Henrhyd Falls - Visiting the Highest Waterfall in South Wales

25 Feb, 2024

Hello!We had a spare morning with not a lot to do before a family event in South Wales recently so we visited Henrhyd Falls which is the tallest waterfall in South Wales with a drop of 90 feet. Part of my yearly theme was to get out and see more things and this was exactly the sort of adventure we had in mind!

It is found near Ceolbren in what is known as 'Waterfall Country' about 30-40 minutes drive from Swansea. It had been raining quite a lot the week before so we were in for a treat.

Car Parking

The free National Trust car park is small with space for maybe 15-20 cars. There is a farm directly next door who will let you park for £5 but in February this wasn't a problem. The narrow access route from the village plus parking would be a fun during the peak summer months though. There was a snack bar selling food and drinks that opened (around 11am) during our visit in the overflow parking but I didn't check to see if they were cash only.

The Walk to the Falls

Starting from the carpark you descend down into the valley- the path down is very steep. Once you make it to the bottom of the valley, make a left turn and walk towards to sound of the raging waterfall. Take a right to enjoy a walk down the river.

You'll cross over a wooden bridge and more steep stairs and slowly the waterfall will come into view. We were lucky it was so quiet and managed to get behind the falls before anyone else came down the path.

The noise was absolutely incredible, and it was really humbling to realise just how much power was in the water coming down the hillside. We took some fun photos, and made our way slowly back down the path. The climb was a killer! It's made me realise just how out of shape I am and has kicked off some thoughts about making new habits.

The round trip walk from the car park to the waterfall is about 0.66 miles with an elevation gain of ~250 feet (according to my Apple Watch)