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Showing posts from September, 2011

Carnedd y Filiast and Elidir Fawr

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Elidir Fawr Summit 923m Differential erosion Fir Club Moss Boy was it windy today it even made breathing difficult at times but it was incredibly warm which was a real bonus. I tracked the trip with Endomondo so if you're interested click here .

Moel Eilio to Snowdon

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The weather was very damp and misty this morning but the forecast suggested that it would clear after midday and sure enough it did clear at about one o'clock. The nice thing about this route is that you can bail out at almost any point if you run out of time or if you're not feeling up to the challenge. Once beyond Bwlch Brwynnog you are pretty much committed to an ascent of Snowdon or you could go down Cwm Brwynnog to Llanberis or the Snowdon Ranger path and catch a bus or train to Caernarfon. I was a bit short of time when I arrived at Bwlch Glas so I made a quick getaway down the Llanberis track to be home in time for the kids from school (I had 5 minutes to spare). I tracked the route on Endomondo if your interested. Foel Gron Snowdon from Bwlch Glas Llanberis Approaching Allt Goch

SPA refresher

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Alwen Wynne Sera I had 3 clients today who are going for their SPA assessment soon and wanted to brush up on some key techniques. The weather forecast earlier in the week suggested a grim day today but as the day got closer the forecast improved to lighter winds and heavy showers. With that in mind I decided the best place to be (apart from the Beacon!) was the Upper Tier of Pant Ifan. We covered subjects such as top roping, bottom top roping, group abseiling, anchors and belaying.

Crib Goch and Snowdon

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With a nice weather forecast and a keen group we went for a traverse of Crib Goch today. The conditions were perfect and the group made a fantastic effort and were smiling all the way (well, almost!)

Y Garn 947m

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I had a great day on Y Garn today with a group from Kent. The weather was a bit depressing but the group put on a brave face and made the most of the dry, windy and cloudy condition.

A Blustery Snowdon

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I went for a quick journey up Snowdon this morning with Barti (click here for a link to endomondo). The wind was pretty stiff from Clogwyn Station with strong gusts on the summit but nothing too major to worry about. I went up and down the Llanberis track and was pleasantly surprised how few people there were about but, as usual, I encountered some poorly equipped groups and individuals. All in all, a really nice morning. P.S. I do wish people would realise how long a banana skin takes to decompose in the mountains - I must have come across over a dozen. Oh, it's 2-5 years by the way!

A dry Tremadog

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  Boo Boo Slab Yogi I was back to Tremadog today with my trainee MIA candidates but this time they had clients to look after from the Bremex Trust. It was a really good experience for both Laurie and Tom as they will be going for their MIA assessment in a weeks time. Apart from having real clients the biggest bonus was that we were dry all day. A big thank you goes out to the Bremex Trust for helping us with running a really successful and constructive day.

A wet Tremadog

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Lawrie and Tom at the end of the day still smiling! I was working on an AMI multi pitch climbing workshop today with two trainee members. The weather forecast was bad for most of the day but we elected to give Tremadog a go on the pretext that it would be less wet, less windy and warmer. The rock did manage to dry for about half an hour at the end of the day but we did manage 3 routes (Cnychwr S, Yogi VS and Boo Boo Slab Diff). We covered subjects such as stance management, rope management, client progression, abseiling, anchor choice and use, equipment etc. Good luck on your assessment in just over a week guys.

Y Garn. 947m

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It was a rather misty day today but Kevin was keen for a walk so we ventured up Y Garn via the Devil's Kitchen and then down the NE Ridge. It did stay dry but the wind was quite strong at times- when the cloud did eventually clear we were rewarded with some stunning views.

Big day - Big Route

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Andy and Gwen wanted to have a big mountain day experience today so with a favourable forecast we decided to give Amphitheatre Buttress a go. We had the whole of Craig yr Ysfa to ourselves and the rock was dry up until it started to spit with rain toward the end of the afternoon. A fantastic day and a brilliant route. Amphitheatre Buttress is graded VDiff and is almost a 1000 feet in height.

It's Mushroom season

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Gruffudd, Barti and myself went for a walk around Llyn Padarn this morning and we were stunned to find so many fungi growing along the side the road. This is just a small selection of what we found:

Idwal Slabs- Ordinary Route Diff

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As a special treat (for both of us) I took Gruffudd up the Idwal Slabs this afternoon seeing as the weather was perfect and his big brother was playing at his friends house. We climbed the Ordinary Route which is graded Difficult and is 140m long. I cut some of the pitches short so that I could see him all the way up the route. I shouldn't have worried though as we was in his element and coped well with the climb as well as the descent (ascent!). Not bad for a short afternoon and we were rewarded with a deserted route as well. Idwal Slabs   Pitch 1.   Stance - Pitch 1.