Little Wales 2012

Darren y Pistyll, Berw Nant yr Ychen, Pen Pych Waterfall/Berw Wion, Pwll Caradog, Craig Fawr, Cwm Coel. Mountains and waterfalls from the South Wales Valleys to the plateaus of Mid Wales.

Rhondda Valley

This part of the trip was made to an area I have visited several times, to test out a theory. As it turns out, the theory was proven correct, and an old waterfall gains its rightful place in the South Wales record books.

• The twin Rhondda Viaducts, surrounded by the roadways of Pontypridd. Normally, I put great effort into stitching panoramas, and take a sense of satisfaction out of doing the job manually. However, architecture is notoriously difficult to stitch with all the straight lines, that need to be curved precisely to avoid looking strange, so I am sorry to say I cheated, and used an automatic stitching tool. It leaves some slight ghost images, and has occasional little failures, but it's much better than I could do by hand with such a mammoth subject.
• The headgear of Tymawr Colliery's Hetty Shaft.
• Ivy covered remains of the old industry.
• Preserved chimney and headgear at the Rhondda Heritage Park, once the Lewis Merthyr colliery. The buildings are dated from from 1890.
• Snapshot of an era, at the second headgear.
• Slightly further into Trehafod, a lane starts beside a bridge, climbing up the far side of the valley, where there is a great view over the twin headgears of the Rhondda Heritage Park.
• On the side of the same road is the 10 metre Darren y Pistyll waterfall and crag, occasionally referred to using the mutated form Tarren y Pistyll.
• Immediately beside it is the entrance to a mine adit, surrounded by a brick enclosure with a chimney.
• The mine levels here produced the iron that was used by the local smithy, which supplied the weapons used by the Chartists during the Chartists Uprising.
• The ledge on the waterfall looked like an undercut, so I fought through this mess of undergrowth, eventually approaching from a tramway above, only to find that there were dribbles preventing me from getting behind it. C'est la vie. While I was exploring, a white van drove past, then stopped to check out the car and/or its contents. Fortunately some passing walkers prevented them making a first attempt to break in, and since I was literally a few metres from the car (though they did not notice me at first) I was able to interrupt before they could retry, prompting a hasty escape. Nice, huh?
• Onwards to the Pen Pych Woodland Park, looking over Tynewydd and Treherbert in the upper Rhondda Fawr valley.
• A short way above the path that crosses Nant yr Ychen is the first of a series of small waterfalls.
• Then the second.
• And the third.
• Each time separated by a short stretch of stream.
• Then after this 4 metre drop, the bottom of the continuous series starts.
• This 6 metre drop marks the bottom of Berw Nant yr Ychen (whose altitude I measured several times with two separate GPS devices, to get the most reliable reading I could).
• Immediately above is the second step, another 6 metre drop. Sadly I visited when the flow was rather low.
• Above that is a small step. In higher flow, the water will make it down this step and the one above it as if they were one drop.
• The one above is the bottom of the main series of drops, and the most impressive part of Berw Nant yr Ychen, with the others visible above it. This drop and the three above it are each between 12 and 15 metres tall. To aid the measurements, I took GPS readings here too, in the same way as before. Ice climbers often start climbing it from this point when it freezes, though the heights they have recorded for it seem to be doubled (perhaps because they use twice as much rope as the height of the climb).
• It's possible to walk behind this drop on a very wide, spacious ledge. The waterfall can freeze from this point upwards in winter, and is an ice climbing destination, with this section being an ice column when that happens.
• A ledge above breaks the waterfall significantly, separating the next drop, which is of similar size. To get this view, I scrambled above the previous drop using heather and saplings. It's really not a good place to be, and for the majority of visitors there's no need to be here anyway - this section of the waterfall is the lowest part that can be seen from the woodland paths.
• The next ledge then separates the next drop, again the same sort of size. There was no more heather, and no more trees, and the ground was becoming quite crumbly.
• A look up showed the next drop above the next ledge, but by now the drop below me had become increasingly high, something like 50 metres. There was no way this massive waterfall could be the mere 30 metres I had previously estimated when viewing from the distant tracks (though that estimate proved quite accurate for the parts I could see from there).
• OK, that's enough. Any more of this, and even the simplest mistake would have me plummeting down to the bottom. Without protection, there was no way I should be going any higher, so I turned around. I would have to take the long way around.
• And was greated with the superb view over Blaencwm, and the Pen Pych Woodland Park. On the left is Pen Pych, on the right is Mynydd Ty-isaf, and in the distance are Mynydd Tynewydd and Mynydd Maerdy (481 metres). Most are only ridges, not summits, but the ridges are each about 400-500 metres high. The slope on the left should show how steep the terrain was at the point I reached.
• I skirted the slopes below the cliffs, crossing several patches of very loose scree, being thrown over at one point when the scree give way. Not the best way down after all.
• I rejoined the main path after a very tricky descent (shimmying down trees to descend a small cliff), arriving to the view of the distant Cwm Selsig.
• Craig Selsig.
• Just above where I joined the path is Berw Wion, the popular waterfall known locally as the Pen Pych Waterfall. The main drop is a sheer 21 metres.
• 5 metre horsetail above it.
• Very cautiously approaching the edge of Berw Nant yr Ychen. A very, very long way down. I took my measurements again. Each GPS uses a different earth model (and recognises different satellites), and that causes them to register different absolute altitudes from each other. However, they were quite consistent in their relative height measurements, once they were able to obtain accurate readings. From the base of the first 6 metre drop, the base of the waterfalls, the height is 69 metres (± 2.4 metres). A record total height for South Wales. From the base of the drop with the undercut, the height is 54 metres.
• The four main drops can be seen landing on their respective ledges (the first is a bulge, not a ledge, and it does not break the watefall).
• The top drop of the waterfall, a few metres high.

