All walks › Brecon & the Usk Valley
Brecon & the Usk ValleyFan y Big and the Gap Road
The old Roman-era route through the heart of the Bannau, with a climb onto the ridge and the famous diving board rock at the top.
- Distance
- 5.6 mi / 9 km
- Time
- 3 hr 30
- Ascent
- 450 m
- Difficulty
- Strenuous
- Shape
- There and back
Where it is
The circle shows the general area, not the exact start. Use the directions link below to get to the car park itself. Contours and paths shown are OpenTopoMap, drawn from OpenStreetMap data.
The route
Follow the Gap Road track north into the mountains, then break off to climb Fan y Big for the ridge and the view. Return by the same track, or continue over the tops if you are equipped for a longer day.
Worth knowing
- The diving board is a jutting slab that everybody photographs. It is safer than it looks but treat it with respect.
- The Gap Road is a rough stone track and hard on the feet over nine miles. Proper boots.
- Far quieter than Pen y Fan for very similar scenery.
What you’ll see
The Cribyn and Pen y Fan escarpment from the side, the Neuadd reservoirs, and a huge sweep of empty upland.
Background
The Gap Road is an ancient crossing of the range, used long before the reservoirs below it were built, and is often described as Roman though the evidence is thin.