Finlay for a new BGR record?
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Finlay for a new BGR record?
Astonishing. Its not exactly fast runnable ground for a lot of it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Derby Tup
Well done him.
took the Snowden Horseshoe record as a warm up beforehand (1:20 and a few seconds)
And the Stuc a'Chroin record at the start of the month. Hopefully there's enough freshness left in his legs for Zegama.Quote:
Originally Posted by ba-ba
Couple of questions for those who have done it, or know about it...
1) Have been toying with the Pen Y Pass start, over Crib Goch, Snowdon then being the 3rd peak... i assume i'd start the stopwatch from the summit of Crib Goch, and not at Pen Y Pass?
2) How much slower (or indeed quicker) is this option compared to the traditional Snowdon start and then down to Nant Peris off Crib Goch? (i would be using the descent from Clogwyn Station)
3) The above mentioned descent... i have a fantastic guide book to the route (the Ronald Turnbull book)... but to picture it on the OS map, am i correct in assuming it drops from adjacent to Clogwyn Station, then approximately follows the route of the stream towards the buildings at Gwastadnant?
Hoping for a June attempt, travel restrictions permitting... won't be challenging any records, but eyeing up 8hrs as a target... just not entirely sure whether to go for the traditional start or the above option.
I'd go the normal way. Its not that obvious to identify the clogwyn route from the top. I went down that way once and got onto some horrible and very slow ground. I ws off route, but its easy to do that unless you've recced it.
Thank you John for the advice.
I'd also start at Snowdon, Travs, and along to Crib-y-Ddysgl, or whatever its called these days, then to Crib-Goch. Its a piece of piss off Crib-Goch down into the valley and then a short trot down the road before the long slog up Elidir Fawr. Some people follow the path up to Bwlch y Marchlyn and then cut back left to the summit of Elidir Fawr but I'd go left, straight up the ridge as soon as you are clear of the quarries. Steeper but shorter!
Thank you Llani...
Yes that all seems to make sense and is what i had been planning re Elidr.
Nice to know the descent off Crib Goch is not too much of a worry. I've never been on Crib Goch, it goes without saying that if conditions were expected to be dodgy over CG, i'd probably postpone the attempt.
The only dodgy conditions you will probably find on Crib Goch in summer is wind or millions of people slowing you up, especially at weekends. If you haven't been up there before it might be prudent to do a recce just so you don't get any suprises.
Hmmm it would be a weekend. A saturday morning is planned, this all assumes we can travel on the weekend my cottage is booked, which is by no means guaranteed yet.
Although i'd be looking to be on my way up onto Snowdon by half 7, therefore starting the clock on Snowdon by 9, so hopefully avoiding the very worst of the crowds as i'd imagine i'd be on my way off CG by 9:30ish
On those timings you'd definitely beat the crowds.
Start from the Carneddi end. So much nicer to finish on Snowdon and the climbs are much better.
That is a thought, and would make getting back afterwards a lot more convenient.
Although i'm not looking to challenge the Donnelly's, Wild's and Naylor's of this world, i'm still looking to be as quick as i can manage. I'll have to take a read of my book and see if it indicates the loss of time doing north-south...
Thanks for the suggestion.
On that note... after Elidr Fawr, if i then descended the Peris race route to Llanberis, then the railway path up SNowdon, and finishing on Crib Goch summit... Any idea if that would be much slower than reversing the traditional 3000's route to Nant Peris, Crib Goch north ridge, etc....?
Travs, having given you advice on your intention to start at the Snowdon end I would, having done it both ways, concur with MattPo that starting on the Carneddau is the most enjoyable way.
The finish on Snowdon, after the Crib Goch ridge,gives a far bigger sense of achievement than finishing on the featureless Foel Fras and a long walk off.
Thank you both. I will digest all info and make a decision. I'm not too fussed about a long run off from the northern end to be honest, but i can appreciate the sense of occasion finishing on Snowdon.
All of the above is minor in the grand scheme of things. Far bigger is whether i'll be able to do it all. Travel restrictions, accommodation being open, appropriate parts of the Snowdonia National Park being open, all need to fall in my favour between now and early June.
Thanks all for your comments and advice... however in view of last night's announcement, and particularly the stricter regulations in Wales, i can't see this attempt happening in early June. Have cancelled my cottage booking and unless there's a monumental turnaround in the next few weeks its off...
