Sample Route

Starting from the little car park, trundle back down the road for a few yards then turn left through a gate with a sign for the 'Panorama Walk'. Follow the track around a rocky little hill and into a wood. Go through a gate and then continue straight on down the track (don't turn right through another 'Panorama Walk' gate). Take it gently down here, watching out for walkers. Follow the track all the way down through the wood and continue straight on downwards when you emerge onto a small road. Turn left at the bottom, past some impressive looking gardens, and then, just before meeting the main road, turn left up another minor road. Follow this road steadily upwards for 1.5miles (2.5km). Eventually the tarmac ends and you continue straight on along a grassy track between a wall and a forest. Follow the track along the forest edge and then bear right into a field at the end. Continue along the clearly visible track into another field, through a small ford and then up to a track junction.

Turn right and follow the well defined track past the top of the forest and around the hillside, going through various gates. After a mile (1.5km) you pass a ruined barn. Continue through the next two gates, then as you start to zigzag down a slope look for a standing stone beside the track. Turn sharp left here onto the old London to Harlech Coach Road. (The stone has the distances to Harlech and Talybont carved onto its sides). 'Coach Road' is a deceptively grand title for this narrow track. It must have been a serious challenge to get a stagecoach up it.

Follow the track up beside the wall to an old iron gate with a walled green lane beyond. Ride up the lane and continue along the track beyond. Pass a gate and stile (standing on their own - with no fence or wall!) And then go straight on along a grassy path where the more obvious track swings away to the left. Climb steadily up the slope, following the wall on your left. After passing through a couple of gates you find yourself with a clear stretch of wall heading straight up the hill in front of you. Continue upwards for 300 yards, bearing left to a gate. Go through and continue up hill to a grassy path that zigzags up the slope, then swings away to the left. Cutting across the hillside, it climbs steadily to take you to the top of the pass.

When you reach the top of the ridge you're greeted by a superb view - with mountains on your right and the coast stretching away to the Lleyn Peninsula on your left. Immediately in front of you the track dips away out of sight - downwards. A bit of gravity assisted travel is well deserved after so much climbing, and the 800ft (250m) drop over 1.25 miles (2km) is unlikely disappoint. Watch out for rocky sections on the way down, and the final section before the bridge can be boggy (theres a narrow boardwalk which will seriously challenge your sense of balance if you try to ride it!).

The old stone bridge at Pont Scethin has an amazing timeless feel about it, sitting in a bleak landscape of mountains and hills, totally unspoilt by signs of modern life. Beyond the bridge follow the track, climbing gently for 0.5mile (0.75km) until you reach a junction with another track. Turn left onto what becomes a smooth, fast 2 mile (3km) descent (with a few gates). When you finally reach tarmac turn immediately left, through another gate, and follow the little road through an area of gorsey scrubland. Look out for the rocky remains of a prehistoric burial chamber amongst the bushes on the right of the road. After 0.5mile (0.75km) you drop down, through a gate, to the old stone bridge of Pont Fadog. Continue along the narrow road until it ends at another gate. The group of old Scots Pines here was probably planted as a kind of early inn sign - advertising a nearby resting place for drovers crossing the mountains.

Go through the gate, turning right and then going straight on where the track forks after a few yards. Follow the track up through a series of fields (where the farmer seems to be growing an impressive crop of rocks!). The track climbs gently in a fairly straight line for 1.5miles (2.5km), heading towards a small notch on the skyline. For the final 300ft (100m) of height gain the track steepens to become a bottom gear grind up the craggy hillside.

As you reach the top of the pass a fantastic view suddenly appears in front of you - across the Mawddach Estuary to the dramatic cliffs and crags of Cadair Idris. This is a great place to sit and rest, soak up the scenery and bask in the warm glow that comes from knowing that from here its downhill nearly all the way back to the start - over 3miles (5km) of descent! Start the descent on the little path swinging away to the left down the hill. (Warp speed downhillers beware - this track starts smooth and fast but there are some very steep, sharp hairpin bends further down. Go through a gate halfway down and drop down through more zigzags until you reach a clear track just before a gate. Turn right, then right again onto another track. A short, gentle rise takes you to a gate and then you're onto a smooth fast 1 mile (1.5km) cruise, eventually taking you back onto tarmac by a farm. Take care on the narrow road descent as you zoom back down to the start.