Holiday at Ty Capel

We tend to go to a Landmark Trust place for a holiday every May, following Swarkestone Pavilion 8 years ago on our honeymoon.  This year was our 7th, following Swarkestone, St Winifred's Well, Prospect Tower, The Ruin, The Chateau, and Coop House (we always try to remember the list, so it's good to have it written down...).  

This year we went to Ty Capel at Rhiwddolion, a property we've had our eyes on since we first found Landmarks.  It's part of a little group of three at Rhiwddolion, which is a small abandoned village in Snowdonia.  Once thriving with slate miners, there are now quite a few tumbledown buildings scattered through the valley.  Ty Capel was the chapel and schoolhouse for the village.  All of the properties are a walk  up a footpath from the parking, and all we could hear in our little building was birds singing and stream burbling.  And, of course, children being children.  It would be a truly lovely peaceful place if you went without a 6 month old and a 3 year old, but instead we found it to be a fun place, with occasional glimpses of peace.  

Marisca absolutely loved our little cottage.  She loved the footpath, with the kissing gate and the wobbly bridge, and the mud (not thick oozy mud Daddy).  She loved the garden for bubbles and exploring, and she loved sleeping in a bed next to Daddy's bed.  Actually she did amazingly well at sleeping, given the beds are in a gallery above the main room where Elspeth and I would be whiling away our evenings.  She also loved helping us in the kitchen, carrying dishes through to the dining table, and getting milk out of the fridge at every opportunity.

The first bit of the footpath up to the house.

The kissing gate and wibbly wobbly bridge.

Ty Capel from various angles.

One of our favourite things in Landmarks is the detailing.  Here we had altar rails used for the gallery bannister, pews used for seating, chairs in keeping with the chapel, a little welcome etching on the window.

And here is one of the buildings from the village that had a less successful fate.

Everything around here is made of slate.  I'm certainly more aware of the rocks under my feet after this holiday.

So, a great holiday for all.  Some bad sleeping (Tom), poorliness (Elspeth), and bad weather (everyone) meant it couldn't quite fill its potential, but Rhiwddolion lived up to its promise and is certainly a place I'd recommend to people wanting to get away from it all.