Five brilliant mountain walks for families
Want to cultivate the adventure gene in your family? Then try these! Small but epic, thrilling but not terrifying, they’re perfect for forging a passion for big places…
Sgwd yr Eira, Powys
We start with proof that you don’t have to climb to the top of a mountain to have an adventurous mountain walk. Here, in a corner of the Brecon Beacons defined by tumbling water and deep gorges, is a virtually unique proposition in the United Kingdom: the chance to walk behind a waterfall.
Admit it, even if you’re not a child yourself, that’s got you excited.
This crashing curtain of water (above) is called Sgwd yr Eira, meaning ‘Fall of Snow’, and the walk to it takes you through a region known as Waterfall Country. Around every corner there are rapids, cascades and whirlpools, but this one is the king of them all. The falls look spectacular enough from the front, but follow the path round the edge of the pool – a path made luminous green by algae – and it will lead you right into an alcove behind the curtain, worn away by millennia of ice and water.
The cave is bigger than you’d expect and there’s room to stand well back from the thundering water, but the air is so moist with ice-cold water droplets that you’ll swiftly be soaked – so a good waterproof is recommended!
It’s an exhilarating experience – and a rite of passage for any young adventurer. Walk here: Download the five-mile Four Falls Trail at www.breconbeacons.org/ waterfall-country-walking-trails
Curbar Edge, Derbyshire
This epic sweep of gritstone cliff in the Peak District makes for a jaw-dropping family walk, yet requires precious little effort. It’s possible to park virtually at the top, from where a good broad path heads along the edge. But you’ll soon find the family diverting to scramble over the intoxicating rocks and boulders and posing like Everest summiteers as the landscape tumbles away into the Derwent Valley. Pack a picnic, find a rocky platform for lunch, and revel in this breathtaking perspective over one of the most dramatic features of the national park. Walk here: Park at the top of the edge above Curbar village (grid ref SK263747) and follow the path from the car park north-west along Curbar Edge before retracing your steps.
Ysgyryd Fawr, Monmouthshire
The Brecon Beacons may boast the highest point in southern Britain (Pen y Fan), but you don’t have to climb all day to find huge views in these hills. Even at child’s pace, less than an hour will see you to the kilometre-long skyline of Ysgyryd (Skirrid) Fawr, grinning and posing for family photos in front of a panorama that includes the distinctive cone of Sugar Loaf, the high ridges of the Black Mountains, the Malvern Hills, and even the distant summit of Pen y Fan. And for good measure, take a look at the huge rift in the hill’s northern edge. Certain local legends claim it was created when Noah’s Ark bumped into this cheeky little mini-mountain that got in its way during the Flood…