Winding its way down the Ely Valley, the River Ely (Afon Elai) flows through Smaelog Woods before passing through the grounds of the Royal Glamorgan Hospital and returning to the forest. Following the footpath through the forest heading southeast, the river is joined by the smaller Nant Muchudd under an old railway bridge.
Neither of these two rivers is very remarkable. There is nothing special about them. They do what they have always done: drain the land and wind their ways until they meet. This is where they get special, at least for me and the numerous people who visit the spot. Either to walk their dogs, fish or swim in the deep pool below the bridge.
What draws me to this spot is the deep pool. It’s like a magnet that keeps pulling me back. I’m only able to resist the draw for so long before I have to go back. As I’ve said, I have had a lifelong fascination with water. Here I can lose hours watching the water eddy around the pool as it spills out from under the bridge. At this time of year, it falls gently off the spillway in two little cascades. In times of heavy rain, when the river is running high, it is a torrent.
The pool is ever-changing; a tree has fallen into the river since my last visit. This changes the way the water passes at this point, creating new current patterns. It’s these current patterns that I like to watch. The fallen tree is not the only change that I’ve noticed today. Wooden baffles have been fitted to the base of one of the arches. I assume NRW (Natural Resources Wales) are responsible for this in an effort to lessen the impact of heavy rainfall. This will make it more interesting for me in heavy rain.
While I’m here, I’m going to go further downstream to see if I can retrieve the tripod that I lost back in February. The water level is much lower than it was then, so you never know. I’ve returned my gear to the car, and now I’m going to retrace my steps and go back to where I was when I lost my tripod. Following the gravel shoal as far as I can, I have to get back onto the riverbank to go any farther.
The going is harder than I expected with all the new growth, but I made good progress until I came to an impassable spot. I’ll have to go back. There is a road that leads part of the way to where I need to get to; it’s private and belongs to the Welsh Blood Service. They were closed the last time I was here, but as they are open today, I’m going to ask if I can use the road and explain my reason.
I’ve had permission and made my way to the spot I was in February, but I wouldn’t be able to take the shot I took then. The high winds we’ve had since then have brought trees down right across the river and changed the view so much. I’ve clambered down onto the place where I lost my tripod, and I think I can see it at the bottom of the pool.
There is no way I can reach it from where I’m perched on the rock, so there is only one thing for it: I’m going to have to go in after it. That water is deeper than it looks; I’m up to my waist in the river, and I still can’t reach it. I have no idea if the water is cold, as I can’t feel it. FND can have some benefits after all. The question is now: do I go the whole hog and dive in for it? or do I just leave it? Discretion being the better part of valour, I’ve decided to leave it. That pool of water it’s lying in is about twelve feet deep, maybe more. I may be mad, but I’m not that mad anymore.
After clambering back out of the river and up the rocks, I squelched my way back to the car. Tracy has just called me on her way out and asked if I’m OK. I told her I was wet, and she asked if I’d fallen in. She wasn’t impressed when I told her that I had gone in deliberately, and she called me an idiot. She still doesn’t know me, and after seven years together, she has a lot to learn.
Getting back to the car I drive home knowing that I’m going to pay for this excursion and that my impromptu swim at FND is a cruel mistress, and I’m going to take time to recover from this. I’m happy, though I know I won’t sleep tonight. I hope I do. I’ve been awake since 3:00. It’s time to go home and see what my photos are like, but not before a hot bath.