If Aran Fawddwy was just 30 feet higher, it would make doing the Welsh 3000's in a day so much more fun. :rolleyes:
I would have thought that you would have been more a 14 Peaks man AKQuote:
Originally Posted by anthonykay
If Peris gets cancelled, an attempt at this might be back on the cards. I'd personally prefer to race Peris, but this wouldn't be a bad day out as a substitute!
What date is Peris? Looking for something to motivate me to get off my bike.
Thinking of going for the 3000s again probably next couple of weeks (before back to school). Probably as a 1 day circular epic from Ogwen starting with Tryfan and Glyders, Snowdon3, back to Elidir and Y Aran then onto Carneddau with a return to Ogwen. Long day, but fits around family better...
Peris is scheduled for saturday 26th september... however the latest inside info i have is that it is still very much "in discussion".
There is a WFRA race going on in north Wales this weekend (Llangollen) and perhaps more crucial, another in early september on the northern Snowdonia/Carneddau (Gladstone 9)..... i suspect the chances of Peris going ahead will be dependent on these events passing off successfully.... although being the Glyders/Snowdon and obviously a sensitive area, i'm somewhat sceptical that it will go ahead this year...
As for the 3000's... i'd be setting a very ambitious and "fag-packet" target of 8hrs.
Peris has been cancelled
Although it looks like they are going to set up both the full and half routes as a MapRun event, which can be ran at any time during that weekend.
So if it's good weather i think the 3000's will be on for me. However, having never been on Crib Goch, if the weather is looking dicey in any way, then i'll do the Peris MapRun instead...
I’m possibly looking at that weekend now; arrived at my in-laws in Mid-Wales with vague plans to go up Monday. Running and camping kit in the roof box; keys to roof box in Derby!
Luckily my bike and kit were in the car!
This is not exactly a Welsh 3000 post but it is related (in a way).
Is anyone familiar with the status of the three footpaths that go up to the north and north east from the A 4086 road near and to the south of Nant Peris? They're marked as public rights of way footpaths on the OS map.
Here's the reason I'm asking. In early March I stayed in LLanberis so I could do a short walk but with 2000 metres or more of climb, as part of training for a race in early April. I'd decided to stay reasonably local to Llanberis and leave my car there. By sticking to footpaths the plan was to walk up and down different paths around Elidir Fawr, Foel-goch, Y Garn and Glyder Fawr, either staying on the Llanberis side or going down to Ogwen reservoir and back up. As it turned out I had a bit of trouble with the paths, despite some help from a couple of locals who lived or farmed adjacent to the paths. One guy who initiated a chat said there wasn't a way up from Nant Peris and directed me through the quarry. I started off that way then thought 'sod this' and went back. There were a couple of blown-over roadwork-type signs low down which said the footpath was closed, but I assumed they weren't legit and carried on. I got up to Elidir Fawr OK, on the path by Cwm Dudodyn (although on the ground the path was non-existent and the going wasn't as easy as I'd hoped), but had to climb one locked gate (at about GR 612599, if I recall correctly). The path I came down on was more of a problem. I'd had a quick look at the Nant Peris end of the path the evening before and, despite a bit of guidance from a woman near the farm, I'd struggled to find the proper route through the gates and walls. Coming down the route of the path I came across a new-looking barbed wire fence perpendicular to the route which, despite going quite a way both East and West, didn't have a way through. I eventually ripped a piece out of the backside of my waterproof trousers climbing over it. That, again IIRC, was nearby Cwm Gafr, at about GR 618596.
I'm thinking I might do something similar in mid September but would prefer to avoid having to climb over any more barbed wire fences (although I'm not averse to it, if necessary). Does anyone know if there are any problems with the status of the footpaths in that area, or with local landowners and farmers being a bit obstructive? (I think I read a few months ago that some of the Llanberis locals were getting a bit put out with the number of newly-organised events taking place in the area. That was before Covid-19 so I can imagine they might be even more discontented now.)
Hoping that i'll be doing this next saturday. It's all planned... just need to hope the weather is kind enough, and also there are no dramatic Covid announcements which may bugger it up!
Have made the decision to start at PyP and Crib Goch first, descending off Snowdon via the Clogwyn Station descent. From Tryfan will retrace my steps south back to the col and down to Ogwen from there.
Whilst i very much appreciate all of the advice and suggestions given in the last couple of pages, i think we all should be comfortable enough to take the route we feel most happy with, which is why i am going for the above options.
My intention is to take the slightly longer descent off the final top, all the way down to Llanfairfechan.
