Grey Mares Tail Walk
8km/2-2.5hours
This is a very good walk when wet under foot. Apart from the section by the falls it is all on a surfaced road. A road that takes you high and steeply up to overlook the entire valley.
Leave the station left, through the opening in the forecourt and cross towards the left to the road junction. Turn right opposite the telephone box and walk some 200m to the Gower suspension bridge over the River Conwy with superb views downstream towards Tal y Cafn and ahead on the route to the nestling little village of Trefriw.
A very straight footpath now leads directly to Trefriw village passing through fields of cattle and sheep to arrive at the B5106 T-junction. On the left there is an information board giving directions for a number of local walks and opposite is the large building of the Trefriw Woollen Mill with its shop and guided tours.
Turn left at this junction and a short way along the road turn steeply uphill alongside the school. The road now meanders up a sharp incline, giving a taste of the steep hill to come. The road bends to the left and passes a left junction where a small signpost points uphill to Llanrhychwyn. Reaching the T-junction opposite the white house Tyr Bont turn left and continue up, what now becomes a very steep hill leading through the woods to the high pastures beyond.
As height is gained, wide views open up on the left across the valley and behind, the white ribbon of the Conwy meanders downstream to the coast. As the road winds upwards it slowly levels out as the village is approached and ahead, up in the fields, past the cluster of houses, the church at Llanrhychwyn can clearly be seen next to the white gabled end of a farmhouse.
At the crossroads, turn right to visit the church, past the telephone box, and following the bends of the lane, the church can shortly be reached from a small path.
St. Rhychwyns church is reputed by some to be the oldest in Wales and it marks the site where Rhychwyn established his church in the 6thC. It is still lit by candlelight.
Back at the crossroads the route follows the signpost to Llanrwst along a lovely country lane, through high pasture and areas of mountain bog, to descend into the forest once again and start circling back to the market town. Rapidly losing height past numerous signed footpaths criss-crossing the area, the forest quickly opens up and allows superb views over the town and river valley, with Gwydir Castle to be seen nestling in the trees towards the right.
The lane continues past rugged cliffs above on the right and looking backwards, Gower Bridge, crossed earlier, can be seen down the valley. A short, straight, uphill section now leads to a stile 1 on the left of the road behind which cascades the very beautiful Grey Mares Tail waterfall.
Over the stile and the well-maintained track leads into a series of hairpin bends down to the level of the watercourse under the falls. The route weaves in and out of this picturesque bluebell wood following the course of the stream past signs of mine workings and deposits on the waterbed caused by minerals higher up in the mountain lead mines.
The track now emerges from the trees into a Forestry Commission car park and exits through a gate 2 onto the main B5106. Turn right and walk a short distance along the grass verge to arrive at the road junction for Llanrwst and Betws y Coed.
Here, a diversion can be made to the Gwydir Castle and opposite is the Forest Office where information is available and from where access is possible to the Gwydir Uchaf Chapel.
The main route continues on towards Llanrwst along the very straight main road past the National Trusts tearoom Tu Hwnt ir Bont and over the humpbacked arch of Pont Fawr, the symbol of Llanrwst, where the route turns left to enter the weekly market site of Ancaster Square. A sharp left along the first side of the square leads down a narrow lane to St. Crwsts church, while the route to the station turns right in the opposite corner of the square by the Albion pub and can clearly be seen ahead on the right hand side of the road.
© Conwy Valley Rail Initiative 2001