Surprise Poet

We went to the reservoirs in the Elan Valley today. They are only 15 minutes from Rhayader. We parked at the first visitor centre at Caban Coch and had a picnic. I was surprised to find there was a link with the poet Percy Bysse Shelley and there is a sculpture.. In 1811 he was invited to stay at his uncle’s estate Cwm Elan. He walked all the way from Sussex, and the following year returned with his wife Harriet., and tried to buy the nearby house of Nantgwylt. Both houses were lost when the valleys were flooded. The photo is a detail from the sculpture by David Kelly(1988) it is inspired by Shelley’s Prometheus Unbound. The female figures represent the poet’s muse. See extra.
A storm was forecast, and although there was not much rain, thunder echoed round the valleys, and eventually was followed by lightning. The other half of the party had driven to the next reservoir at Pen y Gareth for a dam open day which for a fee enabled them to walk inside the dam. They were only a bit scared. I was given a fascinating lesson in how long to leave a biodegradable lid before putting it on a takeaway coffee cup. ( 30 seconds). This will ensure it doesn’t come off. It will change my life.