Chwarel y Fan, a 679m mountain in the Black Mountains range, is the first summit on the 19m route above. It marks the highest point of quite a slim ridgeway from the South that would be a good way of walking this mountain – and a route I might do on a different day in better weather.

Chwarel y Fan
The gentle approach from the North. | Tamron Adaptall SP 24-48 @ 24mm, f11.
Chwarel y Fan
This is looking South, just past the cairn the ridgeway gets narrower and looks a good walk. | Tamron Adaptall SP 24-48 @ 24mm, f11.

The summit is marked by a good-sized, photogenic cairn and a good, well-walked, track in both directions is easy to walk and follow.

Chwarel y Fan
Summit cairn looking North. | Tamron Adaptall SP 24-48 @ 24mm, f11.

On a good day the views would be really impressive, making this mountain well worth a visit. It can be walked quite quickly from this car park if you wanted a quick up and down, but can also form part of shorter circular routes from this car park or the car park lower down.

Chwarel y Fan
The summit cairn looking South towards a ridgeway I will definitely come back to walk at some point. | Tamron Adaptall SP 24-48 @ 24mm, f11.
Chwarel y Fan
The ridgeway. | Tamron Adaptall SP 24-48 @ 24mm, f11.

On this route you walk back the way you came, heading North to Twyn Tal-y-cefn, along a much wider ridgeway on a gravel path.

The Black Mountains
A cairn marks the crossroad of footpaths, on this route you take all four paths from / to this cairn. | Tamron Adaptall SP 24-48 @ 24mm, f11.