Llyn Peris and Dinorwig Quarry (7.78km)
Today’s walk was completed by myself, Megan (4yrs) walking, Anwen (12months) in the rucksack and my Taid (“tide” Granddad) who is in his late 70’s. The location is somewhere that means an awful lot to us as a family. My Nain (“nine”) and Taid moved down to North Wales from near Oban in Scotland with their three daughters, as Taid had got a job as a Commissioning Engineer for Dinorwig Hydro Electric Power Station in Llanberis. He had previously been working at Cruachan in Lochawe. He was offered a permanent contract at Dinorwig after it was built and ended up as a Senior Manager at the power station until he retired. Taid is a real enthusiast of industrial engineering and history so having him on the walk today was fascinating. My husband and I also got married at the Victoria Hotel in Llanberis in 2015, so a very special place for us all really!
I have spent many a happy hour exploring parts of Dinorwig Quarry and I have walked around Llyn Padarn, but I had never walked around Llyn Peris before today. It’s a fair old climb to start but there’s so much interesting industrial heritage around that it makes it worthwhile! There’s also stunning views across Yr Wyddfa (“urgh With va”) and Eryri (“Eh rurgh ree”) and there’s Castell Dolbadarn (“Cass tell” ll like tl and blow! “Doll bad arn”) to explore too.
Distance: 7.78km (according to the OS map app)
Time taken: 2hrs 42mins
Total ascent: 486.13m (OS Map app)
Parking: Yes- plenty of options (Pay and Display) in Llanberis.
Facilities: Yes, shops and toilets in Llanberis.
1. There are loads of options for parking in Llanberis itself but you will need to pay and display. We parked opposite the Snowdon Railway in the car park by the Victoria Hotel. It cost £5 if you arrived after 2pm (£8 before that). There is some parking up at Dinorwig (above Llanberis) but we suspected it would be very busy in the area today (it was surprisingly quiet) and we also wanted to get the incline done at the beginning of the walk rather than persuading Megan up at the end! Parking has been an absolute nightmare in the area since COVID 19 so please, where ever you choose, be respectful to the locals who live here.
We set off by turning right out of the car park, over the river, then right again onto the road which passes between the two lakes, Padarn on your left and Peris on your right. My husband and I had our wedding pictures taken on the wall in front of Llyn Peris. It was a bit of a miserable day that day and this was as far as I could persuade our guests to walk in the rain!
Llyn Peris.
Taid and Megan ready to go.
This first section is steep, with uneven slate steps which can be very slippery in the wet. This Zigzag path would have been the old quarrymen’s route to work. There is a short diversion at one point due to slippage so you are taken into the trees and there are some very uneven slate steps and wobbly wooden steps up here. Megan was in her absolute element and kept telling me and Taid off for taking too many rests! Although it’s quite a pull, the views open up pretty soon on and it’s beautiful even at this low level.
Megan storming up the steps.
Llyn Peris with Castell Dolbadarn.
We soon get back to zig zagging up between the high slate walls. It’s still a pull but there aren’t so many big steps which makes life easier.
Megan between the slate walls.
Looking down on Castell Dolbadarn.
Llyn Padarn.
Winding Houses
This winding house is at the top of A1, the lowest in a flight of 10 inclines which brought slate down from the Garret side of Dinorwig Quarry. These inclines were powered by gravity. The weight of descending laden wagons hauled empty wagons up on the adjacent track. A cable connected both sets of wagons and passed over a winding drum at the top, where brakes regulated the wagons’ speed.
In 1894 a fatal accident occurred when the A6 brake lever snapped off under the hand of brakesman Griffith Owen (because of a flawed bolt). Six men, contravening company rules, were riding the descending wagons. Two jumped off when they realised the problem. The others held tight and were badly injured when the wagons slammed into a wall at the bottom. Worse was to befall a youth from Clwtybont named JR Owen. He was the sole rider on three empty wagons on the adjacent track. Reaching the top, the wagons flew through the air to the top of the winding drum with such violence that they dislodged the winding house roof. Griffith found the youth’s body about 15 metres beyond the shed and was too traumatised to describe what he’d witnessed.
Winding house on the Vivian Incline.
Looking down at the winding house from the bridge.
Winding house.
Looking down at the brake house.
2. After we cross the bridge the main path carries on up, but we thought that dropping down to the right past the old brake house looked more interesting. I didn’t notice at the time but in the brake house there is, apparently, a curiously shaped window, aligned diagonally through the wall in such a way as to give the brake man inside an excellent view of the approaching slate wagons. I did, however, notice some large pieces of slate overhanging the wall along this section here. Apparently these served as makeshift shelters for the men during bad weather. They’re impressive pieces of slate but I can’t imagine they afforded much protection!
Winding house with the bridge we’ve just crossed in front of it.