Cambrian Mountains

Time for a change of gear, and a more lengthy trip. This time, the journey took me around the bottom end of the Cambrian Mountains, from their southern tip near Carmarthen, up their western side, a side of the mountains I have never previously followed. I had waited for quite some time to get the weather just right, as the mountains need a high cloud base and some sunshine, but the south-facing views would need some clouds to protect the camera from the sun.

• Looking southwards towards Brechfa Forest, from Mynydd Llanfihangel-rhos-y-corn (356 metres). The forest is a popular cycling area, but like many such places, it's just yet another forestry plantation.
• And in the other direction, Pen Llwyn-uchel (383 metres) and Mynydd Llanybyther (408 metres). The hills get taller the further north you go, but already they were catching the clouds, which was not encouraging.
• View back over the Afon Gilwydeth valley towards the Crug y Bedw, and the coastal land to the west.
• Approaching Lampeter. The hills are around 230 metres high.
• Llanddewi-Brefi, not just fiction.
• I checked the pub, but Myfanwy was not in. Saw Daffyd though. Alone, as always.
• Mouth of the Brefi valley at Foelallt Farm. On the left is Craig y Foelallt followed by the Craig Ifan, and then the obvious Craig Curyll crag on the right.
• Neck of the Brefi valley.
• Nant Rhysgog.
• The hills at Tregaron. On the left is Y Drum (499 metres), in the distance is Y Glog (434 metres), and on the right are Craig y Fintan (450 metres) and Banc Tan-yr-allt (310 metres).
• The hills at Pontrhydfendigaid. On the left is Mynydd Bach (371 metres), in the middle is Pen y Bannau (352 metres) with the main Cambrian Mountains plateau behind it. On the right is the edge of the plateau dropping down to reach the valley.
• The Sychnant valley above Tynygraig. On the left is Mynydd Bach, followed by Drysgol (348 metres) and the crags of Craig Ystradmeurig (318 metres).
• At Tynygraig, the sychnant flows through the village, then suddenly disappears into a chasm.
• From the top, it is quite clearly a very long way down, and quite unexpected for an area with such gentle hills.
• The best (but private) way down is down the footpath to the old mill, whose owners must be consulted for access.
• A long way towards being restored.
• The mill pond, with the lip of the waterfall visible from its bank, but not the main part of the drop.
• The top bench of the waterfall can be seen dropping about 5 metres through the trees in winter, but the view of that drop is almost always obscured.
• Below, the stream is called Nant Cwmtarw, and the mill owners can show you the best way down to it (though there is no proper path).
• From here, the glory of Pwll Caradog can be seen. My estimated height for the main drop is about 18 metres, and with the 5 metre drop above it, that makes the total drop 23 metres.
• During the Victorian era, this was set up as a tourist attraction called Caradog Falls (not a direct translation), with a dedicated station on the now-dismantled railway line. Now the nearby Hafod Forest is the only remaining tourist waterfall site.
• The handline leading back up to the top, which has most certainly seen better days. Those karabiners are visibly dissolving.
• Trial mine in the forest.
• Superb view of the western side of the Cambrian Mountains from Ystradmeurig. On the left is the Glasffrwd valley, followed by the forested Carn Fflur (510 metres), exposed ribs of Garn Gron (541 metres) and a long foreground ridge, Castell Rhyfel (503 metres) and the distant Bryn Rhydd (480 metres). This gives a very good idea of the plateau; a long chain of bumpy hills, with the local terrain at about 500 metres at its northern end, dropping progressively down as it reaches the southern end.
• Pen y Bannau, Pen y Bryn (439 metres) and Disgwilfa (459 metres), near Strata Florida.
• Pen y Bannau.
