A Welsh farmer and landowner who says he has been looking after an historic site for years has lost patience with poorly-behaved visitors and taken guerilla action to block access.
Meredydd Williams owns land in Snowdonia, Eryri, a mountainous region and national park in northwest Wales, including Tomen y Mûr – the site of a vast Roman military camp, built for around 1,000 troops in the late first century with the aim of putting down a native Celtic tribe. It’s later thought to have become a courtly palace, and was in use as late as the early 20th century when a slate quarry and its tramway were to be found there.
This 2,000-year history brings many history buffs and walkers to the area every year and until recently a voluntary access agreement was in place between the landowner and the national park. That agreement has now lapsed – as it seems has Mr Williams’ temper.
“Scarring the landscape”
Williams claims he has been managing facilities for visitors without any practical or financial assistance, other than £35-a-week meant to compensate him for reducing sheep grazing there by 75%.
Work he says he has undertaken to ensure the site is fit for visitors includes: pruning and cutting back shrubs; creating a gate for visitors with special access needs; reducing fencing height to enhance views; and splashing out on special tractor tyres so his vehicle does not damage the ground. This last one is something he says some visitors are particularly guilty of.
“Serious damage has been done” he says, by passing trucks, metal detector enthusiasts who dig up the earth, and tourists who climb structures and trees and “are scarring the landscape”.
As a result of his pleas for help being ignored, Williams has removed Tomen y Mûr’s public interpretation boards and blocked off a parking layby, meaning the site is no longer fully available to explore.
He has also been reported by some outlets as having “churned up the ground” with his tractor to make it inhospitable for parking, while others have said it was an attempt to create “a new, larger car park on his land, screened by trees and gated to prevent overnight stays.”
1% cause trouble
Williams says he is “being made to look like the bad guy when really I’m the good guy,” but he stopped short of tarring all visitors with the same brush. “With help from my neighbours, I’ve been looking after the site for as long as I can remember. But it’s got to work both ways – they’ve got to work with me to stop the illegal activities.”
99% of the visitors are great but 1% like to dig up the site and cause trouble.Meredydd Williams
The Welsh heritage body Cadw told The Telegraph: “We have worked in partnership with Eryri National Park and the private owner of Tomen y Mur for many years to support the conservation of this important historic site and make it accessible for visitors to enjoy.”