The ‘hidden’ tunnel suspended above a Welsh pub stream where you can hear a deafening roar
If you walk down the stream-hugging footpath only a stone’s throw away from the world-famous Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in north Wales, you’ll find an uphill path that disappears into a little-known tunnel. According to North Wales Live[1], this Llangollen path is suspended above the stream on a metal walkway, where the old wooden original has long been replaced.
But as you enter the tunnel, the noise of rushing water is amplified into a roar by the brick walls. This tunnel is known locally as “Little Darkie”, North Wales Live reports[2]. While many locals recall the tunnel with fondness, others are unaware of its existence.
Until 1968, the tunnel’s roar would have turned to thunder. Overhead ran a now-defunct railway line that ferried passengers and goods between Ruabon and Barmouth. But, following the Beeching cuts, the entire line was lifted in 1969 and one of the very few reminders of its existence can still be found in Acrefair near Wrexham.
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At the end of the tunnel, just off the footpath and partly reclaimed by nature, you’ll find an abandoned gamekeeper’s cottage. But walkers are warned to stick to the path, as the cottage is on privately-owned land. Beyond Acrefair and neighbouring Trevor, the walk and its tunnel are still regarded as a “hidden gem”. Want less ads? Download WalesOnline’s Premium app on Apple or Android[5][6]
YouTuber, Dan Brown from Oswestry, has thrown a spotlight on the tunnel. Dan has spent the past decade living on canal boats and as a local history enthusiast who runs the “Sort of Interesting” YouTube channel[7], he explores canal-side relics and ruins.
The walkway has extra grip to prevent slips (Image: Dan Brown/Sort of Interesting)
The “Little Darkie” is named in contrast to the “(Big) Darkie”, which is a 421-metre-long canal tunnel in Chirk. Flowing through it is Tref-y-nant Brook, alongside which runs a footpath. This can be found to the left of the Duke of Wellington pub, a popular 19th-century hostelry on the main A539 Llangollen Road.
The pub is just a couple of minutes walk from the main Pontcysyllte Aqueduct car park in Trevor. If you’re also planning to visit this stomach-lurching engineering masterpiece, you’ll need to be quick as the aqueduct is closing to boats and pedestrians for 10 weeks from January 2, 2024. You can get more story updates straight to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters here[8].
The pub-side footpath meanders a short distance uphill and is partly fenced to prevent slips into the stream below. Just past a viewing platform is the tunnel entrance. The tunnel passes under what is now a private road off Tower Hill. This once formed the route of the Ruabon to Barmouth Line on which lay Trevor Station. Passenger traffic through Trevor ended in January, 1965, though freight services continued until 1968.
Here you’ll find the remains of twin platforms in the woodland right next to Station Road, Trevor. The line was double-tracked between Ruabon and Llangollen, and by now, the disused line offers a popular walk east of Trevor, intersecting with Offa’s Dyke Path.
Trevor Tower is a 19th century folly reputed to have its own hidden tunnel (Image: Alan Terrill/Wiki)
The Duke of Wellington pub in Acrefair, where on the left of the photo is the start of the streamside walk leading up to the tunnel (Image: Google)
From the tunnel then, the footpath passes the ruined gamekeeper’s cottage. If you continue uphill, it is possible to reconnect with Tower Hill road which, as its name implies, leads to Trevor Tower, which is a 19th-century folly. Also known as King William’s Tower, the castellated structure beneath Garth Mountain was built in 1827 by the then-owner of the Plas Madoc Estate.
The three-storey building may have been constructed on the site of an earlier fortress, according to Coflein. The cellar was used as a hiding place by Royalists during the English Civil War. It has been said that there is a tunnel, which linked the Tower to an adjacent gamekeeper’s house but has now been blocked.
At the end of your walk, you can traipse up the mountain before having a tipple and a bit at the Duke of Wellington pub, which has been described by one reviewer as a place with “great home-cooked food and a good choice of drinks”.
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References
- ^ North Wales Live (www.dailypost.co.uk)
- ^ North Wales Live reports (www.dailypost.co.uk)
- ^ The village with the saddest Christmas tree in Wales (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ The once prosperous Welsh seaside resort that people fear will become a ‘ghost town’ as shops close (www.walesonline.co.uk)
- ^ Apple (go.skimresources.com)
- ^ Android (play.google.com)
- ^ “Sort of Interesting” YouTube channel (www.youtube.com)
- ^ subscribing to our newsletters here (www.walesonline.co.uk)