Banc y Cwm from Banc Rhoswydol

Tuesday: I have been using 1:25,000 Ordnance survey maps until Plynlimon but had been only been able to buy the 1:50000 for further north. Well that's my excuse for getting navigation wrong twice today! The first time came no more than 150 yards after my start from the Star Inn where I missed a left turn. This only put me 150 yards East of my route but it confused me enough that half a mile further on I was walking further and further west of the route. I eventually succumbed to using the 1:25,000 Ordnance Survey maps on my mobile device, overlain with the Cambrian way route and a position indicator. This got me back on course at a cost of a mile and a half of extra walking.

There has been lots of slate in the area I've been walking for the last few days. Many of the paths have been over slate, and I have passed numerous small quarries. The attached Banc y Cwm photograph 3 miles into the day illustrates this well. The two streams are shiny, reflecting the fact that they are flowing over exposed slate.Read more