Friday, 27 May 2005

Walks

Snowdon

[Yr Wyddfa rising above Glaslyn]

If you're going to climb a mountain it would be prudent to be well-equipped. I first climbed Snowdon with Dad and Jez in 1982. The following year we walked up with the whole family. On neither of those occasions were any of us kitted out for the walk. We didn't even take water with us - we stopped to sip from streams that cross the path instead. I used to look back and wonder how we made it.

But I knew we did, and I'm thankful. Today the knowledge that an eight-year-old Ruth walked to the top in sandals persuaded me that I'd be on the summit again - twenty two years after my last trip - even though I'd left my socks at home.

[Glaslyn from the Miners Track]

Distance: 7.5 miles
Ascent: 908 metres
Duration: 5 hours 30 minutes

The accessible mountain

Emma and I took the same route as those previous two occasions, parking at Pen-y-Pass and following the Pyg Track to the summit before taking the Miners Track back down.

[Emma on the summit ridge]

We passed all manner of people en route: fell runners, families, pensioners, young couples, tourists and squaddies. All with one goal: to get to the top. The clouds had rolled in by the time we reached it but somehow the view had become less important by then.

What I love most about Snowdon is that it's an accessible mountain. It takes the countryside out of the hands of the Trail-reading brigade who look down at the Gore-Tex free. The summit café, the 'easy' Pyg Track and the railway ensure almost anyone can reach the top - even those who set off without the 'proper' socks.

Posted by pab at 21:54 | Comments will be back later in the year. Please email me instead!