Country diary: Only a hare where once there was great activity | John Gilbey

Ystrad Fflur, Ceredigion: Off a minor road, down a lane that loses itself among the hills, lie the remains of the Strata Florida AbbeyThe mature copper beech by St Mary's church is dark and heavy with foliage, moving gently in the warm morning breeze and casting welcome shade. Turf paths between the gravestones have been neatly mown, and many of the kempt memorials are marked with fresh flowers. Between the rows, a large hare slowly moves away from me, not panicked but just ensuring its escape route to the lane is unimpeded. It settles, watching me while soaking up the sun, its rump against a gravestone.Small and stone-built, the church of St Mary sits in a broad valley, on a lane that branches from a minor road, a few yards from the still youthful Afon Teifi. The site is remote, the lane eventually losing itself in the hills, yet this was once a place of significant activity - the southern boundary is shared with the Cistercian abbey of Strata Florida, or what remains of it. Continue reading...