Mynydd Pen-cyrn

Nearest town:
Brynmawr (3km S)
OS reference:
SO19681453
OS sheet:
161
Latitude:
51° 49' 23.3 N
Longitude:
3° 9' 55.9 W
Added to TMA by

Images

Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by GLADMAN

Looking approx north the Black Mountains lie in serried rank upon the skyline.... more of the ancestors, then.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Oct 1, 2016
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by GLADMAN

Not an overly substantial cairn... the Mam C’s tall, but not very large. Mynydd Pen-y-fal – aka the ‘Sugar Loaf’ – resides upon the skyline

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Oct 1, 2016
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by GLADMAN

Much smaller than the twin summit cairns, but nonetheless still more than substantial enough to warrant the walk.

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Oct 1, 2016
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by GLADMAN

Looking approx west toward the high summits of The Brecon Beacons.....

Image credit: Robert Gladstone
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Oct 1, 2016
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Looking eastwards over the cairn, with the Twr Pen-cyrn summit cairns just visible on the skyline.

Image credit: A. Brookes (8.1.2011)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 9, 2011
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Looking towards Pen y Fan and the central Brecon Beacons.

Image credit: A. Brookes (8.1.2011)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 9, 2011
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Looking NW, Mynydd Llangorse and Mynydd Troed to the right.

Image credit: A. Brookes (8.1.2011)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 9, 2011
Image of Mynydd Pen-cyrn (Cairn(s)) by thesweetcheat

Approaching the cairn from Twr Pen-cyrn summit cairns. Mountains of the Brecon Beacons fill the horizon.

Image credit: A. Brookes (8.1.2011)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 9, 2011

Articles

Mynydd Pen-cyrn

C
CARL Jul 12, 2013

Visited 9.7.13

The Cairn is just about visible from the two main Twr Pem-Cyrn Cairns – with the help of my trusty binoculars.

I headed across the flat but quite difficult terrain (due to the heather/boulders) and after about 15 minutes arrived at the Cairn.
As others have said it is a decent Cairn and worth the extra leg work to visit.
The views are certainly not as good as the eastern Cairns although the distant reservoir glistening in the sunlight was pretty.

There were several possible Cairns/piles of stones along the way.
Which were natural and which man (ad woman) made I have no idea.
One thing’s for sure – there was no shortage of building material for the ancients.

All in all, Mynydd Llangatwg is a good place to visit – particularly when the weather is as good as it is today.

Mynydd Pen-cyrn

GLADMAN
GLADMAN Mar 24, 2013

Situated more or less due west of Twr Pen-cyrn’s summit cairns – the monuments just about intervisible – this smaller cairn possesses a less spartan vibe than its peers owing to the absence of surrounding boulder field. Then again I guess such considerations are relative... the terrain not exactly offering up a staggering diversity of exotic flora. You want tussocky grass? You got it. Anything else, jog on.

Nevertheless with more time at our disposal this would have provided a great place for an extended stop.... I’d reckon the odds on being disturbed here are about as high as a bar of Dairy Milk surviving an afternoon in the Mam C’s rucksack. You do the maths.... All things considered well worth the continuation from the summit of the ridge, then. As TSC notes Nature has clearly taken a greater ‘hands on’ interest here, the central hollow (presumably the work of ‘treasure seekers’ as opposed to walkers?) having been reclaimed by organic matter. Having said that there is enough bare stone in situ to ensure an impression of a fine upland cairn.

Briefly we consider heading directly north to visit (yet) another cairn a little south of Eglwys Faen; however this is duly vetoed so as to provide an excuse to return and enjoy the exquisite northern views some other time. Yeah quality, not quantity... that is the byword for this, Pelagius’s Day.

Mynydd Pen-cyrn

thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Dec 30, 2012

At length I head off west, following a narrow track through the tussocks of reedy grass and whin. Although the top of the hill is pretty flat, the terrain is still quite hard going, with boggy areas to traverse and ankle-sapping vegetation as soon as you step off the “path”. Luckily the next cairn, a little less than half a mile from the summit group, is right beside the path and it’s another biggie. Slightly smaller than the two main summit cairns, with a scooped-out centre now filling with vegetation, Mynydd Pen-cyrn cairn sits on the saddle between the Twr Pen-cyrn cairn group and the solitary Mynydd Llangatwg cairn. It’s an easy stop-off between the two, serving to liven up what would otherwise be a bit of a slog, truth be told.

Folklore

Mynydd Pen-cyrn
Cairn(s)
GLADMAN
GLADMAN Dec 10, 2017

Concerning one Ifan Sion Watkin – apparently once generally known as Ianto Coedcae – and his far out trip away with the fairies upon Mynydd Pen Cyrn. With “an abundance of strong ale and old mead to drink” one is tempted to hypothesise that the gentleman was pissed... however isn’t it funny how such legendary antics find themselves associated with great Bronze Age sites?

sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/wfb/wfb21.htm

Miscellaneous

Mynydd Pen-cyrn
Cairn(s)
thesweetcheat
thesweetcheat Jan 9, 2011

Coflein description of this cairn:

A partially grassed-over cairn 12m diameter and 1.1m high with a mutilated centre. It lies to the west of the summit of Mynydd Pen Cryn at 520 m above O.D. It measures 10.7 m in diameter and stands 1.2 m high.

Sites within 20km of Mynydd Pen-cyrn

Like all websites everywhere, we use cookies.