Is that a crater from a comet?

One of the best parts of running the gallery is hearing what people see in our images. Yesterday, while looking at one of our latest photographs of Llyn Cau, a visitor asked: “Is that where a comet hit?”

It’s an easy mistake to make. Llyn Cau, with its perfect circular shape, does look like it could have been blasted into being by a fiery space rock. Nestled high on the rugged slopes of Cadair Idris in southern Eryri (Snowdonia), it has all the drama of a sci-fi landscape.

But the truth is a little colder, and a lot slower. Llyn Cau is a classic example of a cirque (or corrie): a bowl-shaped hollow carved out by glaciers during the last Ice Age, around 10,000 years ago. As the ice crept and shifted, it ground away at the mountainside, scooping out the basin we see today. When the glaciers finally melted, they left behind this serene, glassy lake.

So while it may not be the result of an extraterrestrial collision, the story of Llyn Cau is no less extraordinary. It’s a reminder of just how much power nature holds and how the passage of time can sculpt something that feels otherworldly.

Today, hikers often reach Llyn Cau via the Minffordd Path, which climbs steeply through woodland before opening out onto this breathtaking natural amphitheatre.

This photograph is titled Craig Cau, and you can buy it in our high street gallery or online