After a short flat section we soon round a corner and find ourselves at the bottom of our next incline. This time we’re heading up an actual incline where wagons would once have been running up and down on tracks, which are still visible in areas. There would have been two sets of tracks here, one for the full wagons going down and the other for the returning, empty wagons.
Llyn Peris with Dinorwig Power Station visible on the left.
Remains of the tracks. Wagons would have been moved by hand from one track to another at this point.
An old wagon.
Looking back down the incline. Some track visible on the left.
Part of the way up here we find Dre Newydd (more commonly known as the Anglesey Barracks.) These small cottages were the homes of the quarrymen who lived too far away to walk to work daily. As most of these men were from Ynys Môn (“un iss morn” Anglesey) they became known as the Anglesey Barracks. Four men would share one cottage. Now at this point in the walk, I was feeling a bit puffed. The Anglesey Quarrymen would make this journey every Monday morning to arrive at work for 6am. The difference was that before even starting the climb that we have just completed, they would also have walked the 9 miles from the Menai Straits, having caught a ferry over from Ynys Môn and before that walking from wherever their homes were located on the island. They did the journey in reverse after finishing work at midday on a Saturday. I genuinely can’t imagine how fit and tough these men were. They were later allowed by the quarry owners to take the train to work, once they docked the cost of the carriages from their wages of course!
Entrance to Dre Newydd.
Eleven cottages on either side.
Megan inside one of the bedrooms.
Some fascinating graffiti amongst more modern scratchings. “DW Jones 1920 Llangristiolus”
“T E Parry 1901”
Some returned year after year.
Dre Newydd.
At the far side of the street, through the gap, is where the footpath would have brought us to if we hadn’t turned down past the brake house earlier.
Dre Newydd.
These cottages were built in the 1870s as housing for quarrymen who lived too far away to return home each night. There are two rows of 11 cottages. Each of the small houses had a living room and a bedroom. The rent was one shilling a month. Usually, members of the same family lived together and worked on the same bargen team in the quarry. The men had little furniture, often only a table and chair, sometimes a small cupboard.
The houses had few sources of comfort. They were lit by candlelight or paraffin lamp. Although electricity was introduced at the quarry in 1905, it was not fitted in the barracks. The men had an open coal fire for heating and cooking. After paying for the coal at Gilfach Ddu they carried it home up the steep incline. The quarry offices at Gilfach Ddu are now home to the National Slate Museum.
The barracks were particularly cold in the winter months as the gaps between the slates meant the quarrymen had little protection from the elements. The men also had to share their home with pests like fleas and rats. On Monday mornings, some men returned to barracks with their own blankets. They would air their beds by laying the bedding out with a hot brick placed underneath.
The houses had no plumbing, so water was fetched from the nearest stream. In later years a large tap was installed in a shared area outside to serve all of the houses. There were no indoor flushable toilets . The men shared two outdoor earth toilets which were emptied regularly.
The men shared household duties, such as keeping the coal supply well stocked, cleaning the grate and fetching water. One person would have been responsible for waking everyone up for work. Those working closest to the barracks during the day would be responsible for lighting the fire in the evening.
Dre Newydd was lived in until 1937 when the houses were condemned as being unfit for human habitation.
I could have spent so much time here, but as we had a fair way to go yet (and I had been before) we only stayed a short while before heading back to the incline. On my last visit to Dinorwig I had come down the incline as far as the barracks before heading back up to Dinorwig on the main path. I remember it being a pretty unnerving climb down. The walk up was hard work but not half as bad as I remembered it. Part way up from the barracks is another winding house which we needed to go around. The path is obvious though.
Winding house 2. You can just see part of the brake coming down on the left. They couldn’t see the wagons at the bottom of the incline so a system of bells was used to communicate.
Looking down the incline.
More graffiti.
And more.
A welcome flat section!
Discarded wagon. The loops at the front and back would have been used to attach the blondins so the wagon could be lifted up vertically and carried along a cable.
I wish I had her energy.
Worth it for the views though!
3. Getting to the top of the incline was a big relief. There’s a kissing gate at the top to go through and then a short rest! If we had parked at Dinorwig, this is the level we would’ve started at. It was good to know the worst was over though so we could relax a bit and enjoy a leisurely stroll for the rest of the walk. On our left as we come through the kissing gate is a viewpoint. We didn’t bother today but it is worth a look. There are two large buildings in front of us here. The furthest was a mill (Mill no. 3) where the slates would have been broken into smaller pieces.
Mill no. 3
It opened in 1927 and was designed for sawing, splitting and dressing roof slates. An earlier slate mill dating from 1848 once stood in roughly the same spot. The first sawing tables arrived in 1849 and were powered by steam engine. Until 1970 another mill used to stand slightly south east of here. It was named Ffiar Injan or Fire Engine after the steam engine that powered it.
