Fan Brycheiniog Hike Report

by Will Thompson

8 of SUMCs hikers met on Sunday 17th March for a walk up one of the picturesque ranges of the Brecon Beacons. 
After meeting and sorting out cars, we headed north into the Brecon Beacons up the sunny Swansea Valley. We arrived at the car park at the base of the mountains, having negotiated a small single road track with some hell-ish speed bumps.
A short walk up a gravel track took us to the beautiful lake of Llyn y Fan Fach. (There is a Welsh legend written about this called the ‘Lady of the Lake’, and is an interesting read.) The lake was vast and the water was bitterly cold unsurprisingly. From the viewpoint at the lake, the nearby mountain of Fan Brycheiniog could be seen with a dusting of snow from the early morning. Overall some amazing scenery!
After a food and water break staring out over the lake, we headed up the shoulder of the mountain onto the ridgeline leading to the summit. Sai used his drone here and got some great shots of the lake and the mountains.
We got to the summit cairn at 12/1, and had lunch at the top, all sitting low to avoid the cold wind. From here we luckily decided to not extend the walk to the nearby summit of Fan Brycheiniog, instead rushing back to the cars just as the sleet and rain came in for the rest of the day.
Overall a brilliant day out!