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Beddgelert and Gelert’s Grave Easy Snowdonia Walk

By Dave Roberts   

on March 6, 2016    No ratings yet.

Posted as a walk in – Europe, Low Level and Easier Walks in Snowdonia, Riverside and Valley Walks in Snowdonia, Snowdonia National Park, Wales

Beddgelert and Gelert’s Grave Easy Snowdonia Walk

Route Essentials

Route Summary

Easy walk to this popular spot

See the end of the article for local information about parking, public transport facilities, pubs and cafes.

Distance

2.63 km

Ascent

32 m

Time

1 hour

Calculate the time using Naismith’s Rule and factor in your own pace.

Start Location

Beddgelert

Difficulty

Easy Walk

Hazards

Drops into the river – especially if you’re walking with little ones.

Weather Forecast:

Met Office Snowdonia Mountain Weather

Check out our Best Mountain Weather Forecast?
Remember that we cannot outline every single hazard on a walk – it’s up to you to be safe and competent. Read up on Mountain Safety , Navigation and what equipment you’ll need. 

Beddgelert and Gelert’s Grave Easy Snowdonia Walk Ordnance Survey Map and GPX File Download

View the full route map

Download file for GPS

Beddgelert and Gelert’s Grave Easy Snowdonia Walk

This easy family walk to Gelerts Grave in Snowdonia, is perfect for when you’ve got little ones with you, or less mobile family members. The path is also pushchair and wheelchair friendly.

Most people who visit Beddgelert for the first time will probably visit Bedd Gelert – or Gelert’s Grave. You can just walk the quick way, but it’s probably not woth getting your boots muddy. This is a very short walk (as opposed to the very very short walk) that would be a wonderful little outing for the little ones. You could also extend the route down the Aberglaslyn Gorge along the Fisherman’s Path if you wanted a longer walk, which is interesting enough to repeat in the reverse direction.

1 – Start the walk from the Main car Park in the village, next to the Welsh Highland Railway,and walk into  the village Centre by turning left at the main road. Pass the Tanronnen on your right and turn right just before the bridge.

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2 – Walk down the narrow lane, and past the public toilets, where you’ll find the path to Bedd Gelert, but we need to cross the footbridge and turn right along the riverbank to take a more scenic route.

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3 – After around 15 minutes, you can cross the river at another footbridge, just before the WHR railway bridge crosses the Glaslyn. You can also continue along the riverbank down towards Nantmor for  longer trip.

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4 – Turn right along the river bank, and when you pass through the gate into the next field, take the path left. Gelert’s Grave is just past the ruins (which have a bronze dog statue inside) and underneath the tree.

[alert variation=”alert-info”]The Legend of Gelert – Whether or not you believe the story, or you think it was all a genius piece of Victorian era marketing, it’s still an interesting story for the kids. We won’t go into it in detail, but to cut a long story short – Gelert was killed by his master (King Llywelyn the Great) as he thought he’d killed his child, while in fact he’d actually protected the child from a wolf. The blood wasn’t the infant prince’s, but the wolf’s blood. As he was overcome with remorse, he decided to bury his faithful hound with ceremony in what became Bedd Gelert. [/alert]

5 – Pondering if the story of Gelert is true, or if the name comes from the 8th Century Saint Gelert (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Gelert ), continue past St Mary’s Church and you’ll find yourself back at the footbridge you crossed at point 2. Retrace your route to the start.

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There are plenty of watering holes and cafes in Beddgelert, with the Tanronnen being the most convenient. The Llywelyn across the bridge has an obvious link to the Legend of Gelert, and the Goat Hotel was run by David Prichard, the Innkeeper who popularised the legend of Gelert.

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Local Information and Recommended Maps and Guidebooks

Route Summary:

Easy walk to this popular spot

Route Start Location: Beddgelert

Distance
 Ascent
 Time
2.63 km 32 m 1 hour

Calculate the time using Naismith’s Rule and factor in your own pace.

Activivity Type: Easy Walk

Summits and Places on this Route

Facilities

Pubs, shop and cafes in Beddgelert.

Check out the businesses nearby for more places to stay and drink.

Hazards

Drops into the river – especially if you’re walking with little ones.

Remember that we cannot outline every single hazard on a walk – it’s up to you to be safe and competent. Read up on Mountain Safety , Navigation and what equipment you’ll need.

Parking :

Available in village centre (paid for)

Public Transport:

The Snowdon Sherpa can be caught from Caernarfon, Pen y Pass or Porthmadog. Alternatively, the Welsh Highland Railway provides an alternative.

Traveline for UK Public Transport

Weather Forecast:

Met Office Snowdonia Mountain Weather

Check out our Best Mountain Weather Forecast?

Recommended Maps: 

Guidebooks:

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Dave Roberts

Dave Roberts founded Walk Eryri in 2004, with the aim of providing routes that are off the beaten track. Walk Eryri is now part of Mud and Routes which continues to provide more off beat routes and walks in Snowdonia and beyond. Dave has been exploring the hills of Eryri for over thirty years, and is a qualified Mountain Leader. Dave also established Walk up Snowdon, Walk up Scafell Pike and Walk up Ben Nevis just to mention a few.

More Posts by Dave Roberts

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