Constitution Hill, Aberystwyth
_-_Summit_Station_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3185235.jpg/960px-Rheilffordd_Y_Graig_(ACR)_-_Summit_Station_-_geograph.org.uk_-_3185235.jpg)
Constitution Hill rises 430 feet from the north end of Aberystwyth promenade. It is reached most easily by the Cliff Railway — a Victorian funicular that has been running since 1896 — or on foot by the path alongside the track (steep, around 30 minutes). At the summit: a camera obscura, a café, panoramic views across Cardigan Bay, and the start of the coastal path north to Clarach Bay.
The Views
The summit viewpoint is one of the better coastal panoramas in Wales. On a clear day the visible range encompasses 26 Welsh mountain peaks — including Snowdon to the north — the full arc of Cardigan Bay from the Llŷn Peninsula in the north to Strumble Head in Pembrokeshire to the south, and a coastal panorama of around 60 miles. In good conditions, Ireland is visible to the west.
From the summit you also see Aberystwyth laid out below: the promenade, the pier, the castle headland, Old College, the university campus on the opposing hill to the south-east, and the town between them. It gives a useful spatial sense of how the place fits together that is hard to get from ground level.
Camera Obscura
Constitution Hill has one of the largest camera obscuras in the world. The current installation dates from 1985 — the original Victorian camera obscura, built as part of the 1890s commercial development of the hill, was demolished in 1921. The 1985 version uses a 14-inch lens to project a live 360-degree image of the surrounding land and seascape onto a circular screen in a darkened viewing gallery below. The projected image covers more than 1,000 square miles. There is a small admission charge for the camera obscura; the hilltop itself is freely accessible.
History of the Hill
The hill was developed as a Victorian leisure attraction in the 1890s by the Aberystwyth Improvement Company, a business syndicate backed by the publisher George Newnes and engineered by George Croydon Marks (who also designed the Royal Pier). The company built the cliff railway, the original camera obscura, a restaurant, arcades and a short-lived theme park called Luna Park on the hillside. The commercial venture declined after the First World War; the cliff railway survived and is now operated as a registered charity.
The hill's name predates the Victorian development by some centuries — it appears in early maps of the area and reflects its use as a public open space above the town long before the railway was built.
The Walk to Clarach
From the summit, the Wales Coast Path continues north along the clifftop towards Clarach Bay — a small sandy cove about 2 miles from the top of Constitution Hill. The descent to Clarach is on uneven cliff-top ground with some exposed sections; treat it as a coastal walk requiring appropriate footwear rather than a casual extension of the railway trip. From Clarach, a road leads back to Aberystwyth (about 2 miles) or you can continue north on the coast path towards Borth.
Combining the cliff railway up, a look at the camera obscura, a walk along the summit with the views, and the coastal path down to Clarach makes one of the better half-days available from Aberystwyth. See the coast path walk guide for the full Aberystwyth-to-Ynyslas route.
Explore Wales & the Borderlands