Neuadd Path in Bannau Brycheiniog (Brecon Beacons)

A kilometre-long stretch of one most heavily eroded footpaths in the heart of the Brecon Beacons has been fixed, thanks to £12,100 of funding from the BMC’s Mend Our Mountains crowdfunding campaign.

The repairs were to the Neuadd path, which rises up from the Neuadd Reservoir and forms part of a popular horseshoe walk taking in Pen y Fan, the highest peak in southern Britain.

Run in spring 2016 by the BMC, in collaboration with eight national park authorities and more than 40 supportive organisations and individuals, the Mend Our Mountains campaign used crowdfunding to raise more than £100,000 for urgent path repairs on some of Britain’s most iconic peaks.

From this, £12,100 was allocated to the Brecon Beacons national park authority to carry out the work.

Desperate need

At risk of eroding away, the path was in desperate need of work. Thanks to cash raised by Mend Our Mountains, the first phase of the project was completed in December last year, with the second and final phase finishing last month.

Repairers had to battle steep ground, heavy rain and snow throughout the winter in order to complete the work in time for the upsurge of visitors that will come with spring.

Around 750 tonnes of stone were airlifted to the site, and over 1,000 metres of path restored.

The Neuadd Path project (Mend the Brecon Beacons) was made possible by the generosity of 213 pledgers, and boosted by pledge rewards provided by local businesses like Adventures With Will, Kevin Walker Mountain Activities, Black Mountain Activities and Borderlands Outdoor. 

The overall Mend Our Mountains campaign was supported by Cotswold Outdoor, Alpkit, Steep Edge, DMM,  Tentmeals, Vertebrate Publishing, and more.

The outdoors matters

Ian Rowat, the National Park Authority’s Member Champion for Biodiversity and the Environment, said: “The success of the BMC’s Mend Our Mountains Campaign shows just how much the great outdoors matters to people.

“The four peaks of the Central Beacons, Pen y Fan, Corn Du, Cribyn and Fan y Big, receive around 250,000 visitors each year. Patching up of popular footpaths can cost up to £170 a metre and the support from all funders and the public has ensured that this popular mountain path is once again in the best condition for everyone to enjoy.”

Elfyn Jones, the BMC’s Access and Conservation Officer for Wales, added: “Bannau Brycheiniog are a superb accessible resource for hill walkers living in South Wales but also attract walkers and mountaineers from all over the UK.

“This work will help people to enjoy the great scenery of the area while protecting the landscape for future generations. It’s really wonderful that BMC members and people in the outdoor public at large made such a significant financial contribution to this project”.

We repeat our huge thanks to the BMC staff and volunteers who made Mend Our Mountains happen, as well as to the national park teams, individuals, companies, local businesses, accommodation providers, guides and others who sourced or donated crowdfunding rewards to use across the campaign.

These included Cotswold Outdoor, Alpkit, Steep Edge, DMM, Tentmeals, Vertebrate, Tessa Lyons, Terry Abraham, Chris Townsend, James McHaffie, Peak Mountaineering, Peak Walking Adventures, Underleigh House B&B, Wheeldon Trees Farm cottage, Cloud Loft cottage, Snowdonia Walking and Climbing, Higher Climbing, Calum Muskett, The National Trust, Mountain Yak, Plas y Brenin, Yorkshire Dales Guides, Damart, Skyware, the King William Guest House, Adventures With Will, Borderlands Outdoor, Black Mountain Activities, Kevin Walker Mountain Activities, The Tour of Britain, Tri The Beast, Cicerone, Trailblazer, Encounter Walking Holidays, XMAN XXX, Exmoor Stargazers, and all the national park teams who helped to drive the campaign and source crowdfunding rewards.