By Vicky · Published Oct. 21st, 2024
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This walk in Llanberis leads you to Dolbadarn Castle, the National Slate Museum and ends along the shores of Lake Padarn.
Location
The Llanberis Castle, Slate & Lake Walk starts from Dolbadarn Castle Parc Padarn Car Park. It costs £6 per day (cheaper than most other car parks in Llanberis).
Llanberis Castle, Slate & Lake Walking Map
Tips
- Although short, this walk involves quite a bit of uphill so be prepared!
- The National Slate Musuem is open 10am-5pm roughly March-November. Check the official website for details. It’s free to enter though donations are welcome.
- For refreshments, there’s a little cafe by the Slate Museum, or several more options a slight detour from this walking route in the centre of Llanberis.
- The map for this hike is the Ordnance Survey Map O17: Snowdon*.
- More nearby hikes will be coming soon!
Llanberis Castle, Slate & Lake Walking Route
Visiting Dolbadarn Castle
Dolbadarn Castle is a romantic castle ruin on the edge of Llanberis. It’s open all the time and free to enter. To get there, cross over the road from the car park and follow the footpath sign down the steps. It leads a short distance over a bridge, through the woods, and up to Llanberis Castle.
There’s one large, fairly intact tower, surrounded by ruined walls. You can climb the tower and there are great views of Lake Peris (one of the two lakes by Llanberis). On the opposite side of the lake you’ll see Dinorwig Slate Quarry – a filming location in House of the Dragon.
When you’ve explored Castle Dolbadarn, return the way you came to the road and turn right. You’ll cross a stream, then see the lake again on your right. At the mini roundabut, turn right then take the footpath up the stairs to the left just after the building.
Walking through Mining History
There’s now quite a lot of climb as you head up the hillside. You follow old slate mining tracks and there’s some interesting mining history along the way. When you reach a plateau near the top, make sure to head right to the Anglesey Barracks.
The Anglesey Barracks are old quarters used by workmen from the surrounding mines, opened around 1870. The rows of stone cottages look very cute today, but living conditions here for the working men were quite poor.
After exploring the stone ruins, return to the path and continue heading upwards. It’s almost the end of the uphill… Soon you’ll reach the top of Vivian Quarry, a great scar running down the landscape. There are great views from here of Llanberis below, the two lakes and Mount Snowdon.
A short distance later, take the next left leading steeply down near the edge of the quarry. You’ll pass some more old houses and every now and again with have another viewpoint of the quarry. When you reach the track at the bottom, turn left for a viewpoint of the little lake at the bottom of the quarry surrounded by vertical cliffs.
Welsh Slate Museum by Llanberis
Just after this viewpoint, a path leads down to the right and to the Welsh Slate Museum. This free museum (donations welcome) is well-designed with lots of places to visit and daily demonstrations of different aspects of slate mining. You could easily spend a few hours here to read all about everything, or just take 30 minutes to wander around.
Walking along Lake Padarn
When you’re ready, leave the museum and walk along the road towards Llanberis. At the end of the museum, just before the railway bridge, turn right on the path across the river. On the other side turn right again along the grassy track to reach the shores of Lake Padarn.
Follow the edge of the lake, then turn left before you reach the buildings. Head around the edge of the grassy area and back to the road. Turn left down the road by the little railway and you’ll reach the car park and the end of the Llanberis Castle, Slate & Lake Walk.