Welsh 3000ft challenge

[Rekrab]

hi.
attempting this walk in June I remember someone one these forums asked me to get in touch when sorting the team out and can't remember who so I'm posting this hoping that they see it.

MacKenzie.

[malky_c]

I think I was one of them. What dates did you have in mind? I'm not sure if I'll be in N Wales in June, so I can't commit just yet.

[Rekrab]

e-mail me barker831@gmail.com and i'll send you what i got thus far.

[monty]

Hi Mackenzie, I may be up for this depending upon how my walks go in May. If you can confirm the date by the end of May because I will book some time off work. Great challenge BTW

[Rekrab]

thanks monty i've drpped you something into your inbox.

[clivegrif]

Good luck Mackenzie, hope you & your team make it!

[Gythral]

Good luck, I hope all of you that try this make it....

You're all mad


Serveral times I've ferried people from the milestone buttress, or Idwall cottage back to their groups/cars in Llanberis, after they have given up before the climb back up onto the Carneddu...

[clivegrif]

Thats more or less what happened to me the first time I tried it - after we got blasted by a thunderstorm on top of Tryfan!

[poppiesrara]

Anyone on here already done it successfully? And want to try to offer a layman's steer on levels of fitness/speed/etc needed?

I'd been half eying it up (probably in a lightweight's version involving longer detours around one or two of the rougher parts though!), but - much as I think I tend to hare round the hills pretty quickly - it still looks a lot for one day...

[Rekrab]

Two of the members of my team have done one and mountainstar has completed a round but 20 years ago!!!

MacKenzie,

[malky_c]

I've done it sucessfully twice as a teenager, and also failed it a couple of times (once hardly counts, as I got bored and gave up quite early on).

The stats are something like 28 miles and 3800m of ascent end to end. On my first successful time, I was with my dad, and we took about 18 hours from the roadhead above Aber to Llanberis. The second time, I went with a mate, and we bivvied on Foel Fras prior to the start. We also moved a bit faster, and my mate's mum met us at the foot of Tryfan and Nant Peris to take our bivvi gear and supply us with extra food. She then decided to join us on Crib Goch. The weather was terrible by that point, and she ended up holding us up as she was scared! I think we were about 15.5 hours that time (including 1.5 hours up onto Foel Fras the previous evening)

I haven't done any other walks that even approach that length or amount of height gain since, and it pretty much leaves you disabled for the next day or two. There is also a tendency to nod off if you stop anywhere on the last descent.

I'm not too sure what to suggest as a gauge to see how well you would cope. I did a lot of walking at the time, but I don't think I did a route even half as long before trying it (except perhaps for my failed attempt the year before, when we didn't make it up onto the Snowdon range). Maybe a round of the Peris Horseshoe would be a good buildup for it (Starting in Llanberis, up Elidir, along to Glyder Fawr, down to Pen y Pass, up Lliwedd and Snowdon, down over Moel Cynghyrion and Moel Eilio, back to Llanberis). Or maybe you just need to try the full route to find out.

[mountainstar]

Just dug out my notes from when I did it way back in July 1990 (longer that I thought...24 years ago ).
In a nutshell what I noted then....
Weather...Sunny, clear and hot.
It was my first ever bivvy, I was really inexperienced then, bought a cheap crap sleeping bag the day before from Millets, and slept in an orange plastic emergency bag (you know the type) and got little sleep, I remember I was pretty cold. Was awoken by other walkers walking up for the sunrise at 4.30am, so up and away by 5.10am. Ditched sleeping bag etc in Nant Peris (collected later) Ogwen by noon. Foel Fras by 4pm. Aber by 5.20pm. In my notes it says "My legs about finished and feeling physically shattered, but glad I've done it"
Snowdon to Frol Fras 10.50hrs. Snowdon to Aber 12.10hrs.
The record at that time was 4.18mins! Bet that been shattered now .
I was somewhat hill fit, but was never anything like an athlete....and was a lot younger

[Rekrab]

Biggest walk i've ever done has got to be the S.U.W here's our stats for the eastern section courtesy of http://www.kevinwoods.co.uk/trips/20100600-suw.htm

two 40 klm days in a row were a killer carrying very large packs.

MacKenzie,

[monty]

Well guys looks like you better get training. I have upped my training this year so getting fitter. Its early days yet but my knees seem to be better than they have been for a long time so fingers crossed that continues.

I walked 39km climbing 2400m in under 12 hours three weeks ago and Malky done a very similar walk last week. Last July I walked 34km climbing over 3000m in 13 hrs

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=20040

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/Forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=13364

so with my increased training, if I can keep it up, I should be ready for this challenge. Mind you its not just the distance and the ascent its also the terrain that will sap our strength. Its a tough challenge so we need to be prepared.

[Rekrab]

nice effort.
I've walked though glen nevis from stob ban and it's a helllish long boggy walk to steall falls.

MacKenzie