Glamorgan History Walks & Talks – Walk Three
A Sunday afternoon stroll around Barry, taking in 1,000s of years of history. We start on Barry Island, these days made famous by Gavin and Stacey. But this has been a spiritual sanctuary since the Bronze Age, enjoying a heyday from the 6th Century. This walk will show you how the town has changed through the Roman, Medieval and Industrial ages. To say nothing of the pirates!
History topics discussed
- The Roman era
- Early Christianity
- Thomas Knight and the pirates of Barry
- When coal was king
- The story of the witch of Porthkerry
- And others…
Places we visit
- Friars Point & Barry Island beach
- World War II anti aircraft gun emplacement
- The chapel and well of St Baruc
- The Victorian docks
- The Knap (lime kilns, watchtower and Roman remains)
- Porthkerry Park
- Barry Castle
Route Information & Data
- Parking: Barry Island Car Park
- Distance: 5.7 miles
- Elevation: 696.81 feet
- Walking time: 4 hours
Walker Level
This walk in its entirety has been graded as suitable for ‘All Abilities’. More information on these gradings is available on this link.
This walk is easy going. There is very little cross country. Virtually all of the walk is on hard surfaces so a good walk to take a pushchair. The only thing to take into consideration is the 5.7 miles.
However, there is also an alternative way we can make it just 3.5 miles
As this is an urban, circular, circuit you don’t have to walk all the way round it. If you miss out the section where the route goes to Porthkerry Park. Simply leave the planned circuit after the Roman remains, walk along the banks of Marine Lake to the coffee shop. Have a 30 minute rest and a cup of coffee. Then rejoin us at Barry Castle at the other end of Romilly Park. That reduces the route down to 3.5 miles. And it’s all pavements, no styles and therefore perfect for people of all ages and abilities.
Map of the route
Photos from the walk
Get a taste of some of the local history we will be discussing with this video. Just click on the picture below to watch.
Do you want to read more about the history and folklore discussed on this walk?
If you want to read more about the history and folklore of this area and the places visited on this walk, then these two books are a great start. Available at discounted prices on this website. Just click here to read more about them and order your copy.
