We started the new year with an adventure. We visited the Elan Valley and took a tour inside the Pen Y Garreg Dam.
It was really just a long dark tunnel that was a bit wet. There were some windows to let light in but that was about all. In the middle of the long corridor there was a spiral staircase that we went up. When we reached the top we were actually in the middle of the reservoir.
There were some information boards giving these facts and figures about the dam:
- the dam is 36m high, 161m long, and 36m thick at the base!
- the capacity of the reservoir is 6055 megalitres and the reservoir covers 50 hectares.
- an average of 300 million litres of water a day can be extracted from the Elan Valley to supply Birmingham.
The way the dam works is extremely basic, when we get enough rainfall, the water level in the reservoir rises and then it flows over the top of the dam. If the water company decide they need to lower the level of the dam, then they can use the pump house to pump water through a huge tunnel at the bottom of the dam.
On the way home we stopped at Hafod Arc. It was built in 1810 to mark the Golden Jubilee of King George III and the road used to run through it. It was a bit cold and late in the day to walk the trails but we’ll probably return another time.
