Andrew Galloway walks a linear route that’s a microcosm of Wales’ best bits

■ Distance: 11½ miles/18.2km ■ Time: 7 hours ■ Grade: Challenging

A little light mountain camping makes this 3-dayer in Snowdonia the perfect long weekend route.

Twenty-five years ago, large chunks of Eryri’s Aran range were out of bounds. That all changed in 2000. To celebrate a quarter-century of the legislation that changed the game, Trail set out to walk the entire ridge… unobstructed.

You don’t need all day to have a big adventure, as this Holy Mountain proves.

Three magnificent country houses in Welsh river valleys offer commercial prospects, fishing–and blissful peace