The remains of the ancient settlement sit just above and to the right of the farm buildings, dwarfed by the sheer crags of Craig y Bera. The great cairns of Mynydd Mawr, Craig Cwm-bychan and Moel Eilio loom upon the skyline, left to right. The viewpoint is Y Garn, Nantlle Ridge.
Landscape context for the settlement in its steep-sided valley. Seen over the cliffs of Craig y Bera on Mynydd Mawr. The Nantlle Ridge fills the whole backdrop.
The vertigo-inducing view (at least for this man) down into Drws-y-Coed from Craig-y-Bera. The settlement can be seen to the left of the farm buildings.... Y Garn towers across the cwm, top right... note that the visible cairn isn’t of prehistoric origin. Y Garn’s two ‘monsters’ are positionned so as not be seen from many places at all, to be honest
Gwynedd Archaeological Trust records (PRN 2787) note the following regarding this scheduled prehistoric settlement, dramatically sited beneath the southern flank of Mynydd Mawr, the spectacular crags of Craig y Bera:
‘The monument stands in traditional upland sheep pasture, on a level terrace beneath Mynydd Mawr in the Nantlle valley, close to the 18th and 19th century copper workings at Drws-y-coed.
The settlement includes at least five circular huts dating from the IA or RB period and is particularly well-preserved. Some stone has been taken to build the sheepfold nearby but three of the huts remain clearly visible and another two are readily identified. The foundations of further huts could survive below present ground level. Stony banks and lines of boulders define small field plots or paddocks associated with the settlement. The site therefore, represents an almost complete example of a settlement of this date and has a high archaeological potential. The possibility that the site was associated with early exploitation of the known copper course nearby enhances its importance.‘
Source: Cadw, 1992, Scheduling Info Cn209
Y Garn, north-eastern terminus of the wondrous Nantlle Ridge, rises above to the south, crowned by two massive Bronze Age cairns (incidentally Mynydd Mawr also possesses a large monument of this type). To the west the Afon Drws-y-Coed flows through Dyffryn Nantlle toward Llyn Nantlle Uchaf, where Richard Wilson once set up his easel; to the east stands Yr Eryri itself – the Snowdon Massif. Quite a spot to make your home, then.
