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Usk Valley and AbergavennySkirrid Fawr
The holy mountain, split down one side by an ancient landslip, with the foundations of a medieval chapel on the summit ridge and a long view in every direction.
- Distance
- 3.1 mi / 5 km
- Time
- 2 hr
- Ascent
- 300 m
- Difficulty
- Demanding
- Shape
- There and back
Where it is
The circle shows the general area, not the exact start. Use the directions link below to get to the car park itself. Contours and paths shown are OpenTopoMap, drawn from OpenStreetMap data.
The route
The path climbs through woodland then up the western flank to the ridge, following it north to the summit. Back the same way. Steep in the middle section.
Worth knowing
- The great cleft on the western side is a prehistoric landslip; tradition says it split at the Crucifixion.
- The summit ridge is narrow and very exposed to wind.
- Soil from the summit was once carried away to bless fields and coffins across Monmouthshire.
What you’ll see
The landslip cleft, chapel foundations on the summit, the Sugar Loaf and Black Mountains opposite.
Background
St Michael’s chapel stood on the summit and was a place of pilgrimage; Catholics worshipped here in secret after the Reformation.