view from Carn Llidi
The St Davids Walk
St Davids to Bangor
Summary
The Snowdon Horseshoe

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I turned and looked at the hills I had come across. There they stood, darkly blue, a rain cloud, like ink. hanging over their summits. Oh, the wild hills of Wales, the land of old renown and of wonder, the land of Arthur and Merlin! 

George Borrow - Wild Wales
                                                      

The route, which involves about 400 km of walking split into 24 days, starts at St Davids and joins an ancient track called the Ffos-y-mynach to meet the Pembrokeshire Coast Path which is followed for 23 km (see the enlargement of the first header photo below)

view from Carn Llidi
The Pembrokeshire coast near St Davids:
The first day of the walk.

It then turns east, crosses the Preseli hills and makes for the Cambrian Way which is reached at Rhandirmwyn, north of Llandovery, after five days of undulating farming country and moorland culminating in a splendid and deserted area of high ground, Mynydd Mallaen.

The path then turns north and follows the general line of Sale's "A Cambrian Way" route, crossing unpopulated high ground, and reaching Strata Florida, a ruined Abbey with the grave of the Welsh poet, Dafydd ap Gwilym.

Plymlimon, Cader Idris and the Rhinogs are all traversed and the route passes through the central part of Snowdonia. Eventually Ogwen Cottage is reached, where the route turns towards the sea and makes for Bangor.

The Snowdon Horseshoe
The Snowdon Horseshoe:
The skyline may be followed as a good-weather alternative to Day 22

Unlike Drake's Cambrian Way, this walk is not a Challenge Walk with a list of check-points;  the route details sections  which follow split the journey into four gentle parts and, on several days, even offer alternatives, some suitable for bad-weather if the preferred routes are covered in low cloud, others avoiding possible rights of way difficulties. The route pages and accommodation page offer suggestions for coping with the logistics of a complete walk. But you will obviously use these suggestions as a starting point and will make your own plan to suit your own needs.

The link "an article" gives an account of a walk of the complete route by the author in 2010.

The route uniquely combines the Snowdonia and Pembrokeshire National Parks, giving an unrivalled variety of scenery without any very demanding days.

home | route summary | route map | route1details | route2details | route3details | route4details | an article | accommodation | equipment | photos | links