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There are few better places to be than Snowdon on a perfect winter’s day.
Up bleary and early – 4.30 in the morning – we set off under a starlit sky heading for North Wales. When we arrived at the foot of the Watkin Path the sun was just rising, and Snowdon was brilliantly white against a deep blue cloudless sky.
It would have been a perfect day for the truly wonderful Snowdon Horseshoe, but as two in our party had very limited winter mountain experience we opted for the longer but less technical alternative up the Watkin path and down the South East ridge.
For those who don’t know it, the route starts in Nant Gwynant, at a height of about 60 metres, and gently climbs the old mine track before climbing more steeply to the col between Snowdon and Lliwedd and then sharply up the South east face of Snowdon to the summit. The route down is along the Bwlch Main Ridge to the col below Yr Aran and then back down to the mine track.
The walk began quite gently, up through the trees and past the waterfalls where we got our first glimpse of high snow covered slopes.
- Waterfalls and snow
The climb started in earnest at the old mine, and the usually obvious path faded into a few footprints in the even covering of snow. We zigzagged upwards quite steeply, which was a bit of a shock to our post-Christmas bodies! By now the sun was gleaming off the pristine white of the snow.
The reward for reaching the col and the ridge line was the terrific view across the real Horseshoe, cradling Llyn Llydaw far below. The ice glistened on the exposed rocks, and the air was crystal clear.
Watkin view by
cliveg004, on Flickr
Onwards and upwards, getting our breath back along the ridge line before taking on the lung busting slog up the east face of Snowdon.
This stretch needed care, but the snow was good and firm. We had hardly seen a soul on our way up, but there was quite a crowd at the summit and all of them were taking in the sensational view on an exception day.
Snowdon view by
cliveg004, on Flickr
Time was getting on and it was too cold to hang around for long, so off we went down the Bwlch Main. This is a lovely ridge, not hard but with a couple of exposed spots that need a bit of care – and there are some spectacular photo points looking along the ridge towards Moel Hebog and the Irish Sea beyond.
Merry Christmas viewers! by
Clive Griffiths, on Flickr
The end of the ridge dropped down sharply to the col below Yr Aran, and fortunately the usually boggy stretch back towards the mine track was nicely frozen. It was getting dark by the time we reached the cars, but what a wonderful day! The only fitting way to finish off a day like this was a decent pint in the PYG – just had to be done!