free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
Carnedd Llywelyn Winter WildcampFriday 13th Dec 2012During the mid-week the excitement and expectation was creeping up on me....at last a decent spell of settled weather was forecast for the weekend. It had been a long time since we had high pressure slap bang over the UK

.
So Friday came and saw me driving west to Snowdonia, but disappointingly it was fairly cloudy as I drove West, not exactly what the forecasters had said, and by the time I reached Betws y Coed there was pretty much no blue sky to be seen at all, and worse still the cloud was shrouding the peaks of Snowdonia

.
But onwards I went regardless, hopeful that it would improve later

.
I parked by the east end of Llyn Ogwen where I would finish the walk the next day, from there I walked back along the A5 to the access road that leads to the Ffynon Llygwy Cronfa reservoir. By now the cloud had started to break and I could now see many of the high peaks, perhaps my planned camp on Wales’s second highest mountain Carnedd Llywelyn would not be a damp squid after all

.
The Ogwen Valley, the cloud breaking.This access road gets you deep into the heart of the mountains easily, but steeply in places.
Access road to the reservoir
Cwm Llugwy
Cloud rolling over Tryfan and the GlydersThe reservoir was a pretty picture….totally still and reflecting the mountains above.
Ffynon Llygwy Cronfa
Ffynon Llygwy Cronfa
Ffynon Llygwy CronfaA good path leads from up from the reservoir to Bwlch Eryl Farchog, where part way up my rucksack became somewhat heavier with the water collected that I needed for my high-camp tonight.
Last chance saloon!
Wild pony passed on the path.
Pen yr Hegi DuOnce at the Bwlch I followed the ridge north west, narrow at first then broader as it got higher.
Pen Llithig y Wrach & Pen yr Hegi Du
Cloud over the Glyders
Carnedd LlywelynThe cloud continued to come and go, but luckily my high destination was always clear

.
More cloud over the Glyders
Pen Llithig y Wrach & Pen yr Hegi DuI reached the chilly summit at around 3.30pm, good timing to set camp before the sunset at 4.30pm.
I found a nice grassy area just west of the summit, with great views towards Snowdon to the south west. I was rewarded with some spectacular pictures of the sun dropping down towards the low cloud in the west

.
West for Carnedd LLywelyn
Carnedd LLywelyn, my tent pitch
Sunset from Carnedd LLywelynThe tent was already starting to form a coating of frost before the sun had set…it was going to be a cold night

.
Sunset Inferno!
Sunset
SunsetTime for hot soup and food before darkness fell….then into my sleeping bag for the night, together with every bit of clothing I had brought along. A few hours later I popped outside to take some pictures the moon-rise, on what was now a clear and star filled night, an amazing sight

.
Orion looks down
MoonriseThe outer tent had a white layer of frost inside and out, with the temperature outside probably around -10 or so, but my little candle lantern kept the temperature inside my inner cocoon at a barmy +2 degrees…until I put it out to go to sleep, when it fell to a low of -3 degrees very quickly.
Not a breath of wind disturbed the tent through the night, so I slept well until 8am when I woke to catch the sunrise.
Day 2. 14th Jan.
Sunrise
Early morning sunAfter some breakfast I was packed and away by 9.40am, to enjoy some high walking over Carnedd Dafydd and Pen yr Ole Wen.
Today there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, and the views of distant hills were crystal clear and made even more photogenic by the haze that had formed in the valleys.
Mountains above the haze
Mountains above the haze
West from Carnedd Dafydd
Pen yr ole WenAfter Pen yr Ole Wen I descended towards the valley by its rocky east ridge.
Pen yr Ole Wens east ridgeLower down Tryfan dramatically stood out silhouetted by the sun behind its towering bulk.
Tryfan
Tryfan
Tryfan & Glyder FachI arrived back at the still frost covered car (in the shade of some trees) at 12.20pm, the end another great high wild-camp adventure

.
My short 5 minute video of the 2 days can be seen here....[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZhOENd1Uxs&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]