Riding the Taft Trail

Sometimes when you are in your element, pedaling along a country road with spectacular views of the valley below you come across a scene so profound and moving that it warrants it’s own post.

Aberfan is just that place.

The Aberfan disaster occurred on October 21, 1966 when the tips (remains) from the coal mines that were stacked high above the canyon slid down the mountainside burying the Pentglas Junior school. It was just after 9am on the last day of classes. Sadly, on this day of human error, 144 people died, 116 were children between the ages of 7 and 10. The following site has more info about the disaster: Aberfan Disaster.

Each person who lost their life in the disaster has an arch memorial in the Cemetery high above the valley. A beautiful resting place is a small consultation for the lives lost, especially the young children who today would not be much older than Jay and I. Both of us walked in silence with tears in our eyes.