Overall comments on Usk Valley Walk

In all I walked 112 miles along the Usk Valley Walk including the distance to and from railway and bus stations. I stayed one night on route, heading back home on the other nights, however I could easily have stayed at Newport, Usk, Abergavenny and Brecon to make a continuous trip.
This distance was for starting at Newport and following the recently waymarked link from the Wales Coast Path to where the original Usk Valley Walk began. I would recommend doing this extra distance as it brings in extra history in the shape of the Transporter bridge, old wharves, Newport Castle and the Roman remains at Caerleon. Newport still has a feel of the industry that would have dominated the Usk Valley and its canal during its heyday in the Industrial revolution.
Outside Newport the route is very pastoral and it does not have the dramatic scenery of other walks in the area such as the Beacons Way, Offas Dyke or, in a wide open sort of way, the nearby Wales Coast path. Nevertheless it is a very pleasant and gentle walk, and would be more gentle and pleasant still if you keep to the canal between Crickhowell and Llangynidr, instead of deviating uphill. The towns on route, including the nearby towns of Abergavenny and Crickhowell are also worth a visit, if only for lunch or a cup of coffee, Usk and Brecon are directly on route, and a pleasure to visit.
If you have the time you could do a circle, combining the Usk Valley Walk with the Taff trail, maybe a section of the Beacons Way over the popular Pen-y-fan mountain and the Wales Coast path between Cardiff and Newport. This would result in a very varied walk giving an insight into the varied scenery and history of South Wales.

Danywenallt YHA to Brecon

Having stayed the night at the Youth Hostel, today should have been a pleasant, walk, unfortunately, the long walk yesterday and the problems with my boots made it rather less so.
It started well with a cooked breakfast, before climbing back up to the Usk Valley Walk which briefly follows an old tramline used by horse drawn trams in the Industrial Revolution to bring coal and limestone down to the canal. The sandstone sleepers still remain in places and there are informative signs. The Walk then heads into the valley and up the other side through woodland and farmland, fortunately a clearer and better marked path than yesterday with more considerate farmers. One of the reasons for the Walk deviating away from the canal and river is so that you can see sweeping views of the valley from the hillside, plus the more distant mountains.

View over Usk Valley

Eventually the Walk rejoins the canal, and from there it was a steady trudge to Brecon, passing many cyclists, walkers, children, dogs, canoes and narrow boats. The crossing of the River Usk on an one of the original aqueducts was both impressive and a navigation point, indicating that Brecon was now close.
The canal, and the Usk Valley Walk ends in the Brecon canal basin with its ducks, flowers and food offerings, but I had to go a bit further to the Visitor information office, to find out where my bus left from. Then it was cake and a very refreshing cup of tea, and a visit to Boots for some change (and some batteries I needed) for the bus. I had a fear that it would be a "correct change only" bus, and with only £20 notes I would be left to walk home, however it was a very nice bus driver, so maybe he would have let me off.
I covered 16 km today, although it felt more with my sore feet.

Brecon Canal Basin

Abergavenny to Danywenallt YHA

I had thought this section would be mainly a long, flat walk along the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal, however the Usk Valley Walk deviates up the hillside into farmland above the canal making it a much more interesting, and difficult walk.
However the first part was easy, a walk from Abergavenny railway station through the grassy meadows beside the River Usk, where they were packing up after the National Eisteddfod, then up the road to the Canal. There followed many kilometres of canal, where I was shaded from the sun by the trees that line the canal, creating dappled sunlight on myself and other users of the canal. These included several narrowboats rented by people for their holiday, numerous cyclists, which I carefully stepped aside to avoid, lots of ducks and occasional swans, two groups of children learning how to canoe in their holidays and other people walking like myself. Wild flowers made the path more pleasant, the Cow Parsley had now gone to seed, but the Meadowsweet was showing its final, fluffy cream blooms and the Codlins and Cream (Great Willowherb) was still in full bloom. In places there were also informative signs as to the history of the canal and its surroundings, and the remains of lime kilns and wharfs, monuments to the industrial history of the area.

Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal

Codlins and Cream

I was doing well apart from my new Brasher (aka Berghaus) boots, a make I had previously found very comfortable, I felt a distinct bump beneath the ball of my foot, which was causing me some discomfort, so I turned off to Crickhowell a mile or so from the canal. After a ham sandwich, cake and coffee, I stopped at the "Adventure" shop and purchased an alternative insole. Not sure it made much difference. Worrying for a longer 500 mile walk I was planning across Austria.
Shortly after the difficulties began as the Usk Valley Walk heads uphill into farmland and trees. It did not seem a well used route and waymarking, largely absent along the canal (perhaps because there are no turn offs) was poor on this diversion through farmers fields and woodland overrun with bracken. On one section I disturbed a large number of pheasants among ferns surrounding a ruined barn. One tries to minimise the disturbance one makes, but the squawking of the pheasants as they took to the air, wings flapping madly or ran off along the path I was taking, highlighted my presence. Rather stupid birds, the ones I disturbed will make easy shots for gentleman on the estate.
One field I had to cross was planted with maize. One tries to avoid damage to farmers crops, but planting across the footpath, even though it was at the edge of the field, makes this difficult. I thought maybe I had missed the path but I found waymarks and stiles at both ends of the field confirming the I was on the correct route. Some missing waymarks may also suggest that walkers were not so welcome. Evidently not many take this route as where the my Ordnance Survey map and gps route, indicate the path exited a narrow road, there were only head, high bracken mixed with brambles. By precision navigation I determined the path must be at a certain spot and after beating back the undergrowth (or rather overgrowth) I found a hidden stile, crossing it gave me a few scratches and stings but at least put me on the right route.
I was glad to rejoin the canal for a while following the well managed towpath, but later there was another section where the path climbs the hillside above the towpath. It helps to have an Explorer Ordnance Survey map on these farmland sections as on entering a field, it is not always clear where the exit is, and even with a map I had to follow the edge of the field around to find the exit on a few occasions.
The final section to the Danywenallt Youth Hostel was downhill. Unfortunately it crossed a field planted with cabbages. Rather than following the correct route and damaging the crop I worked my way around the edge of the field, around fallen trees and other obstacles until I found the gate leading out. Then it was a short but steep walk down to the Youth hostel.

Cabbages blocking route

Including the deviation to Crickhowell I covered just over 32 kilometres on a warm August day, so I was thankful that YHAs now serve beer, a bottle of "Brecon Three" was a welcome reward.

The Brecon Beacons are advertised as a dark sky reserve, so I stayed up to 11 pm in the hope of identifying some constellations and seeing the Milky Way, climbing up to the dam across a reservoir to get a better view, and disturbing two badgers on my way. It was a clear night although the daylight took some time to leave the western skies. I spotted a few constellations although was disturbed by a the bright headlights of a number of cars driving around the dam, not sure what they were doing....

Moon over Talybont Reservoir