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Ben Lawers in spring sunshine

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This was a quick Solo trip north. When I had planned this I had hoped for some late season snow, but as the date grew closer, it was clear that it would be spring weather.

I arrived in Glasgow on the overnight train from London and quickly transferred to a hire car, and was soon heading north on the A82 under overcast skies. As I drove up to the car park, the cloud began to lift and break allowing sunshine through, the car park was particularly busy but there was just enough space left.

With Rucksack packed and new boots on I was ready to go! I walked over the road to the start and followed a good path into an area of nature trails. The area had been fenced off and was full of small trees and shrubs, I imagined that the whole hillside would have looked like this without the sheep.

The path gently meandered uphill and the views around were improving with every moment as the sunshine now flooded through. I could see the upper slopes of Beinn Ghlas, and soon reached the upper fence of the enclosed area. I passed a few groups, it seems it was going to be a popular walk for today. Once through the fence, the path became a little steeper and soon split, with one path traversing to a col to the north of Beinn Ghlas, with the other ascending the steep slopes of the mountain.

The steep path was my choice and the ascent proper began with improving views. The slope became a broad ridge and I could see groups spread out single file on the upper ridge, they looked very small, indicating that it was still some way to go to the top. The wind now became stronger and there was still a bite, despite the warm sun. The path was more rocky and passed over some snow patches, this led to the upper ridge and I had arrived at the summit of Beinn Ghlas. The summit had a big drop on the north side and still had snow lingering on the edge of the Corrie, the weather was now very clear but the wind was cold and the next mountain, Ben Lawers, dominated the view ahead.

I Descended down to the col and began a steep ascent of Ben Lawers, first through broken rock and then onto a steep slope. There were now only a few groups of people about and I began to think that if this was further south it would be teeming with people. Arriving at the top, I was alone once more and there were good views off the tenth highest mountain in Scotland. A small cloud then covered the sun and the temperature dropped, a reminder that it was still early in the year.

I lingered on the summit for photographs and a quick bite to eat, and then returned to the col and onto the descent path, bypassing Beinn Ghlas. I soon arrived at a col between Beinn Ghlas and Meall Corranich and I was thinking of returning to the car but, as there was still a lot of time and daylight left, I decided to nip off left up to Meall Corranich.

The ascent was very steep but short and I arrived on the summit with not a sole in sight, quite a contrast from earlier in the day. There was now cloud moving in from the north and I had to make the decision whether to go back the way I came, or descend the ridge. The ridge was the choice I made and the lovely walk down marred only by the views disappearing in a shower, which soon passed. Off the ridge and into Coire Odhar, where the sunshine had now returned, I had to find a stile back into the fenced off woodland I had passed through at the beginning of the day. With the stile negotiated it was time for the final kilometre (and a bit) back to the car. Back at the car, it was time to go and find some tea and cake, and check the weather for tomorrow’s walk over at Arrochar.

Not what was planned Ben Challum

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Not what was planned – Ben Challum

A trip north to Scotland was organised, aiming to walk up some of the mountains in the Crinlarich area. The aim was to try and find snow for some quality mountain days, as experience towards  the winter mountain leader award – well that was the plan…

The preceding days leading up to the trip were characterised by some above average temperatures in Scotland, this resulted in the stripping back of any snow cover, so come time to go I wasn’t optimistic. Having arrived the night before, I drove from the outskirts of Glasgow up the A82 early in the morning, arriving at Aucheteryre and parking up around eight. The weather was calm but overcast and relatively warm, the objective for the day would be Ben Challum.

With boots, ice axe and crampons on and in my rucksack just in case, I started up the track following the Allt Aucheteryre, passing under the railway and continuing along the river. The weather seemed to be improving and as I reached the bridge which had to crossed, I got a good view of the surrounding mountains, a few to the south had patches of snow but not much.

