River Sawdde

The Afon Sawdde is a river in Carmarthenshire, Wales. For most of its course it winds through the Brecon Beacons National Park and Fforest Fawr Geopark. It rises at Llyn y Fan Fach, a glacial lake set in a steep cwm below Bannau Sir Gaer. The lake is famous for the medieval legend of the Lady of the Lake. After leaving the lake the river flows north, then west, then northwest for about eighteen kilometres. Near Llangadog it joins the River Towy. The river’s main tributaries are the Nant Crynfe, Afon Llechach, Afon Meilwch, Afon Clydach and Sawdde Fechan. For several kilometres southeast of Llangadog the A4069 road runs alongside the river. Between Rhyd-y-saint and Pont Newydd the river cuts through a wooded gorge. Here the bed and banks expose Devonian and Silurian rocks, making the stretch a geological site of special scientific interest. The name ‘Sawdde’ may come from the Welsh word for ‘sinking’ or from a personal name. Visitors follow the river through quiet farmland and oak woods. The path beside the A4069 offers views of the water and the crags above. In the gorge the river narrows between mossy limestone walls. Walkers can reach Llyn y Fan Fach by a steep path from the upper car park. The lake lies in a hollow beneath the Black Mountain’s slopes, its dark water framed by heather and bilberry. The legend tells of a lady who rose from the waters and married a local farmer before returning to the lake.