| 6th May 2007 |
| Sorry it has been quiet here, but a number of things have consipired
to keep me off the hills for a couple of weeks. Hovever, I received
a postcard From HSX (Hampshire Scout Expeditions. Some years ago,
when I was still instructing the old 'First Aid in Mountaineering'
course, they told me of the intention to put a scout on the summit
of Everest for the centenary. I looks like they are on their way,
as the postcard came form Everest Base Camp. To follow their progress,
go to www.ScoutsOnEverest.org.uk. |
Samayak Festival Procession at Kathmandu |
|
| 15th April 2007 |
| Another beautiful day, and this time we headed to the Llanberis
Pass and Dinas Mot. Direct Route is one of the classics of the crag,
and at VS, has an interesting 5a top pitch. |
Pitch 2, Direct Route, Dinas Mot |
|
| 14th April 2007 |
| A good foecast for the whole weekend - really unexpected at this
time of year. We headed up to Idwal - which was as busy as expected,
but went round onto Idwal Buttress, not one of the 'classics' of the
crag, but it provided a couple of pitched of Diff climbing, and then
some good scrambling before another couple of pitches of Diff took
us to the Quartz ledge of the Main Cliff of Glyder Fawr. Here things
did get a little more serious, with a couple of pitches of VS climbing
up Grey Slab and a bit more scrambling took us to Senior's Ridge,
and finally Glyder Fawr summit. |
Atop Idwal Buttress.
 
Last of the VS climbing finished, and the route up from Idwall buttress
to Senior's Ridge |
|
| 13th April 2007 |
| Alan had his scouts staying at Coet Mor Mill, and I was able to
help out taking them to the climbing wall. As the explorers and parents
had provided considerable help, we managed to get them out on the
Friday on Little Tryfan. Photo courtesy of Lian. |
An expectant group on the ledge of Little Tryfan |
|
| 4th April 2007 |
| It just seemed too good a chance to miss. On our way own into Menai
Bridge to rehydrate after a session on the climbing wall, and the
moon was jus emerging from a low cloud bank as a backdrop to the Menai
Bridge. It doesn't seem to matter how long you llive here, the beauty
of the area still has the capacity to astonish. |
The Menai Bridge |
| 2nd April 2007 |
| It seems the Ffestiniog railway is running again for summer (if
it ever stopped for winter). I've been over this level crossing probably
twice a week for the last two years, and it is the first time that
I've had to stop. |
The Level Crossing in Penrhyndeudraeth |
|
| 24th march 2007 |
The combination of sun and light winds meant that it was warm
enough (in the sun) to make climbing a pleasure again, and we managed
to get out onto the east face of Tryfan and do Second Pinnacle Rib.
unfortunately the morning was not quite long enough, and we had
to finish the last pitch after the sun had gone off the face.
The day was a little marred by watching the pollution haze advancing
from the south. By the time we reached the summit,it had already
starting to arrive giving pretty effects in the air, until you realised
what was causing them. |
Second Pinnacle Rib - Tryfan East Face
Pollution haze obscuring the Horizon, and showing in the air. |
|
| 20th March 2007 |
| I wish the weather would make its mind up. Just when you think it
is safe to pack the ice axe away, it goes and snows again. Not a lot,
admittedly. |
Nant Ffrancon from Beaumaris |
|
| 17th March 2007 |
It was the OVMRO (Ogwen
Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation) AGM today, and the attached
picture only goes to validate my opinion that the best way of encouraging
mountain safety is to let people meet the recue team.
|
Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Team |
|
| 14th March 2007 |
| After what seems like weeks of interminable rain, the weather has
cleared up. Let's hope it is the way things are going for spring. |
Snowdon |
|
| 8th March 2007 |
| Work is still taking me all over Gwynedd and Anglesey, which is
very pleasant in good weather. The trips to Amlwch, on the north coast
of Anglesey, take me past Parys Mountain. Until now the weather has
been too poor to show it off, but today was good and bright. Parys
Mountain has been mined for Copper and other minerals since at least
Roman times, and the waste is so heavily mineralised that there are
areas where virtually nothing grows. The ground also takes on a variety
of coloured hues. As a result it has been used as a location for a
number of films and TV series including Doctor Who. Most recently
it hit the news when an underground lake was discovered to be sulphuric
acid, and it was slowly eating through the retaining dam. The council
had to arrange for it all to be pumped out and neutralised before
it finished off the dam, and dissolved Amlwch onm its way to the sea. |
Parys Mountain |
|
| 13th February 2007 |
Then it was gone. Only little bits of snow remain now, where
it had drifted deepest; and there is no more promised.