After crossing the bridge, I continued following the track up and through an area with Sheilings, which were the summer dwellings of farmers back in history – but long deserted now. I could now see the ridge that led up to the summit of Ben Challum. The weather was now mostly clear and the track was gently ascending, skirting the lower slopes of Beinn Chaorach, crossing a few streams which flowed down to the Allt Gleann Chlachain. It wasn’t long before I arrived at an electric fence, which was there to protect the immature woodland, I crossed this and remained on the track for a further kilometre.

I now had to make my way across the valley and search for a stile over the electric fence. At the col below the north west ridge of Ben Challum, the visibility was perfect. I picked the direction I would take, the place I would ford the river, the features I would follow up to the col and stepped off the track. With my second step, my foot and my leg up to my knee sank into patch of bog, quickly retrieving my foot with no water ingress, I gently cursed myself and payed more attention to where I put my feet. It wasn’t long before I was coming up to the fence where the stile was located and over it enjoying some fine views.

The route now became very steep and before long I was scrambling on some easy rock sections. This was unfortunately over far too quickly and the weather was now turning, the cloud was rising from the valleys and I was soon in mist. Ascending the final slope to the summit, the wind began to pick up and the ground was frozen in patches. I could hear voices of walkers on the ridge, they having probably followed the baggers route up, and we arrived at the summit cairn at roughly the same time. Pleasantries exchanged – they didn’t hang around long and soon headed off.

At the summit the visibility was poor, so after a few quick photos and a warm drink, I headed off down the south west ridge. The path was easy to follow and if the weather had been clearer it would have been a pleasant ridge walk. After a short descent, the path kicks back uphill and onto the south summit, over this and then descending down the very clear track, which eventually comes to a fence and follows this down.

After going over another small knoll on the ridge, it was time for me to leave this easy to follow track, as this would have taken me back to the valley some distance from the car, so over the fence and some more bog trotting was needed. With most of the bog crossed, I could see the railway and the bridge, which I needed to go under to get back. The slope was steep but the ground was firm, however, the drizzle now increased and what view I did have began to disappear.

After a short period, I was walking under the railway and through the Wigwam site at Aucheteryre. I past a couple of walkers heading up into the now increasing rain, but it wasn’t long before I was back at the car, getting ready to go and find tea and cake. On reflection, the day had not gone as planned, but it had been good exploring an area I had not been to before.

Moelwyn’s navigation and wild camping

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Moelwyn’s navigation and wild camping

I had been asked to provide some one to one navigation training for a youth worker who is working toward their Countryside leader award, so we decided on a trip to North Wales and the Moelwyn’s. It was going to be a two day trip; we travelled up on a Friday and stayed the night at the Herts of Snowdonia centre, the weather was a wet and dreary so staying in the dry was good. We were up early on Saturday and the weather was still bit poor, so I decided that we would go out for breakfast – a tactical faff, as the weather was forecast to improve as the day went on.

After breakfast we drove and parked up at Geli Igo, just as the rain finished and the cloud began to lift. With boots on and rucksacks ready, we headed off, after a brief walk along the road we made a steep ascent roughly following a stream with Shaz leading the way ticking off features as we went, and identifying correctly our first objective, a col below Cnight. we had a brief talk about the the skills used and the next objective that Shaz was going to take us to.

We began the initially steep ascent of Cnight via the broad west ridge, identifying subtle features to practice relocation and commenting on how the weather was improving and the views were getting better. It wasn’t long until we came to the slope leading up the main ridge. We moved slowly as Shaz was finding this a little tough, but with only a few words of encouragement we had reached a flat area below the final steep section where we stopped to admire the view and have some food.

There were now three options to the summit from here; one involving climbing, the other Scrambling and the final walking. Shaz was keen on scrambling, so we set off up the gully moving fluidly upwards, the enjoyment was soon over however, and we were back to walking the last steep part before arriving at the windy summit.

We descended a little to the north to get out of the wind and had a spot of lunch enjoying the views and the welsh sunshine. We had a brief discussion about the route ahead and some features that Shaz was going to take us to, before heading off to the camp spot later in the day. We continued along the ridge, over the north top and descended the slope on the other side, looking for interesting contour features on the way down to a the col near Llyn yr Adar. The weather now was very good apart from the strong wind and the views over towards Snowdon were excellent.

