Originally published on Photoblog by Gethin Thomas FEBRUARY. 12, 2021
Blorenge, also called The Blorenge, is a prominent mountain overlooking the valley of the River Usk in Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, southeast Wales. It is situated in the south-eastern corner of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The summit plateau reaches a height of 1,841 feet (561 m).
Blorenge is situated within both the Brecon Beacons National Park and the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, a World Heritage Site. Much of the hill has also been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest principally for its heather moorland which is important for breeding red grouse.
You might question the industrial angle, but it is evidenced in the photo below which still shows coal waste tips. These are gradually being re-landscaped in South Wales and many are now green and used for recreational purposes.
Blorenge is believed to be a source of inspiration for Cecil Frances Humphreys Alexander's hymn "All Things Bright And Beautiful". The fourth verse starts "The purple headed mountain, the river running by". "The purple headed mountain" is believed to be Blorenge, "The river running by" the Usk beneath.
"Blorenge" is one of very few words in the English language which is a perfect rhyme for "orange. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the only word that perfectly rhymes with “orange” is “sporange,” an uncommon botanical term for a part of a fern. Wikipedia
This makes it difficult to make a rhyming verse featuring the word orange. So here goes, you know how I like a challenge. I spent many hours creating the Blorenge Limerick.
There was an old man up the Blorenge, Who liked to lunch on an Orange, He took one up the hill, Took a serious spill, And landed a'firmly his Sporange.
For those not familiar with Limericks. They are normally rude and often use double entendres as well, I have kept my effort family friendly.
A limerick is a form of verse, usually humorous and frequently rude, in five-line, predominantly anapestic trimeter with a strict rhyme scheme of AABBA, in which the first, second and fifth line rhyme, while the third and fourth lines are shorter and share a different rhyme.