Another hot Snowdonia weekend

A return trip to Beaudy Mawr hut at Nant Peris in Snowdonia. This time it was a meet with the London Section of the Rucksack Club. The hut was busy with people staying on after a glorious week in the sun and a small contingent of seven from the London Section (although no one actually lives in London & half of those present lived in the north!) The weather looked promising  and unlike May I had plenty of sun cream.

Saturday 8 September – The Glyders & Tryfan

With no real group plan I set off to walk over the Glyders and onto Tryfan. This meant taking the long slog up the Cwm Las path to Llyn y Cwn. There were plenty of views to take in as the path slowly climbs to the Llyn. As one guide book put it the real hardwork is yet to come.

 

Once at the refreshing site of the lake the path skirts around and then heads steeply up through gritty scree to reach Glyder Fawr. On the way up I met a group of doctors and nurses from a York Territorial Army unit out on a relaxing team weekend. Their instructor plodded on and patiently selected suitable resting points for his charges to admire the views and catch their breath.

From Glyder Fawr (999m) the path heads across the boulder strewn plateau to Glyder Fach (994m) with its much photographed cantilever rock. The two peaks translate as ‘Great Pile’ and ‘Little Pile’ and they are rocky outcrops in an already chaotic rocky landscape.

 

There were several options for the route to Tryfan and the scree run to the right of Bristly Ridge was certainly exhilarating with its loose scree surface. Talking to one walker on his way up I learnt that there were some lads doing some ‘extreme ironing’ on Adam and Eve top of Tryfan. Once down to the Bwlch I passed them as they headed for the scramble up Bristly Ridge with ironing board carefully strapped to a rucksack.

My route up to Tryfan was easier without the addition of a rigid board and took in the south ridge. The scramble up enabled good progress to be made and eventually the summit came into view. The prominent monoliths of Adam & Eve proved popular with those present. This was the first time up Tryfan since coming here with the school walking group back in the 1980s. The route down was certainly not the way I came up but it was easy to step down the boulder encrusted face of this mountain.

With water running short I elected to head down to Idwal Cottage via Llyn Bochlwyd and onto the cafe. Unfortunately the area was undergoing renovation and I discovered the cafe was a pile of rubble. Luckily the nearby Youth Hostel took pity on me and I was able to refill my bottles for the return journey.

This time it was along the improved path to Llyn Idwal, this area has undergone some major reworking since I was last here in 2009. The path up to Devil’s Kitchen and passes Idwal Slabs where the climbers were busy packing away for the day. The path is easy to follow and swings to the left to eventually reach the marshy plateau and Llyn y Cwn. On the way up I met the lads with the ironing board again. It turned out they were Scouts from Hampshire and have a county competition to find the most extreme place to set up an iron board. They certainly had a good day in the hills.

The final section was the reverse of my initial climb and as the sun started to set I made my way back to the hut in time for an evening meal and chat.

Sunday 9 September – Moel Siabod

After several years of looking up at Moel Siabod as I drove through Capel Curig and several abortive planned trips to walk on this isolated hill. Finally everything was in place to tackle it, although the good weather wasn’t to last.

Parking near the Bryn Glo cafe in Capel Curig it is possible to follow old quarry tracks out past a lake and then onto an old flooded quarry pit and ruined miners cottages. The path swings round to Llyn y Foel and becomes quite boggy in places. From here on the only way is up and this involves scrambling up the Daear Ddu ridge. By this stage the  cloud base had descended and the wind increased.

 

There had been a steady stream of walkers heading out from Capel Curig and our paths crisscrossed many times. Sadly the weather conditions meant there was no view from the top and beyond a quick snack there wasn’t much reason to linger.

The route down was along the north-east ridge offered some easy scrambling on occasions, although it is possible to contour around below the rocky outcrop. as a group of ramblers demonstrated. However, this would not avail the views of my outward journey as the visibility improved/

After some grassy and heavily eroded sections through slates the path soon re-joined the outward path and within half an hour the A5  and Pont Cyfyng (an old stone bridge) across the Afon Llugwy are within sight.

So ended a weekend of contrast with some great walking opportunities.

