Pen y Fan, Brecon Beacons
Have the Brecon Beacons to yourself for a few hours with this quiet way to the busy summit of Pen y Fan.
If you’ve ever driven along the A470 and seen the long line of people walking from the Storey Arms up the hill towards Pen y Fan and thought to yourself, ‘it’s not for me’, then this route to the top from the north-east might just be the one for you.
Starting at the old army training camp in Cwm Gwdi, the route takes you along a low-level traverse of the hills and cwms to reach the beginning of the ascent to Fan y Big. This is a gentle uphill stroll with the mountains of Cribyn and Pen y Fan gradually revealing themselves to you as you gain height. From the top of Fan y Big you get rewarded with some stunning views as you progress west to the cairn on Pen y Fan. Expect lots of people here even on cloudy days, but these can quickly be left behind as you take the long gentle descent in to the valley bottom. As you return keep looking back for the changing views the faces of the mountains present.
1
SO024248 From the car park at Cwm Gwdi take the signposted footpath to the left of the ticket machine through the woods. Go through the gate to descend to the bridge and cross the stream, rising up the opposite bank to emerge onto open moorland. Go left and follow the path all the way around the base of Allt Ddu, eventually turning south-west along Cwm Sere. As you reach the end of the woodland on your left, continue on for no more than 300m until you reach a safe passage west using the open areas between boulders and bracken to arrive at the stream of Nant Sere.
2
SO024230 Cross Nant Sere by what remains of a ford and walk up the hill north-east to the corner of a wall to reach the main track. Follow the track northeast for
750m until a second track running south-west. Go through a gate in the trees and follow the walled lane east to a farm track.
3
SO038235 Turn right and walk through the farmstead at Cwmcynwyn, keeping to the track until it forks. Take the left-hand fork down through trees and ford the stream Nant Cynwyn, exiting the other side via a metal gate. Walk uphill following an old track to a ruin on your right. Bear left to enter a narrow, walled enclosure. Exiting at the top, enter open ground and keep rising until you reach the well-defined track running north-east.
4
SO040231 Turn left and follow the track north-east for 1.6km keeping the wall on your left until you reach the base of the ridge that runs down the north-east end of Cefn Cyff.
5
SO054238 Turn right and follow the footpath, initially steep, up the ridge line south-west until you reach the summit of Fan y Big.
6
SO036205 From the summit follow the well-defined path west then north-west ascending to the nose of Cribyn. Turn south-west and take the footpath down the steep rocky south-west ridge to the pool in the saddle between Cribyn and Pen y Fan. Pick up the Beacons Way trail heading north-west up Craig Cwm Sere to arrive at the summit of Pen y Fan.
7
SO011216 From the cairn and NT marker on the summit of Pen y Fan, take the footpath north then north-east and begin the descent of Cefn Cwm Llwch for 1.9km until you are just above Cwar Mawr quarry down below on your left.
8
SO019233 Do not take the path that leads to the quarry. Walk a little further north-east and take the second path left going north to emerge below the north-east rock face of Twyn Cil-rhew. Cross the wide-open moorland, going over one stile, then aiming for the wooden gate that leads you onto the lane and back to the car park.