Waterfall Country – South Wales Part 1

In mid June during a unexpected heatwave we visited what is known as “Waterfall Country” in The Brecon Beacons National Park in South Wales.
We decided to visit after being invited to a friends wedding in Hereford and as we was so close to the Brecons we planned to stay there for a few days afterwards – and with the weather we couldn’t of timed it better! As we both love waterfalls somewhere called “Waterfall Country” was the obvious choice for our Welsh adventure.

Prior to going I ordered this Waterfall Country guide from the Brecon Beacons National Park shop which helped us plan which trails to go on. I also got the OS12 map which covers the West Brecons where we was based.
After googling “campsites in Waterfall Country” we decided on Cwmnanthir Campsite. The website does warn of the mile long deserted drive to the site which makes you worry that you have gone past it or have taken a wrong turn! But eventually the road drops down into the family run site. When we arrived on a Sunday we was greeted by the owner John who showed us where the facillities were and gave us general information about the site. We were the only ones there when we first arrived so chose the best spot – down by the stream with a flat tent spot and the best fire pit. Enjoying fires is encouraged at Cwmnanthir which drew us to the site. You can collect your own wood from the surrounding woodland or ask for a bag of logs for £4.

After setting up we was ready to visit our first waterfall. Henrhyd Falls was a 45min walk from our site so we got the directions from John and set off! Henrhyd is quite famous for being featured in the film The Dark Knight Rises as the entrance to the Batcave. Which is pretty awesome! It is also the highest waterfall in South Wales at over 90ft. The site is owned by The National Trust with a car park – which was very busy with it being a Sunday and a heatwave! The route down to the fall is quite steep but well maintained – just make sure you wear appropriate footwear as it is very slippery and muddy in places! Upon first glance of the fall I was taken aback by the height and beauty of it. The sun was shining down onto the pool, the water was glistening and rainbow prisms were being reflected through the spray and mist of the fall.

Henrhyd Falls

We went down closer to find a spot to sit to admire the fall, took our shoes off and paddled along the shallows. Some people were swimming and there was one annoying kid with a fishing rod who kept swinging it in and out of the water – I don’t know what he was expecting to catch in there but I was waiting for a scream and someone to end up with a hook through their face (thankfully that didn’t happen though). I wanted to shout out “who does this child belong to and why are you allowing them to do this?” but I am far to polite and British to say anything so I just kept glaring disapprovingly at the maniac fisherman and tutting instead.
You can get behind the fall either by climbing up the rocks on the left or along the narrow ridge to the right. Both, as expected, have the risk of slipping and falling. We witnessed one poor guy slip backwards down the rocks! Thankfully one rock stopped his fall but ended up with some quite nasty cuts and bruises.
I had never been behind a waterfall before so spent some time enjoying the experience with the mist surrounding me and cooling me down in the summer heat.

We hadn’t brought swimming gear as we didn’t really know what to expect so I asked Tom to take a photo of me up to my knees in the pool (fishing rod boy had left, otherwise I wouldn’t of risked it) but me being the clumsy idiot that I am and with extremely senstive feet to rocks (they tickle and hurt at the same time) I managed to slip and fall backwards into the pool fully clothed. It was the best accident I’ve ever had! The water was beautiful and not long after Tom joined me. The pool is very deep in places and often I couldn’t touch the floor and even Tom at 6’8″ found some spots where he struggled to stand up! Although it is easy to swim to the shallow edges and there are also some rocks you can swim to sit on close to the fall but be careful as the rocks are pretty slippery so I would advise wearing some sort of old shoes/sandals in the water.  After a long swim and admiring the falls some more we headed back to the campsite slightly damp but in high spirits following our first Waterfall Country experience.

One thing I need to point out here is how on our first day we discovered the absolute villainous bastards that are horse flies. From the moment we arrived in Wales to the moment we left we were bitten to shreds by these nasty little creatures! We was completely unprepared for them and didn’t have any bug spray so we had to suffer.  The bites itched for days after coming home and some of the marks are still there so I think I’ll be left with some scars (physically and emotionally!) So a word of warning if you go – go prepared with bug spray, bug wipes, antihistamines, holy water – whatever will save you from them!

When we returned to the campsite we were slightly dissapointed to see another couple on site (we would of loved a night alone there) but they were tucked away around the corner so we said our hellos then left each other to it.

After a shower and chilling for a bit Tom got the bbq started for dinner and made me the best steak I’ve ever had! Then he got the fire started while I sat back and warmed my toes.

The evening brought relief from the horse flies but brought out new enemies – mosquitos and other flying bitey bastards. Luckily we was prepared for them with bug deterrent incense burners. They still went for Tom quite savagely though. It seemed horse flies had more of a taste for me but the night time bugs preferred the taste of Tom.

