This page is still under constuction, but here are a few ideas....

Tree planting scheme for the future. 2011 and onwards.

To help combat your carbon footprint and help the world stay green, we are thinking of starting a tree planting scheme.  Anyone interested in planting a tree during next season is welcome to email, using 'tree' as your subject.

For walks from and on the farm.

To the Waterfall from camp.  Go up the road, out of camp, through the farm gate. With the large cattle shed down to your left, go through the metal kissing gate in the wall, go10 o'clock left, through a small metal gate in the stone wall, by the side of the electric pole. Now take the path to your right, this brings you onto a tarmac road amongst a small cluster of cottages, follow the road until you come to the view point on the Snowdon Mountain Railway. Takes about 10 minutes to get here, to extend the walk, carry on down the road and take the path that runs behind the coal merchants, this brings you into the base of the waterfall.

To the lake.  Llyn Cwm Dwythwch and Moel Eilio. On farm walk. Go over the stile that is at the entrance to the top field. Follow the path that runs past the white house, you will come to a sort of cross roads in the path, you need to do a sort of, left, diagonal crossover! heading for the gap in the stone wall where you will join onto a track. There may or may not be a gate at this point, depending on where the sheep are grazing. Stay on this path, shortly you will see the lake.  (This area is abundent with ancient stone circles, some are quite easy to make out.) When you go down towards  the lake there is no specific path, you are free to wander where ever you like. 40 minutes should be allowed to get here, after taking in the tranquility of the lake you may want to continue on a longer route just into the  valley (cwm) or continue up to the summit of Moel Eilio, or just  turn back home. Remember you  are able to walk any where you like in this area. If you want to walk further into the 'Cwm', head back up towards the mountain wall, as the lower areas are wet and boggy, get back onto the track and walk into the 'cwm',  you will come to the old sheep pens, please leave the gates as you find them.   You can  walk to the summit of Moel Eilio from here, just  follow the fence up. On your way back down, instead of going back the same way, keep following the ridge fence (NE) down, this will bring you back into sight of the campsite or if you follow the fence that goes(SE) over the ridges of Foel Gron and Foel Goch, and down onto the valley path this will bring you back to the campsite also. 

Why not travel by steam train to Beddgelert! Its great to sit back and relax and take in the scenery. You can walk over to the Snowdon Ranger Hostel from the farm, catch the train at the stop near the Hostel. Take a rest after your walk, while you ride on the train to Beddgelert, or carry on to Pont Croesor stop to see the Ospreys nest.  

Snowdon Mountain Railway.

Since 1896, visitors from around the world have travelled on Snowdon Mountain Railway. Trains scale the highest mountain in England and Wales(1085m) where Snowdon boasts dramatic landscape and scenery. This unique railway is one of the most popular visitor attractions in North Wales. The Summit of Snowdon, at 3,560ft (1085m), is the highest mountain in England and Wales.

Also at the Slate Museum...

Ropes and Ladders is the new high ropes adventure centre situated in a beautiful woodland setting in the Padarn Country Park, Llanberis.

The centre provides instructor led courses around an exciting array of obstacles and challenges high up in the treetops for groups and individuals with all equipment provided.

The site is conveniently situated in the Padarn Country Park with spectacular views of the adjacent lake and surrounding mountains.

And ..

No visit to North Wales would be complete without a ride on one of the Great Little Trains of Wales. The Llanberis Lake Railway offers unrivalled views of the mountains of Snowdonia from viewpoints quite inaccessible by road, all for a modest price.

Starting at Gilfach Ddu station in the Padarn Country Park, the trip begins with a ride on the recently opened extension up to Llanberis Village, passing the Welsh Slate Museum and historic Dolbadarn Castle on the way. On a clear day magnificent views across Peris Lake to the Llanberis Pass open up. Llanberis Station is a convenient stopping off place for the shops, hotels and restaurants of the village, as well as the Snowdon Mountain Railway and Electric Mountain Visitor Centre. From here the train runs non-stop back through the Padarn Country Park and along the shore of Padarn Lake (Llyn Padarn) to the terminus at Penllyn. Due to limited access, it is advisable to stay on the train here and enjoy the views. The train makes a short stop at Cei Llydan on the homeward run. You may break your journey here for a lakeside picnic or to visit the nearby Cwm Derwen Woodland Centre and catch a later train back to Gilfach Ddu. The complete trip takes around 60 minutes if you decide to stay on the train.

