David Gibbins wrote:
> If you're still communicating Paul, can you briefly suggest a Brecon
> Beacons walk?
What sort of distance do you want to do?
> I've worked out
> I need to do the Pen-y-Fan Horseshoe but will have time for one more.
> Staying near Libanus.
Which Pen y Fan horseshoe do you mean? From the north (Cwm Gwdi) or the
south (Neauadd Reservoirs)? I presume the north. The northern approach
is more dramatic scenically, but the southern approach involves a more
high ridge walking next to steep cliffs.
You are planning to include Cribyn aren't you? Give me some more
details on the walk you plan to do.
The Ultimate Beacons Walk
Although the northern approach is more dramatic, I'd say that the best
Beacons walk (if you want to take in all the main summits) is as
follows. Be warned that's it's 13 miles with around 1200 metres of
ascent, a bit too much for me at the moment, but if you feel up to it
I'd recommend it.
Park at the bridge over Caerfanell, SO 063170. Follow the river
northwest, then north, past the waterfalls. A nice scenic easy start.
(Alternatively, if you fancy an energetic start, head NNE straight up to
the summit of Allt Forgan, a lovely little hill and a great viewpoint.)
When you reach the end of the forest, turn east up out of the valley and
cross Waun y Gorlan (try to avoid the bogs if you can), then ascend NNE
up to the ridge. Follow the western edge of Cwar y Gigfran, passing
above the plane wreck memorial, then head north to Waun Rydd. This is
the first major summit, a Marilyn, but the least interesting since it's
just a high point on a flat grassy plateau. There was nothing marking
it last time I was there so you may have trouble determining exactly
where the top is. A GPS would be helpful here.
Head west past the insignificant Nuttall of Gwaun Cerrrig Llwydion
(which they incorrectly call Bwlch y Ddwywallt - that's the name of the
bwlch, i.e. the col, not the summit! Doh!) and then follow the
excellent Craig Cwareli ridge until you reach Fan y Big, a superb
viewpoint. Apart from the initial ascent, the walking has been very
easy up to this point.
Head west downhill to the col, then ascend Cribyn, which gives the best
view of Pen y Fan. You could take the Cribyn "bypass" to avoid this
summit but it's well worth climbing. After the descent you then climb
to Pen y Fan. This is the last steep ascent.
After quickly nipping over to Corn Du, you then head south, following
the edges of Craig Gwaun Taf and Graig Fan Ddu, crossing the "blunt"
knife-edge ridge of Rhiw yr Ysgyfarnog in the process. These ridges can
be very muddy and boggy after a lot of rain.
At SO 019182 (where the cairn is marked on the map), descend east. This
bit is quite steep, but well worn. Cross the southern reservoir and the
rest is easy.
After a short road walk, turn SE to follow the disused railway through
the Taf Fechan forest, then there's another short road walk up over the
col. Turn left into the car park then follow the stream ESE back down
to the river (there is a path of sorts, if you can find it), then follow
the river back to the car.
This walk can of course be done clockwise or anti-clockwise, your
preference, and can be started from a few different points, the Neuadd
Reservoirs for example.
Most of the route is pretty straightforward but there are a few possible
variations on the eastern edge of it, like the Allt Forgan ascent I
mentioned. Another variation is to contour east past Gwalciau'r Cwm
around Craig Pwllfa and the big cairn, instead of following Cwar y
Gigfran. Another possibility is to follow Caerfanell all the way to
it's source. I came down this way once in the winter and had great fun
scrambling down next to the small frozen waterfalls.
The best variation though, which cuts out some distance and ascent, yet
still gives great ridge walking, is to park at SO 056175, then head
north directly up to Craig y Fan Ddu, then follow Graig Fan Las NNE to
the col before turning west to follow the Craig Cwareli ridge. Don't be
tempted to take a shortcut across the moorland of Gwaun Cerrig Llwydion,
the ridge walking is much easier and the extra distance is more than
compensated for by the excellent views. At the col you have the option
of walking an extra kilometre to Waun Rydd and back if you really feel
the need to bag it.
If you think the distance is too much for one day, you could split that
walk up into two, east and west, so those would be your two walks.
Alternatively, for a second walk you could go to the obvious place and
bag the eastern Fforest Fawr summits just SW of Libanus, namely Fan
Frynych, Craig Cerrig Gleisiad, Fan Llia and Fan Fawr. Very little in
the way of cliff edge walking, but loads of bleak empty wilderness and
solitude. Very little in the way of paths either, this is mostly wild,
trackless land that few people visit, thus making a nice change to the
bustle of nearby Pen y Fan. The northern end of the Afon Dringarth is a
good area for wild camping if you like solitude.
It's not a huge area to get lost in, but without paths, you'll need
reasonable navigation skills and/or a GPS in the event of bad
visibility. I've had some fun night walking around this area.
If you want something more dramatic, then head west to Mynydd Du and do
Fan Brycheiniog and the escarpment. I'm sure I've written plenty about
this in the past. Check out my trip report from a few months ago if you
can find it.
> Oh, and great 'photos on the wedding site - way above your usual
> standard!
Paul
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