Welsh 3 Peaks

Had a great time doing the 3 Welsh Peaks on the 3rd July. The weather Gods were very kind and gave us wall to wall sunshine for the whole day. Some might say it was too warm for trudging up mountains, but it doesn't bother me usually. The hardest part of the challenge was staying awake between Cadair Idris and Pen y Fan to help our minibus driver (and walk leader) stay awake. Anyway, this is how it went....

We stayed at Pete's Eats Bunkhouse - very reasonable rates, very clean and tidy and ideally situated for dining at Pete's Eats! Despite the fact that we planned a 3am start, most of us were still in the Prince of Wales (what a strange public house!) in Llanberis art 10:30 playing killer on the pool table and being entertained by Tei's card tricks! I jumped into bed at around 11 and dozed off after watching the Haye-Klitschko fight on 'live text' on the Iphone :s. No sooner had I done so, Beggy was turning the light on at 2am and urging us all to get up in his least polite Southern Oirish style.

Up we got and we (all 15 of us) managed to get up to Pen Y Pass by 3am and started walking at 3:10. I was surprised by how many groups there were, mostly coming down the Pyg Track by torchlight, as we went up. Most seemed to be British 3 peakers on the final stretch, but I think there were some Welsh 3000ers.
It was a great experience walking with the headtorches...

It wasn't totally dark and not long after setting out the light increased enough to turn the torches off and walk in a lovely dawn-like light. By 4am it was practically light! We couldn't see the sunrise fully because the bulk of Crib Goch was between us and it! There were still a few good photo opportunities though.

By 5am(ish) we got to the top of Snowdon. It was great to see it practically empty! Just a few tents pitched behind the cafe and a couple sat east of the trig point were the only signs of life. Time for the first summit group shot....spot the clown with the upside down flag. I'm sending it back to Ebay to get one the right way up.

The views were grand.

Back down via the miners track. One or two of the more inexperienced members of the group struggled a bit on the steep descent, so we made slow but steady progress. It got much easier as the path flattened out near Glaslyn.

This is Dave, as you can see by his expression, he's a Kiwi.

The impressive industrial ruins along the miner track.

We got back to the transport at around 7:50 and after quickly using the facilities (good job I carry my own bog roll, eh Gareth? :) we set off for Dolgellau. A few circuits of Dolgellau's charming town centre ensued until Brian's memory kicked in and we found the road to the pony path start. The 2nd leg commenced at around 9:50, again, after using the carpark facilities!! (Thanks for the immodium Gareth - Toilet Roll debt repaid in full!).

The sun was now blazing and going was slow.

The pony path was a route I hadn't done on Cadair before and there were great views of the coast out towards Barmouth.

Liquid replenishment was becoming scarce and supplies were rationed out between walkers....

The rest of leg 2 and leg 3 to be continued in the next post. Thanks for looking!

Galloping Across the Glyders

Well, not galloping as such, more like a sedately paced trudge across the Glyders, but a most enjoyable one at that. Myself and a Kiwi friend from London, Dave, set off from South Wales on Saturday morning with the intention of getting a good afternoon's walking in followed by a nights camp at Beddgelert, returning on Sunday.

We arrived at the Ogwen valley at 10:45 after a good journey and set off up the North Face of Tryfan. It was fairly quiet, as the north ridge goes, and we made good progress, despite the few times we needed to backtrack and search out another route. I hadn't spied the cannon-stone on previous ascents so I made sure we sniffed it out this time for the usual 'tourist shot'.



Conditions were pretty good with excellent visibility making for some good shots.




Adam, Dave and Eve. He wimped out of doing the 'jump'.


A snack at Tryfan's summit (with around 30 others for company - which sounds crowded but if you are a Tryfan regular you'll know it's not too bad at all) before we descended to Bwlch Tryfan and opted for the scree slope, over Bristly Ridge, to get up to Glyder Fach.
First, time for the self timer shot


On top of Glyder Fach's summit plateau, there were still large areas of snow, some drifts up to thigh depth. But nothing other than a decent pair of boots were required....on your feet at least!


Onto the Cantilever stone for a bit of arsing around...



The Ogwen Valley looked great and made for a postcardesque picture.


We made good speed over Glyder Fawr and before dropping down in to Devil's Kitchen, we took the short detour to the summit of Y Garn where more photo opportunities presented.


Back down the hill and down the steep steps of Devil's Kitchen...I always think of Tolkien's description of the Dimrill Stair out of Moria is exactly like the Devil's kitchen descent. (LOTR fans will know what I'm talking about)

Lyn Idwal and Pen Yr Ole Wen from halfway down the descent.


Just before we got back tot he car the moon was positioned nicely over Tryfan. The cannon stone from the first pic in this post is clearly visible in centre shot.


7 hours of excellent walking!

We spent the night at the campsite in Beddgelert accompanied by half a dozen pints at two of the small pubs in the village. Next morning, we visited the acclaimed 'Pete's Eats' in Llanberis for a superb breakfast (Bacon is more like gammon!) before heading onto our appointment at 'World of Ferns'. More on this nursery in a future post.

Last walk of the year

A New Years Eve walk in snow and ice! What better, invigorating end to the year?

We set out early this morning and headed towards the Beacons with a few routes in mind. What we hadn't planned on was the amount of snow on some of the side roads. The road from Pontsticill towards Taf Fechan Forest started off okay, but become more snow laden as we drove North. We eventually (after getting stuck temporarily in a small car park south of the Neuadd reservoirs) settled on parking at the north end of Pontsticill reservoir. We then decided to take a route up onto a hill that neither of us had been up before, Pant-y-Creigiau - not particularly high at 565m but it meant we were beneath the clouds and there were some great views.

On the map at least, it didn't look a particularly taxing route, but it turned out to be tough going due to the conditions, both underfoot and the relentless wind on the exposed sections.

As well as snow, everything was encrusted with ice - the trees, the grass, the trig point, my face! It really was quite picturesque. A real enjoyable walk to end the year with.

Now, please excuse me, I have an appointment with 15 bottles of cold Budweiser.