Carnedeau: Pen yr Heldi Du and Carnedd Llewellyn

[jonathan - norfolk]

On this occasion, leading a group of youngsters, I did this route anti-clockwise, which suited my needs on the day.
This route, for me, is an excellent way to climb these peaks. Too many people grind their way up and down Pen yr Ole Wen from Ogwen, which is a slog going up, and harsh on the knees going down.
For those who like and prefer easy scrambling, there is an even better way up, starting from Tal y Llyn Ogwen, following a track that runs just west of the Afon Lloer before taking a line up the east ridge of Pen yr Ole Wen to the summit, again going clockwise.
If you are camping and based at one of the farms, it is quite feasible to do this as a circular walk from either campsite, but it pushes the total distance walked up to about 16 Kms (10 miles) but some of this walking, particularly along the old A5 track if you walk the route clockwise, is delightful with fantastic views of Tryfan.
Using a vehicle, the horseshoe route as shown on the map is only about 12 Kms (7.5 miles).