Carneddau and Tryfan from Bangor.
|
|
| 10th February 2007 |
That's more like it! A decent covering of snow down, with more
promised, perhaps we will get proper winter conditions thisyear
after all.
Glyderau and Snowdon from near Bethel.
|
|
| 3rd February 2007 |
| A still, sunny day tempted us out onto real rock, and we made an
attempt on Grooved Arete on the east Face of Tryfan. In retrospect,
starting in the afternoon was not the cleverest plan, and so we didn't
finish the route. Having caught up two more pairs at 'The Haven',
we traversed off, and escaped down North Gully, reaching the road
after 6.00. Bettere than the group we ahd caught up, whose head torch
lights we could make out at the far end of Heather Terrace when we
were down. |
Daniela on the polished groove pitch of Grooved Arete |
|
| 1st February 2007 |
| The weather picked up a little, and we had a bit of a temperature
inversion over the hills, with the tops showing above a layer of cloud.
ONe of those days where you regret having to work, and would rather
be out walking (not that most days aren't like that!). |
From the Gazelle Inn on the Beaumaris road, opposite Bangor Pier |
|
| 27th January 2007 |
| Almost all the snow has gone again, and we're back to the wet and
miserable winter weather we know so well. However, with a couple of
friendds up for the weekend, and bursting to do something, we mounted
an assault on Ordinary Route on the Idwal Slabs. Fingers were'nt too
numb while you were moving, and we tried to keep moving (overtaking
another party who were moving 'Alpine Style' for speed). |
Daniela and Gwyndaf on Ordinary Route, Idwal Slabs |
|
| 22nd January 2007 |
That's more like it!
More snow on the tops overnight, and a bright start to the day made
the hills look far more appealing than they have for weeks. Of course,
the sun did mean that by the end of the day the snow was already starting
to look a bit patchy, but at least it is a start. |
|
|
| 21st January 2007 |
Happy New Year.
I've been quiet so far this yaer, as I suspect that the views up
here have been pretty much the same as views everywhere else - rain,
rain and more rain, interspersed with mist. Not very interesting,
photographically. Whenever there has been a clearance, I've not
been in the right place to do anything about it. However, this morning,
as promised by the weathermen, the tops were clear enough to show
that there was afresh dusting of snow down. The down side is that
it probably won't last, but here's hoping that we get at least enough
to play in for a few days. |
The Carneddau from Llandegai |
|
| 21 December 2006 |
While most of the country has been fog bound, we have had a spell
of cold, clear weather. The hills have looked very inviting - all
they ned now is asome snow to set them off beautifully.
Happy Christmas top all (both?) readers.
Bob |
Snowdon from Brynrefail |
|
| 16th December 2006 |
| With all the rain that has been falling, a visit to a waterfall
seemed to be in order. Conwy Falls was in full flood, with the picture
not really doing it justice. Nevertheless one can guess that there
has been some general change in the water levels over the years as
it looks as though there is a salmon ladder on the island that splits
the fall, but there is no water flowing through that, even in these
conditions. |
Conwy Falls |
|
| 11th December |
| You may have heard that Capel Cerig received 4.3 inches (nearly
11cm) of rain between noon on Sunday and 7.00 am this morning. The
rivers were well up this morning, as you might imagine, but possibly
beyond the point of 'spectacular' in some cases. Cobden's Falls, usually
with a few rocks showing to make it interesting for kayakers, was
almost flat today. Compare with the same falls in 'good' paddling
conditions (even this is 'up' from the normal river state) in an older
picture. |
Cobdens Falls
Same falls in May 1993 |
|
| 3rd December |
| Saturday night was wild - windy and very wet. Just how wet was evident
on Sunday morning from the fountains springing from the drain covers
on the the Tregarth road, and that the Nant Ffrancon had done its
best to turn back into the glacial lake it once was. |
Fountains on the Tregarth Road
Llyn (formerly 'Nant') Ffrancong |
|
| 1st December |
Boot Hill - North Wales Style
Come over the Crimea Pass (named after the pub that once stood
at the head of the pass) from Betws y Coed going to Blaenau Ffestiniog,
and just after the top of the hill, look out to the left and you
should spot a low brown mound, almost devoid of vegetation. This
is 'Boot Hill'. As far as I know it draws its name from the manner
of its creation. After the First World War, Canadian and and New
Zealand forces were billetted in Blaenau Ffestiniog while waiting
for transport home. Unfortunately the Americans had commandeered
all the ships to repatriate their troops, leaving others to wait.
