With a run of time in North Wales ahead of us, we decided that we ought to get re-familiarized with the local mountains while getting a bit of fitness training in at the same time. With a long walk in and then 300m of climbing, Amphitheatre Buttress seemed like a good choice. Things are still busy in the Ogwen Valley, with cars double parked pretty much all the way through, but there was plenty of space out the otherside (away from the cafe!) and we happily put our two quid in the honesty box at the farm. Despite the busy valley, we saw no one until we started climbing nearly two hours later.
The walk up and over the col was easy enough, but still felt like a long way! There was a team near the top of our route and a couple of teams on nearby Craig yr Ysfa, but other than that, we were on our own.
About 60m up, there is an amazing slab of rock which gives some quality climbing - the rest is also good, but just a bit broken up.
After an easier scrambling section, there are some pinnacles to cross, which are great fun.
This one gives the most precarious and photogenic (but you can also walk around it, if you don't fancy the balancing act).
After two and three-quarters of an hour on the route, we were back on the flat and sunny ground of the summit. We'd moved at a reasonable pace, but also stopped for a picnic and to photo some other climbers on the opposite wall. Although the route is known for getting the morning sun, at this time of year, we were still in the sunshine at 15:00 and only briefly moved into the shade for the final pitch - which actually made topping out into the sunshine even nicer.
A brief snooze and the devouring of the last of the food and water passed another half hour or so until we decided we really ought to get back down.
The sun was falling in beams of light again as we made our descent back to the valley. Not a bad training day really - 700m of height gain, 9km of hiking and 300m of rock climbing. We were both very ready to show the sofa some appreciation when we got back to The Cottage!
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