more information on services and times, contact Traveline Cymru on 0871 2002233 or visit www.traveline-cymru.org.uk

Facilities

There are no facilities on the reserve but there are toilets, accessible with a RADAR key. Parking facilities and refreshments are also available at Devil’s Bridge.

In addition, refreshments and toilets are also available in the Visitor Centre at the E-ON Power Station.

Who looks after it?

Coed Rheidol is managed by CCW while the Coed Simdde Llwyd section is managed by the Wildlife Trust South and West Wales. You can contact the trust by phoning 01656 724100 or by email at info@welshwildlife.org

You can contact the CCW western region reserves team via the enquiries help line on 0845 1306229 or by email at enquires@ccw.gov.uk. You can also write to us at the address under ‘Contact the team’.

Wildlife

_{Photo by Mike

Alexander,©CCW}

Coed Rheidol

The woodland at Coed Rheidol is predominantly made up of sessile oak trees with some birch trees amongst them.

Ash trees occur on the slightly richer soils with alder trees occupying the wetter ground, especially by the River Rheidol. A few wych elms and small-leaved limes can also be found.

The ground flora is typical of acid woodland in mid-Wales, and includes:

Bluebell
Common cow-wheat
Common violet
Opposite-leaved golden saxifrage
Primrose
Wood anemone
Yellow pimpernel
Heather
Bilberry

Rare plants include the:

Welsh poppy
Forked spleenwort
Wilson’s filmy fern

Seventy-seven species of bird have been recorded with several breeding on the reserve, including species typical to western oak woodlands, like:

Pied flycatcher
Redstart
Wood warbler

While other regular birds include:

Buzzard
Jackdaw
Jay
Long-tailed tit
Raven
Robin

Coed Rheidol

In addition, visitors to the reserve will often see red kites which breed and winter in the area.

Mammals such as badger and polecat also frequent the woodland, and there is evidence that badgers use it extensively. Brown hares can also be spotted feeding near the woodland edges.

Occasionally, trees in small areas of the woodland are felled; this deadwood on the ground is an important refuge and food supply for invertebrates. The light that can then fall on the woodland floor allows new generations of tree seedlings to bolt and reach for the light - adding to the diversity of the age of the trees in the wood.

The site is particularly noted for the mosses, liverworts and lichens that carpet the trees, rocks and soil.

These plants rely on the humid shady conditions in the woodland and the very low levels of air pollution in west Wales.

The Past
Visitors to the Rheidol valley will notice the large spoil heaps and ruined buildings that occur on the valley sides. These are remnants of lead mining - a major industry here until the late 1800's. Miners cut timber from the woodland around the mines for pit props.

Timber has been extracted from the Rheidol woodlands for many hundreds of years. This extraction reached its peak during the First World War when large areas were clear felled, with up to 7000 tons of wood per month being removed. Much of this timber was destined for the coal mines of south Wales to aid the war effort.

The Present and Future
The large scale felling of trees around the time of the First World War has led to the woodland structure we can see today.

All the trees are roughly the same age and the canopy of leaves has closed completely. This means that new trees cannot get established in the dense shade this creates.

However, by removing carefully selected trees, we can allow light to reach the woodland floor and enable the likes of oak saplings to grow.

Much of this cut timber will be left on the woodland floor to provide a habitat for a number of plants and animals that rely on dead wood.

This work has already begun and will continue in the years to come. We hope eventually that the Rheidol woodland will become more like the ancient undisturbed woodland it was many centuries ago.