Yr Aran & Cwm Llan Snowdonia NORTH WALES
bushes billowed in frothy blossom and the dazzle of fresh foliage almost hurt the eyes.
Waterfalls collided as Afon Cwm Llan tumbled out of the mile-long corrie which terminates in pathless Cwm Tregalan. Slate miners used to spend the week up here and the tumbledown remains of cottages and workshops are reminders of toil and hard graft. The Watkin Path wasn’t finished until after the works had closed but I bet those miners would have appreciated its careful contouring on a cold, dark Monday morning.
A new mini-hydro scheme marked the top of the falls, where the ruined building was once the quarry manager’s house. I turned left to cross the old incline, which had carried slates on the first leg of their journey to the harbour at Porthmadog, and walked steeper slopes up to a sturdy wall above another old quarry.
The soft dry grass was a good enough reason to stop and stare into the heart of the massif. Down below, tiny stick people stomped towards Snowdon; but, up here, there were just a couple of ravens for company. I looked up at the rocky rib that bustled its way to the top of Yr Aran and sent a thought: ‘Don’t worry, I’ll be with you shortly. Some of us think you’re among the finest viewpoints in North Wales!’
The panorama from the summit never disappoints, with Snowdon and Y Lliwedd to the north, Cnicht and the misty Moelwyns in the south and Moel Hebog out west, where the classic circuit above
Cwm Pennant seemed to float above the gleaming waters of Caernarfon Bay. Moel Siabod, beyond Llyn Gwynant, was a pale wedge shimmering in the hot sunshine.
A rocky path dropped steeply to Bwlch Cwm Llan and swung down towards the old slate works where, turning east, the Watkin Path cut through charcoal-grey spoil to pass the rock where in 1892 83-year-old William Gladstone, then in his fourth stint as PM, addressed more than 2,000 people.
In the 1960s there was activity of a different sort when Carry on Up the Khyber was filmed here – apparently due to a similarity with the rugged landscape of Afghanistan! Yr Aran would no doubt have been very pleased to play an important supporting role.
Yr Aran rises above the south end of Llyn Gwynant; Springtime at Nantgwynant with the lower slopes of Yr Aran in the background; View from Yr Aran looking north to Cwm Llan with Snowdon on the left and Y Lliwedd on the right
Further information
Maps: OS 1:25,000 Explorer sheet OL17 (Snowdon); Harvey 1:25,000 Superwalker, Snowdonia Aran
Transport: Stations at Betws-y-Coed, Porthmadog and Caernarfon. The Snowdon Sherpa buses link to Nantgwynant – see traveline. cymru
Information: Beddgelert TIC, 01766 890615 (open Easter to October), visitsnowdonia.info
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1
Start/Finish
Poppit Sands (car park and bus stop)
GR: SN153486
From car park, follow
Pembrokeshire Coast Path (CP)
signs uphill and along lane past
YH to farm & campsite at end,
Allt-y-Coed. Path continues to
Cemaes Head (fine views across
bay to Cardigan Island). Continue
southwards along CP for 4.5km,
eventually descending to
Ceibwr Bay.
Cross stone footbridge over
river (old lime kiln on other
side), then a short stretch along
road. Cliffs at Ceibwr Bay are also
impressive for their folding and
faulting. About 1km further on is
the impressive Witches’ Cauldron,
a sea cave where the roof has
collapsed, which you cross by a
natural bridge. In a further 8km,
round headland N of Newport
Sands – a splendid beach – with
glorious views across Newport Bay.
Coast Path heads gently down to
arrive at Newport Sands car park.
Continue along CP across
golf course and beside
Nevern estuary (excellent bird
watching area) to road and bridge.
Cross and continue along CP for
2km to Parrog, where River
Nevern (Afon Nyfer in Welsh)
reaches sea. Continuing from
Parrog car park, it’s easy walking
along a causeway, firm sand (with
high tide alternative route signed)
and paved path to a fine viewpoint
at entrance to river opposite S
end of Newport Sands. Old
lifeboat station is just beyond.
Route continues along cliff-top
path for 4km via bays of Aber
Rhigian and Aber Fforest. Joining
a lane, you turn R down to
Cwm-yr-Eglwys.
Most direct route to
Pwllgwaelod is across neck
of headland; but, if time, the
official CP route round headland
is well worth doing.
Finish
Pwllgwaelod car park GR: SN004399
(Poppit Rocket bus to start)