Ty Powdwr - Cloggy

Members Present: Colin Maddison, Duncan Lee, Andy Stratford, Jim Symon, Ding Koi, Gareth Williams, Carolyn Mills, Michelle Harvey, Mark Garrod, Dave Wylie, Joe Flynn, Christine Beeston, Laura Collier, Trish Cranston, Al Metelko.

 

We arrive Friday evening to rain, having temporarily misplaced Ding in Eccles Library. The forecast is not great, but although cloud is hanging around the hills, it’s dry Saturday morning.

Andy and Jim (team bickering) are up early, very early. Andy is raring to go. He’s practicing alpine starts, which is odd as he’s not going on the alpine meet and they are heading for Gogarth! Still Gogarth is a good step closer to Cloggy than Stanage, so the meet leader is content. Up before 6.00am, they are away at 7.15am. But at least they roused Duncan from his slumbers. They head to Castell Helen for ‘Lighthouse Arete’ and ‘Rap’. It’s a big day for Andy; his first full length abseil, first abseil on a sea cliff and first routes on sea cliff. They finish the day on Holyhead Mountain with two more VSs, ‘Uhurhu’ and ‘Tension’.

Later, the meet leader, Duncan, Carolyn and Gareth set off for some real alpine training. Overcast, we head for Cloggy expecting showers if not rain. The walk from the hut comes as a surprise to Gareth, ‘Is there room in your car Colin’. ‘Yes, plenty, but it’s staying here.’

Down the zig zags and up the tourist path, passing the annual Snowdon wheelchair push (the record an impressive 2h 45m up and down). There are signs of sunshine on the approach. Most of the crag is soaking, but the Far West looks more promising. With the day improving and even some sun, the meet leader and Duncan ascend ‘Slab Route Left Hand’, whilst Gareth and Carolyn go for ‘Slab Route Right Hand’. Wet rock and vegetation are interspersed by patches of dry rock.

At the top by 2.30pm, so we leg it over to the Pass and Clogwyn y Grochan. By now it’s a beautiful late afternoon. It’s gone 4 o’clock but there’s time for the meet leader and Duncan to tick off ‘Spectre’ and for Gareth and Carolyn to do ‘Phantom Rib’, before catching a perfectly timed bus to Llanberis. Shop, ice creams (promised by the meet leader to anyone who went to Cloggy) and the walk back up the steps; we’re back by 7.45pm for mugs of tea in the sun outside the hut whilst watching Ding perform strange contortions.

Meanwhile, Michelle, Mark, Dave and Ding (team president) have also walked from the hut and a scramble up Llechog and along Crib Goch is followed by the inevitable dip in Llyn Lydaw for Michelle and Ding. Then it’s the bus from Pen y Pass and the walk up from Llanberis.

Others have also been on Snowdon. Joe has done the Horseshoe with Katey (who then left for another appointment); as have Christine and Laura (Team Purple). They miss the bus, but the bar at Pen y Pass amply compensates for the wait for the next one.

At 12.15am, and with the meet leader last man standing, Al and Trish arrive fresh from Cloggy having made a late start from Llanberis at 3.00pm! Starting up ‘Primitive Route’, they found it elusive in the upper reaches and finished up the top pitches of ‘Slab Route – Left Hand’. The meet leader admires their commitment to the cause.

Sunday dawns dry again and although the clouds are threatening, it looks reasonable up the Pass.

Team bickering are up early once more and after some impatience from Andy, largely ignored by Jim, make an early start for Dinas Mot and ascents of ‘The Cracks’ and ‘Western Slabs’.

The meet leader and Duncan, still in alpine training mode, run through the quarries to Nant Peris, where they collect their sacks from Gareth’s car before taking the bus to Dinas Mot. There’s a little light rain on approach, but it passes and in due course the day turns into a lovely afternoon. They climb ‘Western Slabs’, via ‘The Chain’ as a variation finish. Then they enjoy ‘Lorraine Variation’ and Duncan leads ‘You’re Not in Poland Now’ (a delightful little E1 they’ve never noticed before) before walking back to Ty Powdwr.

Carolyn and Gareth also visit the Mot and score well with ‘Direct Route’, ‘Lorraine Variation’ (with an additional variation onto GBH) and ‘West Rib’.

Over Ogwen way, Michelle and Mark scramble up the east ridge of Y Garn, which they find has lovely rock and is good value; then they carry on scrambling up Glyder Fawr (where they manage to find some rock amongst the scree), over the sharpest bits of Castell Y Gwynt (which they find are sharp), and then down Bristly Ridge to swim in Llyn Ogwen (no surprise there then, except that the President goes in as well).

Dave joins team purple (though it is not reported whether he donned the uniform) and he, Christine and Laura do the ‘Sub-Cneifon Rib’ and ‘Cneifon Arete’. They report that the ‘Arete’ is particularly good fun and good moving-together practice after the first scary bit. They finish pretty late but the rain holds off until they’ve almost reached the car. Then it’s a quick tea back at the hut and home before midnight.

Joe and Ding do a couple of routes on a sunny Carreg Wastad, but keep the names a secret. Then they pop into Joe Brown's where the staff tell them (don’t ask me why) that Joe is off climbing in Scotland and still climbs E2! Not bad for an 81 year old.

Not surprisingly Al and Trish are late leaving the hut and, with the meet leader not around to buy them their ice cream, they eat lots pies and walk them off, along the river in Bettsy ...in the rain!

Thanks to everyone who took a chance on the forecast and came along; you got your reward. I understand it rained on Stanage!

Colin Maddison