This one is another walk that, up until a few months ago, we never could have imagined ourselves doing.
Anglesey Barracks is another beautiful spot that I’d seen photos of on Facebook and had resigned myself to never actually seeing it for real.
Whilst they are called Anglesey Barracks … they are not in Anglesey. They are two parallel rows of 11 ruined terraced houses, up above Llanberis, in the Dinorwic Slate Quarry.
They were built to house quarry workers who traveled long distances from Anglesey and other parts of Gwynedd and could not go home every night.
Having had a couple of nice slow days following Jackie and Phil’s visit we felt up to a challenge.
I had done lots of research on the different ways of getting to the barracks and, in the end, I opted for the route which was the shortest distance … up the ‘zig zags’ … and yes … that’s them … up the top …
The zig zags are a steep, historic trail constructed of loose slate winding up through the massive waste heaps of the quarry. They are known historically as the Llwybr Main (the "Narrow Path"), which was painstakingly flanked by dry-stone slate walls … built by expert quarry masons … to give workers a direct route to the barracks and higher working terraces.
The trail starts from the side of the road … just before the power station entrance …
The path starts in the woodland and is a series of very rough rocky steps and metal staircases …
Once you actually hit the ‘zig zags’ it’s not as bad as it looks. Don’t get me wrong … there’s still a fair way to go but the gentler slope doesn’t feel quite a rigorous as climbing the steps up through the woodland …
It’s definitely fair to say that the higher you go … the more spectacular the view … in all directions …
When you get to the old winding house you are very nearly there …
It looked like a great viewpoint but we decided to save it for on the way back down.
The barracks kind of just appeared with no warning and it was a really magical spot … and definitely lived up to all the hype …
We had a good wander around … having the place pretty much to ourselves …
… before getting up a little bit higher for the best view …
… and took in the view …
… before bracing ourselves to head back down …
There are a number of routes which can make this a nice circular walk but, as we weren’t entirely sure of the route, we decided to retrace our steps.
Once we got back into the woodland it was very hard going on the knees as some of the steps are huge …
We made it safely back down to the bottom …
… and it was back to the lake for a very nice spot for our picnic lunch …
We were both feeling it but were really pleased we’d made the effort. It’s definitely one to do again … maybe trying to make it a circular next time 😀
The trail starts from the side of the road … just before the power station entrance …
It’s quite hard going but not long before you are up high enough to take in some pretty impressive views of Dolbadarn Castle back across the lake …
The barracks kind of just appeared with no warning and it was a really magical spot … and definitely lived up to all the hype …
On the way back down we stopped at the winding house …
We took it very steadily … with plenty of stops … mainly to chat to different groups of walkers making their way up …
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