Snowdonia

You have to admit there’s a difference between this:

And this:

Do you see it? That’s right. The first is the second largest mountain in New Zealand. The second is the second largest mountain in Britain. I went off to climb the latter a few weeks ago.

Don’t tell anyone, but I was secretly setting myself up for disappointment. My housemate, however, was eager for me to see Wales. She was probably more keen to see the Snowdonia ranges than I was. But my goodness when I got there it took my breath away.

I had always put Britain into two neat boxes. The first is the Britain of cities, of grimy brick terraces and grey-upon-grey, of satellite dishes, concrete and graffiti. If brick is your thing you can head to thousands of places that would do it for you. The other Britain is its antithesis. Quaint but boring countryside, hedges, vegetable gardens and greenhouses.

Snowdonia is neither. Here, mountains are still mountainous, climbing is still sweaty, and the view is still amazing.

Of course I have to take the latter on faith. Driving rain was stinging against my face as we headed to the summit. Visibility was also cut to twenty meters, but we all know this makes the trip that much more fun.

Thankfully there was some respite from the rain, so some photos were taken. Pictures tell a thousand words, so here are a few to whet your appetite.


Each peak is about a kilometre above sea level which means you're hitting alpine. Also, there is no such thing as DOC markers, so your trusty map and compass is all that you have going for you.

We spent three days in the ranges, possibly the three best days I've spent in Britain since I got here.

And there's now going to be a sequel. In under a month I'll be heading to the Lake District to climb Scafell Pike, the highest peak in England.

I can't wait.

PS: Far too many photos of Snowdonia are posted on my flickr site for your envy.