• Disgwilfa, at Strata Florida. The area is best known for its former abbey, once the centre of Welsh power on this side of the mountains. That's enough of looking from below. It's time to head up onto the plateau.
• The most dramatic part of the Cambrian Mountains plateau, where the rock beds protrude in an infinite series of summits. Why do the Hewitts and Nuttalls still use 610 metres as a cutoff? This area is why! Dropping the limit to 500 metres would produce the surveying nightmare of trying to work out which bumps (most of which seem to have names) should be promoted to mountains.
• Nant y Garw.
• Looking down Nant Rhydol to the edge of the plateau, where it slants down to the lowlands.
• This area is famed for the Teifi Pools, a series of dammed lakes. This is the first, known as Llyn Pond Gwaith, and is the largest completely artificial reservoir. Originally it would have been just a patch of marshy ground, until the dam was built some time around 1900. The hill in the background is Dibyn Du (about 530 metres), the most obvious in the area, which will appear in many further pictures.
• View from Bwlch Graig-fawr, presented in honest colours, as they came from the camera. Now this was worth waiting for. On the left are the Craig Pydolfa crags on Meincyn (528 metres). In the distance is Dibyn Du, and on the right are the edge of Llyn Teifi and Llyn Pond Gwaith.
• Bwlch Graig-fawr and Craig Pydolfa, and the most excellent of mountain roads. The road is the width of a car, with few passing spaces, which winds its way between the crags, over drops, around tight bends and up steep hills.
• Blaen Llyn Teifi, and one of the most impressive views. On the left is Rhiplem, on the right is Graig Fawr. In between is Llyn Teifi, one of the largest of the Teifi Pools. In the background is Dibyn Du again, with the ongoing plateau behind it.
• The two arms of Llyn Teifi. The lake was enlarged a little by damming it around 1900.
• Llyn Teifi. Although the right edge appears to be a very badly sloping picture, the camera is in fact level. The sloping effect is produced by the angle of the dam, and the change in altitude as the plateau drops down to the lowlands.
• Llyn Teifi.
• Llyn Hir and the distant Llyn y Gorlan, both apparently natural lakes, without dams.
• Unsuitable for motor vehicles. Here, the road ends, and the track ahead becomes an off-road route, the only interruption in the most extensive wilderness in Wales. It joins the old path between the Strata Florida abbey and another abbey on the east side of the plateau. The track eventually leads to the dam of the Claerwen Reservoir, in the Elan Valley. (Note that while off-roaders frequently rip this moorland terrain up very badly, and are a serious threat to the wilderness, these were at least sticking to the track.)
• Moody skies creating some drama at Llyn Egnant, and treating me to a shower of hail. This was dammed much later than the others, some time around the 1960s or 1970s, enlarging it slightly. The background, once again, is Dibyn Du.
• A distant view of the Craig Fawr waterfall from the end of the road.
• Esgair Garregnawllyn (562 metres), seen at a small pass beside Banc Llyn-hir (the small ridge on the right). From here, a stub of dirt track leads to the old Claerddu farmstead, though the track repeatedly disappears.
• The view from Banc Llyn-hir over the Claerddu catchment. The hill on the left is Llan Ddu Fawr, whose top is at Carnyrhyrddod (594 metres). The hill in the middle is Esgair Garregnawllyn.
• Three small ridges interrupt the valley below Llan Ddu Fawr: Banc Rhysen, Uchelfa and Banc Llyn-hir, each time punctured by the Claerddu river. The Claerddu farmstead lies below the last one, and beyond that, there are no more paths for 7 km, until the plateau is interrupted by the Ystwyth valley. Above the top one is Ochr Ysgyfarnog, which the river bypasses instead of puncturing.
