The Misty Mountain .. a walk up Snowdon
I planned for a while (along with son Joe) to have a walk up Snowdon / Yr Wyddfa, to ‘rectify’ not going all the way to the top in snowy February. Joe wanted to get the top as he’s never been to the summit and I wanted to see it in actual sunshine. All of my trips to the top have seen mist, rain, sleet or snow (or all four!).
And I also wanted some training for my forthcoming Yorkshire 3 Peaks challenge.
We headed off early on Saturday in the hope of getting a space in the Pen-Y-Pass car park and then starting up the Pyg Track nice and early (7.30 ish). So, we left the house at 5 a.m, we did indeed get to the car park at 7.30 a.m – but it was already full. I parked further down the hill towards Llanberis in one of two large lay-bys. And we then walked for twenty minutes back up hill to the Pyg Track start. It’s all good Yorkshire 3 Peaks training exercise I guess 
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Yorkshire 3 Peaks 2013 for Simon On The Streets
I wasn’t planning to do the Yorkshire 3 Peaks this year but I attended a briefing session this week with Simon On The Streets* and before the meet I had a look on the site and realised they were planning a fundraising challenge.
They have a team doing the Yorkshire 3 Peaks on 31st May, so not that long to prep – but I’ve signed up and I’m planning to get fitter by then (says me, having a beer or 3 too many on Friday and Saturday night, doh).
I’ve taken part in the Y3P twice now (see links below) and actually this time it seems more daunting, if anything. When you have a good idea where the long trudges will be, where the steep climbs mean you have to dig in, where The Bog is.. well, it’s definitely as much as mental as physical challenge this time around!
I’m just hoping for some suggestion of good weather 
Planning a Ridgeway walk
One of the only photos from my brief Ridgeway foray 2 years ago.. MANY more photos to be taken next time
Two years ago I spent a couple of days in my old home town of Wendover (or as near a home town as I had I guess – with a Dad in the Air Force). One of the things we did as kids was play out in the beautiful Chiltern forest that flanked Wendover and also the RAF camp of Halton. Where we lived in something like 14 different houses over years of being posted back and forth! And we used to walk the woods with my Dad and the two dogs on a sunday. I love the moors and hills of Marsden and I’ve spent half my life (yikes) here now but I do miss those ancient woodlands.
Kit Test : NO-AD suncream
My tube of NO-AD on the hills
As a man with no hair, suncream is stowed in my rucksack on long walks .. so it gets included as ‘essential kit’ in my view And I know it doesn’t have to be a hot sunny day for you to burn, even on an overcast spring day.
NO-AD gave me the factor 50+ 100ml tube to try out and as today was a mix of clouds, blue skies and bright fresh snow (yipee!) it seemed a good day to test it on a hills walk. I used the suncream before I headed out, it was easy to apply and didn’t leave me with white smears on my bonce (never a good look) – it absorbed straight away. And as it was pretty hot (great to feel the sun after what feels like months!) for a fair bit of the time on the moors, I got pretty sweaty. Apologies for the image now in your head. NO-AD apparently stays effective even with sweaty skin.. so if you’re a hiker, cyclist, climber etc (in fact any outdoors person) I reckon it will suit you.
A Roman Road circular hike .. the oxymoronic post
Roman roads are (mostly) ‘straight’ (that’s probably not true but let’s go with received wisdom) but I used Viewranger last week to create a circular trip on the moors around Marsden. Since I found out a roman road passed through my village, I’ve been intrigued to find out more and to walk as much of it as modern boundaries allow.
The hike route I ‘created’ navigates (on the southern, home leg) part of a Roman road that once ferried troops between York and Chester and takes in the remains of a fort at Castleshaw (two forts actually, they downsized to a smaller one in the later empty-nester years of the Empire). Read More…
I use Viewranger
Mark Kelly’s Hiking Blog
- The Misty Mountain .. a walk up Snowdon May 5, 2013
- Yorkshire 3 Peaks 2013 for Simon On The Streets April 28, 2013
- Planning a Ridgeway walk March 31, 2013
- Kit Test : NO-AD suncream March 30, 2013
- A Roman Road circular hike .. the oxymoronic post March 20, 2013
- Snowdon In the Snow 2013 February 15, 2013
- A snowy slog on Swellands – Marsden Moor January 28, 2013
- Swellands hike – checking a Walkers Are Welcome new route January 6, 2013
- Intake Head walk – some guide map checking December 30, 2012
- A Boxing Day ramble with ‘health giving breezes’ .. December 26, 2012
