Three bridges, one on top of another
Devil’s Bridge — Pontarfynach — is one of the oldest tourist draws in Wales, about 26 miles from Machynlleth and roughly a 39-minute drive through the hills. Its curiosity is unique: three bridges stand stacked one above another over the plunging gorge of the Mynach, each generation building its crossing on top of the last, and legend crediting the lowest and oldest to the Devil himself. There is no direct bus from Machynlleth, but the steam-railway route via Aberystwyth (below) turns the journey itself into the day’s main event — one of the classic day trips from Machynlleth, and a good wet-weather bet too, since the falls only grow more dramatic after rain.
The Mynach Falls — 300 feet of white water
Below the bridges, the Mynach hurls itself 300 ft down the gorge in a chain of cataracts. Two waymarked trails let you take it in: the short trail, about 10 minutes, gives the essential view of the stacked bridges and suits those less steady on steps; the long trail, about 45 minutes, descends steeply into the gorge and back up the far side via Jacob’s Ladder — a stairway of 100 steps — with the falls thundering alongside the whole way down. Allow longer than the signs suggest if you like to stop for photographs; almost everybody does. Entry is by turnstile, roughly £2–£5 depending on trail and season. The long trail is steep and can be slippery after rain: good footwear matters more here than on many a mountain path, and the gorge is no place for flip-flops whatever the weather is doing.
Dating the three bridges
There has been a crossing at this narrow pinch of the gorge since medieval times — the eleventh century, by some accounts — and the lowest, oldest arch is traditionally credited to the Cistercian monks of Strata Florida Abbey, nine miles away, who needed a way over the Mynach towards Pontrhydfendigaid. The middle bridge came in 1708, built straight over the top of the first to lift the road out of the mud and flatten the approach for bigger carts; it was repaired in 1753 and given ornate iron parapets in 1814. The topmost bridge, the one the road uses today, dates from 1901, put up for growing traffic between north and south Wales, and strengthened in 1982 with steel girders for modern lorries. Nobody planned the effect, and the result is a fixture of every day-trip list in Ceredigion.
The devil, the old woman and her cow
The Welsh name is the sober one: Pontarfynach, “the bridge over the Mynach” (our Welsh language page unpicks more local names). The English name comes from the tale attached to that lowest arch, in which the Devil offers to build a bridge so an old woman can recover her cow from the far side of the gorge, and is outwitted for his trouble. Almost the same legend is told of a devil's bridge in Switzerland, with a goat instead of a cow; like the drowned kingdom of Cantre'r Gwaelod, it has grown up around a genuinely strange piece of landscape. The Hafod Hotel beside the bridges belongs to the same story: it began as a hunting lodge on Thomas Johnes's Hafod estate, and was rebuilt in 1837–39 and again in the 1860s as Victorian visitors arrived in numbers.
The Vale of Rheidol Railway
The grandest way to arrive has not changed since 1902: the Vale of Rheidol Railway, a narrow gauge steam line climbing 11.75 miles from Aberystwyth up the wooded Rheidol valley to Devil’s Bridge, taking about an hour each way as it clings to the hillside high above the river. It remains hugely loved — named a TripAdvisor top attraction in 2025 — and from Machynlleth it makes a completely car-free steam day: Cambrian Line train to Aberystwyth in about 33 minutes (roughly hourly), then the Rheidol train onward, climbing steadily from the coast into the hills with the river far below. Between the two legs there is time for the seafront; at the top, the falls are a short walk from the terminus.
As a day out it stacks up well. The railway was incorporated in 1897 and opened in 1902; the round trip is billed at 24 miles and about two hours forty-five minutes including the turnaround. For 2026 it has run daily through to 1 November, with standard-class fares from around £35 and first class more; book online ahead in high season. At the Aberystwyth end the Engine Shed museum is free with a train ticket.
Making a day of it
Drivers can fold Devil’s Bridge into a bigger circuit of the green hill country of Mid Wales — the red kite feeding at Bwlch Nant yr Arian near Ponterwyd (daily at 2pm by the lake, with up to around 150 birds coming in; parking £1 an hour up to £12 a day) is reached via the A487 and A44, and the mountain road past Llyn Clywedog and Dylife offers a wilder way home. Car-free visitors can pair the falls with a couple of hours on the Aberystwyth seafront — the mile-long promenade, the pier of 1864, the castle ruins and the Cliff Railway of 1896 — before the train back up the Dyfi valley to Machynlleth; see getting here for connections.
Practical Information
Getting there: about 26 miles from Machynlleth, roughly 39 minutes by car; no direct bus — go via Aberystwyth for the steam railway. Falls trails: short about 10 minutes, long about 45 minutes with steep steps; turnstile entry roughly £2–£5; the gorge paths are not suitable for pushchairs or those unsteady on steps. The Vale of Rheidol Railway runs seasonally — check the current timetable and fares before travelling, and book ahead in high season. Facilities at Devil’s Bridge itself are limited, so on a busy summer day a picnic is a wise insurance policy. More ideas for the area are on our day trips page. From here the Cwmystwyth mountain road runs east through the old lead workings towards the Elan Valley.
Day trips