Canoes delivered to our beach from £35 a head, Offa's Dyke and the Wye Valley Walk from the gate, a morning's guided walk with Tom for £20
Walks and canoes
The Wye Valley Walk passes the bottom of the field and Offa's Dyke Path is forty minutes up the hill, so the walking starts at the gate: three walks from the pods written up with times, and a guided morning with Tom for £20 a head. Canoes come from the hire company at Monmouth: three hours from Redbrook to our beach for £35 a head, or the whole day from Symonds Yat through the rapids and the gorge to the site for £55, with the kit, the briefing and the lift.
The site is on the Wye Valley Walk and under Offa's Dyke, and the river that runs along the bottom of it is the one people drive here to canoe. We do not own canoes; the hire company at Monmouth does, and they drop them at our beach or lift you to the start, which is better than us pretending to be outfitters.
Canoeing: the half day is three hours from Redbrook, two miles upstream, drifting back to our own beach, which is flat water, fine for a first time and for children from about six in a boat with an adult, £35 a head with buoyancy aids, the briefing and the lift up; most families do it. The full day is Symonds Yat to the site, about ten miles, through the rapids at the Yat (small ones) and the gorge under the cliffs, five or six hours with a stop, £55 a head, for people who have paddled before or are confident they can. Both are booked through us by six the day before, paid on the day to the hire company, and cancelled by them if the river is up, which it is after two days of rain.
Walking: the Wye Valley Walk goes past the bottom gate north to Monmouth (two hours, flat, the bus back) and south to Tintern (three hours, the abbey and the pub at the end). Offa's Dyke Path is forty minutes up the lane through the wood to the ridge, with the view back over the valley that is on every postcard of the Wye. The three walks are on a sheet in the barn with times, the muddy bits and where the pub is. On Wednesday and Saturday mornings in the season Tom walks a group up to the Dyke and along to the Kymin and back by the river, four hours, £20 a head, with the history and the birds and a flask; children free with an adult who can keep up.
Three trips
Redbrook to our beach
The half day: a lift two miles upstream, a drift back to our own beach. First-timers and children from six with an adult. Half price for children.
Symonds Yat to the site
The day: the rapids at the Yat, the gorge under the cliffs, a stop at Redbrook, and home to the beach. For people who have paddled before.
The Dyke and the Kymin with Tom
Up through the wood to Offa's Dyke, along the ridge to the Kymin and the view, and back by the river. History, birds, a flask. Children free.
What is included
- Canoes to our beach, £35 a head for three hours
- The day from Symonds Yat, £55 a head
- Buoyancy aids, the briefing and the lift included
- The Wye Valley Walk from the bottom gate
- Offa's Dyke forty minutes up the lane
- A guided morning with Tom, £20
What it costs
Canoes £35 a head for three hours (Redbrook to our beach) or £55 for the day (Symonds Yat to the site), children half price, including the kit and the lift to the start. A guided walk with Tom £20 a head, a morning. The three walks from the gate are free and on a sheet in the barn. The pods page has every rate by season and night; the availability page has every night of the season, taken or free, and quotes a stay.
Questions about walks and canoes
Can children canoe?
From about six on the half day, in a boat with an adult, half price. The full day is for people who have paddled before; it is five hours and the rapids at the Yat, though small, are rapids.
What if the river is too high?
The hire company calls it off the night before if the Wye is above the mark, and you get the money back; it happens after two days of rain. The walks do not get called off; we lend boots.
Pick the pod, pick the nights, and see every one of them priced.
The availability page shows every night of the season for every pod, taken or free, and quotes a stay with the price for each night. Then one form books it; Elin replies within two hours, 8am to 8pm, and a deposit of a night holds it.