Myself and a mate, Kev, booked last Tuesday a while ago to walk up Snowdon – well, you pays your money and you takes your chance! Glorious summer so far, but clouds forecast to come over Snowdonia our trekking day. Driving across the A55 North Wales road, the weather was closing in. 

We couldn’t park at the main place, Penny Pass, so had to go a mile further down hill and retrace our steps to the starting point. It was drizzling hard. I thought we might be some of the only crazy people attempting the summit on a day like this. I hadn’t taken my bigger camera, as wanted to travel light; the weather was not conducive to shoot anything.

It was a trudge but exhilarating anyway, maybe more so because of the elements. There were piles of stones as cairns at various points nearer the top, and one interesting wooden pole with hundreds of coins pressed into the bark as a mark of having walked there.

Determined ascent

There was zero visibility at the top, no view, just soaking rain. No point in taking the camera out. Amazingly a cafe has been built by the summit, and we joined a hundred other bedraggles walkers sheltering, eating and laughing despite the elements outside.

Descending down, the clouds began to lift, every so slowly. The peaks looked mysterious as the mist moved across the edges.

Misty peaks

Even the grass began to look magical with jewel like rain drops hanging near the ground.

jewels on the grass

It was looking behind as we finished the last hour that the sunlight broke through and the folds of the hills and vales took on stunning patterns of light and shade.

Sun breaking through

Well we conquered the mountain, but will have to return another day for a better view, but not necessarily a greater sense of achievement.