The Brecon Beacons National Park.
The Brecon Beacons National Park was established in 1957, the last of the three Welsh parks designated after Snowdonia in 1951 and the Pembrokeshire Coast in 1952. It stretches from Llandeilo in the west to Hay-on-Wye in the northeast and Pontypool in the southeast, covering 519 square miles (1,340 km2) and encompassing four main regions – the Black Mountain in the west, reaching 802 metres (2,631 feet) at Fan Brycheiniog, Fforest Fawr and the Brecon Beacons in the centre, including the highest summit in the park and in South Wales at Pen y Fan 886 metres (2,907 feet) and the confusingly named Black Mountains in the east, where the highest point is Waun Fach 811 metres (2,661 feet).
The western half gained European and global status in 2005as Fforest Fawr Geopark. This includes the Black Mountain, the historic extent of Fforest Fawr, and much of the Brecon Beacons and surrounding lowlands.
The Elan Valley.
The Elan Valley (Welsh: Cwm Elan) is a river valley situated to the west of Rhayader, in Powys, Wales, sometimes known as the “Welsh Lake District”. It covers 70 square miles (180 km2) of lake and countryside. The valley contains the Elan Valley Reservoirs and Elan Village, designed by architect Herbert Tudor Buckland as part of the same scheme. Elan Village is the only purpose-built Arts and Crafts “Model Village” in Wales. It is also famous for its picturesque scenery. Over 80% of the valley is designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest, and a popular cycle trail, the Elan Valley Trail, makes a loop from Rhayader around the reservoirs. Part of the trail overlaps with a spur of National Cycle Route 81 (Lon Cambria).
As of 2015 it is an International Dark Sky Park.
Builth Wells.
Builth Wells; Welsh: Llanfair-ym-Muallt) is a market town and community in the county of Powys and historic county of Brecknockshire (Breconshire), mid Wales, lying at the confluence of rivers Wye and Irfon, in the Welsh (or upper) part of the Wye Valley. Builth is a longstanding anglicization of the Old Welsh Buellt/Buallt, which combines bu ([bɨː]) “ox” and gellt (later gwellt) “lea or leas”. The town added “Wells” in the 19th century when its springs were promoted as a visitor attraction. Its modern Welsh name Llanfair-ym-Muallt means “Saint Mary in Ox Leas”.
In the centre of the town is a large mural (about 35 feet (11 m) by 30 feet (9.1 m) wide) depicting Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, who was killed at the Battle of Orewin Bridge on 11 December 1282.
Hay-on-Wye.
Hay-on-Wye (Welsh: Y Gelli Gandryll), simply known locally as “Hay” (Welsh: Y Gelli), is a market town and community in Powys, Wales; it was historically in the county of Brecknockshire. With over twenty bookshops, it is often described as “the town of books”; it is both the National Book Town of Wales and the site of the annual Hay Festival. The population of the town in 1841 was 1,455; this had grown to 1,680 by 1901. The town has grown little since, with 2018 estimates at 1,900. The built-up area includes Cusop across the border in England and has a population of around 2,000. The town lies on the south-east bank of the River Wye and is within the north-easternmost tip of the Brecon Beacons National Park, just north of the Black Mountains. The town is just on the Welsh side of the border with Herefordshire, England, here defined by the Dulas Brook. Where the brook joins the River Wye just north of the town, the border continues northwards along the river. The Wye was the boundary between the former counties and districts of Radnorshire and Brecknockshire.
