From A466 in Tintern take the minor road beside the Wye Valley Hotel signed to Catbrook. At a T-junction (after 1½ miles) the car park is immediately opposite. Park close to the road near the pond.
(S/E) From the lower car park, with your back to the pond, go into the woodland opposite, following the level path as it meanders through majestic conifers. These are mainly Douglas Fir which were introduced into the UK from British Columbia.
(1) At the T-junction, turn left up the rough path. This is part of the Wye Valley Walk which follows the river from its confluence with the Severn at Chepstow to its source on Plinlimon in mid-Wales. The upper car park appears ahead. Keep to the wider left fork up into the area that has BBQs, picnic tables and children’s play equipment. Keeping to the right of the car park, a wonderful view to the River Wye comes up on your right – the bridge in the distance is at Brockweir. Pause at the Forestry Commission/Wye Valley AONB information board and then head straight on up to the stoned forest road. Turn right. The road goes steadily uphill and you will come to three magnificent views eastwards into the Wye Valley. At each viewpoint, there is a bench engraved with quotations from Wordsworth’s poem ‘Lines written a few miles above Tintern Abbey’.
(2) At the T-junction, turn right. This track leads from the wood and seems to be an ancient route with old moss covered stone walls to either side. At a junction of paths, go straight on towards the road, crossing the falls.
(3) Opposite the falls, take the lane and then first left by a gate marked ‘Home Cottage’. If you would like to see the house where Bertrand Russell was born in 1872, walk up the lane a couple of hundred yards. To your right Cleddon Hall can be seen. Retrace your steps to Home Cottage gate. Along the lane you cross the bridge over the stream on its way to the falls.
This is Cleddon and the falls, or shoots, are tumbling away to the right. If you wish to take a closer look at the waterfall please take great care on the steps to your right. This may be the place that Wordsworth calls ‘The sounding cataract’ in the Tintern Abbey poem.
(4) At Rose Cottage, look ahead and slightly right to an old stone stile with a gate to the left. Go through, leaving the gate as you found it, onto an old track between stone walls. This section can be very muddy. Note the boulders of conglomerate rock - full of pebbles and known locally as pudding stone. The path opens out at another gate with a stile beside it – this time a wooden one. Go through into forestry land; the young trees to the left are larch. The path ends at a minor road. Turn left and take care walking down the road (approximately 10 minutes) back to Whitestone. (S/E)
