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I should have known better than to suggest 6 hillforts in one day, was it all too much, possible …. or even sensible? We were about to find out.

Because of the distance between the Hillforts in the south of the county and those in the Clwydian Range, we had to start early and use a mini bus to link them all together. 8 o’clock was the planned meet time at Loggerheads, so by 7.30 I was awake from my golden slumbers and on my way. After waiting around for the no-shows and trying to contact them but getting no reply, 9 hardy souls set off for Corwen.

Adrian in the mini bus and Sam in the pick-up were able to keep us topped up with water and sweets at pre planned meeting places, so we didn’t have to carry that weight.

Caer Drewyn was the first port of call and with fresh legs we reached the summit in good time. Looking north we could see the Clwydian Range and the challenge for the day stretched out in front of us. There was very little time to enjoy the view before we had to get back to the waiting bus.

The second stop was Moel y Gaer Llantysilio. In order to make the walk as level and short as possible we started from the Bryneglwys side, a magical mystery tour for most of the walkers who hadn’t been to this part of the world before. We left Adrian to make his way with the bus to our next pick up point, reminding him it won’t be long before we are back so he should get there in good time. The climb onto the Llantysilio Mountains was steady, and we reach Moel y Gaer in good time. The smallest of the Hillforts, it is easy to miss and our group of walkers didn’t realise we were there until we were inside.

Moel y Gaer has been quite badly damaged by off-road motorbikes in recent years, although the situation is slowly getting better. The circuit created by off-roaders on the slopes of the Hillfort is stark. In spite of all the danger the bikers enjoy riding the steep hills on Llantysilio. If you would like to help, when you see bikes or 4x4s causing damage, don’t shout at them “you can’t do that” or “slow down”, just contact the Police on 0845 6071002 to report it. Remember, it won’t wait until you get home, don’t leave home without it.

Having ticked off 2 of the 6, it was back on the long and winding road to the waiting bus. We had made good time and were now about 40 minutes ahead of schedule, so time to have a banana and a cup of coffee before heading to the main part of the walk.

We reached Moel Fenlli by 12 o’clock, and took Dave’s word that there’s a place suitable for lunch at the top. Having only walked 4 miles and been on the bus for 30 minutes it felt like a beginning to the walk again. Everyone felt fresh and things were going well, the weather had been kind so far with no sign of rain. The new stone pitched footpath on Fenlli had only been opened that morning, so we became the first to use it, and waiting for us at the top was Sam, ready to give the walkers some more information about the Hillforts.

Sam took everyone back to yesterday with some descriptions of what the Hillforts may have been used for, and also talked about what goes on today to try and discover more about our past. She described how archaeologists don’t tend to dig it too much anymore; instead they use machines to read what is under the soil without having to disturb the surface. We nestled out of the wind and into the Hillforts entrance for lunch, all thinking what an isolated place this must have been and thinking like dreamers do, about what a day in the life of someone in the Iron Age would have been like.

From Fenlli you can see north along the range. It still seemed a long, long, long way to Penycloddiau where the walk would finish. If we were to get there in day light it was time to get flying, so we set off for Moel y Gaer Llanbedr. We made good time up Moel Famau before stopping to discuss what all the cuts in the heather are. Moel Famau is home to the rare Black Grouse who, in spring, fill the area with song. Black Grouse are an arctic bird, so it is only a northern song and very rarely heard. Unfortunately September is the wrong time of year to see or hear these birds, so we had to make do with the occasional blackbird instead.

We left the wide Offa’s Dyke Path behind and went off through the heather to the second Moel y Gaer. Having ticked off number 4 we headed down to the base of the Country Park and off towards Moel Arthur and number 5. It’s not unusual to be walking in September in the rain, and the forecast proved accurate unfortunately. The weather closed in a little but not enough to damped spirits. Sam met us again after the slog up the Llanganhafal track with more water and sweets, but with time against us it was soon time to start searchin’ for Hillforts and set off again.

The top of johns climb gave us a view of both Moel Arthur and Penycloddiau, and the challenge ahead of us. After another short break at the base of Moel Arthur, we quickly got to the top to make it 5 out of 6 and set off towards our final stop at Penycloddiau. To cries of “here comes the sun”, we were able to take off wet weather gear off and enjoy the rest of the walk in the dry. With the Penycloddiau leg being a walk to the Hillfort and back to the waiting bus at Llangwyfan forest car park, we were able to walk without back packs – much to Dave’s relief; he had been complaining “Ooh! My arms” since Moel Fenlli.

Sam joined us again for the walk to Penycloddiau, and with our intrepid walkers having now visited 5 Hillforts, was able to ask “tell me what you see” and “tell me why” to discover if people had learnt something.

We reach the top and there was a sense of relief and achievement, we had done it, with a little help from my friends we had conquered the Iron Age 6. Before long we were riding on a bus again and back towards Loggerheads, some cake and the end.