Packhorse Bridge

“Your skin does not separate you from the world. It's a bridge through which the external world flows into you. And you flow into it.”
Alan Watts
Awake early, snow gone to be replaced by rain which cleared quickly. By 9am there was lovely warm sunshine, although still cold in the shade. Spent the morning pottering around doing DIY, by lunchtime I was ready for some fresh air and in need of a photo or two. While doing family history and reading through some old copies of the Blaenau Gwent Heritage Forum Journal I’d come across a reference to a 'Packhorse' Bridge at Aberbeeg, possibly C17th, so I thought I’d give it a visit. Difficult to imagine now but pack horse and mule trains were essential early transport throughout the valleys, operating in teams of twelve, each carrying 3cwts on pack saddles, these created the ‘dozens’ of 36cwts that were accepted units of trade. Trackways were created with bridges over difficult obstacles, and this one would have been too steep for wheeled vehicles, demonstrating how important this system was.