THE TOWN OF BOOKS
RUNNING ALONG THE River Wye, Hay is right on the border between England and Wales, straddling both. It’s a tiny but perfect market town and we enjoy going there simply because, for somewhere so small, there is so much to see. Apart from being situated in the Brecon Beacons National Park and within striking distance of the Black Mountains – two of the most beautiful areas in the UK – it has two castles, albeit ruined, and best of all some 30 second-hand bookshops, which is the reason it is now known worldwide as the ‘town of books’.
THE PICNIC
Sausage Rolls with Cranberries and Sage
I love bookshops of all types and it is really difficult to get me away from one once I’m ensconced. Sometimes on a visit to Hay, I find myself hoping for rain just to give me the perfect excuse to linger in as many as I want. However, Judith and the girls now limit the amount of time I am allowed to spend inside. You never know what you might find in one of these establishments, and an hour is never going to be enough, especially when you think that in the shop owned by Richard Booth, the self-styled ‘King of Hay’, there are more than 400,000 books.
We always start at Rose’s Books, which has the best collection of children’s books, many of which are out of print and some of which are extremely rare. And while the girls are nosing about here, I set off on my own little adventure. (You can find out where all the bookshops are, as well as who specialises in what, from the free town guide which you can pick up in any of the shops.) There are a couple of great travel and map shops that I could spend weeks in. However, once my hour is up, we have to move on.
The Picnic Site
Head for the Riverside Walk (adjacent to St Mary’s Church) which is part of the Brecon Beacons park system and is well signposted. It follows the old railway line alongside the banks of the Wye. An ideal spot for a picnic.
The town itself, with its little cobbled streets, picturesque houses and the castles, is always worth spending some time in. Now that the girls are older, I think the next time we visit we will hire a couple of canoes for an excursion on the river – we might even find another picnic spot. However, a walk along the river bank is a must for any visitor for the scenery is outstanding and the view across to the Black Mountains just makes me wish I could sketch or paint. Late summer is a good time to visit, as everything looks golden and warm, and while it attracts visitors throughout the year the one time to avoid is during the Hay Festival when, for about 10 days in late May/early June, it becomes the centre of the book world. For a tiny little town on the borders of two small countries, it really does attract the biggest names in the literary world, and when the girls are older we have promised to visit one year.
CHEAT’S PICNIC
• If it’s raining, Hay is awash with good cafés and pubs serving local foods, ciders and beers. There are also good farmers’ markets at Leominster and Ross-on-Wye, as well as local Women’s Institute markets.
• Producers to look out for include:The Dairy House at Weobley; Berrow Honey; The Handmade Scotch Egg Company; Love Patisserie (you can visit at Gardeners Cottage, Clifford)
• I always make an effort to look for New Shepherd’s Ice Cream, and if we can’t find anyone selling it on the day, will make a detour through Hereford to its shop. It’s made from sheep’s milk and is delicious.
ALSO IN THE AREA
• The Brecon Beacons National Park – a place not just of great beauty but of great wonder too. Just head down Forest Road to the Information Centre and see what there is to discover. Guided walks are often on offer and there is an impressive programme of children’s activities.
• Hay Castle – a mixture of thirteenth-century fortification and a Jacobean manor. Of course it has a bookshop too.
• Brecon Castle – an 11th-century fortification in a great spot overlooking the River Usk.
• Dore Abbey – formerly a Cistercian monastery and now maintained by the Church of England, just 20 minutes from Hay.
• Tretower Castle and Court – a fourteenth-century mixture of a military fortification and what must have been a rather grand manor house. Only about 30 minutes south of Hay, it is worth the detour.