Hiking the Pen y Fan Horseshoe: The Ultimate Brecon Beacons Ridge Walk

If you mention walking in the Brecon Beacons—or Bannau Brycheiniog as we should rightly call it—most people immediately picture the busy ‘motorway’ path up from the Storey Arms.

Don’t get me wrong, getting to the highest point in southern Britain by any route is a cracking achievement. But if you want to truly experience the majestic scale, the deep glacial valleys, and the rugged, sweeping beauty of these mountains, you have to tackle the Pen y Fan Horseshoe.

Beginning and ending at the Neuadd Car Park, this circular route takes in four distinct peaks: Corn Du, Pen y Fan, Cribyn, and Fan y Big.

It’s a rollercoaster of a ridge walk, testing the legs, and lungs, with steep drops and sharp ascents, but rewarding the soul with some of the most dramatic panoramic views in Wales.

The dogs absolutely loved this walk too.

There is something deeply humbling about walking this ancient skyline, tracing the edges of valleys carved out by ice millennia ago. Let’s lace up the boots and get into it.

Notes On Car Parking

Ok, as I have stated the best place to park is in what is called Neuadd Car Park. The link to the map pinpoint I have just given you is best to use to get there.

As you hit the narrow tracks and lanes in the area you will see plenty of car parks as you start getting close. Some even called the Horseshoe car park on maps etc. However the Neuadd Car Park is closest and avoids adding extra miles to what is already a long hike.

Also, if it is a weekend, or holiday season then you really want to be there at least before 8 or 9 am as there is only so much capacity and this is a popular walk. Even on a weekday I have seen it full well before 10 am.

If you arrive late and this car park is full then you need to head back to a lower car park you will have passed and walk longer.

The Lung-Busting Start to Craig Fan Ddu

The walk begins down in the Taf Fechan valley. From the Neuadd Car Park, the initial stretch is a gentle warm-up before you hit the reality of the horseshoe: you have to get up onto the ridge.

Out of the car park walk a couple of hundred metres up the lane and tae the left fork.

The climb up to the Craig Fan Ddu ridge is, let me be honest, a lung-buster. It’s a steep, relentless pull up the side of the valley.

But here is the secret: take your time. Stop, catch your breath, and look back down into the valley.

Once you conquer this initial ascent and hit the skyline, the hard work pays off instantly.

Suddenly, you are walking on the roof of Wales, with a relatively flat, sweeping path ahead of you leading directly towards the majestic peaks of Corn Du and Pen y Fan.

A wonderful few miles actually and as you look across the valley you can see all 4 of your summits awaiting you.

Corn Du and Pen y Fan: Glaciers and Bronze Age Kings

As you approach the first of the four peaks, Corn Du (873m), the geology of the area really slaps you in the face. To your right, the earth just drops away into massive, scooped-out valleys known as cwms.

These dramatic cliffs are made of Old Red Sandstone, laid down hundreds of millions of years ago when this landmass was a desert south of the equator.

Fast forward to the last Ice Age, and massive glaciers sat in these hollows, gnawing away at the rock and eventually melting to leave the spectacular sheer faces we walk along today.

After dipping down slightly from Corn Du, it’s a short, sharp pull up to the main event: Pen y Fan (886m). When you reach the summit, take a moment to look at the cairn.

This isn’t just a pile of stones to mark the top; you are actually standing on a Bronze Age burial mound. Over 3,000 years ago, ancient ancestors hauled stones up here to bury their dead closer to the heavens.

It gives the wind-whipped summit a wonderful, haunting sense of history.

On a clear day I find myself spending a lot of time on the summit areas just gazing out in awe at the surroundings. You get some pretty special views up here in every single direction.

Cribyn: The Rollercoaster Ride

You might think the hard work is over after Pen y Fan, but the Horseshoe is a walk that keeps on giving. To get to the third peak, Cribyn (795m), you have to go down to go back up.

The descent from Pen y Fan is steep (watch your knees on the stone pitching), taking you down to the saddle.

From here, Cribyn looks remarkably pointy and intimidating. The climb back up is a bit of a grind, but reaching the top offers my absolute favourite view of the day.

Looking back the way you’ve just come, you get a perfect side-on profile of Pen y Fan’s striking, table-top shape. It’s a magnificent perspective that you just don’t get from the summit itself.

Fan y Big and The Diving Board

From Cribyn, it’s back down into another saddle—Bwlch ar y Fan, where the old Roman road known as ‘The Gap’ crosses the mountains—before heading up our final peak, Fan y Big (719m).

While it’s the lowest of the four peaks, Fan y Big holds a special place in walkers’ hearts thanks to the “Diving Board.” This flat slab of sandstone juts out precariously over the valley below. It’s an iconic photo spot.

The Long Walk Home

With the four peaks bagged, the rest of the walk is a glorious, sweeping descent along the eastern ridges of Craig Cwareli and Craig Cwm-oergwm. It’s a steady, gentle walk back that gives your legs a much-needed break.

As the path slowly lowers you back into the Taf Fechan forest towards the Neuadd Car Park, you are treated to continuous views across the valley at the ridge you climbed hours earlier. It’s the perfect time to reflect on the sheer scale of the landscape you’ve just traversed.

The Pen y Fan Horseshoe is, without a doubt, a classic. It’s a day of burning calves, wind in your hair, ancient history beneath your boots, and memories that will last long after the mud has been scrubbed from your gear.

Other walks you may like:

Waun Fach in the Brecon Beacons
Llangorse Lake Skyline Walk – Brecon Beacons