On reaching the col we did a few exercises locating contour features and  getting away from paths, after this we started heading towards our camp spot at Llyn Clogwyn brith. The ground towards our campsite was a little boggy in places, but all the worst parts were easily avoidable and we chatted as we went, commenting on the lack of people we had seen during the day (we had only seen one group on the top of Cnight).

To reach the edge of the little llyn, you walk up a steepish slope and on reaching the top the llyn appears below you – and to my relief they’re was no one else there! The llyn itself is a man made lake which was used to supply water to the nearby slate workings which were out of sight below us. We soon had tents up and tea on and sat about going over what we were going to do later on our night navigation walk. We spent a few hours relaxing, reading and eating and I planned a route for the evening, I then went for a short stroll to check the route out.

Shaz was out of his tent and ready, but just as it was getting dark, he informed me that he was not feeling too good, but he thought he would be ok, so we set off into the darkness looking for a few features. The weather was now overcast and so, no full moon. We went over a few things that we had done in the daylight, but Shaz was clearly struggling so we returned to the campsite and went to bed. I checked the weather for the next day and it didn’t look promising…

I slept very well and woke early to the sound of a stiff breeze on the tent. I had breakfast and began organising my kit to pack up and went to check on Shaz, he was not feeling to well, so we decided we would pack up and walk out – moments later the rain arrived.

With all the packing done and waterproofs on, we began the most direct walk back to the Car, going over some of the ground we covered yesterday. With a total lack of any of the vistas that we had the day before, we did a bit of relocation with Shaz picking the route down, and it wasn’t too long before we were moving through fields towards the road, while avoiding the cattle. A short walk along the road bought us back to the car, it had been a very enjoyable couple of days.

Good luck to Shaz in his upcoming CLA assessment.

Fairfield horseshoe a sunny frosty walk

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Fairfield horseshoe; a sunny frosty walk

The day began very early with a long but uneventfully drive and we arrived in Ambleside just after 8.30 and parked. The parking was free today but I hadn’t noticed the sign and had already paid, so with boots on, rucksacks shouldered and a little annoyed we set off.

Today’s route was going to be the Fairfield horseshoe. We crossed the road from the car park and started up the opposite road, taking the first turning on the left and heading towards Low Sweden bridge. It was very frosty and the air was clear, it promised to be a good day.

On reaching Low Pike the view of the route stretched out in front of us. High Pike was the next top along the ridge and we were soon passing through the wall to the little cairn on top. It was our first stop and whilst standing by the cairn getting food out of my rucksack, I noticed the cold wind and got my hat and gloves out, the views were again good in all directions.

Returning through the wall, we followed it, avoiding snow patches up the now broadening and gentle ridge up towards Dove crag. After a short break for photos, we descended the slope to the col, avoiding icy patches and talking about the priest hole cave and how recently people have had to be rescued whilst trying to find it.

The ascent up to Hart crag is short and steep and in poor visibility can be a little tricky, but the only hazards today were hard patches of snow and ice. We soon arrived and for the first time today met some other walkers.

The next section of the walk was down the slope to Link Hause and then up to the relatively flat top of Fairfield. The first part of this section was mostly on frozen snow, so we proceeded carefully and were soon walking on the gentle slope towards the high point for the day.

The summit of Fairfield is a bit bland; no peak, no big cairn, just two small shelters, but what it lacks in summit furniture it makes up in some really good views all round, particularly towards the Hellvelyn massif. We stayed a short while, had a bite to eat and then set off towards Great Rigg with the sun in our eyes.

The descent of Fairfield down to the col before Great Rigg is not overly steep but takes some time, but the surroundings where good and we talked a little about features left after the last ice age, and then moved on to other subjects and before long we were over Great Rigg and down the other side. The ridge then undulates towards Heron Pike, but the going underfoot was still frozen, so care was still needed when crossing boggy sections as to avoid slipping on icy pools.