Cwmnanthir campsite is part of the Brecon Beacons area dark skies reserve with no light pollution. The skies were clear but maybe due to the heatwave not many stars were visible during our stay but I can imagine when they are visible that it is breathtaking. We spotted lots of bats flitting overhead which always makes me so happy to see and the only sound was the stream flowing – bliss.

Another thing to mention about the site is that there is no Wi-Fi, or phone signal. Sometimes it is lovely just to escape the virtual world for a while because often, even on Dartmoor, you can get 4G so to go somewhere without it at all leaves you no temptation to just quickly check Instagram or Facebook but to just sit back and thoroughly enjoy your surroundings. It was also a welcome relief to escape from all the current politics and devastating news at the time. We had to wait to get back near the main road to get any signal to contact our family and get Google maps up for our daily adventures.

After a peaceful nights sleep we awoke to another blistering hot day. We was desperate to find another waterfall to jump into so we consulted our trail pack and decided to go for The Elidir Trail. We set up our GPS to find the Pont Melin-fach car park. A lot of the roads to get there are single lane, country roads, with ditches either side and are also abundant in pretty nasty pot holes – some which you can’t avoid! So we took it slow and held our breath hoping that our car would be in one piece at the other end!

The Pont Melin-fach car park at one end of the trail is next to the Nedd Fechan river with picnic benches.

We were doing the route from the opposite way from the trail guide in our pack and was following the river downstream. The trail from Pont Melin-fach to see all of the four waterfalls in this area is about 1.2 miles long and it is quite a undemanding, moderate walk but with lots of mud, slippery bits and tree root trip hazards! I slipped over at one particularly muddy point and thought I had broken my camera as the lens cover got jammed to the lens but Tom fixed it with his trusty pocket knife!

We planned to walk the length of the trail assessing the waterfalls for “swimability” then return to the falls and pools we wished to swim in for a dip.
It was not long before we came across our first waterfall on the trail – Sgwd Ddwil Uchaf (Upper Gushing Falls). You can walk to the top of the fall and look down. The fall happens in steps It was fast moving and powerful, there was a pool at the bottom with the river Nedd Fechan running fast through it onto the next part of the fall and it was a bit of a clamber down to the bank through tree roots. We decided as lovely as that fall was that it may not be ideal for swimming. A few meters along a mini waterfall which looks like a step with water pouring over it appears and then a bit further along a smaller waterfall step. With the fast moving wide river of this fall I could see why it is called “Upper Gushing Falls”.

Sgwd Ddwil Uchaf

As we continued, the wonderful thing we found about this trail as is that you stay close to the river, some times the path gets steep and a bit farther away working it’s way through the trees but you can always hear and see the river and you can make your way down to it carefully for a closer look.

The Nedd Fachen River

The next waterfall was Sqwd Ddwil Isaf (Lower Gushing Falls). Out of all the waterfalls we saw on our trip, although they were all spectacular in their own way, this one was my favourite. There was just something so magical about it. The fall came down over the rock ledge in a wide, white, sparkling curtain which curved gently around the rock. The fall was framed by low hanging branches covered in bright green leaves with sunlight bursting through, casting golden, dancing sun beams onto the water. The pool was more turquoise in colour than any of the rest and the area was like a beautiful sanctuary of nature. Ferns, moss, sparking waterfall mist in the air. We were definitely going to come back to this one for a swim!

Sqwd Ddwil Isaf

From the fairy tale-like Sqwd Ddwil Isaf the next fall was drastically different again.
Sgwd y Bedol (the Horseshoe Falls) is very appropriately named. The main fall is tucked away amongst rocks and it is a fast moving solid, narrow curtain of water that pours down into the pool below which then leads onto the “horseshoes” where different falls and gully’s have been formed by the powerful river with some areas of exposed rock where you can walk between the pools and up to the main fall. The main fall is quite slippery to get to across the riverbed rocks so we mainly explored the lower pools and decided we would come back to swim in the pools and explore it some more.

Sgwd y Bedol

Carrying on we aimed towards the last and what is considered the “main” waterfall of the trail. The path winds around where Sgwd Gwaladus (the Lady Falls) stands out alone from the other falls as part of the journey of the River Pyrddin as it joins the Nedd Fechan. As we approached we could hear more people, we had seen some along the trail but most appeared to have made their way to this fall in particular.

Sgwd Gwaladus reminded me of Henrhyd Falls in the way that the river tumbles 20ft off the sandstone ledge into the the gorged out pool below in a tall, elegant cascade of water. But the pool area was a lot more open than Henryhd which helped trap the sun in the gorge. After walking the trails in 30 degrees heat we was more than ready for a swim. It didn’t take long before both of us was in the water and feeling relieved to finally cool down.

