The Bwlch Hyddgen landscape is a mountainous area east of Furnace and Tre'r Ddol, Cardiganshire, south of Machynlleth, Montgomeryshire, and north-west of Pumlumon, containing several lakes, streams and wooded areas. The mountain of Hyddgen was the site of a battle between Owain Glynd'r and Flemish forces from Pembrokeshire in 1401 (see NPRN 402310).

Anglers Retreat (located at SN7463792272) was likely established in the mid-nineteenth century in relation to the contemporary popularity of Wales as a destination for fishing tourism. This purpose is highlighted by its Anglophone name and use of the word `Angler?, as opposed to other fishing terminology, which denoted fishing as a polite or middle-class leisure activity rather than a means of subsistence. Indeed, the area around Machynlleth was a popular destination for polite angling tourists throughout the mid- to late-nineteenth century and afterwards. Neither the site, nor New Pool next to which it is located, appear on the 1830s tithe maps (see places.library.wales), nor is the location mentioned among George Agar Hansard's list of `fishing stations? in his Trout and Salmon Fishing in Wales (1834). It was in operation by 1887, however, as it appears on the first edition 25? O.S. map of the area.

A.N. Coward, RCAHMW, 18.10.2018