Pen Y Fan, located in the Brecon Beacons National Park, is the highest mountain in South Wales. Sitting at 886 metres above sea level, on a clear day you can as far as the Bristol Channel, Gower Peninsula, and Carmarthen Bay.
There are a few different routes you can walk up Pen Y Fan. This route I’ve put together is personally my favourite! The climb up Cribyn offers some of the best views of Pen Y Fan! However, it is quite a challenging route! If you are after a less challenging hike, you can adapt my route by missing out Cribyn. If you are feeling a bit more adventurous, you can always add Fan Y Big to my route.
My full route is 8.5 miles long with 823 metres (2,700 feet) of total elevation. Correct outdoor gear is essential and please check the weather forecast before heading up!
The route is a very busy route! If you are not a fan of crowds, I recommend walking it in winter, on a weekday. But if you do decide to do it in winter, be prepared for snow at the summit, and the temperatures to be cold! Correct winter hiking gear is essential!
Location
Pen Y Fan is located in the heart of the Brecon Beacons National Park, in South Wales. Roughly, 9 miles, south of the Market Town of Brecon.
Parking
There is a large car park at the start of the walk, just off the A470. Even though the car park is big, it does get full very quickly. A lot of people like to arrive early too! Especially in winter, a lot of people will arrive as early as 5.30 am for a sunrise hike up Pen Y Fan.
SatNav: Pen-y-Fan walk, Brecon LD3 8NL
The Route
Follow this map, as you walk the route, you shouldnât get lost! Make sure your location is turned on and you should be able to see exactly where you are, on this map. Or if you prefer, download the GPX file and use it on your choice of route tracker.
We walked the trail anticlockwise!
1.
Starting from the car park, take the path located near what looks like a little wooden shed. Head through the gate, across the wooden bridge, and follow the path all the way up to the saddle.
2.
At the saddle, take the path going off to your left-hand side, up over the top of Corn Du. A tiny bit of scrambling will be required to reach the summit.
3.
From the summit of Corn Du, follow the path along the ridge to the summit of Pen Y Fan.
4.
Once you’ve finished enjoying the views at the top of South Wales highest mountain, take the path going off to your right-hand side, travelling southeast. Follow the path steeply down, heading towards Cribyn.
5.
As you reach the bottom of Pen Y Fan, take the steep path, forking off to your left-hand side, up Cribyn. Follow the path up, until you reach the summit.
6.
From the summit of Cribyn, take the path on your right-hand side, leading you along the ridge. Follow it along the tops, and steeply down towards the start of the climb for Fan Y Big.
7.
At the bottom of Cribyn, take the path on your right-hand side, that loops back around the bottom of Cribyn. Follow the path until you reach the bottom of Pen Y Fan.
(If you are not sure, please check the map to make sure you are taking the correct path.)
8.
Follow the path part of the way back up Pen Y Fan. You should see a path going off to your left-hand side, as you climb up.
9.
Take the path going off to your left-hand side, around the edge of Pen Y Fan and Corn Du. Eventually, you should arrive back at the saddle, from earlier on along the route.
10.
From the saddle, take the path leading your downhill, back down to the car park, where you started the walk from.
To learn more about Brecon Beacons National Park, please visit their website: https://www.breconbeacons.org/
Want to see what other hikes there is to do in Wales? Please check out some of my other blogs:
Brecon Beacons National Park: Brecon Beacons National Park
Snowdonia National Park: Snowdonia National Park
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