Aran Fawddwy from Cwm Cywarch

Aran Fawddwy, the name meaning the Mawddwy peak, stands at 905.6m and is the highest summit in Britain south of Yr Wyddfa, the 16th highest in Wales and 9.5m short of the 3,000-foot line that would put it among the Welsh 3000s, according to Wikipedia. Its prominence of 671m makes it the third most prominent summit in Wales. Its east face drops a thousand feet to Creiglyn Dyfi, the small lake that is the source of the River Dyfi; Walking Britain describes the summit as rocky, with that drop beneath it.

The mountain is best climbed from the south, and the start is on the far side of the range from Bala, at the car park at the head of Cwm Cywarch, grid reference SH 852188, about 19km from Bala in a straight line and a drive around the hills rather than a walk. Walking Britain gives the approach as the road signed for Llanymawddwy off the A470 at Dinas Mawddwy, turning left at Abercywarch. The path leaves the car park past Blaencywarch farm and climbs through rocky ground to a col beneath Glasgwm, then follows a fence along the ridge to the summit and returns by Drysgol and Waun Goch. Walking Englishman records that Craig Cywarch, a rock-climbing crag, walls in the start, and that the first mile is the hardest on stamina. Walking Britain asks walkers to keep to the designated paths, because access here has been disputed.

The circuit is 12.2km with 798m of ascent in around six hours, graded moderate to hard by Walking Britain, and the Ordnance Survey Explorer OL23 map is the one to carry; the descent over open ground is a navigation task as much as a walk. It suits fit hillwalkers who want the highest ground south of Yr Wyddfa and can use a map and compass, and it is the wrong day for anyone wanting a surfaced path or a short outing. For a big mountain with a built path of stone steps beneath it, Cadair Idris by the Minffordd Path is the better choice, from the Dolgellau side.