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19-956: Located on the edge of the Brecon Beacons , the event has been running since 2011 and is supported by the Welsh Government . The festival is held in a mountain location making it the highest-recorded official altitude for any music festival in the UK. Many acts have performed at the festival since its inception, particularly from the hard-rock, classic-rock and heavy-metal genres. Rock acts such as Reef , Feeder , Saxon , Europe , Rival Sons , Black Star Riders , Thunder , UFO , Glenn Hughes , Thin Lizzy , Uriah Heep , Myles Kennedy , Skindred , The Darkness , Airbourne , Black Stone Cherry , Those Damn Crows , Elegant Weapons , Kris Barras Band and Y&T have all appeared at one time or another. The compere

38-490: A continuous massif of high ground above 300 metres (1000 feet). The A470 road forms an approximate boundary between the central Beacons and Fforest Fawr. The Brecon Beacons National Park was established in 1957, the third of the three Welsh parks after Snowdonia in 1951 and the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park in 1952. It covers an area of 519 square miles (1,340 km ), which is much larger than

57-426: A iiii. or v. myles of Monemuth , and on the other side as nere to Cairmerdin ( Carmarthen ). Though this be al one montayne, yet many partes of him have sundry names. Leland ascribes the name "Banne Brekeniauc" to the hills surrounding "Artures Hille" (Pen y Fan), also calling the range the "Banne Hilles". The term "Brecknock Beacons" was used in the eighteenth century and referred to the area around Pen y Fan, which

76-492: A long ridge , and the sections joining the first four form a horseshoe shape around the head of the Taf Fechan , which flows away to the southeast. To the northeast of the ridge, interspersed with long parallel spurs, are four cirques (Welsh: cymoedd , sing. cwm ) or round-headed valleys; from west to east these are Cwm Sere, Cwm Cynwyn, Cwm Oergwm and Cwm Cwareli. The Brecon Beacons range, Fforest Fawr, and Black Mountain form

95-649: Is Darren Redick, a presenter on Planet Rock . Audiences in the region of around 6,000 have been recorded for daily attendances in recent years. Hafod-y-dafal Farm, Aberbeeg , Ebbw Vale , Blaenau Gwent, NP13 2ER, Wales Brecon Beacons The Brecon Beacons ( Welsh : Bannau Brycheiniog ; [ˈbanai̯ brəˈχei̯njɔɡ] ) are a mountain range in Wales. The range includes South Wales's highest mountain, Pen y Fan (886 metres (2,907 ft)), its twin summit Corn Du (873 metres (2,864 ft)), and Craig Gwaun Taf (826 metres (2,710 ft)), which are

114-461: The Cambrian Mountains beyond. Many mountain birds are present, such as birds of prey like peregrine falcons , common buzzards and the red kite . Ravens can also be seen occasionally, and more often heard by their deep croak. They use thermals in the valleys around the peaks to soar and search for food such as mice and voles . The lower parts of the moorland adjacent to the peaks

133-599: The Brecon Beacons range. Over half of the park is in the south of Powys ; the remainder of the park is split between northwestern Monmouthshire , eastern Carmarthenshire , northern Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil , and very small areas of Blaenau Gwent , and Torfaen . A railway with narrow gauge trains is run by the Brecon Mountain Railway. The railway is a 1 ft  11 + 3 ⁄ 4  in ( 603 mm ) narrow gauge tourist railway on

152-582: The Brecon Beacons, the upper slopes of Cribyn are formed from sandstones of the Brownstones Formation of the Old Red Sandstone laid down during the Devonian period . The lower slopes of the hill are formed from sandstones and mudstones of the underlying Senni Beds Formation. The rock strata tilt gently southward like the rest of the peaks in the range. The heads of Cwm Sere and Cwm Cynwyn, to

171-523: The Brecons Beacons range from the national park, the range is sometimes called the "Central Beacons". The Brecon Beacons comprises six main peaks, which from west to east are: Corn Du, 873 metres (2,864 ft); Pen y Fan, the highest peak, 886 metres (2,907 ft); Cribyn , 795 metres (2,608 ft); Fan y Bîg , 719 metres (2,359 ft); Bwlch y Ddwyallt , 754 metres (2,474 ft); and Waun Rydd , 769 metres (2,523 ft). These summits form

