© (h) Dave Plummer, 2006

Newsletter 8

January 2008

Cylchlythyr 8

Ionawr 2008

New Year Greetings from the Trustees to all our readers, and happy hostelling in 2008!

Dymuniadau Gorau am y Flwyddyn Newydd i'n darllenwyr i gyd oddiwrth Ymddiriedolaeth Elenydd a phob hwyl wrth hostela yn 2008!

A momentous year is behind us - perhaps something of a roller coaster liberally laced with hope and doubt. However the acquisition of Dolgoch (yes, the Trust is now the legal owner) and completion of the lease of Ty'n Cornel ensured a triumphant ending to 2007.

The New Year will no doubt bring new challenges - another hostel to run and maintain for starters, not to mention urgent refurbishment. However, if the enthusiasm and support of the old year is sustained, there is no reason why there should not be cause for further celebration in the years ahead.

Mae blwyddyn cyffrous wedi dod i ben - un yn llawn amheuon a gobaith. Ond erbyn hyn, ni yw perchnogion cyfreithlon Dolgoch ac rydym wedi sicrhau'r les ar Dy'n Cornel - felly diweddglo buddugoliaethus i 2007.

Daw'r flwyddyn newydd a sialensau newydd - hostel arall i gynnal lle mae angen gwelliannau ar frys, ond os mae egni a brwdfrydedd y llynedd yn parhau, bydd mwy o ddathlu yn y blynyddoedd i ddod.

Ty'n Cornel

One thousand one hundred and twenty three (1123) bednights for the year, substantially exceeding even our ever optimistic hostel manager's prediction. What perhaps gives greatest satisfaction is that, through the co-operation and hard work of all concerned, the hostel has been successfully managed by the Trust for a full year.

Pearl Chalk's dedicated work in applying for grants has resulted in the Big Lottery's offshoot 'Awards for All Wales' making the Trust an award of £3433 for work to be carried out at Ty'n Cornel. This will include the installation of fire doors and a fire alarm system, an electric water heater and a UV water treatment system. It is hoped to complete the work prior to the Easter holiday period. A presentation cheque will be handed over by local MP Mark Williams at a small ceremony at Ty'n Cornel on Saturday 2nd February.

It is encouraging too to know that the effort put into improving the hostel is being noticed and approved by hostellers. Our trustee Steve Griffith, a keen cyclist and chairman of the Rough Stuff Fellowship, encourages friends and fellow cyclists to visit when he does a wardening stint at the hostel. Comments made to him such as 'far more cared for and cosy', 'great to see the character of the place retained' and 'a great place to return to after a day on the hills' must mean the Trust is getting things right.

Ty'n Cornel

Cawsom 1123 o 'nosweithiau' yn ystod y flwyddyn - llawer gwell na amcangyfrif mwyaf optimistaidd y Rheolwr. Gwell na hynny hyd yn oed yw'r teimlad bod yr Ymddiriedolaeth wedi llwyddo, trwy waith caled a chydweithrediad pawb, i gynnal yr hostel am flwyddyn gyfan.

Diolch i waith cydwybodol Pearl Chalk, cawsom grant o £3433 oddiwrth 'Awards for All Wales', cangen o'r Loteri Cenedlaethol, tuag at waith yn Ty'n Cornel, i gynnwys: drysau tan, system larwm tan, gwresogydd dwr trydan a chynllun triniaeth dwr UV, i'w cwblhau cyn Pasg os bosib. Disgwylir derbyn y siec oddiwrth Aelod Seneddol Mark Williams yn Nhy'n Cornel ar Ddydd Sadwrn, 2 Chwefror.

Mae'n galondid clywed bod y gwelliannau yn cael eu gwerthfawrogi gan hostelwyr. Mae Steve Griffith, beiciwr brwd a Chadeirydd 'Rough Stuff Fellowship' wedi annog ei gyfeillion i dalu ymweliad. Plesiwyd sawl un bod y lle 'yn fwy diddan', 'wedi cadw cymeriad', 'yn lle delfrydol i ddychwelyd iddo ar ol diwrnod ar y bryniau' a da meddwl, felly, bod yr Ymddiriedolaeth yn gwneud y pethau cywir.

Dolgoch

The Trust's ownership of Dolgoch is likely to provide us with some of 2008's more exacting tasks but, until the result of the grant application referred to in the previous newsletter is known, there is little to report. Thanks to a David Davies working party, a start has been made on improving the track to the hostel. It is hoped to install new gas lighting on the ground floor before Easter, partly paid for by a sum the YHA agreed to contribute at the time of sale. A representative from the Centre for Alternative Technology at Machynlleth has inspected and will be making recommendations for future improvements, with the 'green aspect' of such work to the forefront.