Sgwd Gwaldaus

Entering into the pool was easy, some rocks were quite slippery and you need to tread carefully and test the bottom to make sure you don’t ram your shins or toes into any bigger rocks (not fun). The pool drops down quite suddenly into deep waters where it is difficult to stand up, much like Henryhd, but it is easy to make your way to the shallow waters again. This was my favourite swim of the holiday. The combination of the sun shining right down into the gorge which made the water feel slightly warm, the water gently moving in the pool so that it wasn’t a struggle to swim against the current and the fact that it was a Monday during school time so there wasn’t any screaming children or kids with fishing rods all added to the experience. We climbed out near the edge of the fall to walk around the back of it. It was easier to get around than Henryhd with flatter, wider rocks leading around it but everything was still very wet so I cautiously made my way around. As we was admiring the fall from behind a massive “bang” nearly gave me a heart attack! Then with a massive splash in the pool I realised one of the young lads who had been swimming had leapt off the top of the fall and dive bombed in! I thought he was brave and I was also glad I wasn’t in the pool at the time!

We spent about an hour and a half at Sgwd Gwaladus swimming, walking around the back of it and sitting in the sun and regularly having heart attacks every time one of the lads jumped off the ledge. We also walked up to look over the edge of the falls although Tom got a lot closer than I did! I’m not scared of heights but my legs go a bit jelly-like. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I can trip over thin air because I’m such a klutz so I know if I get to close the chances of me falling over and off the edge are pretty high so it’s like my body’s warning sign to not risk it! As a self confessed “bird nerd” I also spent some time stalking the Dippers which were bouncing and fitting around the edge of the pool and got particularly close to a young one that still had some baby fluff feathers poking out. Tom got some good footage on his GoPro of us messing about in the water and putting our heads under the fall for the ultimate “natures power shower” experience!

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We headed back along the trail still wearing our wet swimming clothes ready to decide on the next wild swimming spot. The horseshoe falls with it’s many pools offered various choices but some of them were in the shade which would of been quite cold to swim in. We found one pool which was still in the sun. Getting down into it was a bit of a climb down the rocks and also as there were lots of overhanging trees there was quite a bit of mud and slimy, squishy old leaves to walk through which is a bit gross between your toes! Once in the pool we tried swimming against the river current which was very difficult and Tom as the stronger swimmer got a lot closer than me. Tom wanted to see if he could jump in from where we had got into the pool but I checked the rocks around the edge and a lot were too close to the surface. A couple in the next pool down were jumping in and the higher ledge above our pool was suitable to jump off as we saw people doing it as we left but it is very important to check the depth and for rocks as although a lot of the pools are very deep there can be random large rocks near the surface or they might not be quite as deep as you thought!

We spent quite a bit of time in this pool having fun with the GoPro and taking underwater shots. I am not the most graceful or comfortable person under water so many of the photos are hilarious. Tom looks like some kind of Merman, at ease under the water like he has lived down there he whole life. I look like a drowning goblin.

Merman

Merman & Drowning Goblin

So graceful under water.

When we started to get a bit chilly from the sun moving away from the pool we got out and walked up to the higher ledge over the pool to sunbathe and warm up a little. Tom adventured round exploring the gully’s and mini pools while I soaked up the sun.

We walked along the exposed rocky river bed to the main fall and watched it for a while. This area reminded me of something you would see in a TV programme about Canada with brown bears hunting salmon out of the river. It really wasn’t like anything I had experienced before.

Then it was back to my favourite fall – Sgwd Ddwil Isaf. I was starting to feel a bit chilly from all of the swimming and wearing wet clothes so it took me a little while to ease myself into the pool. I spent a while sitting on a big rock on the edge of the pool dangling my legs in and feeling like a mermaid. Tom said to me that I would regret it if I didn’t go for a swim which I would of done so I stopped wimping out and got my shoulders under (the worst part) and then I had a lovely swim. The only other people around were a hippy couple and a group of ladies in their twenties all of which were enjoying the waterfall. The ladies managed to climb out of the pool onto a flat rock just under the fall which looked like a lovely spot. We found a little brown fish that we called Bernard and he posed for some photos with Tom.

 

We had left our packed lunches in the car as everyone knows eating and swimming is not a good combo! So by this point we was starving so we headed back to the car and did the “under the towel shuffle” out of our wet clothes into warm dry ones. We sat at one of the picnic benches at the car park and enjoyed our late lunch.

Then it was time to tackle the pot hole gauntlet and get back to the campsite for another evening of BBQ food, cider, campfires and fighting off the mosquitos!

In part 2 I will cover the Four Falls Trail and our hike up Corn Du and Pen y Fan. So keep an eye out for it!

Please make sure you check out Tom’s GoPro video of our trip to Waterfall Country on You Tube:

As this is my first ever blog post feedback would be most welcomed. Please let me know your thoughts and would like more of in future posts. Thank you for reading.