(This post specifically talks about the walk from Dinorwig Quarry down to Anglesey Barracks and to the National Slate Museum – it does not feature the hidden waterfall nor inclines)
As part of the recent meeting at the Amgueddfa Lechi in Llanberis, there was a walking tour from Dinorwig Quarry back down to the musuem at Llanberis. I’m ashamed to say I had never done the walk before but I am so glad I did the walk.
Dinorwig Quarry
The walk starts up at the Dinorwig layby. From there you walk along the road towards the Blue Peris Mountain Centre. The road ends after a row of houses (pictured) and leads on to a footpath. It’s a rocky, muddy and slippery path but wow it’s worth it for the views! On a clear down you can see the top of Snowdon. I wasn’t as lucky – Snowdon was wearing it’s snowy cap and foggy beard unfortunately.
Anglesey Barracks
A but further down the path you arrive at the old Anglesey Barracks. The barracks consists of two rows of 11 houses. Each house consists of two rooms – a kitchen/dining area and a sleeping area. Of course they are now ruins but the room sizes can still be seen. Look at the size of those slate lintels in the fireplace. Amazing!!
On the walk we were lucky enough to have Dr Dafydd Roberts (of the National Slate Museum) guide us. He gave us a fascinating insight into the history of the barracks. The natural question is, why are they called Anglesey Barracks? Well as Dr Roberts explained, workers travelled in from all over and these specific barracks housed the workers who came from Anglesey. Some of them even etched their names in the slate walls…
Another fascinating fact that Dr Roberts told us about is that after the closure of the slate mines the barracks fell into disrepair. Some of them were re-roofed by Cadw approx 25 years go but were then used as a setting for raves and the slate roofing was stolen.
Just on the opposite side of the Anglesey Barracks is the old quarry level and workshop ruins. We didn’t go that way but me and a few others went to have a little nosey at the old incline.
Brake House
After re-joining the rest of the group, we walked down the path back towards the museum. On the way we passed the ruins of the old brake house, the old tracks that the slate carts used to travel along. Also the old drum still with the steel cable.
Further on from there we walked down the zig zag track through the old slate slag heaps. There are some absolutely stunning photos to be had. One of my absolute favourite photos from the day are these ones:
My photos really don’t do the view justice. It is absolutely stunning! As you can see, the weather wasn’t great so just imagine what this view would look like in Summer! And of course, no trip is ever complete without a selfie! It was really gusty up there but thankfully my hat stayed on!
