Waunfawr

Brewing beside the railway

At Snowdonia Parc, you can watch Welsh Highland Railway trains from the beer garden beside Waunfawr station while drinking beer brewed at the pub. Brewing began in 1998 in a two-barrel brewhouse, with owner Carmen Pierce as the brewer. The pub was named local Pub of the Year in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.

The pub serves home-cooked food and offers a children's menu and playground. The beer gardens overlook the railway, so visitors can watch trains over a meal or drink.

Welsh voices and village links

Welsh remains a strong presence locally: the 2021 census recorded 73.6% of people aged three or over in the Waunfawr neighbourhood as able to speak Welsh.

Caernarfon, around four miles away, offers a wider choice of shops. The S3 bus links Waunfawr with Caernarfon and Beddgelert.

Wooded walks and wireless remains

The waymarked walks start from Y Ganolfan, the community centre. Waunfawr was once open heath — the name means "the big moor" — but is now an increasingly wooded vale where woodpeckers and flycatchers reign supreme. Yr Hen Waun circles the old village. Y Bompren crosses the Afon Gwyrfai on the present metal bridge, where an earlier wooden crossing stood. Moel Smytho leads into the country of the writer Kate Roberts. Above the village is Cefn Du, site of Marconi's wireless station.

The station began operating in 1914 and became Britain's most important long-wave transmitter, carrying imperial, financial and press traffic until November 1938. Its masts were removed after closure, but concrete mast bases and guy-wire anchors remain on the hillside.

John Evans and the Missouri

John Evans was born in Waunfawr in 1770 and travelled to America in search of the supposed Welsh-speaking descendants of Madog. Detained for a time in St Louis as a suspected spy, he later joined a Spanish-backed expedition up the Missouri and spent a winter among the Mandan. His mapping of the river helped Lewis and Clark prepare for their expedition.

Quarry hamlets and Antur

Waunfawr grew from hamlets shaped by chapel life and quarrying. Antur Waunfawr was founded in 1984 and provides employment and training for adults with learning disabilities in their own community. The social enterprise employs more than 100 staff and supports over 65 adults.