The Sugar Loaf

Last Monday I climbed The Sugar Loaf, near Abergavenny. I'll relate that adventure in a moment but first, I found myself asking 'why Sugar Loaf?' Everyone's heard of bread loaves, and I've occasionally been known to loaf around, but never in my many years on this planet have I come across a sugar loaf. 

The reason, I've now discovered, is that I was born about 125 years too late. Wonderful Wikipedia informs me that: A sugarloaf was the usual form in which refined sugar was produced and sold until the late 19th century, when granulated and cube sugars were introduced. A tall cone with a rounded top was the end-product of the process.  

So there we are.  I grow a little wiser every day.

There are several hundred mountains and hills in the world called Sugar Loaf or Sugarloaf. There are even two in Wales and one near Folkestone, but the most famous is surely Rio de Janeiro's, that must have become a familiar sight to followers of the Olympic Games.  I'm not one of them but yes, I can certainly see its close resemblance to a sugar loaf. Good name!

Now here's a photo of The Sugar Loaf that I climbed on Monday. Do you see the resemblance?  I don't either! Which is doubtless why those sensible Welsh folk call it Y Fâl – The Peak.

As peaks go, this one promised to be a lot easier to climb than Pen y Fan. However, with temperatures expected once more to climb into the mid-20s, and learning the lessons from last time, I donned an old pair of his shorts. (Note to self: I must buy a pair of my own; bright pink ones, perhaps.)

Energetic walkers can start their ascent in Abergavenny, some 500 metres below the summit. A nice feature, though, of this peak is a spacious car park, a little over half way up. I parked there.  One hour later, I was sitting on the top, admiring the view and contemplating my frugal picnic lunch of Ryvitas, cottage cheese and a nectarine. Yes, I'm sticking closely to my Slimming World eating plan.

This is the view westwards, with Skirrid clearly visible in the middle distance. Next time I'm in these parts I'm resolved to climb that one – a hundred metres or so lower than The Sugar Loaf, but geologically very interesting.  The Skirrid Mountain Inn also beckons.

In the heat haze beyond Skirrid is the Forest of Dean. This I know, as on several occasions I've stood on high ground in the Forest and spotted Skirrid in the distance.

The west end of The Sugar Loaf is rocky and somewhat reminiscent of tors on Dartmoor. To the right of this photo, I think I made out Pen y Fan in the distance, but won't risk pointing it out here and displaying my ignorance of the Brecon Beacons. Instead, I shall keep returning to this area, only an hour's drive from my home and worth every drop of petrol in getting there.