Remote hills & valleys
1 SN776244 From the hostel, next to the church and the minor road junction in Llanddeusant, take the narrow lane leading south, downhill, into a wooded valley. Cross the bridge over the river, continue uphill and fork left through a gate onto a track. Keep ahead as the track becomes rougher and cross a stile onto Open Access land after 650m.
2 SN780231 Open hillsides now stretch ahead and the route of the Beacons Way, often indistinct, leads south to the rising ground by Rhiw Fer. Continue up the gradual grassy slopes and veer south-west after 1.5km when small limestone terraces begin to appear underfoot. The shattered summit of Carreg Yr Ogof (585m) is reached after another 600m. The bare rocks and low crags around the trig point, with pavements of grykes and clints, are a complete contrast to the surrounding moorland.
3 SN777214 Continue south on the broad ridge for 1km to Garreg Las (635m), followed by Godre’r Garreg Las. There are expansive limestone outcrops here, with shake holes too, and some of the cracks are a few feet deep – take care as some of the rocks are rough and jagged. Keep ahead, along the edge of a low crag and when the limestone subsides continue south for 1km to descend over pathless moor to the stream named Nant y Llyn. Turn left, downhill, into a narrow isolated valley and the confluence with the babbling Afon Twrch. This is a remote spot, with a steep stony escarpment on the east side of the river, and the Ordnance Survey says this is the furthest point from any road in the whole of Wales.
4 SN776171 Turn right and walk alongside the river for 1km. Pass an old walled enclosure on the east bank and shortly afterwards leave the river and go right by a series of small streams named Ffrydiau Twrch (SN772161). Turn sharp north on a faint indistinct path which rises uphill to meet the line of a bridleway, again indistinct in places, with Carn Fadog on the left. Continue north, past old quarry workings on the left, to the col by the pool named Blaenllynfell. The Beacons Way runs east-west across the pass.
5 SN765185 Walk north and descend into Cwm Sawdde Fechan. This glorious arrowstraight valley runs due north – walk down, over a few minor streams, to a sheepfold (SN764193) and then fork right onto a path on the east side of the valley. Walk north for 1.5km to the edge of the first walled field.
6 SN763211 Leave the path and trend right to contour over the hillside. After 2.75km head towards the stile at the foot of the moor – you came this way earlier in the day – and retrace your steps across the valley and up the lane to return to the start.