Snowdonia National Park

   Snowdonia
   Snowdonia peaks
   Snowdonia farmland

Snowdonia National Park, or Eryri (Place of Eagles), is the largest of the National Parks in Wales, and second largest of all the national parks in England and Wales after the Lake District. It has 17 national nature reserves and 45 Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Archaeological remains from the Neolithic period, the Roman occupation and the Middle Ages survive, as well as the more recent industrial past of gold, lead and copper mining, and slate quarrying life - a journey through the town of Ffestiniog is a fascinating sight as the old slate mines and their mountains of millions of slate scree are still highly visible today.

The National Park covers 840 square miles of the most beautiful and unspoilt countryside in Wales. Twenty five miles wide, Snowdonia actually embraces 15 mountains over 3,000 ft. high, of which Snowdon, at 3,560ft, is the highest and gives its name to the Park.

The Park is rich in cultural heritage and natural beauty, and there is a whole array of wildlife including deer, wild ponies, polecats, kites and peregrine falcons. Other than the mountains, the Park also offers lakes, three estuaries, miles of coastline, vast forests with ancient oaks, rugged highlands and quiet valleys, as well as ruined castles and druid circles.

• Other than Snowdon, there's the Carneddau Range which includes a number of mountains over 3000 ft

• The high moorland between Conwy Bay and the Vale of Conwy is an area of prehistoric sites and Roman roads and remains 

• Gwydir Forest merges into the wild country of mountains and lakes

• Moelwyns and Siabod Range contain the great Stwlan dam and reservoir. 

• The Arenig Range is an isolated and barren range  with lonely hillroads and Bala Lake

• Coed-y-Brenin is a forest centre and includes a lovely valley with streams and waterfalls

• Cader Idris, second only to Snowdon in popularity, is the southernmost point of the Park, again with lovely valleys and the Talyllyn Railway

• Llanberis Lake railway runs along the shore of Llyn Padarn with the main station located in the Padarn Country Park. There are fantastic views across the valley which includes unspoilt woodland and a number of attractions on the history of the slate industry here - the trains used on the line are the same ones once used on the Dinorwic Quarries, where they hauled slate wagons around the quarries

• A modern engineering feat, Electric Mountain is a massive hydroelectric power station built inside one of the Snowdonia mountains with 6 miles of tunnels carrying roads and water. The main turbine and generator chamber is said to be the largest underground chamber ever excavated by man.

• Llanberis Slatemines is where commercial quarrying first started - railways worked by dozens of small steam locomotives carried the slate from Dinorwic to the sea. The quarry closed in 1969 and is now a major tourist attraction. Three thousand men once worked the quarries, and the railway, Padarn Country Park and the National Slate Museum all pay homage to those who worked there - the quarry workings have removed much of the side of Elidir Mountain

• The coastline is mostly coastal flats, sandy beaches and estuaries, within sight of the high moorland and mountains, and includes Harlech Castle

Fiercely proud, an estimated 65% of the Parks inhabitants speak Welsh, the language of their choice in everyday conversation, commerce, business and government.

There are a number of cycle trails, tracks and quiet roads in Snowdonia should you decide to linger. The many visitor information centres can give you more information on cycle ways and attractions within the Park.