Experience the wild beauty of the area on this varied, relative easy walk on paths all the way. Included is a sharp little climb up to the summit of an Iron Age hillfort near Ponterwyd. The starting point is the popular walking and mountain biking centre at Bwlch Nant yr Arian, where there are also excellent short waymarked trails.

Moel y Llyn is a characterful hill…in the graceful-looking range that overlooks the Dyfi estuary on its southern side. This is a short but interesting round with gorgeous views, making up for scratchy gorse and some confusing route-finding early on. At the summit, there is a small and intriguing lake!

This walk is one of superb contrasts and variety. You start in the craggy splendour of the cwm, and emerge suddenly onto a wide open plateau of rough grassland. A lakeside path gives way to a slightly vertiginous scramble to the top of Esgair Goch, finishing with an easy, downhill track.

This is a very varied walk, starting in the wonderfully scenic Cwm Cyneiniog, ascending on very small paths to the summit of Bryn Mawr with quickly changing views in all directions, and a real sense of remoteness. The entire second half is through forest, in stark contrast to the morning’s open mountainous terrain, with frequent flashes of varied views and sunlight.

This is an easy, short, but magnificent round of Pumlumon and is for the most part fairly dry underfoot, which is unusual for this mountain! For anyone who likes rugged mountain scenery and a really characterful ascent, this way up is hugely more interesting than starting at Eisteddfa Gurig.

The scenery is wonderful on this walk, the views superb all round from the top of Drosgol, at 550m (1,787ft). This is definitely a walk to do after dry weather, unless you are fine with wading knee-deep across several small rivers! Having said that, much of the route is on good dry tracks.

This is a nice easy walk on clearly-defined tracks and paths. It takes in the less-visited but enjoyable subsidiary peak of Y Garn, includes Pumlumon Fawr summit, and in the later stages gives quite a ‘wild’ feel with minimum effort. It is also easy to find the starting point on the main road, and so might be regarded as a convenient introduction to the area.

A short walk, requiring some careful route-finding over difficult terrain, for which you are rewarded by the most stunning, austere, and truly wild of mountain scenery. To walk up Cwm Hengwm is to pass into mountains very reminiscent of Eryri, yet utterly deserted and apparently ‘lost’ and inaccessible. For a longer route in this immediate area, see the Carn Hyddgen walk.

To extend hugely the 'wildness experience' of the Pumlumon range, we can add another peak, Pumlumon Arwystli, then descend via the remote, beautiful 'hidden' valley of Cwm Gwerin; providing an unforgettable but challenging adventure. This is not to be undertaken lightly, involving difficult terrain in the two cwms, such as boulder fields, marshy tussocks and stream crossings, with few real paths.

Ascending a steep characterful hill with stupendous views in the very heart of one of the wildest and most remote-feeling areas of Wales; but all within a radius of 25 km of Aberystwyth This is a great walk, mostly on tracks and paths, but boggy and places, and with a steep descent from Carn Hyddgen 'off piste'. On the summit are unique twin 'beehive' shaped Bronze Age cairns!

In the very far north of the area covered by this website, Aran Fawddwy is part of Eryri, not the Elenydd. However, it is included here as a really wonderful uncrowded alternative to Cadair Idris. It is even thirteen metres higher than its much more famous neighbour! Cwm Cywarch (just beyond Dinas Mawddwy) is a magnificent, 'Alpine'-feeling valley, not to be missed, even if it involves a slightly longer ride to get there.

This is a favourite of ours, containing a great contrast of features, including a slightly vertiginous path overlooking the ‘pistyll’ (sliding waterfall) and two beautiful lakes in the later stages. There is an easy to follow path throughout.

This walk is a real hidden gem, but like most in this area is wild and open, and so best to do in good weather. Disgwylfa Fawr is often overlooked by walkers, but is a characterful hill with a very nice summit, steep on our ascent side, and so is popular with para-gliders. It dominates its smaller neighbours with excellent views all round, and is very accessible. Dinas Hillfort is a wonderful little peak that we revisit from Bwlch Nant yr Arian elsewhere in the website. The downside of this walk is a lot of water underfoot for some of the way...so is particularly NOT recommended after weeks of rain!

This is a short, easy introduction to the range of shapely hills seen from the A44 near Ponterwyd. You get a satisfying 'wild' feel, and need to do a bit of route-finding, though you're never too far from identifiable tracks and roads.

Starting from Dyffryn Castell (about 3 km east of Ponterwyd), the walk ascends to the highest point (Draws Drum) of this enticing-looking range of hills which dominate the southern side of the valley, with wonderful views all round. Further summits including Pen Dihewyd, which is also visited on another walk on this website. A great 'Moderate' walk, mostly dry underfoot on good paths!

If you have visited the famous Mynach Falls at Devil's Bridge, on this walk you will see where all that water is coming from by exploring the Mynach valley by one of two routes. This walk also visits ‘Y Bwa’ (The Arch) built in 1810 as a gateway for Thomas Johnes’ nearby Hafod Estate. The English translation of the name of this place is ‘Head of the Valley of Lost Existence’.

Some of the most dramatic mountain scenery in Ceredigion is found in the vicinity of Cwmystwyth, a former lead/silver mining village which offers this superb circular adventure. Although not particularly long, this walk is challenging in its steep ascents, rough going underfoot, and the necessity for careful route-finding. However, the rewards are magnificent, with rapidly changing scenery and countryside of immense character.

This walk once again demonstrates the great contrast in landscapes to be experienced by walkers in this area. We start in the amazing, ruggedly scenic, steep-sided valley of the upper Ystwyth, on the very eastern edge of Ceredigion. After an initial stiff climb, we emerge onto the high-level plateau amid wide, wonderful, windswept views typical of the Cambrians. Most of this route is on good tracks, but in places the going gets seriously wet and tussocky. So choose this top-rated route after a dry spell, and be ready for a challenge which belies its fairly moderate length.

Featuring almost continuous fine views, varied landscapes, and open windswept moorland, this walk also visits the summit of the highest point in Ceredigion other than the Pumlumon range, Pen y Garn at 610 m. There are some boggy patches, but no rivers or streams to wade through, and the route is easy to follow.

A longish but delightful scenic circular which samples the magic of the gorges and waterfalls of the Hafod Estate, before getting into the real 'wild' bit in the hills near Cwmystwyth. Graig yr Ddalfa gives a stupendous view from its ridged summit down into the upper Ystwyth valley with its rugged hillsides, shining river and austere former mine workings.

This wonderful walk keeps on well-marked tracks, yet has a very ‘wild’ feel to it. The so-called ‘Pools’ are really a collection of delightful moderate-sized lakes, set like sparkling gems amongst dark craggy high land, devoid of trees, on the edge of the Elenydd plateau.