On reaching Heron Pike, the rest off the way was now descent, gentle at first but the way became stepper as we moved towards Nab Scar. There were a few zig zags to take the sting out of the descent, or ascent if going the other way, which a number of people were doing.

We made it down to the stile before the concrete road, which leads down to the main road, where somebody had left vegetarian mince pies to take and an honesty box for charity. We made our way down the road and then turned into Rydal Hall, past a good looking tea shop and through the attractive grounds of the hall, exiting onto a track that took us back to Ambleside. A short walk along the road led back to the carpark and then onto tea and cake. A great day out.

Snowdon in the sunshine and moonlight

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Snowdon in the sunshine and moonlight

I had been booked to take four people up Snowdon as part of preparation for an ascent of Kilimanjaro, and so I drove to North Wales the evening before and camped at Dolgam campsite in Capel Curig. The meeting with the group was at 11.30am, so I had a leisurely morning of breakfast in Bewts-y-coed followed by a hobbit-style second breakfast in Capel Curig, after which I made my way to the meeting point at Pen-y-Pass.

On arriving at the pass, it was busy as usual and I waited for the group to arrive, watching  all sorts of people start-up the tracks to Snowdon. I was met by one of the group members, who was having trouble parking, eventually one of the cars parked at the bottom of the hill down by the Pen-y-Gwryd, and the others went down to Nant peris. I walked up from Pen-y-Gwryd to the pass with two people and met the rest of the team at Pen-y-Pass.

We had a short briefing and equipment check, a few excess items were removed, but everybody had the essentials and we then began our trip up the Pyg track enjoying the sunshine and spectacular views.

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We slowly climbed up to Bwlch y Moch where the path divides, one track heading up Crib Goch, the other crossing a fence and onward towards Snowdon. We had a brief break for photo’s and to watch people begin their ascent of Crib Goch, but were soon on our way again.

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The pace was slow but steady and the crowds were thick with people passing on the way up, and people coming down, some looking quite fatigued. We soon turned a corner in the path and heard, and then saw, the rescue helicopter which landed on the shore of Glaslyn. This had the effect of stopping most of the people on the path, who now had their phones out filming, creating bottlenecks on the path slowing our progress even more.

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With the helicopter now gone we approached the start of the miner’s track down to Glaslyn, where we came across a women being attended to after suffering a slip or a fall with a nasty head gash. I moved my group off to one side and offered to give them my group shelter, but someone else gave them his, as it was a company one and not a personal piece of equipment. I rejoined my group and we continued onwards, towards where the path has a large switchback, where the helicopter had returned to pick the casulty up, a busy day for mountain rescue, I thought to myself.

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The cloud came in a little and as we arrived at Bwlch Glas it was now only a short way to the summit. We were now moving very slowly, but made it and the group were all very pleased, however the low cloud had spoilt a lot of the view.

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There was now time for a few photo’s and some food before we began our trip down. It was at this point that we started to move really slowly, as one of the party was now very tired and every piece of broken ground was being negotiated very carefully.

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As we approached the start of the miners track, the cloud cleared and we had truly stunning views as the sun was beginning set low in the sky. We slowly negotiated the descent down to Glaslyn and it was just beginning to get dark. With all the most difficult ground now covered, it was a slow gentle walk out via the miners track with our head torches on.

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There were now no more crowds, just our small group walking alone in the dark. As we approached Llyn Llydaw, the moon began to rise in the sky and it was very bright. I believe it was the harvest moon, as this was a full moon close to the autumnal equinox. I switched my head torch off and turned around to look at the mountains behind us, in the moonlight it was a very memorable moment, you could see a few head torches on the paths above but they seemed lost in the vastness of the mountain.

With head torch back on, it was not long until we turned a corner and could now see Pen-y-pass illuminated slightly below us. Some members of the party were now quite weary, but the sight of the end spurred them on a little and we were soon standing in the car park. The group were very pleased with their day out, it was a great day, wonderful views, good company and stunning night-time views.

Gallt y Wenallt on a wet day

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Gallt y Wenallt on a wet day.