Electricity came to Dinorwig in 1905 with the installation of overhead electricity lines, which were connected in 1906. Although powered machinery helped with some tasks, many jobs still had to be done by hand.
Also in this area was the Ffiar Injan Caban, which could hold 200-300 men. Dinorwig was not only a site of heavy industry but also a centre of social, cultural a and intellectual activity. The Caban was a place for rest and reflection. The workers could spend their breaks here and it was an important space for discussing weighty subjects like politics, religion and poetry.
Eisteddfod is the name given to the Welsh festival of arts and they were held at Dinorwig throughout the quarry’s history. The Ffiar Injan Caban hosted an excellent Eisteddfod in 1937 and a three day festival in 1938.
The building nearest us was a substation (I think...Taid did tell me). You can see where the electric wires would have come out.
Mill no.3 in the background.
I suppose, as we are now in the middle of the quarry itself I’d better give some history of Dinorwig as a whole.
Dinorwig Quarry
Dinorwig Quarry was the second largest slate quarry in the world at one point, beaten only by the neighbouring Penrhyn Quarry in Bethesda. It covered more than 700 acres consisting of two main quarry sections with about 20 galleries in each and a number of ancillary workings. Extensive internal tramway systems connected the quarries using inclines to transport slate between galleries. There were three main incline runs, A, B and C, and the highest working level was over 1500 feet above sea level.
The first commercial attempts at slate mining took place in 1787, when a private partnership obtained a lease from the owner Assheton Smith. Although this met with moderate success, the outbreak of war with France, taxes and transportation all limited the development of the quarry. A new business partnership led by Assherton Smith was formed on the expiry of the lease in 1809 and the business boomed after the construction of a horse-drawn tramway to Port Dinorwig in 1824. At its peak in the late 19th century, when it was producing an annual outcome of 100,000 tonnes, Dinorwig employed more than 3,000 men and was the second largest opencast slate producer in the country. Although by 1930 its working employment had dropped to 2,000 it continued in production until 1969.
The rock faces where the quarrymen worked are called ‘galleries’, or ‘ponciau’ in Welsh. 14 sawing mill sheds stood along the main galleries. Altogether there were over 30 slate galleries, each named after a local landmark, notable event, place in the world, woman related to Dinorwig or local character (often former quarry workers from the 1820s to the 1840s).
E.g
Australia- this gallery was located at a particularly high point of the quarry. It was also near the furthest point of the quarry and took a long time for the men to reach, so it felt like the other side of the world. Hence the name!
California- it is thought that work may have begun on this gallery in the 1840s or 1850s, at the same time as the Gold Rush in America. It was also said that some of the best slate in Dinorwig was to be found here so it was like mining for gold.
Matilda- named after the wife of Dinorwig’s owner, Thomas Assherton Smith. Work began here on their wedding day, 17 October 1827.
Toffat/ Toffet- a place called Toffet in the Bible was considered a very frightening place. Perhaps this gives an idea of what the men thought of this gallery.
Men working at Dinorwig faced many dangers. Accounts from former quarry workers tell of the mills being covered in dust. Safety clothing wasn’t provided as it would be today and so they didn’t have masks to protect them from the dust.
Working on the galleries was very dangerous. Men were fastened to the rock face by a rope. This was the only thing protecting them from falling to the bottom. The rock being quarried was unstable and the men had to be aware of any loose slates above where they were working. Quarrying at a lower point in the gallery could cause any unstable material above to fall. Many quarry workers died this way. It was even more dangerous in cold weather as when ice set on the rock face, the slate would move and loosen as the ice swelled.
After we rested for 5 mins, we set off again through the second kissing gate. Ahead of us the incline continued up. Now it contains wires for the Power Station below.
The track is really straightforward here and clearly defined, giving you an opportunity to really appreciate the scale of Dinorwig. We pass by Matilda and Victoria (named after Queen Victoria) galleries along here.
Easy walking.
A blast shelter where men would go after setting charges to blast the rock.
Llyn Peris beyond the slate tips.
Looking down at Dinorwig Power Station.
Dinorwig Power Station
When it was fully commissioned in 1984, Dinorwig Power Station was regarded as one of the world’s most imaginative engineering and environmental project. Today, Dinorwig’s operational characteristics and dynamic response capability are still acknowledged the world over. Dinorwig is the largest scheme of its kind in Europe.
Dinorwig is operated not only to help meet peak loads but also as a short term operating reserve, providing a fast response to short-term rapid changes in power demand or sudden loss of power stations. In a common scenario (known as TV pickup), the end of a popular national TV programme or advertising breaks in commercial TV programmes results in millions of consumers switching on electric kettles in the space of a few minutes leading to overall demand increases of up to 2800 MW. In anticipation of this surge, an appropriate number of units at Dinorwig (or other services competing for National Grid Reserve Service duty) May be brought online as the closing credits start to roll. The monitoring of popular TV channels is an important factor in electricity grid control centres.