• The Claerddu valley, and a great expanse of wilderness. To the right, it joins the Claerwen valley, and enters the Claerwen Reservoir.
• The gap in Banc Llyn-hir, with the Claerddu farmstead. While the little ridges are created by glacial action (like most of the landforms in this area), they are not moraines. They are formed where stronger beds of rock protrude from the surface against the direction of flow, and were not worn down as much as their surroundings. They may be considered as the lips of a series of terraced cirques, and were probably formed by glacial plucking, much like a roche moutonnée.
• The infant river breaking through the next ridge at Uchelfa, with sheepfolds used for washing.
• Cascades at Uchelfa.
• Cascades at Uchelfa.
• The Craig Fawr waterfall, about 5 metres high.
• Craig Fawr. The sronger bedrock can be very clearly seen here (the white-tipped outcrop on the left), showing that the ridge is not a depositional feature. The beds slope very steeply, pointing out of the surface towards the upstream direction, which presumably presented a serious obstacle for the sheet glaciers that covered the area.
• Upstream of the ridge, where the river becomes more gentle.
• The Claerddu river is sourced from the boggy ground at the base of Esgair Garregnawllyn, where there are a series of upper lakes that also source the Claerwen.
• Looking downstream along the valley to the Claerwen Reservoir. In the distance is the mountain summit of Gorllwyn (613 metres), followed on the right by Drygarn Fawr (645 metres), the highest points on this part of the plateau. The entire plateau can be crossed to the far side behind Gorllwyn, around 20 km, without crossing any roads, without any obvious paths, and probably without meeting another person. Pure wilderness.
• The closer end of Claerwen Reservoir, 6 km away, and Gorllwyn, 16 km away.
• The tip of Groes Fan.
• The Claerddu farmstead, now converted into the Claerddu Bothy, run by the Elan Valley Trust.
• With a gas fire.
• Dining room.
• Kitchen.
• And bedrooms.
• Time to leave the plateau. This is the Marchnant valley, with the ridge leading up to Carnyrhyrddod.
• At Ysbyty Ystwyth, looking towards Pen y Garn (610 metres), the only other mountain summit on this part of the plateau, surrounding the Elan Valley. The next mountains are on the Pumlumon plateau, a little further north.
• At Cwmystwyth. On the left is the Pen y Garn plateau, followed by Banc Hir (550 metres), the low Cefn Coch Ridge in front of Bryn Dafydd (570 metres), Carnyrhyrddod and Trawsallt (570 metres), the head of the Nant Gau. On the right is the edge of the Hafod Forest.
• Esgair y Llwyn (538 metres), part of the plateau extending around the northern side of the Elan Valley.
• Garreg-ddu, one of the big reservoirs in the Elan Valley, looking towards Creigiau Dolfolau.
• On the far side of the reservoir is Cwm Coel, the next target.
• The submerged dam separating the Garreg-ddu and Caban-coch Reservoirs, which once supported a railway bridge, but now is the main access road down the valley.
• The track leading around the Garreg-Ddu reservoir into Cwm Coel.
• Small waterfall under the bridge. The path can be seen on its other side, heading upstream.
• Not an official path, but well trodden.
• The lower waterfall.
• The stream has no name.
• The path leads to Cwm Coel's main waterfall, about 14 or 15 metres tall. This also has no name, and is referred to after the name of the valley; Cwm Coel. The waterfall has been referred to as Janet's Falls, after a woman who suffered a head injury due to the exceptionally slippery rocks. By that token, half of the waterfalls in Wales could be renamed, but I digress. The name is not widely recognised, so I have used Cwm Coel here.
• The tallest single drop, at 9 metres.
• One-sided gorge upstream.
• The top waterfall, about 4 metres tall.
• Head of the top waterfall.

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