The trail to Llyn Elsi, one thousand feet above the town of Betws-y-coed in Snowdonia, is one of our favourite walks. Pick a fine day to do it. Take a picnic. Park up behind St Mary's Church. Lace up your boots, and off you go. It isn't a long walk. It's around four miles. But the first mile is pretty brutal - this is where you do most of the uphill stuff. When you reach the top, there's a surprise. A twisty-turny lake with a trail all the way around it. So basically, you climb the hill, you walk half way around the lake, you pick a spot with an amazing view for lunch, then in a more leisurely fashion you complete the circuit of the lake and you descend to Betws for a coffee or something stronger. Honestly you won't find many better walks than this. You can thank me when you've done it.
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