Pistyll Rhaeadr & Cadair Berwyn
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
POWYS ISLE OF ARRAN 23 PISTYLL RHAEADR & CADAIR BERWYN 24 GLEN LENNOX & CIR MHOR WALES A A SCOTLAND uDistance: 5½ miles/9km uTime: 3 hours uGrade: Moderate B uDistance: 9¼ miles/14.85km uTime: 6 hours uGrade: Challenging B PLAN YOUR WALK Climbing Caisteal Abhail PLAN YOUR WALK SEE TURE with Cir Mhor behind. FEA ON PAGE 54 PHOTO: PHOTO: STEVE GOODIER STEVE TOM BAILEY TOM ROUTE ROUTE Views across Powys from Start/parking Layby Start/parking Car park the top of Pistyll Rhaeadr. just before end of lane, 4 Glen Cottage/bus stop at miles NW of Llanrhaeadr– Sannox, grid ref NS015454 ym–Mochnant, Is it for me? High/remote CHOSEN BY… to walk to base of waterfalls grid ref SJ076293 CHOSEN BY… Start mountain route. Steep, Is it for me? Mostly clear rough ground. Exposed JENNY WALTERS and footbridge. Once you’ve STEVE GOODIER Cross road taking track past paths; one longish climb; 1 scrambling sections – Pistyll Rhaeadr admired the cascade, turn some boggy sections Cir Mhor (2,621ft/799 Glen Cottage marked ‘Glen grade one. Difficult burn is one of Wales’ R away from bridge on path Stiles 7 metres) is often Sannox’. Climb track which crossing – avoid after bad highest waterfalls, flowing signed ‘Top of falls’. Go ahead called ‘the shapeliest peak becomes unsurfaced after weather/high winds. A bus through a natural arch as it through wood, ignoring turns, PLANNING in Scotland’ and it certainly cemetery. Continue through can be caught from end to tumbles 240 feet from the and through gate by waymark. Nearest town Bala lives up to its name, as it looks deer gate into Glen Sannox. start but must be hailed. Walk back adds 1½ miles Berwyn Hills. These beautiful Keep ahead on path which Refreshments almost unclimable from many Stay ahead at junction R Tearoom at Pistyll Rhaeadr, Stiles 1 uplands aren’t in a national soon curves L uphill and www.pistyllrhaeadr.co.uk/ directions. It’s a true mountain continuing over burn. Wind park or AONB, so once you’ve through kissing gate. cafe.html peak and very remote. This a way up glen soon walking PLANNING climbed to the moor–clad tops Immediately fork L to ascend Public toilets At Pistyll route takes in extremely rough near Sannox Burn. Cross ford Nearest town Brodick you likely won’t see more than stony zig–zag path and reach Rhaeadr café car park ground and includes some continuing on path up Glen. Refreshments a soul or two all day. What you track. Turn L on it and follow Public transport scrambling sections (around Follow path over odd burns. Lochranza & Brodick will see are wide vistas of up round to R. When it levels None to start. Buses grade one) in exposed Near head of the glen path Public toilets None serve nearby Llanrhaeadr Public Transport Snowdonia, a crag–cradled out at its highest point, fork L –ym–Mochnant. locations. The route follows begins to rise gently and Western Buses, Brodick- llyn, and lush valley views across grass to go down over Maps OS Explorer 255; the length of Glen Sannox further up drops L to cross Sannox (01770 302000) – all in under six miles. stile in wall. Descend path to Landranger 125 before passing over Cir Mhor, Sannox Burn (stones/ford). Maps OS Explorer 361; peep carefully over top of falls. Caisteal Abhail and Sail an Im Follow narrower/rougher path Landranger 69 Start before dropping down North through fern/heather. Soon 1From layby, turn L on lane to ½ mile/1km ahead. Path is faint at first, but Glen Sannox to the road. begin to climb steeply you reach large gully, scramble reach Pistyll Rhaeadr car park. 2Retrace your steps back up soon develops into clear grassy Note: A bus trip/road walk following path carefully up slabs in it. Above gully there Bear L towards café, turning R to where you turned off the trail (ignore another path are required to make your working a way through rough/ are more rock steps and wet on path just before you reach it track, and go straight up ridge running across moors over ➥ way back to the start. rocky/slippery ground. When slabs where scrambling is ➥ GRADIENT PROFILE GRADIENT PROFILE 1200 1200 800 800 400 400 metres metres 0 0 km 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 km 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 ✁ SCOTLAND ISLE OF ARRAN WALES POWYS 24 GLEN LENNOX & CIR MHOR 23 PISTYLL RHAEADR & CADAIR BERWYN uOS Explorer map 361 uBuy maps at: ordnancesurvey.co.uk/shop uOS Explorer map 255 uBuy maps at: ordnancesurvey.co.uk/shop to your L). Keep climbing FINISH ridgeline to reach gap in 4 fence ahead. Go through 5 and continue uphill with fence running to your R (NB: BUS BACK MEDIA001/17 ORDNANCESURVEY. 