
Cwm Pennant is a valley near our own Welsh sacred site, The Hermitage of The Awakened Heart in Criccieth.
Cwm Pennant in North Wales is where revered Tibetan Buddhist teacher Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche said was a special, sacred place to visit. Local legends say the people in the valley are intermarried with fairies – the tylwyth teg.
Once home to extensive slate quarries that were served by a narrow gauge railway, the valley has returned to peace and quiet.
We have performed many Buddhist rituals at Cwm Pennant, either by the river or further up at the head of the valley. Some stones from the river area were put into our sacred Stupa at The Hermitage site.
Welsh poet Eifion Wyn wrote of this place: “Why, Lord, did you make Cwm Pennant so beautiful, And the life of the old shepherd so short?”

To visit the sacred site of the valley of Cwm Pennant, leave the A487 Porthmadog to Caernarfon road at Dolbenmaen and follow the narrow lane as it heads into the valley. Stay on this lane with its gates until you either park near Llanfihangel or reach the end of the tarmac where there is a small parking area (fee payable to the local farmer at Braich-y-dinas).
From the Llanfihangel parking spot walk a short distance up the road and then left over the bridge and up past a house, keeping it to your left. Then turn left through a gate and up a mining track to the valley side summit. Once at the summit you’ll find wonderful views and a very spacious feeling.
One thought on “Cwm Pennant – Inspiration of Bards”