Parking
Start at Pont Ty'n-y-groes car park, signed from the A470 near the Tyn y Groes Hotel with brown tourist signs for Ty'n y Groes. Free parking, accessible spaces, toilets and a picnic area are at the start; overnight parking is not permitted.
Overview
About The King’s Guards Trail
Why go
- Flat, wide surfaced path with frequent resting points
- Giant Douglas firs and riverside scenery arrive quickly
Heads up
- Very short route with limited variety
- Wet weather can make the path slick
Map & elevation
The route
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Eryri Tour Guide
Your drive to The King’s Guards Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Eryri National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
Recorded for this trailhead
The King's Guards at Pont Ty'n-y-groes0:00 / 0:26
“You're coming up on Pont Ty'n-y-groes, where a short path leads to Coed y Brenin's biggest Douglas firs. The blue King's Guards loop follows the Mawddach to a giant called the King, then returns in about fifteen minutes.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Eryri Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Glasdir Copper Trail
- Rhaeadr Ddu at Ganllwyd
- The Tails in the Fir Cones
- The Oil Trick at Glasdir
- 298 audio storiesacross Eryri’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Grey Heron, Tawny Owl, Common Raven, and 9 more
- Works offlinemaps, 120 trails, 82 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Trail guide
Hiking The King’s Guards Trail
The walk in shortAn accessible waymarked loop of 0.5 miles / 0.
An accessible waymarked loop of 0.5 miles / 0.8 km in total, taking about 15 minutes at an easy pace. The route is graded Accessible and is mainly level, so it works well as a short leg stretch, a family outing, or a first taste of Coed y Brenin rather than a half day walk.
The routeFollow the blue waymarkers from Pont Ty'n-y-groes car park.
Follow the blue waymarkers from Pont Ty'n-y-groes car park. The path runs beside the Afon Mawddach, crosses the grassy picnic area, then turns into the stand of Douglas firs to reach the tree known as the King before looping back to the car park. There is only one real objective here, and the trees are it.
What you seeThe magnificent Douglas firs, the biggest trees in Coed y Brenin
- The magnificent Douglas firs, the biggest trees in Coed y Brenin
- The King, the named giant at the far point of the loop
- Riverside and picnic area views close to the start, with benches along the way
Surface and access underfootThe route is well surfaced and about 2 m wide, described by the forest managers as suitable for…
The route is well surfaced and about 2 m wide, described by the forest managers as suitable for wheelchairs. There are no steps or stiles, and resting points appear at least every 100 m. Tree cover and the river mean the surface can be damp or slick after rain, so sensible footwear helps.
Parking and facilitiesStart from Pont Ty'n-y-groes car park, signed from the A470 near the Tyn y Groes Hotel with…
Start from Pont Ty'n-y-groes car park, signed from the A470 near the Tyn y Groes Hotel with brown tourist signs for Ty'n y Groes. Parking is free, with accessible parking spaces. Toilets, including accessible toilets, are at the car park. Overnight parking is not permitted.
DogsDogs are generally welcome on public footpaths and open access land in Eryri when kept under…
Dogs are generally welcome on public footpaths and open access land in Eryri when kept under close control. Use a short lead near livestock, wildlife, picnickers and other visitors, and clear up after your dog.
If you want a longer walkThe yellow waymarked King's Champion Trail sets off from the same car park and continues past…
The yellow waymarked King's Champion Trail sets off from the same car park and continues past the King to the tallest tree and a commemorative stone. It is longer and includes steeper ground, so it suits walkers who want more than a short accessible loop.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Eryri
77 sightingsGrey HeronMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
17 sightingsTawny OwlMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
32 sightingsCommon RavenMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
21 sightingsGreat Spotted WoodpeckerMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
18 sightingsEuropean RabbitMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
161 sightingsViviparous LizardMost seen around 10 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Eryri. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
