is the key to Fforest Fawr’s neglect. The highlands are bare, windswept fells devoid of secrets. Scarcely a wall, hardly a trace of rock, obtrudes upon the smooth uniformity of the moors. Few trees survive, even on the lower slopes, and no tarns reflect the sun’s rays. On a dull day, or in winter with a bustling wind, it is a bleak and cheerless landscape without the slightest semblance of shelter. Even Fan Fawr and Fan Gihirych, imposing as they are, impress more by the stark, simple severity of their lines than by shapeliness.
Austerity does have another side – remember, even deserts have their admirers! Fforest Fawr still manages to lay claim to the hearts of those who derive pleasure from striding wild open places with only the wind, the challenge of far horizons and the munching sheep for company. There is but one inviolable rule: choose a fine day. Fforest Fawr has few landmarks and is a hard taskmaster in mist when route-finding ability of a high order is required. What would be the point anyway? Pick a clear bracing day in winter, or a sun-dappled day with the clouds scurrying overhead, and you have a day to remember!
Fforest Fawr is considerate to hillwalkers. Gradients are easy, many of the walks start fairly high and the prevailing terrain is firm, short-cropped grass and heather with little bog and few tussocks to slow you down. Miles flow easily, giving ample opportunity to admire the views. The best of these are N and S; N to the Usk Valley with the bleak uplands of Mynydd Eppynt and the hills of mid-Wales rising hazily beyond; S to the boundless moors and foothills that gradually decline to the coast and Swansea Bay. The Beacons are all but obscured by Corn Du, and it is the silhouette of the Black Mountain that claims pride of place among the major hills to the W.
Note Restrictions on rights of way must be observed even more carefully than usual in the W half of Fforest Fawr because the whole area is part of the privately owned Cnewr Estate. There is only one permissive route across the estate and this is open all year round except for the period 15 April-10 May when it is closed for lambing. At the time of writing this route is roughly equivalent to my routes FF13, 14 and 15. My routes FF11, 12 and 16 are not covered by the agreement. Please, therefore, check your route before setting out and if you are in any doubt, or wish to apply for special permission, write to The Estate Office, Sennybridge, Brecon LD3 8SP.
Fan Fawr
Fan Fawr is a shy mountain, denying the viewer from the A470 all but the most fleeting of glimpses. Its immense sprawling bulk is best seen from Fan Llia, asserting itself aggressively and with more than a hint of malice when mist swirls around. The top is a plateau of desolate moorland, tilting gently from the highest point overlooking the Storey Arms to the trig point 0.5 mile away SW. Sadly there is no cairn worthy of the senior peak of the range; just a small cluster of flat stones, unmistakable in clear weather but easily missed in mist or snow.
The view of the Beacons from Fan Fawr is disappointing. Although Y Gryn – for once – looks a worthy hill, the bulk of Corn Du precludes any wider vista. More striking are the views W, where the great whale-backed ridge of Fan Llia hogs the scene with Fan Nedd in the background. In marked contrast a short stroll N from the cairn reveals the green pastures of the Tarell Valley.
Storey Arms route (FF1)
Cross the stile by the car park across the road from the Storey Arms and follow a track that climbs the rather dreary hillside on 270°. Where it levels off, and just before it descends into a gully at 973202, break away L on 190° to mount the hillside near a couple of isolated outcrops. Fan Fawr rises abruptly ahead with a well-worn path climbing directly up its NE face to the summit cairn.
Fan Fawr from near Corn Du
Alternatively (FF1,1) leave the stile on 230° and head directly across country until you meet the path up the NE face to finish as before.
Craig y Fro route (FF2)
This route also starts from a car park on the A470, this time at 971208. A short sharp pull up the broken slopes, keeping the stream and waterfalls L, leads to the broad saddle backing Craig y Fro. From here a narrow but quite distinct track contours across to the N and Craig Cerrig-gleisiad (FF5). For Fan Fawr head first SW and then SE over easy grass to ensure the gentler gradients.
S ridge (FF3)
This little-known route keeps the objective firmly in its sights all the way and follows the edge of the long, elegantly sculptured escarpment that gradually builds up from the SE. Park along the stretch of road around 988175, S of the Beacons reservoir, and from there make a beeline across the pathless fells for the ridge.
Craig Cerrig-Gleisiad
As a height Craig Cerrig-gleisiad is nothing, an insignificant grassy mound distinguished from its environs only by a few feet in altitude and a small cairn surmounted by a pole. Yet its ascent provides one of the most rewarding walks in the region in a colourful setting far removed from the bleak moorlands that characterise so much of Fforest Fawr.
E ridge (FF4)
Cross the stile by the picnic area at 971222. Pass through the coppice, keeping the stream L, and carry on for 200yd to a tumbledown wall where the full splendour of a hidden cwm is revealed. The splintered crags that stand guard L rear up as fearsomely as any in Wales. The slopes are dotted with trees and generously carpeted with bracken and heather. Yet despite the severity of the crags this is S Wales, not the N, and the cwm is a haven for quiet contemplation. Sure enough, as if in assent, the crags gradually moderate to ever more benign grassy slopes as the eye roves round to the N and the gentle ridge that rises to Fan Frynych.
Three tracks leave this delectable spot. R a path follows the wall en route to Fan Frynych (FF6); straight ahead a faint track leads into the cwm (FF L1). For Craig Cerrig-gleisiad strike out half-L to a wall breasting the crags. Despite appearances a playful track makes light of the climb, wending its way through the spiky cushions of heather that edge the dizzy depths R. Nearer the top the path veers R with a wire fence for company L. The cairn is then a short distance away over the fence.
If you follow the rim of the cwm N you will eventually meet a stone wall coming in from the W, joining the wire fence on your L at an iron gate. The bulldozed road referred to in FF6 starts here. Follow it, passing a couple of tiny tarns L, and you will soon spot Fan Frynych’s lonely trig point 5min away through the stubby heather.
Craig y Fro route (FF5)
See FF2.
Fan Frynych
Fan Frynych is uninspiring. Only the trig point, alone in a dreary waste of coarse heather, tired grass and struggling mosses indicates a top at all, despite the contours on the map. No one is likely to make it a prime objective. The views are the one redeeming feature. Craig Cerrig-gleisiad stands out well but it is Fan Fawr that claims the S skyline, displaying a surprisingly elongated top. Corn Du is prominent E, but the best views are W where Fan Llia impresses by its sheer bulk and Fan Nedd and Fan Gihirych both beckon. If it is clear you can also distinguish the long sleek lines of the Black Mountain.
NE ridge (FF6)
Take the track