The first-ever national Dark Skies Week has been an “astounding success” for a stargazing hotspot in mid Wales.

Discovery in the Dark Wales have been working together with the “whole protected landscape family in Wales” on Wales’ first-ever Dark Skies Week, from 19 to 27 February 2022. The week saw numerous online and in person events being held to celebrate across Wales, “raising awareness of light pollution and how this impacts not just our view of the stars, but also our wildlife and health”.

Dark Skies above The Pilgrim, or Y Pererin, on Penlan near Pontrhydfendigaid.
The dark skies are a haven for stargazers and astro-photographers. (Dafydd Wyn Morgan/Cambrian Mountains Initiative )

The Cambrian Mountains is home to an Astro-tourism trail, which covers a total of 50 miles and consists of nine Dark Sky Discovery Sites, as well as the Elan Valley International Dark Sky Park.

Project manager for the Cambrian Mountains Initiative and keen astro-photographer Dafydd Wyn Morgan said the area is a hot-spot for discovering the “awesomeness of the night sky”.

Dafydd said: “The first-ever Wales Dark Sky Week has been an astounding success for the Cambrian Mountains. It’s been a great way of raising the profile of our world-class dark skies and the importance of minimising light pollution in our communities.

Picture of Project Manager for Cambrian Mountains Initiative Dafydd Wyn Morgan.
Dafydd said Wales first-ever Dark Skies Week "has been an astounding success for the Cambrian Mountains". (Dafydd Wyn Morgan/Cambrian Mountains Initiative )

“Astro-tourism is part and parcel of this area’s offer now. Locals and visitors can visit the Cambrian Mountains Astro Trail, and on clear nights, discover planets, constellations, meteors and our very own galaxy, the Milky Way.

“Even local wildlife can be discovered at night, with many benefitting from the quality of darkness available.

“The local economy is also benefitting from our dark skies with both accommodation providers and local food, drink and craft producers making the most of our top-quality super-starry skies.

“Personally, I just love going out to stargaze, and night photography is a great hobby to get into. Feeling the cold breeze of the night on your cheeks is an incredible sensation and I’d like to encourage everybody who can, to get outside after dark and discover the awesomeness of the night sky.”

Dark Skies above pub.
The Cambrian Mountains astro-tourism trail consists of nine Dark Sky Discovery Sites. (Dafydd Wyn Morgan/Cambrian Mountains Initiative )

The Cambrian Mountains asto-tourism trail, which passes through Ceredigion, Powys, and Carmarthenshire, launched in October 2019, linking six new dark sky sites to an existing three spots.

In January 2020, the trail gained global recognition after National Geographic branded it one of the top six new trails to visit for 2020.

Additionally, in 2015 the In 2015, the Elan Valley Estate achieved International Dark Sky Park status and became the first privately owned, but publicly accessible, park in the world to do so.

While Dafydd sings the praises of astro-tourism for promoting the area, he is also a keen asto-photographer himself.

Cambrian Mountains Initiative project manager Dafydd Wyn Morgan is also an astro-photographer
Dafydd is a keen astro-photographer and an advocate for dark skies. (Dafydd Wyn Morgan/Cambrian Mountains Initiative)

“Ten years ago my mother in law passed away and she left her amazing camera to me. I played around with it for a while and understood that it was no ordinary camera at all. With this extraordinary camera, I started photographing Tregaron at night, learning from fellow night photographers various techniques of photographing under low light conditions.

“Eventually the camera started performing to its full potential and I started getting some great shots of the night sky at my favourite locations in the Cambrian Mountains.”

Dafydd added: “The trail itself links up nine Dark Sky Discovery Sites in nine different communities. Each venue is accessible to all and normally incorporates a car park and in some cases a picnic site. They are great places to visit by day, where you can familiarise yourself with the terrain and landscape, ready for the night.”

For more information or to download a stargazing app, visit www.cambrianmountainsdarkies.co.uk.

Dark Skies.
In January 2020, the trail gained global recognition after National Geographic branded it one of the top six new trails to visit for 2020. (Dafydd Wyn Morgan/Cambrian Mountains Initiative)