The Elan Valley
- the Lake District of Wales
With
its huge reservoirs, massive stone dams, rambling country walks, forestry and
magnificent scenery of steep wooded hills mirrored and shimmering on the
surfaces of these great lakes, the Elan Valley has justifiably earned itself the
title of 'The Lake District of Wales'.
The Elan Valley reservoirs are indisputably the most scenic in Wales. Massive dams hold back millions of gallons of water, flanked each side with hills and mountains while the aesthetic dam walls themselves were designed not only to be functional but highly photogenic adorned with several architectural embellishments in marked contrast to the industrial blandness of some more recent reservoirs. An example of this is the Claerwen dam which is constructed from concrete but, in order to blend with the older dams, has been faced with hand-chiseled stone.
Although
the primary function of the reservoirs were constructed between 1892 and 1903 to
supply water to Birmingham 73 miles away, they were both designed as and have
become visitor attractions drawing a steady and growing flow of visitors, firmly
establishing the Elan Valley and Rhayader on the tourism map of mid-Wales. The
dams are clearly practical and functional but are also deliberately picturesque,
particularly Penygarreg Dam with its centrally positioned valve tower and the
matching ‘Birmingham Baroque’ styling of the other towers on Craig Goch and
the Foel Tower on Garreg Ddu. Engineer, Mansergh, designed the dams so that, to
quote his words: "when more than full water will overflow from all the
reservoirs in picturesque cascades down the faces of the dams" and Caban
Coch Dam has been designed so that, during high water levels it will form, to
quote Mansergh again, "probably the finest waterfall in this country".
As
a result, the Elan Valley is often referred to as the 'Lake District of Wales'
and with it six reservoirs flanked by picturesque stone dams, is one of the most
scenic areas of mid-Wales set within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The
area, owned by Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water) stretches over 45,000 acres with most of
the upland areas in the care of the Elan Valley Trust. The charity strives to
protect the landscape and wildlife of the area while also encouraging public
access, recreation and education on the estate. During the late spring to early
autumn a Visitor Centre with display areas, shop and refreshments is open to
visitors on the edge of Elan village.
The Elan Valley is a pleasure to visit at any time of year with young lambs in the spring, blue skies reflected in the reservoir waters during the summer, rich autumnal shades, winter snow and water cascading over the dams in winter.
Guides Available:
Elan Valley Photographic Journey
above: sample images from the Elan Valley Photographic Journey
Includes high resolution images of the Elan Valley dams, reservoirs, valve towers; Claerwen Valley and its reservoirs and dams plus local landscapes
250 pages
Also includes unique video of interior of Penygarreg Dam
- Two bonus video clips will be included with the Photographic Journey on DVD.
Available on DVD to view on your computer with all software included.
Elan Valley Slideshow
The DVD slideshow includes more than 230 images of the Elan Valley area including
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the reservoirs |
|
the dams |
|
Elan Village |
|
Pont ar Elan |
| Bonus video clip included - walk through the Pen-y-Garreg dam |
The DVD can be supplied in PAL or NTSC format.
The slideshow is available on DVD to play on a DVD player connected to your television or as a Video CD.
Perfect gifts or holiday souvenirs!
Please click HERE to order your copies.
Please see the Order Form page and our Terms and Conditions for further information.