Head of the Nant Ffrancon pass, Eryri National Park, Gwynedd, UK

            Great light.  I loved the contrast between the strong, sharp-edged shadows cast by nearby direct sunlight and the softer sunbeams further away, spilling over the lip of Cwm Idwal and imparting a glow to the freezing mist rising from Llyn Idwal.

The photo was taken from ~225 m asl beside the A5 near Braich-ty-du farm; that's its field barn in the foreground, on the meadows fringing the Afon Ogwen.

The white building in the shade, 1.4 km away, is the farmhouse (converted into a holiday cottage; the farm itself is at the foot of the hill) of Blaen y Nant, on the quieter road up the western side of the valley; that's National Cycle Network Route 85 (not the 82, as the OS 1:50,000 map claims).

The spectacular hanging valley of Cwm Idwal is at the head of Nant Ffrancon; the tarn of Llyn Idwal obviously can't be seen from here.  On the far side, the Idwal Slabs rise to Clogwyn Uchaf y Glyder Fawr ('Upper Cliff of Glyder Fawr') in the middle of the image, then on upwards to the 1001 m summit of Glyder Fawr.

The 'peak' at the left of the image is the nameless ~910 m point where the arete on the extreme left, Y Gribin, meets the ridge between the Glyders -Fawr and -Fach, Bwlch y Ddwy-Glyder.  It overlooks Cwm Cneifion ('the Nameless Cwm'), another classic glacial hanging valley abruptly joining the main Cwm ~200 m above the lake; its outflow stream is just visible through the haze.
Though dramatic whilst frozen, the steep streams surrounding Llyn Idwal are short and mostly unnamed.  That said, the one to the right of centre marks the county boundary between Conwy and Gwynedd.

Taken in: United Kingdom / Wales / Nant Ffrancon (show map)

Taken on: January 29, 2011

Tags:

nant ffrancon

pass

snowdonia

national park

gwynedd

gogledd

cymru

glyder fawr

cwm idwal

national

nature reserve

eryri

parc cenedlaethol

north

wales

llyn idwal

afon ogwen

braich ty du

blaen y nant

bwlch y ddwy-glyder

y gribin

cwm cneifion

glyders

gribin

snow

field

barn

shadow

sun

sunbeam

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cwm

corrie

national trust

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Sets appears in: • Eryri (Snowdonia)

Groups appears in: • Welsh Landscape • Gwynedd more » • Snowdonia • British Peaks • North Wales, UK • Winter UK • The British Countryside • winter landscapes • North Wales • mountain.wales • British National Parks • North Wales Scenery • The wild British Isles • Layered landscape: Aerial Perspective • Farming Life • Cwm Idwal « less

Camera: Canon EOS 450D, f/10.0, 1/160 sec, 48mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 450D
Aperture:	f/10.0
Exposure Time:	0.006 sec (1/160)
Focal Length:	48mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS4 Windows
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