Llyn Tegid South

This is a one-way walk, 12 km / 7.4 miles, with about 5 hours allowed, running from Llanuwchllyn at the head of Llyn Tegid to the national park authority foreshore car park in Bala. It is graded moderate and follows the hills above the lake's southern shore rather than the waterline, so you get long views across open countryside and down onto the water for much of the way.

You start at the commemorative monument in Llanuwchllyn, honouring O.M. Edwards and his son Ifan ab Owen Edwards, whose work is bound up with Welsh-language culture and the founding of Urdd Gobaith Cymru. From there the walk goes through the village and over the Afon Twrch bridge, then leaves the road to climb toward Llechweddystrad farm. The middle section is a steady link of farm tracks and fields by Ty'n y Rhos and Ffridd Gymen, including a permissive path to Pantymarch that is not marked on standard maps, then on past Bryncocyn and Tŷ Cerrig, down to a river footbridge and across more fields.

After a forest road and a stretch of country road near Coed yr Allt, you climb through trees behind Pant yr Onnen, drop to another footbridge and climb Bryniau Goleu. The descent runs through bracken and fields past Graienyn to Gwesty Fach Ddeiliog, the Bala Lake Hotel. From there you cross fields and the Llyn Tegid Railway bridge by the platform, a nice moment on this narrow-gauge line that runs along the southern shore, before a road and a wide path bring you to the foreshore car park in Bala.

Expect steep or unsurfaced paths in open countryside, farm tracks, field crossings and several footbridges. The moderate grading assumes some countryside walking experience and reasonable fitness. Walking boots and waterproof layers are essential. There is no shortcut once you are committed to the middle section, so pace it accordingly.

Because this finishes in Bala rather than where you parked, plan the return before you set off. The finish car park has ample public transport options back to Llanuwchllyn, so check current services on the day and time your walk to suit them.

The route crosses working agricultural land, so this matters. Dogs may use public footpaths and open-access land, but on public rights of way they need close control, with a short lead near livestock or wildlife. On open-access land a 2 m lead is required from 1 March to 31 July. Gates, stiles and field boundaries come thick and fast, so a dog that walks calmly past sheep will have a far better day than one that does not.

The honest catch is length. This is a long day rather than a technical one, and the distance is the main barrier. If you are new to hill walking or unsure about several hours on uneven ground, choose a shorter walk first and save this one for when the distance sounds appealing rather than daunting.