Posts Tagged Glyders
Elidir Fawr horseshoe around Marchlyn Mawr
With a cracking weekend of weather in store and my Summer Mountain Leader training on the horizon, I was joined enthusiastically by my girlfriend (Laura) for a quick getaway to walk/camp in Snowdonia. The walk would be Laura’s first mountain day and my first in a new pair of walking boots (Meindl Air Revolution 3.1 – my attempt at a lightweight summer boot). Thinking through a few options, I ended up deciding on following a route I’d completed the year before in Winter, around Marchlyn Mawr to pick up the summits of Carnedd y Filiast (821 metres), Mynydd Perfedd (812 metres) and Elidir Fawr (924 metres).
Us on top of Elidir Fawr with the Marchlyn Mawr reservoir behind
Leaving work we were quickly packed and on our way, only to hit the M1 and turn around as I’d left my boots at home, whoops! Further delays hit in the form of roadworks in Wales, so we arrived late at the Gwern Gôf Isaf Campsite near Tryfan on the A5. Setting up the tent we were able to light the disposable BBQ and get food/beer out in the last light (around 11pm), only to quickly retreat inside the tent to avoid being eaten alive by midges. Apart from the obvious annoyance of me being the tastiest thing to midges within several hundred square miles, the campsite was great and I’d definitely recommend it due to location and basic facilities.
Up leisurely at around half 8 we were back in the car and soon at the the start of our walk where there’s adequate parking on the verge (Grid reference: SH604627). After surveying the mountains infront of us whilst disposing of some pastries for breakfast inside the car, we began to steadily ascend via the tarmacked road that leads to the reservoir. When the road starts to zig zags we found ourselves presented with a sign for our first mountain of the day… I debate now whether following it was best, with the ground being covered in thistles and requiring a jump over a small river, whilst to the side the road leads closely to the style at the bottom of Carnedd y Filiast, oh well! The ascent is at a good gradient over ground not overly steep on a solid path which still gains height well and has increasingly good views back down over the reservoir and towards Elidir Fawr when you fancy a quick breather (we needed it in the increasingly hot sun). Halfway through the ascent the ground levels off, giving fantastic views over the Carneddau before the final and more rocky section of ascent is made.
The summit of Carnedd y Filiast with Elidir Fawr behind
Walking off the summit of Carnedd y Filiast you slowly descend to the hump that is Mynydd Perfedd and with it increasingly spectacular views down the Ogwen Valley over the rest of the Glyders and to the right the impressive route of ascent up Elidir Fawr. There’s a fence with numerous styles on that can be crossed over to meet the path to Elidir Fawr, so just find the fence and cross where you fancy.
Looking towards the ascent route taking on Elidir Fawr
Following the ridge line to the summit of Elidir Fawr is the last decent ascent section of the walk, which whilst not overly steep was taken at a slow pace given how hot the day had turned out to be. After a short section clambering over rock we were at the small shelter at the summit of Elidir Fawr to enjoy some lunch, a drink and the fantastic views back down over Marchlyn Mawr reservoir. Several groups arrived at the summit looking exhausted, following the climb from the Llanberis valley as part of an attempt at the Welsh 3000s.
After a short walk along the summit ridge of Elidir Fawr there’s an obvious path down a scree slope towards Elidir Fach. Heading North off the summit and down a ridge line a line down towards the road taken on the ascent becomes clear (go a little NNW to avoid finding yourself overlooking one of the small quarries from above).
Walking around Marchlyn Mawr to the top of Elidir Fawr allows you to see a less visited (if not still fairly busy in places) part of the Glyders and enjoy a good day out in Snowdonia, with fantastic views over the main ranges. More than anything I was over the moon to see/hear how much Laura enjoyed the day, having let on halfway through the walk that she’d been a little worried about what the day was going to be like. As preparation for my Summer Mountain Leader training it was great, I’d managed to do in a small part what the ML will hopefully allow me to do more of in the future, show others just how incredible the mountains are.
Fancy doing the route yourself? Want more photos?
- The route is described in full on Walking Britain.
- Check my Flickr for photos of our Elidir Fawr walk.
Scrambling at sunrise on Tryfan and Glyder Fach
Posted by Ian in Ascents - Under 3000m, Routes on June 2, 2009
I’d wanted to re-vist Tryfan for some time, having had an eventful but not particularly enjoyable first experience of the mountain, when the weather turned badly as we neared the summit. With the weather good during the week and following my now routine check of the MET Office for Snowdonia’s weekend weather, which read “high risk of sunburn”, I decided I had to go.
Knowing that a nice day in Snowdonia = crowds, I decided to make things more interesting by getting to the mountain before or as close to sunrise on the mountain (sunrise being at just after 4am at this time of year…). So a plan was hastily formed to wake up just after 1am and go for the North Ridge of Tryfan (grade 1 scramble) and then up Bristly Ridge to Glyder Fach (grade 1/2 scramble), before legions of walkers ascended the peaks.
Kit
Unlike previous weekends when I’d weighted a pack down, I decided to go much lighter this time. So a couple of litres of water, some food, sunglasses and waterproof if the good weather turned rainy/windy. Having worn my new Sportiva Nepal Evos the weekend before up Pen y Fan on soft ground, I decided to wear them again to see how they coped on rock. Whilst not suited to scrambling, they ended up performing well; fit continues to get better and impress me more.
Route
Stringing together the North Ridge of Tryfan and Bristly Ridge up Glyder Fach is one of the more famous continued scrambles in Snowdonia, so documenting it is pointless. The Cicerone guide to scrambling in North Wales does a great job of covering the route and then there’s lots of websites covering each (listed at the end).
Arriving at 4:40am I quickly got changed and took a couple of photos to prove I’d made it to start so early. When I arrived there was only one other car in the layby, my plan had worked and I’d have the mountain almost to myself.
The ascent itself isn’t too demanding and route finding a breeze for the most part, you soon gain height and there’s plenty of options to make it more tricky (i.e. fun) if you want to.
As I started to make may way up onto what is a very broad North Ridge, the sun started to creep up over the Glyders, striking the shattered rock around me (and a group of goats who were up early too) to make the setting really breathtaking.
After finding a band of quartz and then moving up and slightly to the right I was at “The Cannon”. To my surprise I found the owner of the other car in the layby, wild camping just below the outcrop, which made me jump a bit as I’d got quite used to having the whole mountain to myself.
Reaching the summit just before 7am I hauled myself up the first summit pillar, had a bit of breakfast, took some photos and then with it being quite cold exposed to the wind, down-climbed (making a mess of it and hurting my ribs doing so, too early, doh!) and sat in a more sheltered area briefly.
Coming down on the South Ridge toward Glyder Fach I was joined unexpectedly by someone I’d chatted with on Twitter for the scramble up Bristly Ridge. Enjoying it so much I didn’t take photos, so I guess I’ll need to go back and do it again… 
The two scrambles strung together make for an absolutely stunning time in the Glyders and with the routes so quiet in the early morning the feeling of adventure you often lose to the crowds was retained. I’d probably suggest that Bristly Ridge is my favourite route I’ve yet to scramble in North Wales. I can’t wait to go back and do it again (and document it properly given I like it so much)!
Links to route information