The Afon Llia is a short

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

Powys Powys (; ) is a county and preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh successor state, petty kingdom and principality that emerged during the Middle Ages following the end of Roman rule in Britain. Geog ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, and which is wholly contained within the

Brecon Beacons National Park The Brecon Beacons National Park ( cy, Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog) is one of three national parks in Wales, and is centred on the Brecon Beacons range of hills in southern Wales. It includes the Black Mountain ( cy, Y Mynydd Du) i ...

. Several streams draining the eastern slopes of Fan Nedd and the western slopes of

Fan Dringarth Fan Llia is a subsidiary summit of Fan Fawr in the Fforest Fawr section of the Brecon Beacons National Park, Wales. In common with other peaks in the Fforest Fawr uplands it lies within the county of Powys. The hill has the form of a broad ridge ...

in the

Fforest Fawr Fforest Fawr is an extensive upland area in the county of Powys, Wales. Formerly known as the Great Forest of Brecknock in English, it was a royal hunting area for several centuries but is now used primarily for sheep grazing, forestry, water cat ...

section of the national park meet to form the river, which then flows southwards for to its confluence with the

Afon Dringarth The Afon Dringarth (or simply ''Tringarth'') is a river in Powys, Wales and wholly contained within the Brecon Beacons National Park. Its headwater streams drain the eastern slopes of Fan Dringarth (which is probably named after the river), the ...

, the combined waters continuing south as the

Afon Mellte Afon Mellte or the River Mellte is a river in south Wales. It is formed by the confluence of the Afon Llia and the Afon Dringarth. It then flows south through the village of Ystradfellte to Pontneddfechan where it joins with the Nedd Fechan ...

. The name probably derives from the Welsh root ''lly–'' found in ''llyfu, llyo'' ('lick, lap') but it has probably been influenced by the local pronunciation of ''lleiaf'' ('smallest'). The river flows over ground formed from

Old Red Sandstone The Old Red Sandstone is an assemblage of rocks in the North Atlantic region largely of Devonian age. It extends in the east across Great Britain, Ireland and Norway, and in the west along the northeastern seaboard of North America. It also exte ...

rocks laid down during the

Devonian period The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, w ...

. The valley was inundated by ice during the last glacial period as evidenced by the low mounds of moraine present in the valley and through which the river has since cut.

Historical route

The valley of the Llia provides one of the lower passes—summit height —through the

escarpment which stretches from

Llandeilo Llandeilo () is a town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, situated at the crossing of the River Towy by the A483 on a 19th-century stone bridge. Its population was 1,795 at the 2011 Census. It is adjacent to the westernmost point of the ...

east to Abergavenny. The presence of a standing stone, Maen Llia, presumed to date from the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

near the valley head suggests that it has been used as an

ancient trackway Historic roads (historic trails in USA and Canada) are paths or routes that have historical importance due to their use over a period of time. Examples exist from prehistoric times until the early 20th century. They include ancient trackways ...

route for several thousand years. The

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

constructed a Roman road,

Sarn Helen Sarn Helen refers to several stretches of Roman road in Wales. The route, which follows a meandering course through central Wales, connects Aberconwy in the north with Carmarthen in the west. Despite its length, academic debate continues as t ...

, between Neath and

Brecon Brecon (; cy, Aberhonddu; ), archaically known as Brecknock, is a market town in Powys, mid Wales. In 1841, it had a population of 5,701. The population in 2001 was 7,901, increasing to 8,250 at the 2011 census. Historically it was the coun ...

through this valley and the Swansea to Brecon

turnpike Turnpike often refers to: * A type of gate, another word for a turnstile * In the United States, a toll road Turnpike may also refer to: Roads United Kingdom * A turnpike road, a principal road maintained by a turnpike trust, a body with powers ...

was pushed through here in the 19th century. The remains of "Castell Coch" (the "red castle") sit in the fork between the Llia and the neighbouring Afon Dringarth.Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales site
/ref> There is a car park and picnic area provided by the

Natural Resources Wales Natural Resources Wales ( cy, Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru) is a Welsh Government sponsored body, which became operational from 1 April 2013, when it took over the management of the natural resources of Wales. It was formed from a merger of the Coun ...

at Blaen Llia beside the river which provides a useful base for walkers wanting to explore the river, its valley and the adjacent peaks.

External links

Images of Afon Llia and area on Geograph website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Llia Afon Llia Rivers of the Brecon Beacons National Park Rivers of Powys