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Just a quick report of the year's first little backpack:
I hadn't camped since September. The itch had been worsening. A bothy trip to the Cairngorms in March had turned into a hostel trip instead when I was unable to find my sleeping bag's stuffsac on the morning I came to pack. The stuffsac turned up in a drawer under the bed last week. It was a sign. Time to dig the tent out.
I hadn't been to Snowdonia for months - I used to go every two or three weeks. So on Thursday evening I set off up the Miner's Track to Llyn Llydaw and a favoured camping spot of mine. An early night and a pre-dawn start saw me walking up to Lliwedd Bach, perhaps the best viewpoint on the Snowdon Horseshoe.
However, it was a bit pre-dawnier than I'd estimated, and I stood on the rocky top for a full hour in total darkness, stamping my wet feet to stop my toes freezing, before the valleys beneath me finally began to lighten at about 6 o' clock. Some pictures from this little morning's jaunt:
I wasted most of the day in Betws-y-Coed, eating, drinking and reading, before catching the last bus up to Pen y Pass and walking past Llyn Cwmfynnon to join the Miner's path up Glyder Fach (it's the same path as the one that heads up Snowdon - miners from Bethesda used it to make their weekly commute to their lodgings).
Llyn Caseg Fraith is another favourite spot of mine, and I was pleased to have it to myself. I fell asleep with the tent door open, watching Tryfan become a sillhouette. During the night I kept waking up, and every time I saw headtorches on Tryfan's east face. Throughout the night they made slow progress up whatever route they were doing, before finally reaching the top just in time for dawn.
It was very chilly and I found it hard to get out of my sleeping bag. But eventually the landscape became too lovely to view through a nylon flap, so I dragged myself out and had a walk around the lake, admiring Tryfan's reflection, and watching the local feral goats who'd come up for breakfast.
I was anxious to get high up to see if there were any decent cloud inversions about, so after packing I walked up to the top of Glyder Fach. Every range in Snowdonia from the Moelwynion south was separated by a cushion of mist. It was really rather lovely. The air clarity was good too - the Rhinogydd and Cadair Idris ranges were visible in full HD.
I made the short walk across to Glyder Fawr's wonderful summit, then headed down its southwest ridge to get back to Pen y Pass. The backpacking season is officially open!
