Waterfall Country (or sometimes Waterfalls Country) is an English name often given to the Vale of Neath in South Wales. The tourist area around the head of valley has an unusually large number of publicly accessible waterfalls. The area is not officially defined but generally includes the group of falls on the Nedd Fechan, Pyrddin, Hepste and Mellte rivers, all of which lie between the villages of Pontneddfechan and Ystradfellte in the Brecon Beacons National Park.
All of these falls lie within or on the boundary of the county of Brecknockshire, now part of the unitary authority of Powys. A few miles further west are Henrhyd Falls on the Nant Llech, a tributary of the Tawe and to the south-west are Melin Court Falls on the Melin Court Brook, a tributary of the River Neath. These, along with Aberdulais Falls on the Dulais, a further tributary of the Neath are also encompassed by the term ‘Waterfall/s Country’ by some writers.
Collectively the falls are one of the more popular natural attractions in South Wales, which has caused problems of erosion in the vicinity of many of the falls. Most occupy locations designated as sites of special scientific interest or as special areas of conservation which aim to protect the biodiversity and geodiversity of these sites. The designations place a duty on the landowners and managers to protect the sites and so various erosion control measures have been put in place in an attempt to counter the worst problems.
I took this photo of the waterfall by flying out through the gaps in the tree canopy to the centre of the river, it’s probably not possible to get this angle any other way. You can find another one of these waterfalls here.
