Cadair Idris Route 6
Forgo the summit? For this quiet, trackless part of Cadair Idris, one of Wales’ most oft-walked mountains, it’s worth it, says Sarah Ryan.
But avoid the top and take the quiet way
Even on a cold, wind-snapped day, Cadair Idris is busy. If the skies are clear, the car park is full. Footprints muddy the snowy path leading up from Minffordd to Llyn Cau. Dogs dart up and down the track, and ruddy-cheeked, grinning walkers are everywhere. This can be great. But what can also be great is the tranquility that a moment at height in solitude brings, with nothing around you but snow, hills and sky. This is readily accessible even on a peak as popular as Cadair, a simple left turn taking you from the dramatic subsidiary summit of Craig Cwm Amarch to a broad ridge. Prepare here to break trail. This skywalk takes you out between cascading white peaks to a vision of the pearlescent sea. Time it right and you’ll witness the sun set on a glowing landscape too.
1 SH731116 From the car park, follow the main path towards Cadair, signposted for Minffordd. The path is well-made, easy to follow and frequently walked with a large information board at the start. It ascends through mixed woodland before breaking out onto the open flanks of the hill. Where the path divides, take the left fork following a finger post to Cwm Cau. The ascent here is gentle, following a substantial path to the mouth of Llyn Cau.
2 SH720123 Before the llyn comes fully into view, take the path branching left which climbs through rocky ground to a shallow dip in the Minffordd ridge. As you climb, the llyn comes dramatically into view, Cadair’s often cloudwreathed summit lurking above. There is the tantalising sense that a view awaits at the top of this climb too – and it does. Revealing a vista of southern Welsh hills. Here the track heads right, smaller now and more easy to lose, though the way ahead is clear. The path follows the ridge for approximately 1.2km around the southern rim of the walls that enclose Llyn Cau, climbing through rocky ground, though never reaching the severity of a scramble. The 791m summit of Craig Cwm Amarch is marked by a huge pile of rock and a fence which crosses in from the south-east.
3 SH710121 Cross the fence at the stile and after pausing here for a moment to take in the final views of the steep crags of Cwm Cau, leave the path to follow the fence line south of west. This will form a reliable guide for much of the rest of the route. The going here is easy, but in deep snow you may be forced to break trail. The ridge follows a gentle line, descending before gradually climbing again to a stile atop the 766m spot height. This is a wonderful, quiet and wild-feeling spot in which to have a break.
4 SH705117 The fence continues out towards the sea but here turn left to follow a joining fence line down a broad flank, east of south. The contours are gentle and the going fairly easy, though mostly pathless. Follow the spur down to a 626m spot height with a small llyn beside, where it breaks off more definitely south-east to drop into Cwm Amarch. The going here becomes increasingly rough and wet. When the fenceline turns south above steepening crags, leave it to cut across the cwm, aiming to cross the stream just above the falls.
5 SH710109 A footpath begins here, narrow and faltering, to cut across tussocky grass, grazed by sheep. This steeper, slippier ground can be tricky to negotiate if the grass is wet or when the snowline begins here. Follow a wavering line, roughly zig-zagging well above the north-eastern bank of the river to reach a muddy but very distinct track at Pentre Farm. Fingerposts point the way along a track and between buildings to pick up a narrow, single-track road alongside Tal-y-llyn Lake. After following this road for approximately 1.3km, join the B4405 at Fawnog. If you are not wearing lights already, it would be prudent to do so now. A hair-raising 750m walk from here to Minffordd returns you to the car park.