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Garnedd Goch

Round Cairn

Miscellaneous

Garnedd Goch, the 'Red Cairn', is sited at the western 2,296ft extremity of a boulder-strewn plateau which also possesses, at its eastern apex, another Bronze Age monument crowning the summit of Craig Cwm Silyn, the primary peak of The Nantlle Ridge. The northern flank of this brutal, upland landscape plunges vertically to the twin lakes of Llynnau Cwm Silyn in a series of awe inspiring crags much beloved by rock climbers. In short, it is an impressive location, albeit not one to frequent in mist! Hence, the name may be prosaic, but a visit here will surely prove to be anything but dull.

So what of the Red Cairn, then? Firstly I should say that it didn't seem very, well, 'red' when I last came a few years ago.... this is not the red sandstone of the South, after all. Then again perhaps that's just me, since The Snowdon Massif across the way has its own celebrated Crib Goch, of course. But that's of little consequence for, according to Coflein, it represents the remains of a Bronze Age funerary cairn and:

'Has a 10msq base and builds like a pyramid up to a central height of 2.5m. A likely victorian cairn of 1m diameter sits on its eastern side. RCAHMW 2006.'

So there you are. Not the finest of cairns you'll ever see... but location, location, location!
GLADMAN Posted by GLADMAN
16th October 2010ce
Edited 17th October 2010ce

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