Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd – Slate Town in Eryri National Park
Quarry hillsides, upland valleys, and industrial heritage in the heart of Eryri
Blaenau Ffestiniog sits high in the mountains within Eryri National Park, surrounded by steep slate tips, quarry lakes, and rugged ridgelines. The town forms a central point on the Snowdonia Slate Trail, and lies within The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales UNESCO World Heritage Site, where former quarries and industrial remains shape much of the landscape.
The settlement stands in a broad upland basin enclosed by rocky hills and working faces of slate. Underfoot, ground varies between firm town streets, old quarry tracks, stone paths, and rough upland sections on surrounding slopes. Gradients are more noticeable than in lowland areas, with steady climbs out of the valley onto higher ground and open moorland.
Blaenau has a compact, functional character with shops, cafés, and rail connections clustered near the centre. Its history as a slate-mining town is visible throughout, from terraces and mills to spoil heaps and inclines. The narrow-gauge Ffestiniog Railway links the town with Porthmadog through wooded valleys and mountain scenery.
From here, the Snowdonia Slate Trail heads south toward Llan Ffestiniog, Tanygrisiau, and Croesor, passing quarry landscapes and remote upland ground, or north toward Cwm Penmachno and Betws-y-Coed across forest tracks and upland hillsides.