Whilst working as a volunteer on a gold Duke of Edinburgh, and not being needed on the third day, I decided to go for a walk from the Hertfordshire Snowdonia centre  where the staff were staying. The weather was less than perfect, so a short walk up to Gallt y Wenallt was decided upon. For those who don’t no where this is, it is on the ridge to the east of the Snowdon horseshoe peak of Y Lliwedd.

With full waterproofs on I left the centre and joined the Watkin path, which leads up Snowdon. I really enjoy the view from the track, near to the start of the walk, when you round a bend and see this waterfall.
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I continued up the path and was met by a man descending, he told me not to bother going up to Snowdon as the path was like a river and he had turned back. I thanked him for his advice and walked on until nearly level with the waterfall on the Afon Cwm Llan, where I left the main path and descended along a wall down to the river. The river was very lively after all the rain which had fallen over the last few days, and made the stone slab bridge  seem very narrow with the turbulent waters below.
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After crossing the river there was a path which lead up the side of the hill. It first leads through a small wood, although walking on this path with the recent rainfall was like walking up a stream. The path eventually left the wood and continued up and over a wall and into the side of Cwm Merch. After crossing another wall, the path levelled out and I was now in cloud, visibility was poor but I pressed on along the path. This was probably the access track for the old cooper mine, which was up ahead. The old mine buildings slowly appeared out of the mist and I could hear the waterfalls beyond, which added to the atmosphere.
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The path ended at these buildings and any tracks ahead seemed very vague: I now had to cross the stream ahead, which seemed more of a raging torrent with impressive waterfalls just above an obvious crossing point. Needing to cross the stream, and with this obvious  crossing point where the water seemed too high, I moved up the slope and crossed the stream over the top of the waterfall.
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Once across I moved across the back of the Cwm looking for a what on the map seemed like a good rib to follow up to the top of the ridge and after a bit of struggle with the very wet and rough ground I found the rib and soon made quick progress up to the top of the ridge and turned east and soon arrived on the summit of Gallt y Wenallt with no view I didn’t hang around a few photos a spot to eat and i descended the same way.
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The rain which had relented a little after I had made it the old mine workings, was now back, but there was little wind and once down the track and past the walls I came out of the cloud and a view was restored.
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I was soon back on the Watkin path and back at the centre, a little soggy, but having enjoyed the walk. On a fine day, this would have been a good walk with lovely views and the possibility to continue up the ridge over Lliwedd and onto Snowdon, even doing an Eastern horseshoe walk coming back down Snowdon’s south ridge.

A map of the route here route

Brecon Beacons summer day out

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Brecon Beacons summer day out

The day started early, with a 4.00am alarm and before I knew it, I was up and going to start the journey towards the M4 heading for South Wales. We made good time and soon were navigating the small roads to the south of the Brecon Beacons, making our way to the car park at Taf Fechan. I was expecting the car park to be full as the weather was set to be good, but there were only a few cars present, making the parking easy. We shouldered our rucksacks and began down the access road towards the lower Neuadd reservoir. On reaching the end of the track we followed a path across the dam wall

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through a gate and onto the hillside. The going was a bit boggy at first but was drier higher up as we passed the edge of the forrest. The final haul up onto the Graig Fan Ddu ridge was a little steep but short and we were soon walking over to the Trig point were we stopped to take in the view.

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After a few photo’s we continued along the ridge mainly taking in the views but also chatting about the landscapes history, from the Sandstone rocks we were walking over to the effect that ice has had on the mountains.

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We arrived at the col and joined the busy path from Storey arms car park, with having only seen a handful of people to this point, it was quite a different experience to be surrounded by crowds all moving towards Pen y Fan. A lot of people were bypassing Corn Du on a path traversing to the south, but we headed on up and after a short rocky step were on the summit.

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We stayed briefly to enjoy the view and watch the crowds pulse towards the higher summit, and then swiftly made our way down to join the masses moving up to the high point of the, day Pen y Fan.