The scheme was constructed in the abandoned Dinorwig Slate Quarry. To preserve the natural beauty of Snowdonia National Park, the power station itself is located deep inside the mountain Elidir Fawr, inside tunnels and caverns. The project - begun in 1974 and taking 10 years to complete at a cost of £425 million - was the largest civil engineering contract ever awarded by the U.K. government at the time. The scheme paid for itself in two years.
Dinorwig is comprised of 16km of underground tunnels. Its construction required 1 million tonnes of concrete, 200,000 tonnes of cement and 4,500 tonnes of steel. The station’s six powerful generating units stand in Europe’s largest man made cavern, 51 metres tall, 180 metres long and 23 metres wide, known as “the concert hall”. Adjacent to this lies the main inlet valve chamber housing the plant that regulates the flow of water through the turbines.
Water is stored at 636 metres above sea level in Marchlyn Mawr reservoir. When power needs to be generated, water from the reservoir is sent down through the turbines into Llyn Peris, which is at approximately 100 metres. Water is pumped back during off-peak times. Although it uses more energy to pump the water up than is generated on the way down, pumping is generally done when electricity is cheaper and generation when it’s more expensive. Dinorwig’s reversible pump/turbines are capable of reaching maximum generation in less than 16 seconds. Using off-peak electricity the six units are reversed as pumps to transport water from the lower reservoir back to Marchlyn Mawr.
Vent for the Power Station. This was the site of a serious accident during the building of the Power Station when a crane fell through and killed about 5 people below.
Twll.
Another incredible incline with spaces for the trains to pass under.
The site of another former slate mill. The concrete blocks would have held a crane that travelled up and down the building.
Another winding house.
Cute bench next to the winding house... a modern installation.
What a setting.
4. We soon start on the big zig zags back down towards Llyn Peris and the road. Again it’s easy walking and really straightforward.
Looking back at the truly awesome incline below the winding house with the bench. This incline would have been wide enough for four tracks. Two wagons down and two up.
Contrast between the slate tips and the mountainside.
A bed for Megan.
Nature growing through in the most difficult places.
Keep an eye open for the mountain goats.
Goats, Llyn Peris and Crib Coch.
Marching down the hill!
Notice the workings at the far side of the bridge. This was a copper mine. There’s a tunnel through the mountain starting there too, built by the Power Station, which goes into Llyn Padarn.
5. When you get to the road turn right back towards Llanberis. It is a busy and fast road so little hands need to be held tightly but there is a pavement all the way along. There are great views along here of where we’ve just been. It’s interesting to see the landmarks we passed up close in their proper context.
Walking back towards Llanberis.
Llyn Peris.
Chwarel Dinorwig.
Approach to Castell Dolbadarn.
Castell Dolbadarn.
Up the steps.
View from the “balcony”. Llyn Padarn in the background.
More graffiti.
Castell Dolbadarn.
Castell Dolbadarn
The castle’s strategic position allowed the garrison to blockade anyone’s movement through that part of the north, then as as now a main link to the rest of Cymru. The main feature is the round tower enclosing a complex series of chambers. It’s 40 feet tall and 40 feet in diameter, and guarded by walls 8 feet thick. The entrance was at first floor level via a wooden movable making access virtually impossible. The first floor entrance was heavily defended with a portcullis and sturdy drawbars barricaded stout doorways.
The Castle didn’t die with Llywelyn Fawr in 1240. It was active until nearly 1300 and used for the imprisonment of Owain ap Gruffydd by his younger brother Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf (Llywelyn the Last) during their struggles for control of North Wales in the 1250s. Owain spent 20 years as a prisoner living on the upper floor of the castle.
During the Welsh princes’ revolt against the English monarch, Edward I, Dolbadarn was held by another of Llywelyn’s brothers, Dafydd ap Gruffydd. Unfortunately, the castle succumbed to more formidable forces led by the Earl of Pembroke, and in 1282 (the year of Llywelyn’s death) Dolbadarn was seized by the English army. Within two years, the castle was abandoned, to be further assaulted for its building stone and timber beams.
There was one last gasp at Dolbadarn when Owain Glyndwr led the Welsh uprisings around 1400. Glyndwr may have used the keep to hold prisoners like Ruthin Castle’s Lord Grey.
After you’ve spent some time exploring Dolbadarn, head back through the gate and follow the path to the right. There are some steep and uneven steps here so watch your footing. You’ll cross a narrow bridge over a river just before you get back to the road. Turn left at the road and follow back round to the car park.
Crossing the river.
Sources
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