Walk 50: Llwyngwril to Barmouth

We walked from Llwyngwril to Barmouth on a weekend trip to Eryri in May 2024. This was an important walk for me, as our end point was my grandad’s favourite place, and the place he was evacuated to during the Second World War. It was also our third Wales Coast Path walk where we were joined by someone – this time, Liam’s younger sister Kadi.

We had ideal weather on this day – some clouds but no rain, and not too cosy for walking. After taking the train from Barmouth to Llwyngwril in the morning, we walked along the road to take us back onto the Wales Coast Path, to where we left off on our previous walk.

After crossing a small bridge in the centre of the town, we began an immediate ascent into the hills, following a road up alongside a stream and next to a series of fields. There were lots of sheep on this walk, with their lambs – some of whom looked as though they had only just been born. The ascent was quite long but gradual, so not too arduous. As we climbed, we enjoyed pretty views down to Llwyngwril and the sea.

After about half an hours’ walk, farm track had turned into path as we went through a gate and into the fields. By this point, we could see across the estuary to Barmouth, our end point of the day. Although we hadn’t yet enjoyed much summery weather, the puddles and mud of our previous walks had almost entirely dried out, so paths were easy to navigate.

We once again joined a farm track which we continued along for a while, enjoying more views across to Barmouth and along the estuary. We could also see down to Fairbourne, a seaside village which is incredibly flat, meaning it has been identified as unsustainable to defend given the predicted rise in sea level. The future of Fairbourne and the management of its sea defence remains in question.

By this point in our walk, the vast majority of the ascent was done, and it was time to descend into Fairbourne. We walked through forestry area for a while, and watched as a collection of Land Rovers navigated an incredibly steep, windy and rocky forestry track – I didn’t envy them one bit as they clung onto the edge of the hill!

After passing a farmhouse, we descended through a couple of fields, a brief forest section, and down a gravel track, before walking along the road to Fairbourne. As we reached the coast, we found a bench to stop for our lunch. We still felt quite fresh, and we could see across the estuary to Barmouth, where we would be finishing our walk.

After eating our lunch, we strolled alongside the beach – although the sea defence meant we couldn’t see the sea. As we reached the end of the beach, we watched a miniature Fairbourne Railway train pass.

As we reached the mouth of the estuary, the path took us along a flat, gravel path inland, towards Barmouth Bridge. It was, again, easy walking, but at this point we were tiring a little, as it was quite long section of unchanging path.

We soon reached Morfa Mawddach – a tiny train station at the end of Barmouth Bridge. At this point, the walk picked up, as we wandered along Barmouth Bridge and enjoyed the beautiful views.

As we walked along the bridge, I told Liam’s sister about Barmouth and stories from my many visits to Barmouth over the years. After being evacuated to Barmouth as a child, my grandad visited the town regularly in his adulthood – we sometimes met up with him as children, when we stayed in our other grandparents’ holiday cottage in nearby Harlech. We even scattered some of Grandad’s ashes from Barmouth Bridge, so this is an important spot to me. We finished the walk by continuing down the road into Barmouth and along the Promenade to reach our car.

Having successfully reached Barmouth, the next walk was the big one – my inspiration for walking the Wales Coast Path and the walk bridging two places that are close to my heart – Barmouth to Harlech.

🥾 Distance: About nine miles

⭐ Highlight: Seeing Barmouth from a different perspective.

👎 Less Good: No lowlights, this walk was lovely!

🚗 Transport: We parked in Barmouth and got the train to Llwyngwril, before walking back to the car.

🛏️ Accommodation: We stayed at my grandparents' holiday cottage in Harlech.

🌱 Food: Dinner was chips on Harlech Beach!

🗺️ Map: This route is featured in the official Snowdonia and Ceredigion Coast guide.

Still not convinced? Read my ten reasons to walk the Wales Coast Path. If you’re ready to start planning your walk, you can find lots of resources to help you on your way here. Please note, I collect a share of the sales from the links on this page.