Afon Mawddach facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Afon Mawddach
The Mawddach looking west to Barmouth Bay
Country	Wales
Physical characteristics
River mouth	Barmouth

Waterfall on the Mawddach, 1816

The Mawddach in Coed-y-Brenin

The Afon Mawddach is a beautiful river in Gwynedd, Wales. Its name means "River Mawddach" in Welsh. It starts in a large area north of Dduallt in Snowdonia. The river is about 28 miles (45 km) long. It has many branches, and some of its smaller rivers are almost as big as the main one!

The Mawddach river flows through some of the most amazing scenery in the UK. Even though there have been some changes to the land in the past, the river is still a great home for salmon and trout. It's also a popular spot for fishing.

River Branches: Meet the Tributaries

The Afon Mawddach has several important branches, called tributaries. They join the main river from different directions. Let's explore some of them:

Afon Cwm Mynach

• This river flows from a lake called Llyn Cwm Mynach. It is located in the Rhinogydd mountains.

Afon Gamlan

• The Afon Gamlan joins the Mawddach near Ganllwyd.
• It flows through an exciting valley with old oak woods.
• You can see Rhaeadr Ddu, which means "Black waterfalls," as it goes towards the main river.
• This valley is special because it has rare moss and liverwort plants.

Afon Eden

• The Afon Eden starts as Afon Crawcwellt.
• It's a large branch that flows from below Llyn Trawsfynydd.
• This river follows the A470 through the Coed-y-Brenin forest.
• In the past, activities like gold mining affected this river.

Afon Gain

• The Afon Gain is another large branch.
• It has also been affected by past activities.
• The water in this river can be quite acidic and peaty.

Afon Wen

• The Afon Wen joins the Mawddach south of the Afon Gain.
• It is similar to the Gain but a bit smaller.

Afon Wnion

• The Afon Wnion is a major branch that joins the Mawddach from the east.
• It drains a large area that stretches towards Aran Fawddwy.

The Beautiful Estuary

After flowing past Dolgellau, the river opens up into a wide, sandy estuary. An estuary is where a river meets the sea. This one is very beautiful!

Barmouth and the Railway Bridge

• At the mouth of the estuary is the town of Barmouth.
• You can see the famous railway bridge here.

The Mawddach Trail

• The southern side of the Mawddach estuary used to have a railway line.
• Now, this path is called the Mawddach Trail.
• It's an 8-mile (13 km) path for walking and cycling.
• The trail goes from Dolgellau to Morfa Mawddach.
• It is looked after by the Snowdonia National Park Authority.
• The Mawddach Trail is also part of the Sustrans Cross-Wales Cycling Route.

In the 1700s, the Mawddach estuary was a very busy place for building ships. People built many ships here for centuries before that too. Today, you won't see any signs of this old activity.

Panorama of the Mawddach towards Penmaenpool and Cadair Idris