It was not until 800 years ago that the Cistercian monks began sheep farming in the Elan Valley.

The shepherds and sheep moved with the seasons. During the winter they would graze the sheep in the mild lowlands (referred to as hendre). During the summer months the shepherd would move up to a temporary dwelling in the mountains (the hafod).

About 250 years ago land became divided up and privately owned although there were no fences erected to divide the upland. This saw the start of the settled flock system of hill farming that still takes place today.

The Elan Estate is divided into 43 holdings covering some 17,402 hectares. Five of these are in-hand farms while the others are all tenants of the Elan Valley Trust.

Sheep rarely wander far from their place of birth but to enable the farmers to identify their sheep they mark the ears. Different tags may be used for different years.

The gathering of sheep still takes place largely on horseback with the help of several collie dogs and, in recent years, quad-bikes.

There are approximately 40,000 sheep in the Elan Valley today. They are a Welsh Mountain breed which are small, very hardy and can tolerate harsh mountain conditions. The sheep do not have docked tails, the naturally long tails protect their udders from chilling winds. Very few twins are born, these are not encouraged as the grazing is too poor. 15,000 hogs (first year females) are wintered off the Estate to protect the sensitive vegetation.

Cattle grazing is limited on the Estate as their waste is thought to foul the water course. They also churn-up the ground causing soil erosion and run-off into the reservoirs.

There are still a handful of semi-wild Welsh Mountain Ponies on the hills of the Elan Valley. This breed of pony were often taken to be pit ponies in the South Wales coal mines.

The sheep farming calender:

April
Lambing

Mid-May
Lambs are marked and males are castrated.

Late May
Sheep are removed from the hay meadows.

July
Shearing; neighbouring farms help each other to gather the sheep from the hills for shearing, counting and marking.

July
Dipping; the sheep are dipped in a chemical to prevent sheep scab and pests.

August
The hay is harvested.

September
The sheep are sorted for market. Four year old ewes are sold to lowland farmers or taken to lowland grazing areas. The older ewes find wintering too rough in the mountains. Those sheep chosen for market are grazed on lowland to fatten them before selling. All male lambs are sold off.

October
Market sales take place.

October
The second Dipping takes place.

November
The rams (or tups) are released out to mate with the ewes. There is about 1 ram for every 40 ewes.

Winter
The sheep roam free on the hills for winter but are also given extra hay and mineral supplements.

The Elan Estate was included in the Cambrian Mountain ESA (Environmentally Sensitive Area) in 1989. This means the British Government and European Union provide financial support for hill- farming in the area.