In protest, one evening the disgruntled soldiers went to the top
of the pass and burned all their caps and boots. Hence the name.
The ground is still almost sterile, and the surface is covered in
the remains of the items- the heel irons (not horse shoes - the
picture gives no scale), eyelets from lace holes and nails from
the bools, and occasional other ites; bits of charred leather, small
buckles and ocassionally a piece of a metal cap badge. |
Boot Hill
Heel irons, eyelets and nails litter the ground |
|
| 26th November |
| The weather forecast had promised that this would be the better
day of the weekend, and sure enough blue, if not entirely clear, skies
prevailed. However, they seem have rather a rather different idea
of 'light winds' to mine. Nevertheless, we took a run out to Holyhead,
and arrived just in time for an isolated shower. We went down to Rhoscolyn
to see if it was any drier ther. It was, but the winds were still
quite strong, and we decided it probably wasn't the best of weather
to be climbing sea cliffs. |
|
|
| 18th November |
| Not quite the first snow - I'm told there has been a touch of white
on the hills earlier in the month - but the first snow I've seen this
year. Perhaps it is only annecdotal, but when I first started living
up here, I expected to see the first snow on the tops before the end
of September. It never lasted at that time of year, but as the years
go by, the first snow seems to be coming later and later. |
Carneddau from Llandegai |
|
| 11th November |
| The OVMRO (Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescu Organisation) had a training
day for those of us who do not get regular practice at driving Land
Rovers off road. A morning of theory was followed by an afternoon
on the compact off-raaod course at the PowerGen bas in Dolgarrog.
They have packed a lot into a small area, and the picture shows one
of the team's 130s being marshalled through a tight turn through the
trees. |
Too tight a turn for the 130 to make it in one |
|
| 7th November |
| It has been one of those super days that happen just occasionally,
the weather clears up after rain, and there is just enough haze to
make the horizon look really distant, but not spoil the foreground
views. This is Cader Idris from Barmouth, making me regret that I
have another appointment in the afternoon. |
Cader Idris from Barmouth |
|
| 23rd October |
| On my way to work, driving through the Llanberis Pass I spotted
the distinctive yellow helicopeter of C Flight, 22 Squadron. They
were assisting Llanberis Mountain Rescue Team in the rescue of a climber
who had fallen fro the first pitch of Sabre Cut (VS) on Dinas Gromlech. |
C Flight, 22 Sqn assistin Llanberis MRT at Dinas Gromlech |
|
| 22nd October |
| We were on our way back from Tremadoc on the Bedddgelert to Waunfawr
road when I tought we'd beed transported to Harry Potter land. In
fact it was the Welsh Highland Railway
(not the Hogwarts Express). Over the course of the year the line has
gradually been extended. At present the line starts at Caernarfon,
and runs via Dinas to Waunfawr and then to Rhyd Ddu, but the line
nearly extends nearly to Beddgelert, and expected to be there by the
end of the year. Unfortunately planning permission has not been granted
for a teminus there, so you will have to wait until it gets down to
Porthmadog before you can travel beyond Rhydd Ddu. Nevertheless it
is still a supurb trip down that far. |
Welsh Highland Railway |
|
| 21st October |
| We managed to get a couple of climbs in at Holyhead Mountain, but
spent the whole time with one eye on the weather. We would watch showers
running before the wind from the mountains or the Llyn Peninsular,
but each time managing to miss us. It was only when we had finished,
and just got back to the car, that one managed to catch us full on. |
'Scattered Shower' off the coast from Holyhead |
|
| 4th October |
Sorry about the lack of postings in August and September - the
weather has just been too good to spend time indoors at the computer;
I'll try to catch up in the next few weeeks.
Visistors to Menai Bridge could have been forgiven for thinking
that winter had arrived early. In fact the snow was quite localised,
and turned out to be confined to a short terrace of shops that serve
as a film set for the Welsh language soap 'Rownd a Rownd'. (For
the curious, the 'snow' appears to be finely shredded paper, wetted
down.) |
Early snow in Menai Bridge? |
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