A Day on the Snowdon Horseshoe

ITS FRIDAY - I MUST BE MAD....!

Well what is it that makes me mad...!
Well 1st this trek up Snowdon was only decided on the Friday when i finished work in and around London and after getting back home to Medway in Kent at 17:30 i was then off again at 18:00 in my car to Wales...!
My area of stay that night was a bed and breakfast at Tremadog near Porthmadog. That evenings drive was via the A2 / M25 via Dartford Tunnel then the M25 / M11 to Cambridge and the A14 all the way to the M6 / M1 Cathorpe interchange. Then at not even halfway i had a snack and break at the M6 Corley services then continued to the M54 into Shropshire and the A5 to Oswestry. The rest was nothing but Welsh country shortcut roads from Bala and Trawsfynydd through to Porthmadog.

That was over 350miles and believe me i was shattered that night and sleapt like a log...!

SATURDAY UP SNOWDON WAS GREAT & PICTURES SAY A 1000-Words...!

I had an early breakfast at 6:30 hours and set off for the Pen y pass car park at 7:00. After seeing lovely clear views of the Moelwyn Summits and Cnicht I arrived at the car park for 7:45 and it was already very busy but i was lucky to get a parking space...
Whilst getting my gear together i watched the clouds banking over the ridge of Crib Goch thinking it was going to be one of those days of cloud and not much else. But i was wrong...!

This was my 34th time up Snowdon.
I climbed via the complete horseshoe route and the experience was great and thrilling in some sections.
Climbing the ridge of Crib Goch was great as the banking cloud that was coming through made you feel like being floating in some places and hid from view all the surrounding ridges summits and valleys.

After ascending Crib Goch navigating the ridge itself in the current weather conditions was not a technical problem...

After Crib Goch the ridge descends down past the famous Pinnacle Rocks and then you ascend continous for a fair distance along a varied ridge called Crib y Ddysgl and up on to the Summit of Garnedd Ugain at 1065 metres.
Again the cloud was banking on and off but from here i watched the cloud bank blow away from Snowdons Summit leaving it in full glory.
Hoping i was to get a clear sky on Snowdons summit I continued on towards the drop where the Pyg Track meets and followed the railway up the rest of the way.
Being a day with trains running up it was a mess on the summit. It reminds me of an ants nest with loads of ants swarming around it. I hate seeing the tourists who cheet there way up on the train as it is people like me who work hard to make it up here.

Whilst the cloud still hung over i had a coffee and a snack in the cafe then on heading back out to the trig point the cloud went and WOW...!
Fantastic views all around it was great.
I sat and observed the views and found a small hidden place in almost silence.

I then went back down via the Watkins Path section but took the point where it split so as to ascend my final target of Y Lliwedd.
When seen from Snowdons summit Y Lliwedd looks more impressive as a ridge than Crib Goch.

After descending Y Lliwedd and heading back to the car park via the lakes my day was absalutely stunning and had been one of my most memorable climbs for ages...!

I drove back to the great town of Shrewsbury as this made the next days journey home that bit easier.

SUNDAY THE JOURNEY HOME

Upon suffering from a rather painful cramp in the night at my Shropshire B&B i sleapt kind of ok but woke as if i had a hangover.
Probably not drinking enough again whilst up on those hills...
Someone should give me a slapped wrist for it really as it has happened before.
After a quick look round one of my most loved towns as in Shrewsbury the journey home back to Kent begun...!

Home late at 20:00hours only back to bed for a night and back to work for 7:00monday morning.

NOW ALL THAT DRIVING AND CLIMBING IN THREE-DAYS ONE MUST BE MAD...!

Images

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