Dolbadarn Castle

Dolbadarn Castle stands rather forlornly on its rocky hillock some 80 feet above Llyn Padarn, on the eastern side of the main A4086 roadway between Caernarfon and Snowdonia. Undoubtedly many tourists know about the masterful castle in Caernarfon, and may be so intent on reaching that fortress that they overlook the smaller stronghold at Dolbadarn. Yet, it is a marvelous relic, hallmarked by a proud tower built by the Welsh princes of Gwynedd, and, as such, is every bit as significant as the more massive Edwardian castles, now listed as World Heritage Sites.

WALKS TO SNOWDON AND SURROUNDING

Walks direct from THE CAMPSITE TO SNOWDON For either route, follow the tarmac road up out of and past the campsite, through the farm gaate. You will pass 3 houses on your way up, at the top of the road (after the 3rd house, the one with the tree house in the garden) go through the gate and turn left onto the track. Follow the track until you come to the concrete bridge, go through the gate, for the ranger keep on going, for the Llanberis route.. about 20 metres after going through the gate on the bridge, there is another gate on your left, go through this gate and walk towards the Snowdon train  station 'Hebron' ( this is a yellow/cream colour building), on your way you will need to cross over another concrete bridge, near to a derelict cottage called Cae Newydd. Then you can either keep on walking towards the station, cross over the track and cut across on the footpath to join onto the llanberis path. Or after the second concrete bridge near the derelict cottage, take the path to your left, this will lead you onto the Llanberis path at a lower point. The Snowdon Ranger is an easy walk from us, not as popular as the Llanberis Route, so avoiding the crowds, the route you take from here is easy footpath all the way through the valley of 'Maesgwm' then at the gate(at the end of this valley, you can either go over Moel Cynghorion (known locally as Helfa Fawr) then join the Ranger route at the Bwlch, or drop down towards the ranger path, following the footpath. Taking a left onto the Ranger at the junction of the footpaths. (Both the Llanberis and the Ranger path take approx 2 and a half to 3 hours from the campsite to the summit, then allow another 1 to 2 hours for descent) A really good all day walk is to do the Roller coaster route which takes you up Moel Eilio, and over two smaller peaks called Foel Gron and Foel coch you can then either walk over or around Moel Cynghorion, to join onto the Ranger path, descending via the Llanberis tourist path. The views from the top of Eilio alone are well worth the walk.   A  good way of getting to see the area is by taking the Sherpa bus, which runs frequently throughout the summer, and getting off at one of the many stops, and walking back to camp via either a route  over or around Snowdon, more info on this on the to do page.  Please do remember although you are in the National park, these paths are all on privately owned farmland, keep dogs on leads, leave gates as you find them, do not drop litter. Do not chase or disturb livestock or wildlife.     Visiting > Where Can You Go? Access Most land in the Snowdonia National Park is privately owned and farmed. By showing respect and consideration for the countryside and wildlife and for the people who live and work in Snowdonia, you can help to make sure that the National Park will be here for future generations to enjoy.   Access over privately owned land is by Public Rights of Way:   Public footpaths   Bridleways   Permissive Paths   You also have a legal right of access, on foot, to land which has been mapped as Open Country and Registered Common Land.   These areas are shown on Ordnance Survey Explorer OL Maps. Numbers 17, 18 and 23 cover the Park on scale 1:25,000.   Stiles and gates leading to Open Country are signed with the brown and white logo.   Signifies that you are leaving Open Country. Access is on rights of way only.   From time to time, areas of Open Country may be closed to the public or certain conditions may be imposed. This may be to avoid danger to the public, to benefit wildlife, or to allow farmers to carry out essential work. Details of any closures or restrictions in force are available on the Countryside Council for Wales website: www.ccw.gov.uk/countrysideaccesswales.   Outside Open Country, please keep to rights of way. You will minimise disturbance to farmers and their livestock, wild animals, birds and plants.   Dogs   Dogs often cause injury to farm animals – particularly to sheep – in Snowdonia; causing terrible suffering to the animals, and financial loss to the farmers involved.   Please remember that even a normally well behaved dog can cause death and suffering, without necessarily attacking livestock. Sheep are highly susceptible to disturbance, especially when they are heavily pregnant or have just given birth, and can die as a result of being chased even a short distance. New born lambs need time to find their feed, bond with their mothers and suckle. If they are disturbed they can die. Please keep your dog under control, preferably on a lead, near sheep.   You have a legal duty to keep your dog under control:   On public rights of way you have a legal duty to keep your dog “under close control”. On Open Country it should be on a lead (no more than 2 metres long) between 1st March and 31st July, and at all times when near livestock.   You are strongly advised to avoid cattle, particularly with young calves at foot, when you are accompanied by dogs. Attacks on both dogs and their owners can occur when cattle feel threatened, or even merely curious.   Camping   To camp anywhere in the National Park, you must have the permission of the landowner or the farmer. Unfenced hill land is no exception. The National Park Authority cannot give you permission; neither can they let the public have the names and addresses of landowners.

