Strata Florida Walking Festival (28 and 29 September) combines historic landscapes and a pilgrimage to the site’s medieval iconic sculpture. The festival has been organised by the Strata Florida Trust and the Strata Florida Community Group, with walk leaders from local rambling groups. The festival aims to celebrate and highlight the special atmosphere of the Strata Florida Cistercian Abbey near Pontrhydfendigaid.
As part of the 2012 Sculpture Cymru exhibition at Strata Florida, sculptor Glenn Morris created a pilgrim on the hill to the east of the abbey. It captured the hearts and minds of locals and visitors to such an extent that when the original pilgrim collapsed on the skyline above the abbey in 2019 there was widespread dismay. Ceredigion house prices rise again Rali Ceredigion, the petrolheads and the protests ‘It’s heartbreaking’: Dog cruelty on rise in Wales for third year in a row No fault evictions fall in Ceredigion Through crowd funding and a generous donation from the World Monument Fund, the Strata Florida Community Group, with the trust’s help, organised the pilgrim’s return.
Morris’ second Pilgrim was completed in 2022. The following year, a pilgrimage was made to the pilgrim attended by about 50 people. As the sculpture is on private land, it is only possible to get close with the permission of farmer, Iwan Arch, who will generously allow visitors to walk up to the pilgrim on the afternoon of 29 September.
The weekend includes several walks to.