| The starting point of this trek is the car park
at Dol-y-cae, just off the B4405 as it leaves the A487
Main Road from Dolgellau to Machynlleth, it is well
kept and also has toilet facilities. Parking here is
also free although there is a donations box.
Dol-y-cae Track
|
Nant Cadair & Moel Mynydd
|
The path is very obvious at the start, leading up the
tree lined lane towards the old National Trust building
at Dol-Y-Cae, after then passing through the gate and
over the bridge you will enter the amazing forest. The
forest floor is covered with moss and you can hear the
falls in the Nant Cadair stream as the path turns into
huge steps which although some may find easier to tackle,
personally I find them quite difficult especially these
larger ones.
When you finally come out of the forest and ascend
towards Ystrad-Gwyn, look back and you will see a magnificent
view down the valley towards Corris on the other side
of the Llyn Mwyngil valley. Follow the path to the left
where the path splits at the top of the ascent. The
path will now lead you through the wide Nant Cadair
valley up and into the awesome Llyn Cau. You will eventually
need to go left at the Llyn Cau but I suggest first
a walk down to the shores of Llyn Cau, stand and look
around 360 to gaze in awe at the huge cliffs of Bwlch
Cau that fall from the summit of Penygadair.
Llyn Cau
|
Standing Stone
|
Continue now up the left side of the Llyn Cau to ascent
up and round the horseshoe of cliffs and crags that
surround Llyn Cau. The first part of this ascent is
quite tough but once on top of the horseshoe its rough
terrain but not that steep. Follow the path which is
well posted with rock piles. This part of the trek until
the descent of Mynydd Moel can be quite difficult in
cloud cover, which co-incidentally Cadair Idris summits
are famous for on the best of days.
Cliff edge path on Craig Cau
|
Stile on Craig Cau path
|
You will eventually see the fence which seems to run
all the way across the mountain and this can be used
as a great placement tool for knowing where you are
on the mountain. There are a few stiles over the fence
and no matter which one you end up taking they all end
up either joining the Pony Path which comes from the
North Western side of the mountain or the path you should
be following, but if you do end up misplaced just head
for the summit.
The path to the summit continues to be well posted
with rock piles. The final climb to the Penygadair summit
is covered in some hug boulders which can be quite difficult
and slippery in bad weather. Once the summit is finally
reached you will on a bad day see absolutely nothing
and on a good day see one of the best 360 views in Britain.
The Barmouth estuary, Cambrian Mountain, Brecons and
Snowdonia are all fantastically seen from this summit
on a good day.
Summit Hut
|
Summit Hut Shelter
|
The summit cairn at 893M high is clear on top of a
mass of boulders and the famous summit hut lies just
underneath standing proud and almost invincible to the
battering it must take from the winds of the Irish Sea.
The hut is a great relief on a bad day as I learnt on
my first visit to the summit. The hut is a modern version
of a 19th century hut that was made famous by an old
lady who would climb early in the morning to the summit
and rewarded tea to all those who visited.
Summit Hut Views
|
Penygadair Summit
|
Now leave the summit cairn heading South East towards
the path that leads round the top of the Llyn Cau cliffs,
this path is very close to the edges and care must be
taken in bad visibility. After a 1 1/2 mile trek and
crossing the small waterfalls the path will eventually
bend round to the right and then the decent back down
to the Nant Cadair stream begins. Once descended you
will be back at the point where you earlier took the
path to the left so just join the path and follow the
descent down the valley again and through the forest
back to the car park.
|
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Duration
: 5 Hrs
