Tag Archives: Walking

Wild camp

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19°C, light cloud with a SW breeze.

There is a great upland route near Glen Finnon. It’s a horseshoe of peaks that includes two Munroes, a long undulating ridge and magnificent views of glens, mountains including Ben Nevis, and views out to sea of the isles of Eeig &  Rum. I could find no proper campsite near the route’s start so I chose a spot for a wild-camp. It was fairly near the road on a col that looked deserted except for a trainline that carried a steam-train twice a day.

With a site selected, I put up the tent rather later than usual after cooking & eating supper first. Discretion is the rule here, put up the tent at sunset & take it down as soon as you can after sunrise. I bedded down at about 10pm and read for a while. The ground was a ripe breeding ground for midges and some got into the tent & bugged me while I lay there reading my book. Some of those midges are still there, adding punctuation to the story.
Later in the night, probably about 2am I was woke suddenly to an animal sound. A loud deep sound that was quite percussive. Despite choosing a spot out of view for humans, it wasn’t so hidden from deer.
I’m still naive about deer, I lay there heart thumping when the sound came again. A sudden burst of air somewhere between a grunt & a snort. Clearly the sound came from a big pair of lungs. My fear cortex ran overtime & I could picture a scene where a herd was making its way along old tracks that they have used for decades. All it would take is a slight disturbance and they would gallop in the dark in fright. There I lay, in a tent made of light thin fabric and only a summer weight sleeping bag for protection. Deer hooves are sharp, they use them for defence. These thoughts occupied the front of my mind. Strangely in all of this, Rosie my trusty dog wasn’t too bothered.
I decided to take the situation onto my own hands and got out of the tent with a torch. Good, they weren’t in immediate sight, so I scanned the horizon and hillsides with the beam. The stars shone brilliantly, the midges bit my bare legs but only one pair of eyes shone back in the darkness. After a short moment, even they were gone. Relief, they have fled. I stole a moment to look up at the filigree milky way and Cygnus blazing brightly overhead while the midges finished their meal.

I did eventually settle back to sleep though woke once more to pee. This time, peace, I could enjoy the image of a thin cresent moon next to the fixed brilliance of Venus as a morning star. There was another planet nearby but I don’t know what it was (probably Jupiter).
A big day lay ahead, a very long walk was the reason to camp in such a place so I grabbed more sleep.

The day went on from there as planned.

This time last year…

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10°C, rain

This time last year I camped in the Rhinogydd range. This year it’s unlikely that I will camp during this Easter break. A week of rain, sun and heavy showers is forecast. This morning I took Rosie to the local woods for a run and it was gorgeous, the rain didn’t matter. In practice, the rain brought out all those smells that subliminally speak of spring. The problem arises when you are cooking on a stove outside your tent. Rain gets through to your skin and it becomes very difficult to keep warm. Campsites that offer log burners are best at these times. I can but dream of Llyn Gwynant.

Plans aren’t working out. The original idea included a visit to Betwys-y-Coed to get some new hiking gear. My hiking coat is, strictly speaking, a size too small (but then most of my clothes are a bit too small). I knew it at the time but it was in a sale and I had no idea how much I would come to use it. If I knew, I would have paid the extra and got something that fitted well and was probably a better, more breathable fabric. Goretex is the one to look for. Last week I tried on a few coats in Cotswold, the outdoor shop. Berghaus is still the best one, only because the cut is long and so fits my proportions better.

Yr Wyddfa, Carneddeau & Rhinoggs

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14-19°C, Sunburn, rain, fog & gales

Sunday, Yr Wyddfa: (Mt Snowdon, 1085m) and Yr Aran (745m): Got up when I woke (5am), then drove to The western slopes of Mt Snowdon. Started the climb at 10.30. Parked at Ryd Ddu and took the route up to Yr Aran. Pure blue skies and light winds. This day turned into a 10 hour hike.I came down from Yr Aran to the Watkin path and then climbed Snowdon. The Summit was too crowded to stay more than a few minutes, so then headed down the Snowdon Ranger track. After the drive to Wales, this was an additional 10 hour hike, I slept well that night after hotel troubles were solved.
So now I have done all of the major ascent routes of Snowdon. Those remaining are proper scrambles, but I can’t take Rosie on terrain like those.

Monday: Southern Carneddeau: A day of 3 summits> Penyr Ole Wen (978m), along the ridge to Carnedd Dafyd (1044m)> Carnedd Llewellyn (1064m)
This was largely straight-forward, especially after I met a couple of teachers from Tamworth who were experts on that route. The panorama at the top was …. <insert flowery words here>.
Near the rockwalls  of Craig Yr Isfa was a really tricky descent. Getting Rosie down here was interesting. I made a mental note to get her a harness, the sort you can lift a dog with. Perhaps a rope too; just in case the worst happens and we get stuck. Agile though she is, her claws face backwards so are not so great when facing a descending slope . I went ahead, turned and braced with arms apart to let her slide into my grasp. That’s real trust.
Tuesday, a day on the beach at Harlech & Llandanwg with Jo. A little chilly, but kept warm with cups of tea and hilarious banter. We saw Rosie watching the local Gwlffreandded; she’s obsessed!
Wednesday: Rhinogg Hills. A wet stormy day with strong westerly winds. Took the Roman steps route up from Cwm Bychan. As we got into the clouds, the rain stopped and visibility remained at about 30 meters. The steps were more a cascade of small waterfalls; I pictured Roman centurians in their Jesus-sandals. The stones were reasonably regular, smooth and rather slimy in places. Grip was poor. Rosie saw me fall once and came over concerned and licked my face. The perfect travelling companion; she makes other dogs look rubbish.
Finding lakes along the route as they slowly materialised out of the mist was a very impressive moment each time. You have to work out your position on the map with a compass direction matched against the curve of the lake-side. The water rippled softly below the grainy clouds that moved besides and through us. Both air and water had the same silvery colour so coming across lakewater each time was a shock. Unexpected and reassuring- the map reading was working. We then sloshed our way though rocks and black marshy peaty land. Stepping on innocuous patches of sodden grass often plunged your foot into flowing clean water. Another great day.

 I wish I could have stayed another few days, there is so much more to do and see. In the meantime, I am going to look seriously into kitting out with camping gear. Late hotel breakfasts were a bind, sometimes I didn’t finish eating until 9. I wake at six.