WALK 3: PONTRHYDYFEN-AFAN FOREST VISITOR CENTRE
 | Walking in Afan Forest Park is a delight with easy, well marked trails and stunning forest and river views. Look out for the famous Kanji Wood en route and you can visit the Miners Museum at the Visitor Centre Photo: J. Davies |
Map: OS Explorer 165 & 166, or Landranger 170
Distance: Approximately 2 miles; 3 kilometres
Terrain: Easy – mainly level walking; allow 1½ hours.
Start: Oakwood Bus Interchange, Pontrhydyfen; Grid reference SS796940
Bus there: Mondays to Saturdays: First Cymru Service 23 from Port Talbot ( X1 connection from Swansea) and Cwmafan; frequency, every hour daytime. Service 159 from Swansea and Neath (connections from Pontardawe); frequency: every hour daytime.
Sundays: First Cymru Service 159 from Neath (158 connection from
Swansea); frequency: every hour daytime.
Walk: From the bus interchange, walk back down the hill towards Pontrhydyfen, cross the River and turn immediately right following a track until you get to the Rhyslyn Picnic Site. From here you take the left hand route which starts as a footpath but later links up to the track bed of the former South Wales Mineral Railway which you follow a short way until you drop down to the footbridge which crosses the River Afan ending as a fairly steep walk up to the Visitor Centre.
The right hand route (which is currently closed beyond Kanji Wood due to a landslip) crosses the River Afan on a very high and slender footbridge then follows the track bed of the former Rhondda and Swansea Bay railway as far as the Kanji Woodland Japanese Garden.
Finish: Afan Forest Park Visitor Centre; Grid reference SS819920
Facilities: The Visitor Centre has a gift shop, refreshments and toilets
Bus back: Mondays to Saturdays: First Cymru Service 23 to Oakwood, Cwmafan and Port Talbot ( X1 or X3 connection to Swansea); at Oakwood, change to Service 159 for Neath; frequency: every hour daytime.
Sundays: First Cymru Service 159 to Neath; change to Service 158 for Swansea; frequency: every hour daytime.
Tickets: First Day Swansea Bay tickets are valid from Swansea, Neath and Port Talbot, from Cwmafan normal day return tickets are cheaper; holders of bus passes can travel free!