ONE OF THE BEST PLACES TO RELAX & ENJOY
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In 1801 a certain Hugh Reveley, while on holiday from his work in Ireland, met, at a ball near the Coed y Brenin forest, a local Welsh heiress called Jane Owen. Within months they were married, and within a few years they were having a new house built, Brynygwin Isaf, a little lower down the river , further out from Dolgellau and in a more commanding position than Jane Owen’s Brynygwin Uchaf. The classical revolution in architecture was well under way, and the first part of the house was built in the graceful neo-Grecian style with columns and rounded walls. By the time that was finished in 1806 the fashionable classical style had changed from Grecian to Romanesque. Needing more rooms for their growing family they built on, in the newer style, what we call ‘Flat 2’. It is no surprise then that the house, exemplifying both classical styles as it does, is listed as being of special architectural interest.
Brynygwin was carefully looked-out by Hugh Reveley and his wife as their favoured spot for a new home in a more commanding position than their old one. And what a choice they made! In the north Y Garn mountain presents its face full-on to their chosen spot. Another of the Rhinogs, Diffwys, gives a sideways glance in this direction from the west, while the twin-peaked Arans make their expansive, presiding presence felt inland to the east. Cadair Idris mountain with its 8-mile, 8-peaked ridge rises up, unseen, behind us as we hide away at the foot of its foothills down nearly due north of its summit which many have achieved starting from Brynygwin.
Mountains apart, this spot could have been looked-out today as an ideal centre for walking, cycling, mountainbiking, fishing, golfing, narrow-gauge rail-riding, pubbing and much else besides as you can see on the Activities page. We lie virtually on the National Cycle Route 8/Mawddach Trail. The Coed y Brenin mountain-bike centre is just 7 miles away by main road or by country lane. Walks of varying length and effort radiate out in all directions, so mapped step-by-step guidesheets are provided.
Being in the Snowdonia National Park has undoubtedly contributed to the preservation of its phenomenal beauty. And yet it is not nearly so frequented as further north around Snowdon, so can be enjoyed without all those crowds which is another lovely thing about it.
The photos on this page may give you some idea of the area’s beauty, as also may this 3-minute vimeo made by Ian King, a keen devotee of Dolgellau: http://vimeo.com/117719645. These sights, which can be enjoyed best wthout the sound, could well inspire you to come and see them for yourself!
The terrace, surrounded by all that scenery, is a marvellous place to read, think, sketch, observe or just to be. Many are the meals enjoyed around its generous table, whether brought from the kitchen or cooked on the wheel-based barbecue.
The garden, with its lawn sloping down to shrubs and trees, flows naturally into the scenery beyond, a classic example of ‘borrowed landscape’. It is loved by adults and children alike and has a level area away from the house for enjoying ball games and the like. And, of course, being so long-established, it is a paradise of, and for, birds.
The cottage gardens, because walled and gated, are particularly popular with dog-owners.
Our own fields to either side of us, both grazed by sheep, one with a pond where herons wait for their breakfast; 15 acres of woodland above us; 100 metres of the river Wnion for fishing (just across the little road at the bottom which you don’t know is there till you are on it): all these help to complete a picture of rural seclusion and tranquillity, all the more remarkable for being just 1 mile from the centre of an active market town.
Two tracks run from the house through our grounds as well as several paths.