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After a short stay on the summit we headed south east down the ridge towards another Col, and this path, although still busy, was a lot quieter. We crossed the Col past a small pool of water and began to ascend Cribyn, after about five minutes we stopped for a snack and to admire the view of Pen y fan’s north east face, which in winter holds some climbing routes.

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A steady pace saw us arrive on the top of Cribyn, more terrific views were to be had and the weather was improving with a lot more sunshine and a gentle cooling breeze.

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The final part of the descent off Cribyn down to Bwlch ar y Fan is quite steep and we passed a few groups heaving themselves slowly up the slope, but the crowds were now no longer present as we moved up to the summit of Fan y Big and the obligatory standing on the “diving board”.

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I fell into conversation with a man who said that the last time he had been up to these mountains, he had been part of a group that had been struck by lightning on Pen y Fan. After discussing current weather patterns, we left the gentleman and headed of to have some lunch in a stone built shelter a bit along the ridge. The sun was now very warm out of the wind and we didn’t hang around for long. The next part of the walk was less strenuous and more undulating, but with fantastic views back to the mountains already crossed.

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It wasn’t long before we were walking towards the waterfall at Blaen Caerfanell,  now only seeing the occasional other person. We crossed the stream and headed over Craig y Fan Ddu and then the steep descent towards the waterfalls and car park near the road.

Once on the road it was a short walk on the tarmac, then onto a trail that bought us back to the car park, the only thing to do now was to go and have some tea and drive home. A good day out in fabulous weather, this is a great route which can be adjusted to suit available time and ambition.

Three peaks challenge 20th/21st May 2016

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My trip began with a flight to Glasgow early on a Friday morning, the car was found and this followed an uneventful drive up to Fort William. We parked up and went for a spot of lunch that was quickly followed by some food shopping. Shopping done we drove up to the nevis car park and the beginning of the challenge at 14.50.

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The weather was cloudy with sunny spells and a little wind. The heat of the sun sapped the strength when it was out early on, although the pace was steady and stops were few as we ascended up the pony path. The views all around were fabulous as the cloud had begun to lift.

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On reaching the half way Lochan (not quite halfway) the upper slopes of the Ben looked forboding wrapped in cloud, but we continued at quite a pace up the zig zags until the slope gradient eased and the path disappeared under sugary snow. The visibility was good and the top was made in just under three hours.DSC_0490

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A quick drink, a few photos and the descent was made, with only a stop to put waterproofs on near  the half way lochan  we were soon back at the car after five hours.

Next came the long drive to the Lake district. Following a stop for food, fuel and a detour (as one of the A roads was closed) we arrived in the national trust car park in Wasdale at 02.00. The weather had taken a turn during the drive down from Scotland and it was now raining heavily and windy, so on with full waterproofs – this was a little unpleasant! With headtorches on we began the walk up Brown tongue, the going was slow but steady and the path was good. We came to a junction and picked up two other three peakers who had gone ahead of us early on, but were now unsure where to go and asked if they could join us, with the weather and visibility poor our group went from four to six. The mist was very dense and the rain seemed to come from all directions and the path became lost for a short section. It was easily found again after a bit of relocation and we reached the top as it was getting light, a very brief stop for a drink and some food as the weather was now really foul. I was becoming a little worried about our two extra people as we began the descent down into the wind, as they were not adequately prepared, with unsuitable waterproof clothing. The wind was strong, the rain stung our faces and obscured our vision, but we eventually made it out of the cloud and the wind dropped. The rain remained as we made it back to the car at 06.20, where we had a quick change of clothes and tried to keep things dry as we set off for North Wales.

The drive down to Snowdon was hassle free, until we came to the turning up to Pen-Y-pass which was closed for the Slateman triathlon, so we had to park at the pen-y-gwredd car park. From here our ascent began and a good pace was set,  the group didn’t seem to mind the extra leg-work and we soon made it to Pen-y-pass, where it stopped raining. We continued along the pyg track where the visibility soon became poor, there were lots of people on the track as we reached the upper section, and the rain returned. Waterproofs were again needed and with no further stops we reached the top, we did not linger however, as  there was no view and the weather being poor the group were keen to get down. We descended as quickly as tired limbs would allow and made it back to the car park, finishing the challenge in just under 24 hours. We ended our adventure with a celebratory beer at the YHA  across the road, before descending back to the car and on to a youth hostel in Conwy for food, a few drinks and some well-earned sleep.

