Glyder Fach

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Glyder Fach
Caernarfonshire

Glyder Fach from Gallt yr Ogof
Range: Snowdonia
Summit: 3,261 feet SH656583
53°6’18"N, 4°-0’33"W

Glyder Fach is a mountain in Snowdonia, in Caernarfonshire. It is the second highest of the Glyderau and the sixth highest in Wales.

Routes to the summit lead from Tryfan and Bristly Ridge to the north, by way of Glyder Fawr from Pen-y-Pass to the south, and along the Glyder ridge to the east, towards Capel Curig. It is a popular spot for climbers.

The name "Glyder Fach" means "Little Glyder", though the mountain is not little by any standard but comparison with its big sister, Glyder Fawr. According to Sir Ifor Williams, the word "Glyder" derives from the Welsh word "Gludair", meaning a heap of stones.

Features

The Cantilever Stone

The Cantilever Stone
Flying Buttress, a popular climbing route

Standing near the summit is the Cantilever Stone, a large rock which from the correct angle appears to be precariously balanced, making it a popular place for photographs.

Castell y Gwint

Main article: Castell y Gwint

Another notable feature, west of the summit, is Castell y Gwynt, (Castle of the Wind), a spiky rocky outcrop.

Castell y Gwint reaches 3,041 feet, a summit often included in a run of the Welsh 3000s along with Glyder Fach itself.

Bristly Ridge

Bristly Ridge is a grade 1 scramble on the north side of Glyder Fach[1]. Consensus puts the difficulty at Grade 1, but it is at the upper end of the grade and some lines qualify as Grade 2. There are some exposed and steep sections of climbing, particularly the upper pitch of Sinister Gully and in Great Pinnacle Gap. However these sections may be bypassed in favour of easier lines, reducing the overall difficulty to Grade 1[2].

Trivia

"Castell y Gwynt" and the "Cantilever Stone" were used in Walt Disney's film The Dragonslayer; this was one entrance to the Dragon's lair.

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Glyder Fach)

References

  1. Bristly Ridge UKScrambles.co.uk
  2. Bristly Ridge A Fellwalker in East Anglia