Location: Approx. 2 km east of the hamlet of Cwmystwyth on the mountain road from Cwmystwyth to Rhayader. Grid ref: SN815755 Access: There is a small layby by the bridge over the Nant yr Onnen stream by the side of the road at the foot of Copa Hill. There is no proper path - it is a stiff walk and you need to be reasonably fit. Note: The site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is legally protected against disturbance or removal of any artefacts. It is absolutely essential therefore that nothing is disturbed in any way or removed. Facilities: There are no visitor facilities.

Bryn Copa near the village of Cwm Ystwyth in Ceredigion is one of the earliest mining sites in Wales. Copper was mined here around 4,000 years ago.

The site has another claim to fame. It was here that the first example of mine drainage was found - with hollowed-out logs being used to take out the water. These are known as 'launder' and examples can be seen at the National Museum and Galleries in Cardiff. Picks made from antler horns have also been found.

The miners themselves were mainly coastal people who worked the mines in the winter and travelled inland to upland pastures in the summer.

If you visit the area, do take care. Copa Hill (to the east of the main Cwmystwyth Mine workings on the north side of the Ystwyth valley) is covered with old shafts, levels and mine tips as well as the remains of channels created by "hushing", a technique used to uncover lead veins.

There is no proper path but you can follow the course of a 19th century grass-covered incline. Turn back on yourself just below the old incline housing and level at the top, and follow the course of the old peat-sled track on your right which snakes its way up the hill, past one small opencast to the plateau above. The prehistoric opencast can be seen above you. A fairly steep walk up, but easily manageable if you are fit.

All the excavations inside the prehistoric opencast are filled in except a small grille-covered hole against the north wall. This is now unsafe and should not be entered under any circumstances.

A flat stone cairn rests at the foot of the south wall of the quarry and similarly should not be disturbed. Loose cobble hammer-stones can be seen eroding out of the tips below the site, some of them collecting in the gullies in between. These are part and parcel of the site and should not be disturbed or removed.

You can get a very good feel of the location of this early mine site by standing on the rim of the opencast at the front. On a clear day, the views down the valley are superb.

There are other interesting workings to see on the hillside if you follow the contour line from the top of the opencast, walking northwards around the hill following the line of an ancient leat channel (Medieval or earlier). Most of these other workings are post-medieval in date, and similarly part of the same protected Scheduled Ancient Monument.