Dolgoch

Bydd rhan fwyaf o'n gwaith caled yn digwydd yn Nolgoch eleni ond does dim newyddion ar hyn o bryd gan na wyddom os yw'r cais am grant y soniwyd amdano yn Nghylchlythyr 7wedi llwyddo ai peidio. Diolch i barti gwaith David Davies, dechreuwyd trwsio'r lon i'r hostel. Gobeithir adnewyddu'r goleuadau nwy lawr llawr cyn Pasg, yn rhannol gydag arian addawyd i ni gan YHA wrth drosglwyddo cyfrifoldeb. Daeth cynrychiolydd o Ganolfan Technoleg Amgen, Machynlleth i archwilio a disgwylir syniadau am welliannau 'gwyrdd' y gallwn eu datblygu.

Bookings

Both hostels are presently available for use and can be booked through YHA Central Reservations.

Trefnu aros

Gellir aros yn y 2 hostel erbyn hyn. Trefnwch gyda YHA Reservations.

Wardens' training weekend

As mentioned in the last newsletter, this will take place on the 2-3 February. Both hostels will be used, with accommodation at Ty'n Cornel on Friday night and Dolgoch on Saturday. Bookings should be made through Richard Hollins.

Penwythnos hyfforddiant i wardeiniaid gwirfoddol

I'w gynnal ar 2-3 Chwefror. Bwriedir aros yn Nhy'n Cornel ar nos Wener a Dolgoch ar nos Sadwrn. Dylid gwneud trefniadau trwy Richard Hollins.

CRB checks

Russ Johnson, who deals with these, will be out of the country until 5 March. Please, NO completed forms or other communication to be sent to him until his return.

Ymholiadau CRB

Dylid cysylltu a Ross Johnson ar ol Mawrth 5. Peidiwch danfon ffurflenni ato cyn hynny.

Volunteer wardens

Always needed. Joan Meek, who prepares the rota, will be glad to hear from you as there are gaps to fill. By email or phone +44 (0)1283 537 440. Reminder: all wardens and persons accompanying them must be CRB-checked.

Wardeiniaid gwirfoddol

Croeso unrhyw bryd. Cysylltwch a Joan Meek (+44 (0)1283 537 440). Hi sy'n paratoi y Rota ac mae bylchau i'w llenwi. Noder: Rhaid i bob warden ac unrhyw ffrind sy'n eu cynorthwyo gael archwiliad CRB.

Membership

Membership secretary Mark Willcock thanks all who have renewed their membership during October - December. The Trust is heavily dependent on the support of its members, especially in this formative period when there are lots of 'up front' expenses. Quite a high proportion of the renewals were for the extended period of 3 years, which provides working capital when it is likely to be most needed.

However there are still 67 outstanding from this period (ie. 30%). Mark has done his best to contact all those whose membership has lapsed, so if yours is outstanding please consider this a last reminder. It would be appreciated if you would contact him to either renew or to let him know you will not be doing so. If a membership form is needed one can be printed from here (same form for renewals) or you may phone Mark with any queries you may have. He can be contacted by email or by phone: +44 (0)1226 764 052 (evenings only, and please leave a message if there's no answer).

Please also bear in mind the benefit to the Trust of introducing new members.

Aelodaeth

Mae'r ysgrifennydd aelodaeth, Mark Willcock, yn ddiolchgar iawn i bawb sydd wedi ail-ymaelodu rhwng Hydref a Rhagfyr. Mae'r Ymddiriedolaeth yn ddibynnol iawn ar ei haelodau, yn enwedig yn ystod y dyddiau cynnar pan mae llawer o filiau i'w talu. Penderfynnodd llawer ohonoch i dalu am 3 blynedd sy'n sicrhau arian cyfredol pan mae'r angen mwyaf amdano. Serch hynny, mae 67 person dal heb ail-ymaelodu, sef 30%. Mae Mark wedi gwneud ei orau i gysylltu a nhw ond os ydych chi'n un ohonynt - os gwelwch yn dda, a wnewch chi gysylltu ag ef ar frys i'w hysbysu un ffordd neu'r llall. Mae ffurlen aelodaeth/ail-ymaelodaeth ar y wefan neu ffoniwch Mark gydag unrhyw ymholiad: +44 (0)1226 764 052 (nosweithiau yn unig, gadewch neges os oes angen) neu e-bostiwch members@elenydd-hostels.co.uk. Cofiwch hefyd yr angen i gyflwyno aelodau newydd i'r Ymddiriedolaeth.

Annual General Meeting

This will be held in the Memorial Hall at Tregaron on Saturday 19 April 2008 at 1100 hrs. The Dolgoch launch will take place in the afternoon, to celebrate its official opening following acquisition by the Trust. More details will appear in the next newsletter.

Cyfarfod blynyddol

I'w gynnal ar Ebrill 19 am 11.00am yn Neuadd Goffa Tregaron. Agorir Dolgoch yn y prynhawn pan ddathlwn ein perchnogaeth swyddogol ohono. Ceir manylion pellach yn y Cylchlythyr nesaf ac ar y wefan.

