Carneddau + Yr Elen & Pen yr Helgi DU

Well it was a day of surprises and all of them good and one of those surprises was the weather. Forecast was heavy showers, thunder, lightning and all the good things that come with that but instead we got sunshine, humidity, showery rain, a rumble of thunder, wind and chilly temperatures at the top of Carnedd Llewelyn. A brilliant day of walking, taking in 2 more peaks than we'd planned and rounded off by an unplanned but thoughourly pleasurable descent.

From the car park at the campsite we headed along the road to Glen Dana where the walk would begin in ernest. I remember this initial slog as boggy and not the most attractive walking around but needs must and we must plough up and through it, crossing the river a few times, before reaching the more dry rocky path to the summit.

A quick detour to Cwm Loer and then it was off through the rocks to get us up onto the final path to the summit (after the little false summit that is). Just after the scramble the skies were clear and Snowdon towered in the distance distinct in its pyramid peak shape but by the time we'd reached the summit the cloud was closing in. That was going to be the way of the day, cloud in, cloud out, cloud up, cloud down, cloud all around.....

Carnedd Fach was the first lunch stop and a rumble of thunder could be heard. I jumped up out of the shelter like a meerkat, scanning the skies for any sign of lightning but that was it. 1 or 2 rumbles was all we were going to get today.

Heading over towards Carnedd Dafydd and then onto Carnedd Llewelyn was a rocky affair with the most spectacular views across the valley floor and the cliffs with some staggering sheer drops. It was a landscape I'd walked before but in conditions that were much worse than today so I'd never actually see it in all its glory. Today's visibility was far better than expected and it was great!

Yr Elen was another example of a mountain I'd stood on top of but never actually seen. I'd walked up it, following the path but shrouded in mist and fog so had no idea of its beauty until it stood there in front of us today. There was no question really that we wouldnt go up it as going up it was a doddle, climbing down off Llewelyn and back up Llewelyn again afterwards was energy sapping but it was worth it a hundred times over.

 Back on the summit of Llewelyn thoughts turned to perhaps our last unplanned act of the day. I'd been mentioning and pointing out Pen yr Helgi Du throughout the day from a distance and we'd decided that all being well we'd tackle that too. Its really great to have the freedom to just say, we're here, why not and there be no restrictions on what you can/cant do but before any thoughts of Pen yr Helgi Du there was the downward scramble off Llewelyn onto the link ridge to contend with first. 

Having done this so many times before I really find it a joy, finding footfalls and working your way mentally and physically through the rock although today it was a bit trickier as the rocks were damp/wet and a tad slippier than expected.

Finally at the bottom Pen yr Helgi Du faced us, impressive as ever and again there was no question that we'd continue forwards instead of heading down the zig zag path as I'd done so many times previously. So onwards and upwards and what a delight it was. Quite steep in places with a nice gully scramble before the summit and seeing view's I'd never seen before.

The summit was a little underwhelming with a small pile of stones with an upright stone in the middle but as unassuming as it was it stood impressively marking the spot and had a certain quaint charm about its character. The views to the North were as impressive as the ones seen from the Carneddau and the views back over the Carnedds was just breathtaking.

 The descent over the spine of Pen yr Helgi Du was again a different route and unlike the waterboard road provided softness underfoot instead of hard tarmac. The relentlessness of the descent was still arduous and long and the farm where the car was parked never seemed to get any closer.

 The sun was now dipping over to the East and Tryfan again looked spendant sitting there in the valley. No helicopter today which can only be a good thing and before long we'd met with the waterboard road after following a Leat for a few hundred yards and the day was coming to a close.

What a brilliant walk. The weather threw everything at us apart from hail and it only made the day more exciting. Thanks Ogwen Valley, you never fail to enchant me.