Elan Valley Dams & Reservoirs

Check the estate website for the visitor centre opening hours.

There are plenty of spots to picnic. Our favourite would be next to the Pont Ar Elan bridge at the top of the Craig Goch reservoir. There are picnic benches overlooking the Elan river and the view of the valley can only be described as sublime.

It’s probably best to avoid picnicking near the dams because the falling water sprays into the air when they are flowing.

If you are arriving by public transport, head for Rhayader. The town no longer has a railway station; however, you can catch a train to Llandrindod Wells and then take a 30 min bus journey to Rhayader. There are bus services from Rhayader to Elan Village, which is where the visitors centre is located. Check out Traveline Cymru for travel info. You can always catch a taxi from Rhayader or Llandrindod Wells as an alternative option.

If you are visiting by car or coach, head straight for the visitors centre where you will be required to pay a parking charge.

Check the estate website for the latest information about parking charges.

Elan Valley is an environment rich with wildlife. For more info on what to see, visit the website. You may encounter livestock when driving such as Highland Cows. Be sure to slow down to a crawling pace when driving past them.

• Visitors centre
• Craig Goch car park
• Claerwen car park
• Penbont House near the Pen-y-Garreg car park

You can easily park in the adjacent car park on the northern bank of the dam. Here you’ll see the landscape scars left over from the Craig Gigfran quarry, which was one of two that supplied local stone for construction.

There’s a viewing platform next to the car park that offers a superb view of the water flowing over the dam (unless you are visiting during the dry season). You’ll see a pathway leading down to an arched bridge below that connects the two powerhouses. This is a great spot to enjoy the falling water and snap some awesome photos. Be mindful to wear a waterproof because of the spray from the dam.

Caban Coch is a masonry dam with heavily rock-faced blocks. There are spillways with walls, which broaden as they drop and curve to become parallel with the river. When the dam is not flowing, you can see two rows of protruding blocks that were used to support scaffolding during construction. At the bottom of the dam, there are two circular outlets with a keyblock set in surrounds with piers to each end and a pyramidal pediment with tumbled blocks. Each end of the dam contains a platform with gigantic capstones worked to resemble natural rock [4].

The car park is located on the south-western bank of the dam. Follow the south-east road and you’ll find a path leading up to the Nantgwyllt Church, which was built to replace an original that was flooded by the reservoir. The view from the church is stunning and a great place to photo the dam and Foel Tower in the distance. You may wish to visit the church if it’s open. It features the bell and lanterns from the original church before it was demolished to make way for the reservoir.

Walk across the dam for more beautiful views of the valley. You can then head across to see the Foel Tower, be mindful of vehicles when walking the roads.

Please note the dimensions above were taken from an unofficial source as we have yet to find verified information.

Garreg-Ddu consists of a rock-faced brown stone viaduct resting on a submerged dam. There are five narrow arches to the north-east and seven broader elliptical arches in the centre. The parapet consists of large rock-hewn capstones to each end [5].

The car park is a ten-minute walk from the dam next to an arched bridge near Penbont House. Walk along the river to the base of the dam where you will get a magnificent view of the dam outlet close-up and hear the roaring thunder of water as it gushes down. There are steps to the left, which will take you up to the viewing platform south of the dam.

The dam wall and spillway of Pen-y-Garreg is very similar to Caban Coch. There are some differences, for example, at the bottom of the dam, there is only one circular outlet with a key block set in an aedicule-like surround with piers to each end and a pediment. There are also platforms at each end of the dam with steps leading down to the river. At the centre of the dam is an octagonal valve tower with a copper dome containing waterspouts around its circumference. The dome is adorned with a lantern and fish weathervane. The interior is said to contain original operating machinery [6].

Park up on the east side of the dam then walk across to enjoy the detail of its valve tower, the ornate arched viaduct, and the stunning views of the Elan Valley in all its glory. Be mindful of vehicles when crossing the dam and use the refuges where possible.

You can also walk past the gate and follow the road down to the river at the bottom for a close-up view of the dam. There are toilets next to the car park.

Craig Goch is a curved masonry dam with heavily rock-faced blocks. The spillways are similar to those on the Caban Coch and Pen-y-Garreg dams. The Craig Goch supports a viaduct on 13 arches that carry the roadway. The viaduct features contrasting rock-faced and smoother stone with piers supporting segmental arches containing keystones and a parapet with coping and heavy rock-faced capstones. There is a band course at road level and polygonal refuges three arches from each end. The dam also has an attached polygonal valve tower very much like the Pen-y-Garreg [7].

Unlike the other dams, the Doly-y-Mynach does not have dedicated car parking. It is the least accessible out of all the dams and requires a 10-minute trek through woodland to reach. There are two spots to park near the access gate, refer to our map at the top for more info.

Once you enter the gate, follow the path down to the reservoir bank, you’ll end up walking past the Doly-y-Mynach tower, which controls the flow of water into a tunnel that feeds into the Garreg-Ddu reservoir to the north. The Doly-y-Mynach cannot be crossed by foot and is unique because it offers visitors a view of its core in between the outer faces of masonry [8].

Park up in the car park at the foot of the dam. Here you can take in the sights of the Claerwen Valley and walk along the river. Afterwards, drive or walk up to the top of the dam. If driving, you’ll need to head back down the road you came from and turn left at the first junction, which will take you to a small car park next to the top of the dam.

The view from the top is stunning, especially when the dam in flowing. Walk across the dam to the central viewing platform where you can witness the sheer scale of this structure and the reservoir. Continue walking to the western viewing platform, where you will experience the best views of the valley.

Claerwen is a concrete dam with a masonry face so it blends in with the historical look of the other dams. Claerwen supports a viaduct that carries the roadway on 13 elliptical arches with stone parapets. The central arch is broader to support the viewing platform, which features a balustrade.

The end piers of the platform run down the full height of the dam framing a stepped spillway. At foot of this, there are two buttresses with doorways that are linked by bridges over a pool. There are stepped spillways with parapet walls at each end of the dam. The spillways broaden as they drop and their walls turn to frame the channel at the foot of the dam, which is spanned by a stone bridge of two segmental arches with iron railings [9].

This round valve tower was constructed using brown rock-faced stone. The upper stage has a copper dome with a weathervane, seven round-arched windows, and a doorway onto a bridge connecting the tower to land.

The bridge has an elliptical arch and parapet, which continues round the broader lower stage of the tower. The lower part of the tower, which is submerged when the reservoir is full contains two tiers of barred round-headed intake windows. The interior is said to contain original operating machinery [10].