Table Mountain Crickhowell, Pen Cerrig Calch (Peak), Glanusk Estate, Llangattock – Circular

Region: Crickhowell — Black Mountains, Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons) National Park, Wales

Places To Stay: Base yourself in Crickhowell for bookshops, cafes, pubs and easy access to Table Mountain, or stay in Abergavenny a proper community town packed full of everything you need. Looking for more Welsh walks? Head to my ‘Wales Hiking Guides‘ page to see all regions and routes.

Staying overnight? Check my guide to the Best Places To Stay in the Brecon Beacons

Below are a few ideas for day tours around the Brecon Beacons / Black Mountains area. GetYourGuide makes it easy to book + see more here.

For a bigger selection of Brecon Beacons accommodation, Booking.com has plenty of cottages, lodges and hotels to browse.

This walk has the great variety of tracks, it’s not the highest peak, it’s not the longest, it’s not as famous as the Dragons Back walk just up the road, but what this has is a town start, an Iron Age hill fort on Table Mountain, a mountain peak to climb, bit of a ridge walk, through farmland, over a busy main road, through a beautiful estate and then along a peaceful canal walk back to Crickhowell, and on a sunny day the walk along the canal cooled by the tree shade, is just what you need to finish the day off.

Getting There: Directions, GPX and Map

• Start/Finish: Start & Finish in the Secondary School Car Park in Crickhowell.
• Transport: Buses run from Abergavenny to Crickhowell. There is a train station in Abergavenny.
• GPX: Download the GPX file here.
• Route Finder: Follow this route on my Outdooractive profile.

Travel Data: I use eSIMs to stay connected — quick setup and no roaming faff when I’m heading further afield. Sim Local has been solid in Europe with good prices and coverage.

Hike Profile

• Distance: ~9 km (14 miles) circular
• Duration: 5–6 hours
• Highest Point: ~700 m
• Difficulty: Difficult (steep short climbs, and lots of uneven pathways and different terrain)
• Terrain: Well-worn pathways most of the way around, good walking shoes are a must.

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Hike Description

We started in Crickhowell Secondary School car park, it was a Sunday so it’s always free, but it does fill up quickly. From the car park turn left on the main road and head towards the Shell garage at the top of the road, turn left again, cross the road and take the first right up Llanbedr Road, you are now on a section of the Cambrian Way.

Walk up the ‘Great North Road’ a few hundred yards, and some buildings will appear on the left, go through the farm gate and walk up to the farmyard (The Wern). Once in the farmyard go to the top right corner, through the gate and across the field in an easterly direction until you arrive at the style. Follow the path to the left, up the hill to the next style, then through the fields towards Table Mountain.

Once you’re in the clearing you will see Table Mountain in front of you, there are a number of ways up, it’s looking at the paths and seeing which one you fancy really. We walked north until we got to the foot of the mountain, then went around to the right and up.

We took a lunch break on Table Mountain to take in the hill fort and tried to work out all it’s structure. The views are all around, and the history to Table Mountain is very interesting. Table Mountain’s Welsh title is Crug Hywel, ‘Hywel’s Fort’. It’s not sure if it was Hywel the Good, King of all Wales, who kept a stronghold here in the 10th century, or a more local King, Hywel ap Rhys of Morgannwg? No-one’s sure – and anyway, the double rampart, the rock-dug ditch and tumbled stone gateway that fortify the knoll were made a thousand years before either Hywel reigned here.

Once you’re ready to move on, the peak is easily identifiable in the distance again to the North. You’ll need to walk slightly to the left to the reach the peak, and at 707m it’s a very decent climb up and the wind can be pretty strong, and quite cold even on good days, so pack well.

When leaving the peak, head Southwest and eventually you will come to a bit of ridge, you can miss this bit out and just carry on straight down the mountain, but it was worth a quick look just to take everything in. You will know your heading in the right direction, as you will see a farm at the bottom of the mountain, and once there turn left and head down the lane a little while.

Staying overnight? Check my guide to the Best Places To Stay in the Brecon Beacons

The next trail type is farmers fields, they were ploughed when we tried and we walked along the plough lines, until we got to the bottom of the field, then it’s a case of finding the best place to jump over the fence from that field and onto a road (A479), and then you will be on the main road the A40. Turn right and head up, crossing a little further when you see the ‘GlanUsk Estate‘ sign, and its beautiful cottage entrance. A little into the estate you will cross a bridge, and you can see the full beauty of the area, and the mountains you just climbed down from.

Carry on walking through the estate, bare left, and head towards a coach house with a big arch, directly after the arch turn right and you’ll walk towards a little cottage, pass through the gate over the road and at a little canal bridge you will see a step down to the left, and that’s your start along the canal back to Crickhowell via Llangattock.

Once at Llangattock leave the canal to your left and head down through the village, to cross over the river at the bottom. Once on the side you are back in Crickhowell and it’s a short walk up the hill to the car park on your left. We love walking here as we usually go to one of the cafe’s for a coffee and a bit of cake and share our pics.

Places to Stay in Crickhowell

For a wider choice of accommodation in the Bannau Brycheiniog, Booking.com has a huge variety to browse through.

Recommended Stays

Black Mountain Lodge

This lovely, old stone building is at the foothills of the Black Mountains amid beautiful countryside and views of the Brecon Beacons. It has a restful feel, comfortable rooms and a free Wi-Fi zone.

Check availability

Dragon Inn

In Crickhowell, the Dragon Inn has views of the mountains and the Brecon Beacons National Park. It offers modern rooms with free Wi-Fi, a full cooked breakfast and free parking.

Check availability

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Staying overnight? Check my guide to the Best Places To Stay in the Brecon Beacons

Practicalities

• Season: All year, but the tops are very exposed – expect strong winds and winter conditions when it’s cold.
• Footwear: Proper walking boots or grippy trail shoes – it can be wet, muddy and steep in places.
• Water & food: Nothing on the route itself; stock up in Crickhowell. Use a Water-to-Go bottole.
• Parking: Lots of parking opportunities – can be busy on sunny weekends.
• Dogs: Yes, but keep on a lead around livestock and on the farmland sections.
• Good for: Big views, border history, long ridge days, and anyone who likes a mix of wild open tops and tucked-away valleys.

Black Mountains Circular FAQs

Walk this route yourself in 3D!

The video is a 3D walkthrough of this route; it’ll give you a great idea of what to expect before you set foot on the mountain.

I’ve created 3D videos of my walks and shared them with the Outdooractive and Welsh Man Walking communities.

Hay Bluff & Lord Herefords Knob (Twmpa) Circular Walk, near Hay on Wye – 3D Video.

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