Henrhyd Falls (Welsh: ''Sgwd Henrhyd'') in 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 (range), Black Mountain ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, is the tallest waterfall in southern Wales with a drop of . It lies on

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

land, in the county of

Powys Powys (; ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county and Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county in Wales. It is named after the Kingdom of Powys which was a Welsh succession of states, successor state, petty kingdom and princi ...

. The nearest settlement to it is Coelbren, on the road between

Glynneath Glynneath ( cy, Glyn-nedd "valley of the River Neath"), also spelt ''Glyn-neath'' and ''Glyn Neath'', is a small town, community and electoral ward lying on the River Neath in the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It was formerly in th ...

and

Abercraf Abercraf ( en, Abercrave) is a village within the historic boundaries of the county of Brecknockshire, Wales, administered as part of the unitary authority of Powys, and in the community of Ystradgynlais. Between 1965 and 1991, the village was th ...

. Though not in the core of the area, it is considered by many to constitute a part of Wales' celebrated Waterfall Country.

Geology

The falls occur where the small river, the

Nant Llech The Nant Llech is a minor river in Powys, Wales and which lies wholly within the Brecon Beacons National Park. The name means 'slab stream', presumably in reference to the sandstones across which it runs. Its headwater streams, the Nant Llech Pell ...

() drops over the faulted edge of a hard sandstone known as the

Farewell Rock The Farewell Rock is the name given to a series of sandstones at the boundary of the Coal Measures with the underlying Marros Group in South Wales. Once thought to be a single sandstone, it is now accepted that the same name has been applied to se ...

which forms the top half of the rock face and which forms the base of the South Wales Coal Measures. Beneath this, and forming much of the recessed portion of the drop, is the Subcrenatum Sandstone separated from the Farewell Rock above by the ''Subcrenatum''

marine band Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

. Both the marine band and sandstone are part of the Bishopston Mudstone Formation included within the

Marros Group The Marros Group is the name given to a suite of rocks of Namurian age laid down during the Carboniferous Period in South Wales. These rocks were formerly known as the Millstone Grit Series but are now distinguished from the similar but geographi ...

, the modern name in South Wales for the assemblage of strata that was traditionally known as the Millstone Grit series. A stream gully between the descent path and the falls marks the line of the Henrhyd Fault which is responsible for the falls' presence.

Access

The waterfall is reached after a steep walk down into the valley from the car park established by the National Trust, and is a popular spot to visit. A further footpath leads steeply down to the falls on the opposite side of the valley from Heol Henrhyd, the road through Coelbren village. One of the area's most famous visitors was Sir

William Edmond Logan Sir William Edmond Logan, FRSE FRS FGS (20 April 1798 – 22 June 1875), was a Canadian-born geologist and the founder and first director of the Geological Survey of Canada. Life William Edmond Logan was born into a well-to-do Montreal family ...

(later head of the

Geological Survey of Canada The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC; french: Commission géologique du Canada (CGC)) is a Canadian federal government agency responsible for performing geological surveys of the country, developing Canada's natural resources and protecting the en ...

), who carried out detailed geological survey work in the area, discovering some 1.5 km down the valley from the foot of the falls the

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

trees which now stand outside

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

Museum.

References

External links

images of Henrhyd Falls and surrounding area on the Geograph website
{{Waterfalls of Wales Fforest Fawr Waterfalls of Powys Tourist attractions in Powys National Trust properties in Wales

Geology

Access

See also

References

External links