Arenig Fawr ( en, Great High Ground) is a
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...
in
Snowdonia
Snowdonia or Eryri (), is a mountainous region in northwestern Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three national parks in Wales, in 1951.
Name and extent
It was a commonly held belief that the nam ...
,
North Wales
, area_land_km2 = 6,172
, postal_code_type = Postcode
, postal_code = LL, CH, SY
, image_map1 = Wales North Wales locator map.svg
, map_caption1 = Six principal areas of Wales common ...
, close to
Llyn Celyn
Llyn Celyn () is a reservoir constructed between 1960 and 1965 in the valley of the River Tryweryn in Gwynedd, Wales. It measures roughly long by wide, and has a maximum depth of . It has the capacity to hold of water.
It was originally ...
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
, alongside the
A4212 between
Trawsfynydd
Trawsfynydd (; Welsh for "across hemountain") is a linear village in Gwynedd, Wales, near Llyn Trawsfynydd reservoir, and adjacent to the A470 north of Bronaber and Dolgellau and 10 km (6 miles) south of Blaenau Ffestiniog.
The total com ...
and
Bala.
Location
Arenig Fawr is the highest member of the
Arenig
In geology, the Arenig (or Arenigian) is a time interval during the Ordovician period and also the suite of rocks which were deposited during this interval.
History
The term was first used by Adam Sedgwick in 1847 with reference to the "Areni ...
range, with
Arenig Fach
Arenig Fach is a mountain in southern Snowdonia, north Wales. It is a peak in the Arenig range and lies to the north of its parent peak Arenig Fawr.
It lies close to Llyn Celyn alongside the A4212 between Trawsfynydd and Bala. Carnedd y Fili ...
( en, Small High Ground), a smaller neighbouring mountain, lying to the north. It is surrounded by
Moel Llyfnant
Moel Llyfnant is a mountain in the southern portion of the Snowdonia National Park in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a peak in the Arenig mountain range. It lies to the west of Arenig Fawr. It has one notable top, the twin peaked Gallt y Daren, being ...
to the west,
Rhobell Fawr
Rhobell Fawr is the site of an ancient volcano that was active during the Early Ordovician period in the Arenig range within the Snowdonia National Park.
Despite its modest height of 734 m (2,408 feet), it is a mountain with views ...
to the south and
Mynydd Nodol
Mynydd Nodol is a 539m high hill in Snowdonia National Park and lying within the community of Llanycil in the county of Gwynedd in North Wales. It rises above the southern shores of the reservoir Llyn Celyn about 4 km northeast of its high ...
to the east.
Ascent
The easy-to-moderate climb to the summit takes about 2½ hours from Llyn Celyn. There are no readily identifiable footpaths but the route is marked by an old wire boundary fence. Beneath the mountain is
Llyn Arenig Fawr
Llyn Arenig Fawr is a lake and reservoir located near the summit of Arenig Fawr, a mountain in North Wales.
The lake's primary purpose is to supply water to the nearby town of Bala and the numerous small villages in the surrounding area. From t ...
, a
reservoir
A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation.
Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...
providing drinking water to
Bala and the surrounding villages.
The summit, which is also known as Moel yr Eglwys ( en, Bare hill of the church), has a
trig point
A triangulation station, also known as a trigonometrical point, and sometimes informally as a trig, is a fixed surveying station, used in geodetic surveying and other surveying projects in its vicinity. The nomenclature varies regionally: they a ...
and a memorial to eight American aircrew who died when their
Flying Fortress
The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...
bomber
A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...
B-17F #42-3124 crashed on 4 August 1943. Some of the crash wreckage is still scattered across the hillside 300 m (330 yds) from the memorial location.
From the summit, with good weather conditions, it is possible to see several notable Welsh mountain ranges: the
Rhinogs in the west,
Snowdon
Snowdon () or (), is the highest mountain in Wales, at an elevation of above sea level, and the highest point in the British Isles outside the Scottish Highlands. It is located in Snowdonia National Park (') in Gwynedd (historic ...
to the northwest, the
Clwydian Hills in the northeast, east to the
Berwyns, south east to the
Aran
Aran m
Places Azerbaijan
Villages and municipalities:
* Aran, Aghjabadi
* Aran, Lerik
* Aran, Shaki
* Aran, Tovuz
* Aran, Yevlakh
Iran
* Aran, Alborz, a village in Alborz Province
* Aran, Nain, a village in Isfahan Province
* Aran, K ...
s, and southward to
Cadair Idris
Cadair Idris or Cader Idris is a mountain in the Meirionnydd area of Gwynedd, Wales. It lies at the southern end of the Snowdonia National Park near the town of Dolgellau. The peak, which is one of the most popular in Wales for walkers and hiker ...