History of the area
Page under construction. If you would like to add anything here please contact me.

Mighty Caernarfon is possibly the most famous of Wales's castles. Its sheer scale and commanding presence easily set it apart from the rest, and to this day, still trumpet in no uncertain terms the intention of its builder Edward I.

Begun in 1283 as the definitive chapter in his conquest of Wales, Caernarfon was constructed not only as a military stronghold but also as a seat of government and royal palace.

The castle's majestic persona is no architectural accident: it was designed to echo the walls of Constantinople, the imperial power of Rome and the dream castle, 'the fairest that ever man saw', of Welsh myth and legend. After all these years Caernarfon's immense strength remains unchanged.

Standing at the mouth of the Seiont river, the fortress (with its unique polygonal towers, intimidating battlements and colour banded masonry) dominates the walled town also founded by Edward I. Caernarfon's symbolic status was emphasized when Edward made sure that his son, the first English Prince of Wales, was born here in 1284. In 1969, the castle gained worldwide fame as the setting for the Investiture of Prince Charles as Prince of Wales.

History comes alive at Caernarfon in so many ways - along the lofty wall walks, beneath the twin-towered gatehouse and within imaginative exhibitions located within the towers. The castle also houses the Regimental Museum of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, Wales's oldest regiment.

Caernarfon's position of pre-eminence in historic rankings is recognized in its status as a World Heritage inscribed site.
 

This page is still under constuction, but here are a few ideas....

Tree planting scheme for the future. 2011 and onwards.

To help combat your carbon footprint and help the world stay green, we are thinking of starting a tree planting scheme.  Anyone interested in planting a tree during next season is welcome to email, using 'tree' as your subject.

For walks from and on the farm.

To the Waterfall from camp.  Go up the road, out of camp, through the farm gate. With the large cattle shed down to your left, go through the metal kissing gate in the wall, go10 o'clock left, through a small metal gate in the stone wall, by the side of the electric pole. Now take the path to your right, this brings you onto a tarmac road amongst a small cluster of cottages, follow the road until you come to the view point on the Snowdon Mountain Railway. Takes about 10 minutes to get here, to extend the walk, carry on down the road and take the path that runs behind the coal merchants, this brings you into the base of the waterfall.

To the lake.  Llyn Cwm Dwythwch and Moel Eilio. On farm walk. Go over the stile that is at the entrance to the top field. Follow the path that runs past the white house, you will come to a sort of cross roads in the path, you need to do a sort of, left, diagonal crossover! heading for the gap in the stone wall where you will join onto a track. There may or may not be a gate at this point, depending on where the sheep are grazing. Stay on this path, shortly you will see the lake.  (This area is abundent with ancient stone circles, some are quite easy to make out.) When you go down towards  the lake there is no specific path, you are free to wander where ever you like. 40 minutes should be allowed to get here, after taking in the tranquility of the lake you may want to continue on a longer route just into the  valley (cwm) or continue up to the summit of Moel Eilio, or just  turn back home. Remember you  are able to walk any where you like in this area. If you want to walk further into the 'Cwm', head back up towards the mountain wall, as the lower areas are wet and boggy, get back onto the track and walk into the 'cwm',  you will come to the old sheep pens, please leave the gates as you find them.   You can  walk to the summit of Moel Eilio from here, just  follow the fence up. On your way back down, instead of going back the same way, keep following the ridge fence (NE) down, this will bring you back into sight of the campsite or if you follow the fence that goes(SE) over the ridges of Foel Gron and Foel Goch, and down onto the valley path this will bring you back to the campsite also. 

