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Cwm Idwal and Llyn Idwal Family Walk

By Dave Roberts   

on February 17, 2023    5/5 (7)

Cwm Idwal and Llyn Idwal Family Walk

Route Essentials

Route Summary

An easy walk to Llyn and Cwm Idwal that takes you around Llyn Idwal and into the heart of the Glyderau.

See the end of the article for local information about parking, public transport facilities, pubs and cafes.

Distance

4.5 km

Ascent

140 m

Time

2 hours (with a picnic!)

Calculate the time using Naismith’s Rule and factor in your own pace.

Start Location

Ogwen Cottage Visitor Centre

Difficulty

Easy Moderate Walk

Hazards

The path is largely good, the path around Llyn Idwal does have some rougher and wetter sections that require more care.

Weather Forecast:

Met Office Snowdonia Mountain Weather

Check out our Best Mountain Weather Forecast?
Remember that we cannot outline every single hazard on a walk – it’s up to you to be safe and competent. Read up on Mountain Safety , Navigation and what equipment you’ll need. 

Cwm Idwal and Llyn Idwal Family Walk Ordnance Survey Map and GPX File Download

View the full route map

Download file for GPS

Cwm Idwal and Llyn Idwal Family Walk

Cwm Idwal and Llyn Idwal is a straightforward walk from the Ogwen Visitor Centre that’s an ideal choice for adventurous families. The dramatic Cwm Idwal feels rugged and mountainous but is still a reasonably straightforward family walk with very little ascent considering the terrain. You can decide to walk only to Llyn Idwal and back if you find the going too hard or take the Cwm Idwal High Level Route towards Twll Du / The Devil’s Kitchen if you’re looking for a more challenging alternative. 

The view across Llyn Idwal is initially dominated by the craggy façade of Twll Du or The Devil’s Kitchen and then as you cross the cwm, the towering mass of Y Garn. On the return, Pen yr Ole Wen takes over that job with some cameo views of Tryfan as you finish your loop of the lake. Even with low cloud, like we had today, the walk is spectacular and provides more to see than you would if you ventured onto the tops.

The main thing to keep in mind is that you don’t miss the path that cuts across the head of Llyn Idwal and that you don’t continue on to Twll Du by mistake. Note that the crossing can be a little wet in a few places, so ensure you’ve got proper boots! While the path is generally good around most of Cwm Idwal, there are some rougher sections especially as you reach the start of the Devil’s Kitchen ascent.

Cwm Idwal and Llyn Idwal Low Level Walk Route Description

1 The walk starts at the visitor centre at Ogwen, which has a snack bar, toilets and an indoor area you can shelter in if you need to. Follow the path to the left of the centre which is immediately obvious. The good path heads uphill, past some arty installation that names the landmarks nearby and to a footbridge over the Afon Idwal. The well built path continues, and is easy to follow with no junctions or opportunity to lose the track. You’ll reach Llyn Idwal after around 1km of walking, and it will come as a surprise as it’s not visible until you literally reach the lake’s shore. 

2 – You’ll probably find a few people at this point – and this in itself makes a perfectly good destination if you don’t want to exert yourself. You can set off either left or right, but we chose to go left for this route. It really is quite easy to follow in reverse if needed. 

The good path continues through an iron gate in a well built wall, before becoming slightly rougher in places, but still one of the better paths in Eryri. The sheer crags of the Idwal Slabs on Glyder Fawr’s northern face can be seen, and hardly missed, to your left. You can usually spot climbers on here on various climbs. As you approach them, keep an eye out for the path junction on your right (1km from the end of the lake).

3 Take the path right – which is a bit rougher underfoot than the path you’ve just left, and wet in places but nothing too challenging. Follow this path for 0.5km to join the main Ogwen-Twll Du / Devil’s Kitchen path.

4 Turn right on this path, which now brings a new vista towards Pen yr Ole Wen and the Carneddau. Again, the path is easy to follow and brings you to a beach after just over another half a kilometre. Tryfan will begin to make an appearance on your right – see who will be the first to spot it!

5 – Pass through the gate in the wall, to continue along a further stretch of shingle beach. This makes a good spot to have an extended break, with plenty of places to sit and admire the view.

Continue along the beach and the track heads through a gate and across a footbridge to bring you back round full circle to where you were are point 2 above.

6 – From the footbridge, you can re-trace your steps back to the start of the walk, which is only around 1km.

Bonus Gallery

 

Local Information and Recommended Maps and Guidebooks

Route Summary:

An easy walk to Llyn and Cwm Idwal that takes you around Llyn Idwal and into the heart of the Glyderau.

Route Start Location: Ogwen Cottage Visitor Centre

Distance
Ascent
Time
4.5 km 140 m 2 hours (with a picnic!)

Calculate the time using Naismith’s Rule and factor in your own pace.

Activivity Type: Easy Moderate Walk

Summits and Places on this Route

Facilities

There are toilets at the visitor centre at Ogwen Cottage as well as a food counter that serves snacks and drinks. All local facilities, including a Tesco Extra can be found in Bethesda, along with cafes and a few pubs. In the opposite direction, there are pubs and a café in Capel Curig, and further on in Betws-y-Coed.

Hazards

The path is largely good, the path around Llyn Idwal does have some rougher and wetter sections that require more care.

Remember that we cannot outline every single hazard on a walk – it’s up to you to be safe and competent. Read up on Mountain Safety , Navigation and what equipment you’ll need.

Parking : LL57 3LZ

Parking at Ogwen can be absolutely horrific during bank holidays and fine weekends, so you’ll need to arrive early. There is paid for parking at Ogwen Cottage, £6.00 a day or 4 hours: £3.00, card payments only and there are EV charging points available. There’s also a great deal of free parking in the laybys along the A5 and towards Glan Denau, but this is insufficient at busy times. Plenty will try and park on the A5 itself, but don’t do it as this is a trunk road and you’ll be rightly ticketed for parking along the main road.

Public Transport:

There is an infrequent T10 TrawsCymru Bus Service bus service between Bethesda and Capel Curig/Betws-y-Coed, helpfully it doesn’t run on Sundays or Bank Holidays. Thankfully, the electric Bws Ogwen has been running since 2022 between Bethesda and Ogwen and hopefully they will continue to do so in 2023. They ran 12 mini-buses midweek (not Wednesdays) and 15 on the weekend and can carry 9 at a time.

Traveline for UK Public Transport

Weather Forecast:

Met Office Snowdonia Mountain Weather

Check out our Best Mountain Weather Forecast?

Recommended Maps

Guidebooks:

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Dave Roberts

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