Cwmparc Pathway of Hope

This 5km loop is great for families, following the Nant Dar stream which flows from the huge Bwlch Mountain.

Relatively flat, the loop takes you from Treorchy, into Cwmparc, along the Pathway of Hope, created by residents during the 2020 Covid outbreak to share hope and positivity. You can read the messages and admire the colourful, decorated stones.

After a short climb, you loop back walking again alongside the stream and past Railway Terrace, a row of miners’ cottages. The Parc and Dare Collieries operated in the area until the 1960s and these were the homes of the miners and their families.

Railway Terrace was known as “Tub Row” because the families used to place their tin baths in the street. These tin baths were used by the colliers to scrub off the coal dust and dirt that coated their bodies after a shift in the mine. You can find out more about life in the Rhondda during coal mining at A Welsh Coal Mining Experience.

The nearby Park and Dare Theatre was built using funds raised by the miners and is now a popular place for live shows, musicals and cinemas.