Snowdon Mountain Railway.

Since 1896, visitors from around the world have travelled on Snowdon Mountain Railway. Trains scale the highest mountain in England and Wales(1085m) where Snowdon boasts dramatic landscape and scenery. This unique railway is one of the most popular visitor attractions in North Wales. The Summit of Snowdon, at 3,560ft (1085m), is the highest mountain in England and Wales.

Also at the Slate Museum...

Ropes and Ladders is the new high ropes adventure centre situated in a beautiful woodland setting in the Padarn Country Park, Llanberis.

The centre provides instructor led courses around an exciting array of obstacles and challenges high up in the treetops for groups and individuals with all equipment provided.

The site is conveniently situated in the Padarn Country Park with spectacular views of the adjacent lake and surrounding mountains.

And ..

No visit to North Wales would be complete without a ride on one of the Great Little Trains of Wales. The Llanberis Lake Railway offers unrivalled views of the mountains of Snowdonia from viewpoints quite inaccessible by road, all for a modest price.

Starting at Gilfach Ddu station in the Padarn Country Park, the trip begins with a ride on the recently opened extension up to Llanberis Village, passing the Welsh Slate Museum and historic Dolbadarn Castle on the way. On a clear day magnificent views across Peris Lake to the Llanberis Pass open up. Llanberis Station is a convenient stopping off place for the shops, hotels and restaurants of the village, as well as the Snowdon Mountain Railway and Electric Mountain Visitor Centre. From here the train runs non-stop back through the Padarn Country Park and along the shore of Padarn Lake (Llyn Padarn) to the terminus at Penllyn. Due to limited access, it is advisable to stay on the train here and enjoy the views. The train makes a short stop at Cei Llydan on the homeward run. You may break your journey here for a lakeside picnic or to visit the nearby Cwm Derwen Woodland Centre and catch a later train back to Gilfach Ddu. The complete trip takes around 60 minutes if you decide to stay on the train.

Dolbadarn Castle

Dolbadarn Castle stands rather forlornly on its rocky hillock some 80 feet above Llyn Padarn, on the eastern side of the main A4086 roadway between Caernarfon and Snowdonia. Undoubtedly many tourists know about the masterful castle in Caernarfon, and may be so intent on reaching that fortress that they overlook the smaller stronghold at Dolbadarn. Yet, it is a marvelous relic, hallmarked by a proud tower built by the Welsh princes of Gwynedd, and, as such, is every bit as significant as the more massive Edwardian castles, now listed as World Heritage Sites.

