Pistyll Rhaeadr and Llyn Lluncaws
At the beginning of December, my dad was visiting from the USA and I figured after 9 years of living up here in Wales, I should FINALLY take him to visit the absolutely stunning Pistyll Rhaeadr waterfall just outside Llanrhaeadr.
Pistyll Rhaeadr is classed as one of the 7 wonders of Wales, and it is easy to see why, the waterfall is 80 meters in height and drops to the Afon Rhaeadr in three stages, with the tallest drop measuring about 40 meters. There is also a natural arch way in the middle of the falls, adding to the magicalness (not sure if that’s a word) to the whole place. You will get your first glimpse of this stunning waterfall, as you approach via a single-track road.
This single-track road is about 4 miles long and has very few passing spaces – which is the main reason why I don’t usually visit. I would advise that (if you can), you try and avoid peak seasons, half-terms, or weekends as it is a very popular attraction with many people wanting to visit due to how accessible the waterfall is, however if these are the only times you can visit, aim to arrive early and stay late to avoid getting stuck in traffic.
For us, as it was December and a particularly cold day, we packed our winter coats and wellington boots and headed out. Thankfully, we only saw a couple of other cars heading in the opposite way to us, so we didn’t have to do much in the way of reversing back to get to a passing place.
When you arrive, there are a couple of options for parking, there are some free spots in a very poorly maintained lay-by and a short distance further on there is a better free parking spot. Now if you want to get in one of these free spots, then you are going to have to arrive early as they fill up fast. If these are all full or, you want to park a bit closer to the waterfall itself, then follow the road a bit further along, and you will get to a pay and display private car park (gates are locked at 5pm). Parking is a flat fee of £5 per vehicle and the main hardstanding car park fits about 15 - 20 cars, they do have an overflow area on an adjoining field for those busy days. Now whilst we didn’t visit this time, there is a tearoom next to the car park as well as public toilets, but you will need to pay 50p to go! I recommend stopping in Llanrhaeadr village square on your way to the falls, as they have some free public toilets which are quite well maintained.
Once we had arrived and layered up, we first headed to the bottom of the waterfall. It was a very cold day, and so we were lucky that there were not that many other visitors, which meant we could rock right up to the bottom of the waterfall and have it all to ourselves. Now to get to this part of the waterfall, you will need to traverse over some large rocks which can be incredibly slippery when wet and icy. I recommend wearing welly boots for this as you are likely to step into some deep water once off these rocks. (When I say ‘deep’ I mean deeper than walking boots, so to keep your feet dry, welly boots are the way forward!).
Pistyll Rhaeadr is a very magical waterfall, and I wanted to capture a very specific image of Skylar sitting at the foot of the falls. Skylar can be a monkey when it comes to having her photo taken, so I enlisted my dad as ‘model supervisor’ to hold Skylar in place whilst I quickly took my images. As it was cold, and she didn’t have her coat on, I wanted to be a quick as possible. I got my camera settings sorted first and then, with the encouragement of treats, I managed to capture the images I wanted in a grand total of 4 minutes (thank you Sony for your amazing animal eye AF!).
This is definitely one of those images that need to be printed and framed 💗
We then wrapped Skylar up in her coat so she would stay warm as we headed away from the waterfall to a bridge, where I set up my camera on my tripod for some slow shutter images of the stunning falls.
Once I got my waterfall shots, we then set off on a walk. There are a few to choose from at Pistyll Rhaeadr, one takes you up to the top of the waterfall, you can head over to the village of Llangynog and you can also head all the way up to the top of Moel Sych, Cadair Berwyn and Cadair Bronwen. The route we took, was to Llyn Lluncaws, a natural lake at the foot of Cadair Berwyn. There were two reasons for this, one was that as the weather was not looking great, I thought heading up a mountain was not the best idea, but also, I had not done the walk to Llyn Lluncaws before.
Fun fact, translated into English, Llyn Lluncaws means ‘a beautiful lake’.
The walk from the car park was 1.61 miles or 2.64 km one way, with a gradual elevation gain of 323 meters. We headed out along the footpath, which for this first part is surfaced, until we got to a bridge which would take us over the Nant Y Llyn stream and up along the valley towards the lake.
I planned our walk with the AMAZING OS Maps App which you can get on both android and iOS. If you are interested in getting out and about this year, then I highly recommend getting this app as it is only £24.49 for the year, and it covers the whole of the UK. You can easily plan your walks and see the overall distance and elevation of your route, as well as discover routes shared by others. You can see and download my route here.
© Crown copyright 2024 Ordnance Survey. Media 030/24
On our climb up to the lake the views were stunning, we passed an old sheepfold as well as another waterfall across the other side of the valley. About halfway along, we started to get some light snowfall, making the already magical valley even more spectacular.
When you are nearing the lake, you pick up a permissive footpath that takes you back over the Nant Y Llyn. This permissive path will take you all the way to the top of Cadair Berwyn, but we peeled off and stopped at the frozen Llyn Lluncaws, which was a beautiful site and well deserving of its name. Up until then, I had never seen more than a pond completely frozen, so to see a whole, natural lake frozen over was amazing, especially with the backdrop of the fog covered mountains.
Seeing Llyn Lluncaws frozen over was a magical experience, pair that with some fog over the summit of Cadair Berwyn, a sprinkling of snow, your bestest bud and your dad, and you have one awesome day out!
For her safety, Skylar was put onto a lead when we saw the lake was frozen. We didn’t know how thick the ice was, but we were quite sure it wouldn’t have been thick enough to carry Skylar’s weight. We stopped to take in the views and capture some special memories of us visiting this beautiful lake together.
We then started the walk back. It was just as spectacular this way, the snow started to come in a bit harder now and by the time we got back to the bottom, there was a good sprinkling on the frozen ground.
Round up:
All in all, Pistyll Rhaeadr is a magical place and I highly recommend adding this place to your places to visit in 2024. If you can, come during the week when the schools are in, as these will be the quietest times and will allow you to explore the falls at your leisure. Be sure to plan your walking routes in advance to get the most out of your day, and remember to stop in Llanrhaeadr village to use the free toilets!
Parking: Free in lay-bys close by or £5 all day pay & display
Toilets: 50p on site or free in nearby Llanrhaeadr
Accessibility: There is an accessible route to the bridge at the bottom of the falls, starting next to the tearoom. Past that, the conditions are rocky with uneven ground, and some steep assents depending on your chosen walking route.
When best to visit: Off peak times during the week are the best due to high footfall at weekends.