Gelert's Grave

All welsh schoolchildren know the story of Brave Gelert. It is a popular children's picture book and was mentioned in a Victorian anthology of welsh folklore. So I was was somewhat disappointed to find out that it is probably a myth created by a local landlord trying to bring tourists to the area. Well it obviously worked and I was in the area, I was impressed by the atmosphere of the grave even if it is a fake. However the stones do look worn rather similar to the Rollrights, and no one seems to know what they really are or whose grave this actually is?
(If anyone has any clue, let me know)

GELERT'S GRAVE
IN THE 13TH CENTURY, LLYWELYN, PRINCE OF NORTH WALES, HAD A PALACE AT BEDDGELERT. ONE DAY HE WENT HUNTING WITHOUT GELERT "THE FAITHFUL HOUND" WHO WAS UNACCOUNTABLY ABSENT. ON LLYWELYN'S RETURN, THE TRUANT STAINED AND SMEARED WITH BLOOD, JOYFULLY SPRANG TO MEET HIS MASTER. THE PRINCE ALARMED HASTENED TO FIND HIS SON, AND SAW THE INFANT'S COT EMPTY, THE BEDCLOTHES AND FLOOR COVERED WITH BLOOD. THE FRANTIC FATHER PLUNGED THE SWORD INTO THE HOUND'S SIDE THINKING IT HAD KILLED HIS HEIR. THE DOG'S DYING YELL WAS ANSWERED BY A CHILD'S CRY. LLYWELYN SEARCHED AND DISCOVERED HIS BOY UNHARMED BUT NEAR BY LAY THE BODY OF A MIGHTY WOLF WHICH GELERT HAD SLAIN, THE PRINCE FILLED WITH REMORSE IS SAID NEVER TO HAVE SMILED AGAIN. HE BURIED GELERT HERE. THE SPOT IS CALLED BEDDGELERT

Dolbadarn and Dolwyddelan, Snowdonia

I recently made a trip to Snowdonia, where I climbed Mount Snowdon via the pyg track and came down the miners' track. I stayed in the village of Llanberis, and I visited Dolbadarn castle which is basically a turret with remains of the courtyard. However it is a very spectacular site. There is some heather growing at its foot and although there is only one turret left it feels like a site of historic importance. To testify to this there was a party of welsh schoolchildren with their teacher who were obviously learning about their own heritage. The site is overlooking Llanberis lake and some mountains.

We then explored Dolwyddelan castle which has most of the keep still intact, and this was in a very remote location. We met some walkers along the way and followed a path to the top where we had views of mountains and it felt very remote. Like Dolbadarn this is an original castle of the welsh princes, which pre-dates the world heritage site of Edward I's castles, and it is said to be the birth place of Llywelyn the Great.

Lourdes

I went to see one of the world's most haunted places - the Catholic site of pilgrimage known as Lourdes. I arrived in the late afternoon on a rainy a day, but there were still thousands of pilgrims making there way to the holy cave. Before I went there I visited the church at Lourdes, filled my bottle with holy water and touched the stone in the cave. The stone felt very smooth to the touch either because of so many pilgrims polishing it smooth with their touch or because it's a kind of marble. I was very pleased to visit Lourdes as it seems to be the ultimate haunted place.
The film The Song of Bernadette featuring Vincent Price in one of his earliest roles is one of my favourite films so I knew some of the stories pertaining to this area. It was definitely worth a visit.

Sutton Scarsdale Hall

Sutton Scarsdale is the ruined empty shell of a once impressive manor house not far from Hardwick. Scandalously the interior was ripped out and exported to American in the early 20th century, although to be fair it is now preserved in a museum. The house is very eerie because of the open ceiling, when I visited there was a dark sky and rain falling, I was the only visitor. The house is said to be haunted by a young girl who died in the cellar and paranormal groups have done investigations there. There is a 'postcard' of the site which appears to show a ghost, although I have seen a similar vintage postcard of the same style purporting to show a ghost at Hampton Court which was faked, so I suppose ghost tourism has been popular for many years.

http://www.paranormalinvestigators.co.uk/field/scarsdale/suttonpostcard/sutton.htm

Hardwick Hall

Hardwick Hall is the ancestral home of Bess of Hardwick, I visited this English Heritage site in Derbyshire on my journey back from Yorkshire, where I had a cup of tea . I was unable to visit the National Trust owned New Hardwick Hall because of its limited opening times. However the older one was most impressive. I saw a photograph from 1910 which showed a sculpture above the fireplace (still intact) of a large man similar to the ghost in Oscar Wilde's short story the Canterville Ghost. It was obviously being repaired because it was coated in a white plaster type material. But it was still very eerie and I expected it to come to life any moment!

Whitby

I arrived at Whitby Abbey in the late afternoon as the sun was going down, I didn't have time to visit the village. I would like to go on the Dracula Experience although I have heard mixed reviews.
After a very long drive I did not have time to walk the famous 199 steps either. These lead down from the abbey to the harbour and have featured in many Dracula films. In the book Dracula in the form of a dog runs up the steps after leaving the wrecked ship. This was not the largest abbey I have visited although it is a beautiful site and very eerie. It is said to be haunted by a nun who was bricked up in the dungeon or cellar.I am looking forward to seeing Whitby again soon as it is definitely a place I want to explore in more detail.
Whitby was also the setting of Elizabeth Gaskell's novel Sylvia's Lovers.

Strata Florida Abbey

A lovely drive through the Rhandirmwyn Valley in Wales, the scenery is lakes and pine forest and eventually I arrived at the Strata Florida Abbey ruins. This site was very small but notable because it has interesting features worth seeing, there are some original floor tiles which are very detailed and rare especially as they are still in situ. Behind the abbey there are some ancient graves which are said to belong to welsh princes. Also beneath a yew tree the remains of Wales's greatest poet (not Dylan Thomas apparently)- the 12th century bard Daffyd ap Gwilym is buried here.