WALKS TO SNOWDON AND SURROUNDING

Walks direct from THE CAMPSITE TO SNOWDON For either route, follow the tarmac road up out of and past the campsite, through the farm gaate. You will pass 3 houses on your way up, at the top of the road (after the 3rd house, the one with the tree house in the garden) go through the gate and turn left onto the track. Follow the track until you come to the concrete bridge, go through the gate, for the ranger keep on going, for the Llanberis route.. about 20 metres after going through the gate on the bridge, there is another gate on your left, go through this gate and walk towards the Snowdon train  station 'Hebron' ( this is a yellow/cream colour building), on your way you will need to cross over another concrete bridge, near to a derelict cottage called Cae Newydd. Then you can either keep on walking towards the station, cross over the track and cut across on the footpath to join onto the llanberis path. Or after the second concrete bridge near the derelict cottage, take the path to your left, this will lead you onto the Llanberis path at a lower point. The Snowdon Ranger is an easy walk from us, not as popular as the Llanberis Route, so avoiding the crowds, the route you take from here is easy footpath all the way through the valley of 'Maesgwm' then at the gate(at the end of this valley, you can either go over Moel Cynghorion (known locally as Helfa Fawr) then join the Ranger route at the Bwlch, or drop down towards the ranger path, following the footpath. Taking a left onto the Ranger at the junction of the footpaths. (Both the Llanberis and the Ranger path take approx 2 and a half to 3 hours from the campsite to the summit, then allow another 1 to 2 hours for descent) A really good all day walk is to do the Roller coaster route which takes you up Moel Eilio, and over two smaller peaks called Foel Gron and Foel coch you can then either walk over or around Moel Cynghorion, to join onto the Ranger path, descending via the Llanberis tourist path. The views from the top of Eilio alone are well worth the walk.   A  good way of getting to see the area is by taking the Sherpa bus, which runs frequently throughout the summer, and getting off at one of the many stops, and walking back to camp via either a route  over or around Snowdon, more info on this on the to do page.  Please do remember although you are in the National park, these paths are all on privately owned farmland, keep dogs on leads, leave gates as you find them, do not drop litter. Do not chase or disturb livestock or wildlife.     Visiting > Where Can You Go? Access Most land in the Snowdonia National Park is privately owned and farmed. By showing respect and consideration for the countryside and wildlife and for the people who live and work in Snowdonia, you can help to make sure that the National Park will be here for future generations to enjoy.   Access over privately owned land is by Public Rights of Way:   Public footpaths   Bridleways   Permissive Paths   You also have a legal right of access, on foot, to land which has been mapped as Open Country and Registered Common Land.   These areas are shown on Ordnance Survey Explorer OL Maps. Numbers 17, 18 and 23 cover the Park on scale 1:25,000.   Stiles and gates leading to Open Country are signed with the brown and white logo.   Signifies that you are leaving Open Country. Access is on rights of way only.   From time to time, areas of Open Country may be closed to the public or certain conditions may be imposed. This may be to avoid danger to the public, to benefit wildlife, or to allow farmers to carry out essential work. Details of any closures or restrictions in force are available on the Countryside Council for Wales website: www.ccw.gov.uk/countrysideaccesswales.   Outside Open Country, please keep to rights of way. You will minimise disturbance to farmers and their livestock, wild animals, birds and plants.   Dogs   Dogs often cause injury to farm animals – particularly to sheep – in Snowdonia; causing terrible suffering to the animals, and financial loss to the farmers involved.   Please remember that even a normally well behaved dog can cause death and suffering, without necessarily attacking livestock. Sheep are highly susceptible to disturbance, especially when they are heavily pregnant or have just given birth, and can die as a result of being chased even a short distance. New born lambs need time to find their feed, bond with their mothers and suckle. If they are disturbed they can die. Please keep your dog under control, preferably on a lead, near sheep.   You have a legal duty to keep your dog under control:   On public rights of way you have a legal duty to keep your dog “under close control”. On Open Country it should be on a lead (no more than 2 metres long) between 1st March and 31st July, and at all times when near livestock.   You are strongly advised to avoid cattle, particularly with young calves at foot, when you are accompanied by dogs. Attacks on both dogs and their owners can occur when cattle feel threatened, or even merely curious.   Camping   To camp anywhere in the National Park, you must have the permission of the landowner or the farmer. Unfenced hill land is no exception. The National Park Authority cannot give you permission; neither can they let the public have the names and addresses of landowners.

History of the area
Page under construction. If you would like to add anything here please contact me.

Mighty Caernarfon is possibly the most famous of Wales's castles. Its sheer scale and commanding presence easily set it apart from the rest, and to this day, still trumpet in no uncertain terms the intention of its builder Edward I.

Begun in 1283 as the definitive chapter in his conquest of Wales, Caernarfon was constructed not only as a military stronghold but also as a seat of government and royal palace.

The castle's majestic persona is no architectural accident: it was designed to echo the walls of Constantinople, the imperial power of Rome and the dream castle, 'the fairest that ever man saw', of Welsh myth and legend. After all these years Caernarfon's immense strength remains unchanged.

Standing at the mouth of the Seiont river, the fortress (with its unique polygonal towers, intimidating battlements and colour banded masonry) dominates the walled town also founded by Edward I. Caernarfon's symbolic status was emphasized when Edward made sure that his son, the first English Prince of Wales, was born here in 1284. In 1969, the castle gained worldwide fame as the setting for the Investiture of Prince Charles as Prince of Wales.

History comes alive at Caernarfon in so many ways - along the lofty wall walks, beneath the twin-towered gatehouse and within imaginative exhibitions located within the towers. The castle also houses the Regimental Museum of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, Wales's oldest regiment.

Caernarfon's position of pre-eminence in historic rankings is recognized in its status as a World Heritage inscribed site.