The reservoirs in the valley where built to supply the people of Birmingham with water during the early 1900s due to its increasing population and a need for clean water. The dams where built between 1897 and 1904, however the Claerwen dam (which is also the largest) was built after the second world war and completed in 1952, being opened by Queen Elizabeth II.

Although there are only 4 dams pictured below there are actually 5, the fifth is hidden beneath the Caban Goch reservoir underneath the Garreg Ddu Viaduct.

If you want to be penantic there are 6 dams, the 6th is unfinished and is between Claerwen and Caban Goch and is called Dol-y-Mynach.

Specifications of the Dams (measurements in metres)

	Height	Length	Area (acres)	Capacity (megalitres)
Caban Coch	37	186	202	35,530
Pen y Garrag	37	161	50	6,055
Craig Goch	36	156	88	9,222
Claerwen	56	355	369	48,300

If you thinking of planning a visit to the Elan Valley and associated area then I can recommend the holiday accommodation at Lon Lodges which is a 15 minute drive from the Elan Valley Visitors centre.

Images in this folder: Click an image to view a larger version.
1 Caban Coch Dam 1	2 Caban Coch Dam 2	3 Claerwen Dam 1	4 Claerwen Dam 10	5 Claerwen Dam 11	6 Claerwen Dam 2
7 Claerwen Dam 3	8 Claerwen Dam 4	9 Claerwen Dam 5	10 Claerwen dam 6	11 Claerwen Dam 7	12 Claerwen Dam 8
13 Claerwen Dam 9	14 Claerwen Dam Dry	15 Claerwen Plaque	16 Craig Goch Dam 1	17 Craig Goch Dam 2	18 Craig Goch Dam 3
19 Elan Valley Visitors Centre	20 Pen Y Garreg Dam 1	21 Pen Y Garreg Dam 2	22 Pen Y Garreg Dam 3	23 Pen Y Garreg Dam 4
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