Geo-Trips :: Cwm Doethie from Llyn Brianne
Cwm Doethie
A walk from Llyn Brianne, Sun, 13 Jul 2008 by Rudi Winter
I left the car at the dam of Llyn Brianne, Britain's tallest dam. After walking across the bridge over the spillway and the dam itself, I followed the track around the southwestern bay, then up Dalarwen on forestry tracks. After reaching open moorland near the top of the hill, I looked back towards the Camddwr arm of the reservoir one more time, headed for the trigpoint on Pen-y-Gurnos, then turned north to drop down to the old drovers' road near Nant-llwyd. Following this track steeply down into Cwm Doethie gave brilliant views of the Afon Doethie, a beatiful river in an unspoilt valley. Having reached the valley bottom, I followed the river downstream, occasionally high on a bank where the river runs in a gorge. At Troed-rhiw-ruddwen, where the minor road begins, I turned back uphill towards the dam. Cwm Doethie is a wonderful place - the bottleneck that is the gorge at the southern end has protected it from road or even track building, and so it remains one of the last valleys where a sizeable river runs without a drivable track next to it. Long may it last!
On the map below, the grey line is the GPS track from this trip. Click the blue circles to see a photograph taken from that spot and read further information about the location. The blue lines indicate the direction of view. There is also a slideshow of this trip. ( )
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Small waterfall, Llyn Brianne
This little waterfall is probably man-made. The wide track following the SW arm... more
Nant Brianne
This is the little stream that lends the mighty Llyn Brianne reservoir... more
Clearing by the side of Llyn Brianne
A small section of the lower slopes of Allt y Fedw is outside Dalarwen forest... more
Llyn Brianne dam and quarry
This view from Allt y Fedw http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/887108 takes in the... more
Track below Allt yr Hwch
The forestry track skirts the western shore of Llyn Brianne reservoir... more
Forest track junction
The view follows the forest road that gives access along the eastern edge of... more
Track around Cwm Lletygleision
The forestry track roughly follows a contour line around the short valley of the... more
Rocky outcrops in Dalarwen forest
Above the track along the eastern edge of Dalarwen forest... more
Cwm Lletygleision
Wooded valley of the Nant Lletygleision. Llyn Brianne... more
Dalarwen top
The forest near the top of the Dalarwen spit west of Llyn Brianne... more
Northwestern arm of Llyn Brianne
The Camddwr valley is one of the two main branches of Llyn Brianne reservoir... more
Cwm Hendre'r Dail
Looking across some trees on the northern edge of Dalarwen forest... more
Northern section of Dalarwen forest
Near the northern edge of the forestry, towards the top of Pen y Gurnos... more
Entrance to Dalarwen forest
This mighty tree guards the northern entrance of Dalarwen forest... more
Banc Hendre'r Dail
Rough grazing on the plateau north of the Nant Hendre'r Dail... more
Sheep and Thistle
No, not a pub. A forlorn sheep tries to hide behind some thistle stalks on Banc... more
Source bog of the Nant Hendre'r Dail
The boggy patch shown on the map as the source area of the Nant Hendre'r Dail... more
Pen y Gurnos
Just emerging from the bog http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/887264 , this... more
Hillside above Rhydtalog
Rough grazing at the northern end of the Pen y Gurnos ridge... more
Northern slope of Pen y Gurnos
Rough grazing on the northern slope of Pen y Gurnos... more
Embankment below the top of Pen y Gurnos
This is not a track (in current use anyway) but definitely looks like a man-made... more
Afon Doethie
The Afon Doethie meanders in its steep-sided valley. This is the Elenydd at its... more
Doethie gorge
The valley of the Afon Doethie is becoming steeper and narrower as the river... more
Blaen Cwm Ruddwen
The map doesn't give a name for this delightful valley. The farm at the bottom is... more
"All at Forest"
A small stream runs through dense forest towards Llyn Brianne... more
Fungus on Allt y Fedw
There were a number of these bright orange fungi next to the track skirting Llyn... more
Bwlch between Nant Lluest-fach and Nant Llwyd
This bwlch (pass) separates the steep valley (to the west) of the Nant Lluest-fach... more
Cwm Doethie
Looking down a straight section of Cwm Doethie. The river is dug in by about... more
Bridleway on the side of Pen y Gurnos
The bridleway coming up from the steep eastern side of Cwm Doethie... more
Nant Lluest-fach
The path running from Ty'n y Cornel http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/522234 to... more
Bracken-covered slope in Cwm Doethie
The isolated valley of the Afon Doethie http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/910633... more
Doethie path
This is a section of the path from Rhandirmwyn to Ty'n y Cornel hostel... more
Sedimentary rock in Cwm Doethie
This boulder http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/913222 by the side of the Nant... more
Nant Lluest-fach
The stream is shown here just before it flows into the Afon Doethie... more
Cwm Doethie
The Afon Doethie http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/910633 has little room to... more
Stream cascading off Esgair Gwair
A small tributary of the Afon Doethie http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/910633... more
Afon Doethie
Just before entering a narrow gorge http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/887317 , the... more
Rocky outcrop above Doethie gorge
The bridleway skirts around a rocky outcrop high above the river, which is... more
Doethie gorge
This gorgeous piece of landscape is probably responsible for the unspoilt remote... more
Lower Cwm Doethie
Downstream (south) of Doethie gorge http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/913371 , the... more
Afon Doethie rapids
The Afon Doethie http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/913375 is dug in deep beneath... more
Traffic jam in the Doethie valley
Cwm Doethie isn't usually known for high traffic density... more
Woodland by the Afon Doethie
As the valley of the Afon Doethie begins to open up... more
Nant Cnwch Glas
The last few metres of the stream before it merges into the Afon Doethie... more
Cwm Doethie path
Just north of the confluence of the Afon Pysgotwr Fawr... more
Thistles on the Doethie bridleway
A faint track through tall thistles is all there is to the bridleway leading up... more
Rhiw Cymmer
Looking across the Afon Doethie towards Rhiw Cymmer, which is not so much a hill... more
Craig Ddu
Craig Ddu, the "black rock", sits high above Cwm Doethie and the... more
Dead beauty
There is something majestic about dead trees. This one stands on the eastern bank... more
Start of a bridleway
The sign points the way to Ty'n y Cornel http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/522234 ,... more
Troed Rhiw Ruddwen
The yellow road into the Doethie valley http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/928850... more
Track in Cwm Ruddwen
This track leads from Troed Rhiw Ruddwen http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/928864... more
Dalarwen Forest edge
An overgrown drainage ditch runs along the southern edge of Dalarwen Forest... more
Dalarwen Forest track
The track from Troed Rhiw Ruddwen http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/928864 just... more
Llyn Brianne dam
The view follows the crown of the dam. The rocks in the foreground are part of... more
Llyn Brianne access bridge
The bridge crosses the top of the spillway of Llyn Brianne... more
All images © Rudi Winter and available under a
Creative Commons licence 
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