is a natural lake in

Snowdonia National Park Snowdonia, or Eryri (), is a mountainous region and National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in North Wales. It contains all 15 mountains in Wales Welsh 3000s, over 3000 feet high, including the country's highest, Snowdon (), which i ...

on the flanks of

Snowdon Snowdon (), or (), is a mountain in Snowdonia in North Wales. It has an elevation of above sea level, which makes it both the highest mountain in Wales and the highest in the British Isles south of the Scottish Highlands. Snowdon i ...

, Wales' highest

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

. This long thin lake has formed in a cwm about one-third of the way up the mountain. It is one of the most visited lakes in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, in that many thousands of people every year visit

and many walk past this lake on the Miners' Track.

History

Llyn Llydaw is the largest of the three lakes on Snowdon's eastern flank. Higher up lies Glaslyn, and lower down lies Llyn Teyrn. In 1905, a pipeline was built from the lake into the valley below. Water from the lake powers the Cwm Dyli

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

power station below. The pipeline and power station continue to operate.

Popular culture

The lake featured in

Robson Green Robson Golightly Green (born 18 December 1964) is an English actor, singer-songwriter and television presenter. His first major TV role was as hospital porter Jimmy Powell in BBC drama series '' Casualty'' in 1989. He then went on to portray F ...

's ''Wild Swimming Adventure'' ( ITV December 2009), chosen because it is claimed to be the coldest lake in Britain. Green's website states that the water was 7 °C. Robson Green website

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Llyn Llydaw and surrounding area
Beddgelert Llydaw Tourism in Gwynedd Llydaw Tourism in Snowdonia {{Gwynedd-geo-stub