Beaudy Mawyr Weekend – Snowdonia in May

My first weekend with the Rucksack Club at their hut near Nant Peris in Snowdonia. When I arrived around 9pm there were quite a few people sitting outside still enjoying the evening. The hut is pleasantly situated just south of the village and beside the main road from Pen y Pass to Llanberis.

Saturday – Y Garn and Elidir Fawr

A glorious day in the hills lay before me, while the majority headed off on a 70 mile bike ride! A steep path near the hut provides good access to the Glyders ridge and the slopes of Y Garn. Excellent views into the Ogwen Valley were to be had from this vantage point. I then followed the ridge fence to Foel-goch, at the summit I met a man & his dog sitting admiring the view from the other side of the fence. we would later meet again down in Nant Peris in the pub.

A short back-track presented a stile to cross the fence and the route down to join the main path at Bwlch y Brecon. It had been pretty windy on the ridge and as a result I failed to realise how strong the sun actually was. The option here was to go straight for Elidir Fawr or head along to reach a few further summits before turning my attention to this summit. I chose the first option and was soon on Mynydd Perfedd with its small stone circle shelter & heading across the rocky plateau to Carnedd y Filiast before returning the way I had come.

The path to Elidir Fawr was fairly painless unlike the route back to Nant Peris. For the second time I struggled to find the path clearly marked on the OS maps as running down the hillside & alongside the Afon Dudodyn. It is possible to make a rout along here but it is not the easiest, a higher route above the valley seems the more preferable, maybe next time!

 

Nant Peris proved a welcome sight after a long days walk in the blistering heat. A refreshing drink & then on to the hut for a most welcome evening meal & time to relax.

The results of too much sun on the Saturday and continuing heat persuaded me to put on hold the proposed walk up Moel Siabod. This is one I’ve been meaning to climb for several years now but something always intervenes. maybe next time.

A Walk in the Moelwyns

For what turned out to be the best day of the extended weekend in Snowdonia I headed over to Croesor. Tucked in the valley between Cnicht and the Moelwyns this pleasant village has a small National Park car park and toilet, nearby is a small friendly cafe.
Most books seems to suggest going round in a clockwise direction, taking the higher Moelwyn Mawr first. However as it and Cnicht across the valley where shrouded in clouds, the best option was to take the lower Moelwyn Bach first in the hope that the cloud base would lift.
The walk therefore started by heading out along the road towards Tan-y-Bwlch, after passing a farm you eventually reach a block of forestry. Here the footpath takes you through the moss covered trees to the open moorland. The footpath actually heads out along the boggy valley but the route up to Moel Bach is best tackled by heading uphill and following is NW shoulder/ridge to the summit.

After admiring the view of distant Portmadog and the ___ estuary, the path descends steeply on the east side overlooking the Lyn Siwlan reservoir. Then from the Bwlch a easy scramble up Craigysgafn gains access to Moelwyn Mawr, which sadly was shrouded in cloud at the time. A brief chance to admire the obscured view and the path then descends on the west side and then skirting around the open wound of the former quarries. The destination being the top of Moel-yr-hydd with views into Blaenau Festiniog below.
 
Heading across to the quarry building near Llyn Creosor I joined the path down to the large quarry building footprint and track back to the village. This last part being the culmination of a walk I took my sister on nearly a year ago as part of her training for a charity walk in the Grand Canyon. On that occasion the walk was to stretch the muscles after her first ascent of Snowdon the previous day.
This year like last the cafe provided a welcome end point with its refreshments and homemade cakes. A good days walk with some unexpected views. This wasn’t the end of the weekend as i then had another two days in the area as I had to attend a 16-hour outdoor first aid course.

Snowdon Geology for MLs

Today was to be a day on Snowdon learning about its geology with Paul Gannon, author of the Rock Trails books. This was a CPD day organised through the Mountain Leader Training Association. During the day we learnt all about the different volcanic rocks, its different formations etc.

The route went up the Miners’ Track passing the Lower Rhyolitic Tuffs, Basalts and there various sub forms. Despite the appalling weather  we made good progress up Snowdon discussing the effect of tectonics on the structure of the mountains. The subsequent effect of glaciations was evident in the  four cwms that once held the glaciers. As we ascended each got progressively smaller.