Sponsored walk

This will take place on Saturday 7 June 2008 and is again being organised by Jeffrey Matthews who will be producing a route map and entry forms. These should be available mid-February, either by download from the website or hard copies from Jeffrey. The two planned walks will both begin at Abergwesyn village hall and head up to Drygarn Fawr. The shorter 10km walk will finish at the fords below the Devil's Staircase. The 14km walk will end at Dolgoch Hostel, having taken in Drum yr Eira and Drum Nantygorlan. We look forward to your enthusiastic response. Some of us can barely wait!

Tro nawdd

Dydd Sadwrn, 7 Mehefin amdani - gyda Jeffrey Matthews yn trefnu'r cyfarwyddiadau a ffurflenni cais - i'w cael erbyn canol Chwefror os bosib. Ceisiwch eu lawrlwytho o'r wefan neu cysylltwch a Jeffrey. Y bwriad yw cael 2 dro o Neuadd Bentref Abergwesyn i Drygarn Fawr, un byr (10k) i orffen wrth y rhyd cyn 'Grisiau'r Diafol' a'r llall yn parhau dros Drum yr Eira a Drum Nantygorlan i Ddolgoch (14k). Edrychwn ymlaen yn fawr at eich ymateb gwresog!

Skiddaw House Foundation

In our last newsletter mention was made of this Foundation. Michael Douglas, one of their Trustees, has written outlining progress and it was felt members would welcome news of an organisation experiencing and coping with the same problems as our Trust - so here are extracts from his letter.

"In the winter prior to opening last April, part of the roof blew off during winter gales. The resident wardens had a rather cool, moist time whilst the roof was being repaired, with great support from John Waugh the land owner. The members pulled together with the wardens to improve the décor, water supply and to repair the gas heaters so that guests could enjoy hot water and a shower. Plans have been put in place to improve insulation, install solar panels and upgrade the sewage system.

"The first paying guests were a group of Geordie police officers. Since then, despite a slow start business has grown steadily, particularly throughout August, September and October, and an encouraging interest shown in early winter usage. The word is beginning to spread and people are discovering the magic of a wild and quiet place. You have to experience the views from the front door and enjoy the craic around the fireside in the evenings but, being enthusiasts of the Elenydd Trust Hostels, I think I am preaching to the converted.

"Skiddaw House is closed during most of January and February and reopens on 1 March. Present prices are published on their website."

Ty Skiddaw

Soniwyd amdano yn ein Cylchlythyr diwetha. Mae Michael Douglas, un o'r Ymddiriedolwyr wedi ysgrifennu atom a theimlwyd y byddai'n haelodau yn ymddiddori yn hanes cynllun tebyg iawn i'n un ni. Mae darnau o'i lythyr wedi eu cynnwys yn y fersiwn Saesneg ond yn fras, dywed eu bod, fel ni, yn dilyn ymdrech mawr yn gweld arwyddion da. Bu ar gau am ran fwyaf o Ionawr/Chwefror, ond yn ail agor ar Fawrth 1. Cewch fanylion am brisiau ar eu gwefan.

Marketing and publicity

Steve Griffith gave a presentation on the Elenydd Trust to the Gatliff Trust in December. The latter has been very supportive both financially and in giving us publicity. The presentation is suitable for any interested group (eg cycling/walking). Please contact Steve for further details. The Trust is still seeking a publicity officer and would welcome interest from anyone prepared to help.

Cyhoeddusrwydd a marchnata

Ym mis Rhagfyr rhoddodd Steve Griffith anerchiad am Ymddiriedolaeth Elenydd i'r Gatliff Trust sydd wedi bod yn gefnogol iawn i ni yn ariannol a thrwy roi hysbys. Mae'r cyflwyniad yn addas at grwpiau beicio/cerdded, felly cysylltwch a Steve am fanylion pellach. Rydym yn dal i chwilio am rywun i fod yn swyddog cyhoeddusrwydd, felly cysylltwch a ni os oes diddordeb gennych.

Meetings

The next open meeting, when all are welcome to attend, will be at Dolgoch on 29 March 2008 at 1100 hrs.

Cyfarfodydd

29 Mawrch am 11.00 yn Nolgoch. Croeso i bawb.

Contacts

Marilyn Barrack, Chair
Janet Hollins, Secretary
Colin Francis, Treasurer

Cysylltiadau

Marilyn Barrack, Cadeirydd
Janet Hollins, Ysgrifennydd
Colin Francis, Trysorydd

Previous newsletters

October 2007
June 2007
January 2007
November 2006
September 2006
July 2006
May 2006

Cylchlythyrau blaenorol

Hydref 2007
Mehefin 2007
Ionawr 2007
Tachwedd 2006
Medi 2006
Gorffennaf 2006
Mai 2006