Cadair Idris

Overview: Cadair Idris is situated in the Cadair Idris Nature Reserve in Gwyned, Wales.

Set off from the Tal-y-Llyn car park at Minffordd and climb uphill through the woods with the fast flowing Nant Cadair stream cascading down on the right.

On exiting the wood, continue on the easy-to-follow footpath on the left of the stream & fork left onto Minffordd Path. Ascend through the wide Nant Cadair valley to the awesome Llyn Cau lake& continue up the left side of the Llyn Cau, the path up is well marked and steep, to the horseshoe of cliffs and crags known as Craig Cau, that surround Llyn Cau.

The first part of this ascent was quite hard but once on top of the horseshoe it was rough terrain but not too steep and we followed the path which was well marked with rock piles.

The final climb to the Penygadair (893 metres) summit is covered in some huge boulders which were quite a challenge. The final section of the path is steep, slippery and suffering badly from erosion. A short zigzag finally brings you to the summit cairn and trig point.

From Penygadair summit head northwest across the flat barren top to Mynydd Moel (863 metres) summit.

Return to the fence previous crossed, then turned left to follow the fence line downhill. The path becomes steep and quite rocky and very uneven in places following the path to meet Nant Cadair stream at the corner of the pine forest.

Tips: This is not a walk to be undertaken without proper walking boots. The use of poles is also advised especially on the downwards part of the track. The rocks are very uneven and can easily trip the tired or unwary.

Make sure you know the weather forecast before you set off.