The beautiful Llyn Padarn sits next to the popular tourist village of Llanberis at the foot of Snowdon. The surrounding landscape is spectacular and the views of the mountains are stunning. The lake itself is a great place to go for a paddle. Access is easy with plenty of parking (and picnic spots) in the lagoons area. There is a jetty here and a number of sheltered bays which stay sheltered on windy days. Single kayaks and Canadian canoes, plus buoyancy aids can be hired from the Surflines watersports shop which is sited close to the Lagoons.

The lake is one of the deeper ones in Wales, being up to 30m in places. The deep waters are populated by the Arctic Char, a fish with origins in the last Ice Age. As a result the site is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. In recent years a local group called ‘Loving Our Lake’ has been set up to help care for the lake by organising events such as rubbish pick ups.

Approach:

There is plenty of parking available along the lakeside in Llanberis, but the best place to set up base camp is the Lagoons area. The road leading to the lagoons lies just opposite the entrance to Llanberis at the Caernarfon end of the A4086 which bypasses the village centre. Follow the road back along the lake side for 400m to reach a parking area on the right.