Distance: 5.5 miles                          Time: 2 hours                         Type: There and back

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Starting from Pen-y-pass, the walk to Llyn Llydaw follows the Miners' Track, the most popular route to Snowdon's summit. It's a perfect shorter hike if you are limited on time or a satisfying walk in itself if a planned hike of Snowdon has to be abandoned due to bad weather. It starts from the car park near the pass: from here you can either look down into the Gwynant valley or take a short walk for the beautiful and rugged view back into the Pass of Llanberis. 

 

The path to Llydaw is fairly flat and wide, winding away from the pass and around soft hills toward the lake. It passes a water pipe which supplies a hydro-electric power plant in the Gwynant valley, which is in fact the oldest power station in the UK. You also pass Llyn Teym and the old Miners Barracks - an atmospheric spot.

 

On the banks of Llydaw there is the Britannia Cooper Mine, an abandoned crushing mill, and rough mountain peaks provide a dramatic backdrop. There is a causeway across the lake to access the mine and to continue the hike up to Snowdon past Llyn Glaslyn. If the weather is clear, the summit is visible from the lake. If you are not intending on climbing Snowdon, you can return to the car park by the same path.

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