The importation of rocks to stabilise the paths provided additional discussion material, and not just of a geological nature.

The route down was quicker but no less informative. Concluding with a hot mug of coffee in the Pen y Pass cafe, this was a good day on Snowdon.

Moel Hebog ridge walk

This weekend I headed off to Wales on a Thursday evening , arriving at Snowdon Ranger Youth Hostel around 9pm. The drive through Snowdonia was pleasant and it made a change not to have to carry all my stuff, unlike the earlier trip to the Cairngorms.

This was the first time at this hostel, which was a pleasant enough place. A good location for the west side of Snowdon. Not too far from Rhydd Ddu where I was staying at the end of February.

On Friday I headed down to Beddgelert and then walked up to Moel Hebog. The route started at the Royal Goat Hotel and then passed through the area now occupied by the Welsh Highland Railway. Once past this the route follows the road to just before the farm and then heads out across the open moorland. The gradual climb steepened & passed through an area of simple scrambling and scree. The summit was shrouded in mist and covered in a fresh layer of snow, which indicated no one had been up since it settled.

After locating the trig point the path descends down the north side alongside the drystone wall.

The route then passed through a cleft in the rock and up to Moel yn Ogol and then mostly along a ridge to Moel Lefn. This was mostly the same as the first day of my ML practice expedition. The difference was today was wet and claggy whereas then it was boiling hot and parched. On that occasion we had headed down to the disused mines and camped near the reservoir. This provided my first and so far only experience with ticks!

This time the route headed into Beddgelert Forest, which proved to be a nightmare. The footpath through  the forest was a cross between quagmire, bog and stream bed. After finally extracting myself from its grip it was a short walk along the road into the village.

Aran Fawddwy in the snow

Looking towards Pen Main

This weekend was spent in the Arans a fantastic walking area in North Wales. The drive up on Friday night was uneventful and relaxing, even getting through Birmingham on the M6 was easy going. The lanes around Dinas Mawddwy were on the other hand more challenging.
Saturday morning and the sun was shining and it promised to be a good day despite the ominous weather forecasts. Beyond Dinas Mawddwy there is a small car park near Cwm Cywarch. The path leaves the track by a bridge across the stream and then a sunken lane takes you out into the valley above Afon yt Hengwm. The path slowly climbs above the valley and swings around to Drysgol.

View from Drysgol to Aran Fawddwy

 The snow was increasing in depth by this stage and the icing on the mountains was rapidly becoming more of a reality. As we followed the ridge keeping the fence on our right Aran Fawddwy could be seen in its full winter glory.

The path passed a memorial cairn for Mike Aspain of RAF St Athan mountain rescue team who was killed by lightning here. The path would normally be fairly straight-forward but with snow and ice covered rocks it was a more interesting experience.

Following the ridge, looking towards the memorial cairn by Drws Bach

The summit of Aran Fawddwy

 The final trudge led to the summit of Aran Fawddwy with its snow caped trig point & time for a bite to eat. The snow in places was up to knee deep and invariably your boot slowly descended through the snow layers making it tough going.

The descent was along the fence line running in a south-westerly direction towards Glasgwm. An extremely boggy path even at this time of year. The sections of board walk were more of a hindrance with their ice covering, but no doubt a blessing at other times of the year.


After 2 km or so the path veers downhill along a gully. The pond beside the fence marks the beginning of the path down which becomes very steep. Now below the snow line the path was still slippery due to film on the rocks and a saturated top soil. The path crosses a few side streams before reaching a wide footbridge and a more gentle path down to Bleaencywarch. The path passes around the farm and back to the car park. In total this was a 12 km walk which took around 5 hours of walking through snow and bog.

The view or lack of it

 The Sunday was an altogether different day, with poor visibility and gusting snow/sleet showers all day. as the day progressed it descended further into the valley and a slog up to the pond below Glasgwm was the limit of the days activities.
The lure of warm soup and time to dry out before the journey home proved too strong.