A well-known run of cascades on the Afon Llugwy just west of Betws-y-Coed, one of the busiest waterfalls in Eryri
A couple of miles west of Betws-y-Coed, the Afon Llugwy tips over a long shelf of rock in a set of foaming cascades known as Swallow Falls. The Welsh name, Rhaeadr Ewynnol, means “foaming waterfall” (rhaeadr is Welsh for waterfall), and the English name may be a garbling of that Welsh word rather than a reference to the bird, though the origin is disputed. The water doesn’t drop in one clean leap but rushes down a staircase of ledges, splitting and rejoining, and it’s especially loud after rain. The falls sit right beside the A5 in Eryri, Snowdonia, which is why they draw so many visitors, reached through a turnstile from the roadside. There’s a viewing area on the near bank with steps leading down towards the water.
