Geography
Located in the mountains of Snowdonia, the town was once a centre of the Welsh slate mining industry. This industry declined during the early 20th century. The town's economy is now largely dependent on tourism. Although the town is in the centre of the Snowdonia National Park, the boundaries of the Park exclude the town and its substantial slate waste heaps.
The mountains around Blaenau Ffestiniog form the watershed between the River Lledr flowing to the north (a tributary of the River Conwy) and the River Dwyryd flowing to the west.
Blaenau Ffestiniog is home to several reservoirs which supplies the Ffestiniog Hydro Power Station with water. Stwlan Dam can be seen in between two of the main mountains in the area, Moelwyn Bach & Moelwyn Mawr. (Little Mowlwyn & Big Moelwyn in English)
Read more about this topic: Blaenau Ffestiniog
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