Back up Snowdon again today! This time with a group of students and with the most crystal clear conditions imaginable. Not a single cloud and not a breath of wind. I'm staying with the team for the weekend in Llanberis at Dol Peris Guesthouse which is quite simple one of the finest places a mountaineer could ever wish to stay in Snowdonia. It's owned by by my friends Phil and Lisa George who gave us a very reasonable rate for the weekend. As you can see, it's somewhere normally out of our price range - we are hardly roughing it!
We were out the door and off down the high street by 9am, full of enthusiasm and excitement. A steady enough pace was set and with plenty of rests, we arrived through the tunnel under the railway where we had perfect framed views of the Glyders and Carneddau.
It was on with crampons and out with the ice axes from then on, as the snow had an icy crust that made it almost impassable without them. Plenty of folk tried though!!
Needless to say we passed plenty of crazies shuffling along on all fours, slipping in trainers and even one couple with their socks over their boots for grip?! Bonkers.
Up at the top I could still see my tracks from two days ago!
Despite the bustling crowds on the summit today, rather than the solitude of two days ago, it's still a good view looking out!
It was a much slower pace on the way down. There were also more frequent stops as well as the occasional protests about being able to move! The setting sun and the realisation that there is only one way to get yourself down to the valley, seemed to eventually provide the required motivation to keep us moving.
We were still 90 ministers from home when the sun set, but the clear skies meant that it stayed light for a while until we needed our head torches on.
The colours were beautiful and as we had no rush to get down, we took our time. It ended up being a 9 hour door to door hike though, which left everyone (including me!) glad to be back!
Tuna pasta and apple crumble were soon rustled up and shortly after everyone crawled off to bed, utterly spent! At 17km and 1000m of ascent, I'm not surprised! A stunning day to be out and glad to have been able to make the most of it.
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