Sar Lou Adventures

Drone flight at Pistyll Rhaeder Waterfall, Wales

Pistyll Rhaeadr, a 240 ft/73m waterfall tucked away in the Berwyn Mountains near Oswestry felt like the perfect place to take the new DJI Air3S drone for a spin. While in an SSSI area meaning I couldn’t get too close with the drone, the 3x zoom on the Air3S meant I could still get awesome shots even from a distance.
What makes Pistyll Rhaeder stand out is that it doesn’t just drop in one go, it cascades down in three distinct stages, with the tallest single section around 40 m. Often called one of the “Seven Wonders of Wales”, also has cool natural feature halfway down a rock arch that the water passes through, which you don’t see at many waterfalls.

Visiting Pistyll Rhaeder

It’s actually very accessible compared to a lot of dramatic waterfalls:

• There’s a café and B&B on site for anyone wishing to stay longer and explore the area
• You can park right near the base in the cafe’s chargeable car park, but there is a free layby just outside
• It’s only a short walk to the main viewpoint, with paths to the top and surrounding mountains for a longer hike
• The waterfall is particularly impressive and best visited after a heavy rainfall, and is popular with wild swimmers
• The ground, rocks and viewing bridge can be slippy, so it’s worth wearing shoes or boots with good grip
• DRONE NOTES – Pistyll Rhaeder and the surrounding hills are in an SSSI area. Flying drones over Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in the UK is heavily restricted to protect wildlife and habitats. While not always legally prohibited to fly overhead, you generally need permission from Natural England to take off, land, or fly at low levels within an SSSI. Disturbing wildlife can lead to prosecution under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The free car park area/layby is a public right of way just outside the restricted area, so with a C0/C1 drone as long as you fly straight up/down and stay out of the SSSI area you are allowed to fly/record.

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Sony A7IV with 70-200mm FE G OSS II f/4 telefoto/macro lens