Pont Pen-I-Llynn

The stone bridge "Pont Pen y Llyn" at Brynrefail was built in 1826 to connect the Fachwen slate quarry to the main road from Caernarfon to Llanberis. It has four arches and crosses the river Rhythallt, the outlet of Llyn Padarn. Pen y Llyn means “end of the lake”. Before the bridge was built, legendary strongwoman Marged ferch Ifan used to row past here when transporting copper ore for 7km in her self-made boat. The bridge was designed by a self-taught engineer called John Hughes, who worked initially as a blacksmith in Penygroes but soon impressed Lord Newborough with his ingenuity and his eye for beauty.