Moel Penamnen

Rising above the slate-scarred horizon of Blaenau Ffestiniog, Moel Penamnen offers a quieter alternative to its jagged Moelwyn neighbors. It’s a fine spot for surveying North Wales, assuming you enjoy navigating a landscape that is roughly fifty percent abandoned quarry and fifty percent liquid earth.

• •The mountain forms part of the Moelwynion range and overlooks Cwm Penamnen, a valley historically significant for its links to the Welsh princes of Gwynedd.
• •It sits on the northern edge of the Ffestiniog slate landscape, providing a panoramic view of the massive industrial caverns and spoil heaps that define this UNESCO World Heritage site.
• •The peak is frequently reached via the Crimea Pass, a high mountain road named during the Crimean War when the local innkeeper supposedly had a strong opinion on the conflict.
• •The surrounding terrain is riddled with old mine workings and hidden air shafts, making it one of the few places where 'following the path' is a literal survival strategy rather than a suggestion.
• •The pass toward Manod Mawr is so exceptionally boggy that it essentially functions as a giant, mossy sponge designed specifically to steal expensive hiking poles and your sense of self-worth.