Blogs from Snowdon, Gwynedd, Wales, United Kingdom, Europe

31st August 2023 Llanberis Pass We set off in the opposite direction to yesterday heading for Llanberis. langollen. Didn’t intend to but went by way of Betys-Y-Coed as the Sat Nav decided that was the way to go. Fortunate really as Sat Nav took us down a road, to save ¼ mile, which we absolutely do not want to take tomorrow with the caravan behind. We should have followed the A5 but took one of Wale’s goat track aka roads instead. The caravan would not have fitted over the bridge at the end before we got onto the A5. Straight through Betys which was full of tourists, some looking a bit miserable as the Welsh drizzle was the wet sort. Then we took a turn to Llanberis as we were nearing some quite dramatic and scenic ... read more

Thursday 23 July 2015 Weather watching in Britain must be the most popular past time. It is certainly the favourite conversation piece. The last day or two has proved this to be true. A brief glance out of the window gave promise of a fine day. Our host offered to provide an early breakfast so we could get on the road for our much anticipated visit to Mt Snowdon, the highest mountain in England and Wales. The forty minute drive to Llanberis, our starting point, was uneventful except for the few spots of rain forecast to fall at 10:00 am. How good are the UK Meteorologists? We hope they are not that good because there is another shower forecast at 4:00 pm. We arrive at destination, park in a large carpark controlled by the nearby hotel, ... read more

Well the first of the three peaks is completed. Yesterday two friends and I climbed Snowdon in Wales. We went up the Pyg track and down Miners. It was not quite what I expected or in some ways was equipped for, but read on. The first surprise was how busy it was: it’s only just spring here but when we arrived just before 9:30 in the morning the car park was already full and there was a constant stream of people making their way up the tracks to the top. The next surprise was how hot it was. I have been monitoring the forecasts for the last couple of weeks and the previous weekend snow had been forecast and for the day of the walk, bright sunshine 10 degrees Celsius and dry. When we left home ... read more

There was a reason for the timing of our climb up Snowdon. As my alarm called its robotic chant at 6.30, it was exactly one year since we were climbing the highest mountain in England, Scafell Pike in the Lake District. The warmth of bed was the antithesis of that climb; the day began cool and wet and got worse, on the way I misjudged a river crossing and spent the rest of the day squelching those cold, wet, sore feet, as we got higher the winds became stronger, driving in hail and mist and pretty much everything else weather can strike you with. This was only the half-way point of the three peaks challenge though, the pointless journey to climb the highest mountain in England, Scotland and Wales and drive between them in less than ... read more

29/5/2010 Dolleglau With the rain bucketing down we made a slow start. Anticipating the worst of British roads with a wet start to the bank holiday weekend. We set off under the guidance of our sat nav along the motor way but with less traffic then expected. We cruised along the beautiful lush welsh countryside, along the narrow roads lined with cobblestone fences making it to Dollgelau with glimpses of sunshine. Unbeknown to us today was the Annual Dolleglau fun run a 5km run up Ras y Fordd so we grabbed some fish and chips and watched the predominately male crowd set off to the subzero peak. Following the main event start we wandered around the small village amongst the stone buildings and watched the under 12's set off for their mini run. We layed a ... read more