Snowdon 25/03/16

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A trip to north Wales with members of Hertfordshire youth Connexions staff volunteers and friends.

Everyone was staying at the Herts Snowdonia centre, I arrived late on a thursday evening after struggling through traffic, and was introduced to everyone. We had a brief discussion about what everyone was going to do the next day, some members agreed on  a trip up Snowdon via the Watkin path, a start time was decided upon and people drifted off to bed.

Next morning the weather looked fine and when everyone was ready, we stopped for a group photo and left the centre around 9.00 am.

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Snowdon team

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We walked up the Watkin path in sunshine, most unusually it was even slightly too hot to start with! and there was much stoping to readjust clothing. After around thirty minutes the path passes some waterfalls and pools, which on a warm day would be most welcome to dip into.

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After passing the falls, we began to spread out a little as the path began to steepen. I was walking with some of the group at the back and we had a discussion about the types of fun you can have when out in the hills – types one to three; type one being fun enjoyment now, type two retrospective fun and type three fun you survived!

We made a decision to regroup at the col between Snowdon and Lliwedd, when we arrived the wind was a lot stronger and the cloud had come in. While we were waiting for the rest of the group to catch up, some people took photos of the lakes and we talked about the mythical beast, the Afanc, and how it came to located in Glaslyn.

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Once we had regrouped and had some food, we set off up the stepper slope towards where the Watkin path meets the Rhyd Ddu path. Some members of the group found the steepening slope and particularly the rocky parts a bit of a challenge, but everyone reported that they were having fun – albeit type two fun in some peoples cases.

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On arriving at the top of the path, there was a small patch of soft snow which we all negotiated safely and headed up towards the summit. On the way the cloud would break occasionally, giving beautiful views south towards the coast, but they were only ever  fleeting. Everyone went to the top and photos were taken and well as many selfies.

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The decent went down the same way as the ascent, as far as the path junction, then we followed the path down the south ridge. Intially it was quite narrow and complicated, with patches of old soft snow, but soon we were on the broad shoulder heading down to the col between snowdon and Yr Aran.

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From the col we headed down across Cwm LLan, avoiding the boggy areas and rejoined the path we had come up at the waterfalls. Everyone then returned to the centre, pleased with their day out on the hill – some more tired than others

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A good day on the hill…

Arans in the wind 07/11/15

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Weekend trip to North Wales – the initial idea was to traverse the Rhinogs, but the weather forecast leading up to the weekend wasn’t good. Add to this the boulder strewn ground of the Rhinogs may have been somewhat unsuitable, so a change of plan was needed. A trip to the Arans was decided upon.

I picked my friend up very early on Saturday morning and drove through increasingly worsening weather – arriving in the car park just before eight, with rain bouncing of the car which was gently rocking in the wind! We quickly put full waterproofs on and started off, the going was tough as we approched the start of the ridge.

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After about an hour of hard going in the wind and rain, the weather began to improve and just before the steepening of the slope the visibility became very good, we then had good views as we reached the summit of Aran Benllyn.

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The wind was still very strong as we walked across to the foot of Aran Fawddwy, where the weather began to deteriorate. The view became restricted to just a few metres after beginning the upward slog, we reached the summit which was very windy and wet – the views had now gone.

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We stopped for a quick photo and some food, then began our descent. The slope followed a fence line and continued along the ridge to a memorial cairn, and then continued further along to the summit of  Drysgol, again the weather was not great.

After a brief stop and quick ponder about which was the best way down the slope, we went down to the Llaethnant river and up the other side to the Llyn. The discussion about whether we would be camping was very short, as spray being  blown off the Llyn was slamming into us – we retreated.

We made are way down Cwm Llwydd and back to the car at Llanuwchllyn along the valley, all in all a wet and windy day!