190-523: The UK armed forces and military reservists . The Army ’s Infantry Battle School is located at Brecon, and the Special Air Service (SAS) and Special Boat Service use the area to test the fitness of applicants. An exercise unique to the area is the ' Fan dance ', which takes place on Pen y Fan. In July 2013 three soldiers died from overheating or heatstroke on an SAS selection exercise. An army captain had been found dead on Corn Du earlier in

209-506: The Welsh bannau , "peaks", and Brycheiniog , the name of an early medieval kingdom which covered the area. The English name is derived from the Welsh one; in the eleventh century the town of Brecon is recorded as 'Brecheniauc', which became "Brecknock" and "Brecon". In a paragraph on Brecknockshire, John Leland 's 1536–1539 Itinerary notes that: Blak Montayne is most famose, for he strecchith, as I have lerned, his rootes on one side within

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228-496: The central section of the Brecon Beacons. The summit lies on a ridge stretching from Talybont Reservoir in the east, to the A470 road . The ridge line to the west connects Cribyn with the peak of Pen y Fan. To the east, the ridge line descends to Bwlch ar y Fan, a col crossed by an ancient trail sometimes known as 'The Gap Road' before ascending again to the peak of Fan y Big . In common with other peaks of

247-500: The land and the paths are well maintained and reinforced where wear and tear is heavy. The main paths are intensively used by individual walkers and groups, but also by the British Army for troop training, and by charity walks. The peak is adjacent to Pen y Fan so is often chosen for circular walks along the main escarpment . When the weather is clear, the views to the north are especially impressive towards Mynydd Epynt , Brecon and

266-557: The mountain simply 'Beacon'. A slightly wider definition was used in 1809 by the Breconshire historian Theophilus Jones , who wrote that 'of the lofty summits of the Brecknock Beacons, that most southwards is the lowest, and the other two nearly of a height, they are sometimes called Cader Arthur or Arthur's chair'. This implies that "Brecknock Beacons" referred to only three summits, including Pen y Fan and Corn Du. To distinguish

285-486: The northwest and east of Cribyn respectively, nurtured small glaciers during the last ice age and there are rock moraines at the foot of the cliffs. The glacial erosion resulted in the very steep northern and eastern faces which the hill possesses. The Brecon Beacons are classed as open country , so the visitor can walk anywhere in the highland zone. Trails and footpaths are well marked, and owing to frequent use, are also well trodden. The National Trust owns much of

304-492: The south side of the Brecon Beacons range. It climbs northwards from Pant along the full length of the Pontsticill Reservoir (also called 'Taf Fechan' reservoir by Welsh Water ) and continues past the adjoining Pentwyn Reservoir to Torpantau railway station . The railway's starting point at Pant is located two miles (3 km) north of Merthyr Tydfil town centre. The Brecon Beacons are used for training members of

323-477: The three highest peaks in the range. The Brecon Beacons have given their name to the larger Brecon Beacons National Park , and the range itself is therefore sometimes known as the Central Beacons to differentiate the two. The name Bannau Brycheiniog is first attested in the sixteenth century, and 'Brecon Beacons' first occurs in the eighteenth century as "Brecknock Beacons". Bannau Brycheiniog derives from

342-487: The year after training in freezing weather for the SAS. Cribyn (mountain) Cribyn ( Welsh pronunciation: [ˈkrɪbɪn] ) is a mountain in the Brecon Beacons (Bannau Brycheiniog) with an elevation of 2608 feet (or 795 metres), about 300 feet lower than the neighbouring peaks of Pen y Fan and Corn Du . It is a prominent peak in the long and impressive escarpment facing north and running roughly east–west of

361-619: Was itself sometimes called 'the (Brecknock) Beacon'. For instance, Emanuel Bowen's A New and accurate map of South Wales (1729) labels the peak as 'The Vann or Brecknock Beacon', John Clark's 1794 General View of the Agriculture of the County of Brecknock refers to 'the Vann, or Brecknock Beacon, the undisputed sovereign of all the mountains in South Wales', and an 1839 tithe map of Cantref parish labels

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