A Moderate day hike in the mountains for the whole family.
Distance: 8.8km
Elevation gain: approx. 400m
Difficulty: moderate due to steep climb and descent. Easy underfoot.
Fitness required: Good for building fitness.
Suitable for introducing your kids to hiking and for groups of mixed age and ability.
Equipment: No specialist equipment needed. Matthew walked in crocs. I carried a small backpack with snacks, water and a map.
We set off just after 7.30 am for the 1 hour 15 minute drive to the parking lot. An early start was needed to beat the heat of a hot August day. The parking area was easy to find with the help of Google Maps. It is free and there is no toilet, drinking water or other facilities.
The climb – can we hike this in a day?
The walk starts with a steep climb up stone steps next to a waterfall. We stopped often to look back and enjoy the expansive views unfolding behind us as Matthew asked and announced: “Why so many stairs?” and “Too many stairs.” My stuck record reply was “We are climbing up a mountain.” Less convincing was my reassurance that it will be worth it. For me, most certainly, but for him? This is my happy place. This is an activity of my choice. I hope it will give opportunity to connect, to inspire, to discover. It is also intentional parenting. I want to give my child skills. I want to nurture a love of the environment and curiosity about the world.
There are quite a few other walkers puffing up the stairs. A serious pair can fill me in on the 600 meters before I remembered to start my Garmin watch. A run is automatically accompanied by a button press, but I tend to forget when hiking. Unfortunately, I forget to ask the elevation gain.
Along the escarpment – easy for all the family
Once we reach the top and stop to refuel, we make our way along the skyline: a steep sandstone escarpment. The path is easy and a coolish breeze takes the edge off the late morning heat. Because there are no trees up here, there is nowhere to hide from the sun. We reach a stream where our dog Bb8 can cool down and have a drink. A path that turns sharply to the left here gives the option of walking to Pen-Y-Fan and Corn Du that are visible in the distance. We take the path across the stream that carries on along the escarpment. From here we see only two other walkers, each with their dog. Apart from them, we are entirely on our own until we get back off the mountain later on.
We see small birds flitting. The chirpy brown ones are meadow pipits and the slightly larger, lighter ones are skylarks. Birds of prey circle and hover in the air above. We need a pair of field binoculars, I note to myself, as I wonder what kinds of birds these might be.
The bleating sheep are easy to identify. They are dotted along the steep mountainside. Matthew wonders when they will stop making such a noise. They don’t. He finds them quite annoying. I explain that they are only there because we humans like to eat them. They are not the native wild animals that once roamed these lands. We have stolen their home to give grazing to these sheep. The shepherd’s pie we eat for supper tastes like ‘sweet revenge’ according to Matthew.
We also watch the second hour of ‘The Avengers: Endgame’ where the incredible Hulk gets irate at ‘so many stairs’ when he can’t take the lift.
A memorial – a link to the past
At the head of the Valley there is a gravelled path passing our route. We take a sharp right towards the cliffs on this (the opposite) side of the valley. Below the craggy cliffs are two piles of grey metal wreckage and a stone memorial in memory of the young Canadians who died here. Their Wellington bomber R1645 came down in bad weather during a routing training flight on 6 July 1942.
The descent
We take a steep path up to the top of the ridge. The path is faintly visible beside a rocky gully just before the memorial. It is very steep, but luckily short in distance. At the end of ridge is large cairn where one can find a steep path down the mountain towards an easy grassy path across a broad plateau. This eventually leads down to the Caerfanell river.
River, trees and cooling down
After the heat and exposure of the mountain ridge, the river valley provides cool refreshment with water and trees. There are lots of oak, hawthorn and silver birch trees. The river is more of a shallow stream of clear water that tumbles over the rocks in a myriad of small waterfalls and shallow pools. We stop for a picnic and I have a cheeky dip in the cool water. It’s a perfect stop on our family day hike. We then make our way down the valley, following the path next to the river for about one kilometre. Eventually we find a small crowd of people lazing, splashing and rock hopping. For those not into a family day hike, this could simply be a family day of wild swimming.
Mountain bikers arrive from the opposite side down the track we have to take back to the car park. It is our last steep ascent, but this time we are shaded in a pine plantation. We get back to the car at about 13.30. tired and happy.
Strava map and route information:
https://www.strava.com/activities/3898718492/embed/0fe8276054b1eaa1f6273c64a87f2b167181a1cf
