Pen Pumlumon Arwystli

Pen Pumlumon Arwystli stands on the Plynlimon massif in the Cambrian Mountains of Ceredigion, Wales. It is the second highest summit on the massif and the landscape around it is marked by wide stretches of grassland. Three large ancient cairns mark the summit, each built long ago by people who once walked these hills. To the south the view takes in Rhos Fawr, Drygarn Fawr and Pen y Garn, while to the north Aran Fawddwy, Glasgwm, Tarrenhendre and Tarren y Gesail appear on the horizon. The summit is worth the journey for the sweeping views across the Welsh uplands. The River Severn, the longest river in Britain, rises on a boggy plateau just north of the summit. The source lies hidden among wet ground where water gathers before it begins its long journey to the sea. Walkers who reach the top find themselves above the valleys that feed the Severn’s first streams. Visitors find open grassland underfoot and wide skies overhead. The ancient cairns stand as simple stone markers on the highest point. From here the land falls away in gentle slopes towards the valleys below. The air is clear and the silence deep, broken only by the wind and the calls of birds. The view stretches far beyond the massif to distant hills and moors.