All walks › Eryri: Rhinogydd and Harlech
Eryri: Rhinogydd and HarlechRhinog Fach from Cwm Nantcol
The smaller of the two Rhinogs, reached from a farm at the head of a remote valley, on ground that is all heather and boulder.
- Distance
- 4.3 mi / 7 km
- Time
- 3 hr 30
- Ascent
- 500 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
From Cwm Nantcol a path climbs to Bwlch Drws Ardudwy, the gap between the two peaks, then turns south up steep broken ground to Rhinog Fach. same ground on the way back.
Worth knowing
- Bwlch Drws Ardudwy, the door of Ardudwy, is a genuine mountain pass between the two summits and worth reaching even if you go no higher.
- Llyn Hywel below the summit sits under a slab of rock tilted at forty-five degrees.
- Progress is slow here whatever the map says.
What you’ll see
Llyn Hywel and Llyn Du, the pass between the peaks, and a landscape of broken grit.
Background
The pass was an ancient route across the Rhinogydd, linking Ardudwy on the coast with the Trawsfynydd side.