I'm not a great one for peak-to-peak schedules, but my very much fag-packet schedule is for 8hrs, based on 1.5hrs Snowdon, 3.5hrs Glyders, 3hrs Carneddau.
Well today ultimately ended in failure, with an abandonment at Ogwen.
Took a steady hour up from PyP to Crib Goch summit, then pressed the stopwatch. Crib Goch was intimidating rather than outright dangerous in those conditions (dry, with a freezing wind), and I descended some gullies to avoid the pinnacles. Made a bit of a hash getting up onto Crib Y Drysgl and again ended up having to up-climb back onto the ridge on some rocks that I was somewhat uncomfortable being on.
Still, onto Snowdon and nailed the descent off Clogwyn Station down to Nant Peris. Reached the Vanyol Arms in 1hr33.
Was on Elidr Fawr 2hrs30. All going well and on the familiar Peris route. However on the upper part of the Glyder climb I began to feel incredibly sluggish... Perhaps just a bad patch, perhaps not enough fuel, perhaps the cold (wind chill was -6)..... Having read enough about hypothermia I wasn't taking any chances, stopped to down all my food and water, and put on an extra top. This perked me up a little but didn't bring much life back into the legs.
Heading down into Bristly Gully I realised my 5hrs at Ogwen schedule was slipping, but perhaps I could pull it back over the Carneddau. But by the time I was on Tryfan I realised I was some 35mins down on schedule. With most of the technical stuff all done I was tempted to continue, but any further mishaps on the Carneddau and I'd be slipping into the possibility of getting off Foel Fras in the dark, in fellrunning gear, in very cold temperatures, and I made the sorry decision to call it quits at Ogwen.
Was still a lovely day out. 16.5 miles 9000ft. Whilst I hide behind the "safety first" decision to abandon, in truth I sadly haven't done any brutal long fell races this year and it was noticeable. I feel with a season of Peris's, Ennerdale and Buttermere's being me, I'd have bowled through it a lot more comfortably.
No need to "hide behind" what was no doubt a sensible decision Travs.Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
It was bloody cold out today and, apart from Pen yr Oleu Wen, you had done all the technical bits but once on the Carneddau there would be no shelter from that biting northerly.
You still had a cracking day by the sounds of it.
Well done and get some Mws Piws down you!
Good decision Travs and well done for making it
That 16.5 miles / 9000 feet is in the bag for next time
Probably a sensible decision to abandon, given the relatively short daylight hours at this time of year. I am always similarly cautious when out in the mountains by myself, and have been known to retreat or find an easier route when the weather has turned.Quote:
Originally Posted by Travs
I have to say, I was surprised to read about your training run on the moors west of Llyn Brenig on the day before this attempt. If it had been me, it would have been my jaws and digestive system getting most of the exercise the day before a long run like this.
You're not alone in making a hash of Crib y Ddysgl. When I walked that route a few years ago, I found myself contouring towards the PyG track at one stage, and had to go back to get onto the ridge again.
Yesterday was possibly a slight error, although i have often done similar before a race, and it was certainly at no great pace.
I did exactly the same on Drysgl... I'll check it out, but I believe the easier line switches to the North side for the Drysgl ascent.
Trav > Do you by any chance have a gpx file for the Welsh 3000s?
Also, what did you do transport wise with it being point to point?
Unfortunately i do not have a gpx.... but i'd be incredibly surprised if you couldn't find one via a google search, or even asking on the facebook page... although bear in mind there are various route options of varying degrees of technicality.Quote:
Originally Posted by rileforce
As for transport, i was fortunate enough to have a lift to Pen-y-Pass, and was then intending to run off the Carneddau down to Llanfairfechan.
Though i'd imagine that during mid-summer it wouldn't be impossible for a reasonable fellrunner to get an early morning bus/taxi from Bangor to Llanberis, do the 3000's south-north, run off to Llanfairfechan/Bethesda, then train/bus/taxi back to Bangor... that is certainly what i'd be looking at if i didn't have any travel assistance.
I parked in a lay-by down from Pen-y-Pass, hitched to the pass and then walked to Snowdon and bivi-ed.Quote:
Originally Posted by rileforce
Set off early the next morning via the car to drop off bivi kit and get a day bag, then onward to The Glyders.
At the other end I retraced back to CL and then down to Capel Curig and a bus back to p-y-p.
Long day out, but do-able as a solo excursion.
Thank you very much for your responses!
Travs and Felltrumpet - ta