Valentine Morris, Monmouthshire's favourite Valentine

February 14th is known of course as St. Valentine's Day (and we have some great Valentine's Day meals and events for you to enjoy), but here in Monmouthshire we praise a different Valentine. If you've ever looked down over the Wye Valley from the Eagle's Nest viewpoint, hiked the Wye Valley Walk up from Chepstow or simply enjoyed horseracing and Chepstow Racecourse, you have Valentine Morris to thank.

(Chepstow Racecourse, part of the old Piercefield Estate. @Lorna_s_photography)

Valentine Morris inherited the Piercefield estate in 1743, and soon after moving in in 1753 started to landscape the farmland and natural parkland around the area. Utilising the traditions of the Picturesque aesthetic popular at the time, Morris set out walks, viewpoints and parkland for visitors to enjoy.

Praised by travellers such as Joseph Banks and poets such as Coleridge, Piercefield became one of the pre-eminent stopping points on the Wye Tour, helping to usher in the birth of British Tourism. 

Nowadays many of the walks and viewpoints have been carefully restored, and you can explore the Piercefield Estate laid out by Valentine Morris with our Picturesque Piercefield walk. So what better way to celebrate Valentine's Day than to give thanks to our very own Valentine and try the walk for yourself.

Picturesque Piercefield Walk

A shorter 6 mile Piercefield Walk

A 2.6 mile walk taking in the lower Piercefield estate

Here's some of our favourite Piercefield viewpoints :

Lover's Leap

(Lover's Leap, @judith_angharad)

It wouldn't be a Valentine's Day blog post without somewhere called Lover's Leap. Valentine Morris is said to have fallen from this steep lookout point, but was saved by the branches of some trees below. We wouldn't recommend recreating this...

The Giant's Cave

(The Giant's Cave, @Gavinje)

This viewing platform was carved into the rockface itself, allowing for dramatic views as visitors would emerge from the cave. There used to be a stone giant above the cave entrance, Monmouthshire's very own Colossus. Unfortunately, much like the Colossus of Rhodes, this statue did not stand the test of time.

Eagle's Nest

(Dragon's Breath from Eagle's Nest - @judith_angharad)

The highlight of this walk, you can climb the 365 steps (one for each day of the year) from the Lower Wyndcliffe car park to reach these amazing views of the Lower Wye Valley. If you get there early in the morning you may be treated to the enchanting sight of Dragon's Breath winding its way down towards Chepstow.

Explore Eagle's Nest

Chepstow Museum

You can find out much more about the history of Valentine Morris and the Piercefield Estate at Chepstow Museum (reopens 18th February), as well as the fascinating history of the Wye Tour and the origins of British Tourism in this area.

Visit Chepstow Museum