. It is one of the finest panoramas in Wales. In exceptional conditions the
Wicklow Mountains
The Wicklow Mountains (, archaic: ''Cualu'') form the largest continuous upland area in the Republic of Ireland. They occupy the whole centre of County Wicklow and stretch outside its borders into the counties of Dublin, Wexford and Carlow. Wh ...
in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
, the
Blackpool Tower
Blackpool Tower is a tourist attraction in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which was opened to the public on 14 May 1894. When it opened, Blackpool Tower was the List of tallest buildings in the British Empire and the Commonwealth, tallest man m ...
, summits of the
Peak District
The Peak District is an upland area in England at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southe ...
above
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, the
Lake District
The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or ''fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...
, and the
Brecon Beacons can also be seen. The furthest peaks visible in perfect conditions are
Cross Fell
Cross Fell is the highest mountain in the Pennines of Northern England and the highest point in England outside the Lake District. It is located in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It lies within the county of Cumbria and ...
and
Great Dun Fell
At a height of , Great Dun Fell is the second-highest mountain in England's Pennines, lying south along the watershed from Cross Fell, its higher neighbour. Together with its smaller twin, Little Dun Fell, which reaches , it forms a steppin ...
in the far east of
Cumbria
Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...
,
Slieve Muck
Slieve Muck ( ; ) is one of the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Northern Ireland. It has a height of . The River Bann has its source on the northern slope.
Slieve Muck has three summits which are composed of Silurian shale covering the underlyi ...
,
Slieve Binnian
Slieve Binnian () is one of the Mourne Mountains in County Down, Northern Ireland, 9 km north of Kilkeel. It is the third-highest mountain in Northern Ireland at . The summit is broad and flat with rocky tors at the north and south ends, wi ...
and
Slieve Meelbeg
Slieve Meelbeg is a mountain located in the Mourne Mountains
The Mourne Mountains ( ; ga, Beanna Boirche), also called the Mournes or Mountains of Mourne, are a granite mountain range in County Down in the south-east of Northern Ireland. ...
in the
Mourne Mountains
The Mourne Mountains ( ; ga, Beanna Boirche), also called the Mournes or Mountains of Mourne, are a granite mountain range in County Down in the south-east of Northern Ireland. They include the highest mountains in Northern Ireland, the high ...
of
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, and
Blackstairs Mountain
Blackstairs Mountain () in southern Leinster, is the second-highest mountain in the Blackstairs Mountains.The mountain stretches from Rathgeran to Gowlin at Cathaoirs Den
See also
*List of mountains in Ireland
In these lists of mountains ...
on the
County Carlow
County Carlow ( ; ga, Contae Cheatharlach) is a county located in the South-East Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. Carlow is the second smallest and the third least populous of Ireland's 32 traditional counties. Carlow Cou ...
/
County Wexford
County Wexford ( ga, Contae Loch Garman) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Southern Region. Named after the town of Wexford, it was based on the historic Gaelic territory of Hy Kinsella (''Uí Ceinns ...
border in the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...
.
Railway
Arenig
In geology, the Arenig (or Arenigian) is a time interval during the Ordovician period and also the suite of rocks which were deposited during this interval.
History
The term was first used by Adam Sedgwick in 1847 with reference to the "Areni ...
Halt was a request stop on the
Bala Ffestiniog Line
The Bala and Festiniog Railway was a , standard gauge, railway backed by the Great Western Railway (GWR) in north-west Wales. It connected Bala with Blaenau Ffestiniog.
History
The railway originally connected Bala with Llan Ffestiniog ...
. It closed to passenger services on 2 January 1960 and freight services on 27 January 1961. The remains of the station buildings have been cleared away leaving no trace.
Art and literature
Artists
James Dickson Innes
James Dickson Innes (27 February 1887 – 22 August 1914) was a British painter, mainly of mountain landscapes but occasionally of figure subjects. He worked in both oils and watercolours.
Style
Of his style, art historian David Fraser Jenkins ...
and
Augustus John
Augustus Edwin John (4 January 1878 – 31 October 1961) was a Welsh painter, draughtsman, and etcher. For a time he was considered the most important artist at work in Britain: Virginia Woolf remarked that by 1908 the era of John Singer Sarg ...
used the mountain as a backdrop during their two years of painting in the Arenig valley between 1911 and 1912. In 2011 their work was the subject of a
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
documentary entitled ''The Mountain That Had to Be Painted''.
, the home of 'old Timon', Prince Arthur's sage foster-father, "is low in a valley greene, Under the foot of Rauran mossy hore". Welsh historian
(1578), which places ‘Rarau uaure Hill’ (Yr Aran Fawr) where Arenig should be".
A boulder at a crossroads in the hamlet of Bell Heath, near
, in England, has a brass plaque attached to it stating "Boulder from Arenig Mountain in N. Wales, Brought here by the Welsh Ice-sheet in the Glacial Period".