A 2-day route following the southern arm of the Mawddach Way (MW) low-to-mid level trail from Dolgellau to Barmouth, with one small modification to follow the high level track from Gellilwyd Fawr to Kings hostel rather than the more southerly variant via Llyn Gwernan.
Our first public transport backpack in Wales on a weather forecast of low confidence for the west coast, this trip was a trial of the rail and bus routes and an exploration of the MW, starting at Dolgellau on the southern arm of the trail and adapting the schedule according to the conditions. After a good first day the weather deteriorated greatly and we terminated the trip at Barmouth, leaving the northern arm for another time.
We walked through that area on a short backpack trip earlier this summer (we spent a night up by the tarn under Cadair Idris). The walk back to the car at Cregennan was in the only spell of rain in the middle of the summer heatwave! The lakes are a fine place to spend the night and a great route for uncertain weather on the high summits
It was a great pitch, pity about the grand dawn over the lake we never got, drizzle instead. When we arrived in Wrexham the sky was blue and the sun cracking the flags.