2017 COPYRIGHT ©CROWN TO START permissive path is shown on other side of fence on map). 1 START Continue with fence to your R, over a top and down to col, then up to cairn on summit 3 of Moel Sych. 4 2¼ miles/3.5km 3Go over stile ahead (ignore one to R) and keep walking with fence to R – it can be very 5 boggy here – passing rocky MEDIA001/17 ORDNANCESURVEY. 2017 COPYRIGHT ©CROWN peak over to R. Keep ahead 3 2 with fence to R, to reach stile on R. Go over to reach required. Follow good path path. Pass through boulder R on it heading generally NE. triangulation point on Cadair beyond to pass of ‘The Saddle’. field and join another path Drop towards forest below Berwyn (North Top). (coming in L). Go R crossing continuing to reach grassy area 3½ miles/5.65km col. Continue to climb steeply R of deer fence at ridge end. 2¾ miles/4.6km 2R taking path up Cir Mhor. up slopes of Caisteal Abhail. Stay ahead on main path. 4At pillar, turn R to head Wind a way up slopes. Follow Follow path around Coire na Continue to North Sannox back south along ridge now on path carefully and stay L at fork h–Uaimh continuing to reach/ Burn. Ford carefully. eastern side of fence (with near top. Continue ahead soon climb rock pile overlooking fence still to your R). Walk over climbing up rocky gully/gap main summit of Caisteal Abhail. 7¾ miles/12.5km Cadair Berwyn’s rocky highest 2 between buttresses. At gully 5Through gate following point at 2732 feet (New Top, 1 START top follow path circling behind 5½ miles/8.75km path beyond, dropping into not named on map). Go down summit rocks of Cir Mhor. At 4Drop off rocks to path trees. Over two bridges/ over stile and on along ridge, stream to R and you’ll pick up a going through kissing gate and point where path drops L cut R again going R to take path L through gate. Continue to car then follow path curving L clear grassy path that runs like descending through woods. Go scrambling up rocks to summit. (towards sea) at split shortly. park at North Sannox Bridge. away from fence and down a balcony along L (east) side of L beside gate with waymark Follow descending path past Catch bus/walk back to start along top of crags – close to valley. Follow path down over and drop to lane. Turn L to 4¼ miles/6.8km two rock pinnacles continuing (adds about 1½ miles). edge at times – with Llyn two stiles, and as you approach return to layby. 3Re–trace steps down to cross shallow col. Continue Lluncaws down to L. Continue lower end of valley, take first scramble picking up path again ahead on path curving R along GET THIS WALK on path past lake – often path down to R, turning R on GET THIS WALK to go R. Descend W down Sail an Im Ridge. Soon descend ON YOUR PHONE: Spring2017 Walking © Country boggy – and across stream to another path to descend to ON YOUR PHONE: Spring2017 Walking © Country rough ground towards col again rising slightly to pass a lfto.com/cwroutes reach second stream crossing. bridge and cross stream. Bear lfto.com/cwroutes below. Lower down, as path series of rock pinnacles up to L and turn L on wide descends towards low rock completely missing last one. IN ASSOCIATION WITH 4¼ miles/7km track to continue down R IN ASSOCIATION WITH buttresses ahead L, watch for Now descend down broad 5Path is unclear for a short (west) side of valley. Hop up fork and take narrower path ridge curving L over plateau way after you cross, but head rock to R as you near falls to half R swinging N down rough lower down. Join path and go OS MAPS south down the valley with rejoin your path from earlier, OS MAPS ✁.