Snowdon - Fail!

Morning

It's been raining all night and the wind kept waking me up. I thought the tent might break at one point. I stuck my head out and tried to capture the blowing rain. Didn't quite catch it.

I was hoping it would be gone by morning.

It's really not pleasant out there!

 

The already sodden ground was now a series of puddles. My tent was surrounded by them and I assume they're underneath too, though there's no sign. My tent is doing it's job of keeping me warm and dry.

The site showers were nice enough; hot, wet and free. Just how I like them. I just realised I have a slight headache (probably dehydrated from yesterday, I didn't drink much) and the tip of my right-hand index finger is numb. Hmm, maybe my bars need a tweak.

Many had had enough and were packing up.

I'm back in the tent. The rain is relentless! How am I supposed to cook anything? Not safe to do it inside.

OK, tea made. I put the stove in the lid of my pannier to protect the ground sheet and used the wind-shield to protect from the draft under the door. Still seemed to take forever. Not used these mess tins before.

The stove doesn't actually send much heat downwards but better safe...

The rain finally stopped but the wind is worse. It comes in waves, every few minutes there's another blast. It eases a bit so I make my escape again.

A lot of people had packed and left. Those tents that remain seem empty and many had collapsed. One had blown down and was half in the river that feeds the lake, only being held by a couple of pegs still hanging on in the saturated ground. I was lucky, I'd deliberately pitched behind a group of trees to break the wind. I couldn't have moved further across (out of the wind) because there were puddles already forming there. 

Some tents were collapsing in the wind.

Duck weather.

Some showed no signs of life.

I wandered over to the windswept stand where I had bought the pizza from the night before. The owners (mum and dad to the young guy and his girlfriend) were friendly and we chatted about the weather and travelling, their son and girlfriend had spent a year in India. The conversation then turned to horses and motorbikes and their obvious interaction. She said that trail riding (on a big bike) sounded very similar to event riding on a horse, where you have to use momentum to help carry you over obstacles. We also talked about horses having a mind of their own, unlike bikes. I thought you pretty much point them in the right direction and just control their speed, but there's more to it than that; riders have to build a rapport with the horse. Some might say it's the same for bikes.

I bought a couple of flapjacks, one for breakfast, as I'd failed to sort anything for myself. In the rush down I'd forgotten to stop and get supplies. It wasn't helped by not having my top-box and having nowhere to put anything. Take top-box next time! The bad conditions meant I didn't go back out after pitching either. Tiredness doesn't help. Ordinarily I wouldn't have the extra luggage of walking boots, jacket, rucksack etc, but having the extra stuff made it harder to pack/unpack and meant less space on the bike and in the tent. I digress.

With the promise of the worst of the storm blowing through by mid-day, I planned to get ready, to see how far I could walk. Everyone I'd spoken to said conditions were too dangerous and it's probably too late to attempt Snowdon anyway, but I had to do something.

I walked down to the bridge and stood for a while, thinking. The lack of provisions was a concern, as well as the high winds. Hard to believe this bridge was used in Tomb Raider!

Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003).

Narrow and little run off. How did they stop?

I returned to my tent to get my rucksack then headed back along the footpath. It was very wet and rocky at the bottom but became more muddy as it climbed.

The rain is back.

A group of teens with massive packs, along with one adult, were hiking along the same trail. I assumed they were doing DofE. I stopped at a scenic view to let them pass me and watched them descend the almost vertical trail ahead, it looked like; on their bums.

I walked to the same section (walking were you have to consider every step - it's narrow, wet and steep). It was a 4-5' drop with barely discernible footholds. If I slipped; I'm on my own. I only have my day-pack with already limited supplies. I was only about a third of the way down the path (if that) before even reaching the start of the Watkin Path. Even if it took me an hour to get on to Snowdon (quite likely), I'd still have 5-6hrs of walking and then have to come back this way, in the dark. I did have plenty of lights with me...

4-5' step drop. Steep, wet and out of time anyway. Worth the risk?

I returned to the scenic view over the lake, considering my options. Another group of teens slowly made their way up. The lead girl asked about the trail ahead, I explained and she went to assess it. They also had a supervising adult with them. I chatted with him while the group went ahead. They were from a Gloucestershire school doing DofE Gold. They had been wild camping the night before and had to pull out to a youth hostel because of the storm. Their supervisor whispered to me, with a smile, that they were on the wrong path. The group returned, deciding against the descent as I did. They were better equipped than I was. While the group took a selfie with the lake as a backdrop, their supervisor explained how he'd got involved; volunteering because there wasn't enough supervisors when his own daughter wanted to do it. Simple enough, but then there's CRB checks, first aid training, mini-bus driving... things he hadn't considered, but it was all good. They all looked like they were enjoying themselves.

By now I  had decided to return to camp. I wasn't equipped for a long day on the mountain in bad weather. I had seen both groups pausing, what seemed like every few steps, to eat a handful of dried fruit and nuts and it made me think about my lack of provisions again.

Re-tracing steps.

I followed the group back down to a stile where we wished one another a good day and they turned to climb straight up a path I hadn't even seen (they had their maps in waterproof cases, mine was keeping dry in my rucksack).

Back at camp, it's a pretty desolate.

I'm considering my options; pack up or stay for the second night and get some more riding in instead.

To ride or not to ride?

Rain is holding off, but still have low cloud and strong winds.

I was tidying up some gear when the winds really kicked in again, the worst so far. I was holding on to the tent from the inside. I honestly thought I was going to lose it. That's it! I'm getting the hell out of Dodge! I packed as much as I could inside the tent as the wind battered everything. The noise of the wind through the trees roared like a jet engine.

Shit! Where's my wallet?!? Don't tell me I dropped it on the trail, not now, it could be anywhere! The next blast triggered the alarm on the bike! I didn't hear it fall over. I had moved it slightly to put the side-stand on firmer ground and luckily it was facing more into the wind making it harder to blow over. Panic over, I found my wallet in a different pocket, duh! I continue packing and the alarm goes off again. That's over 250kg being moved about out there.

Listen to that wind!

A lot of the site was like this.

Packing between wind blasts.

I manage to pack the tent and load the bike between blasts. With everything secure, I walk over to the site's payphone but it says "barred" on my number. One of the staff is passing, he's says it does that sometimes when the weather is bad, something to do with the lines. The office phone is still working and he fetches it for me to call home.

By this time it's late afternoon. I set satnav to fastest route and apart from the roads out of Wales (which were actually quite enjoyable) the ride home was pretty dull with more wind and rain. I did remember to use my earplugs this time and they worked a treat. I've never used them much before as I didn't like not being able to hear the bike, but once I got used to them I actually like it. I can still hear music and nav instructions. They even made the music sound better, somehow. I must look at piping music through plugs...

So what did I learn?

1. Don't rush the journey - don't plan too much and break up the route into smaller sections that can be swapped about a lot easier.
2. You will be tired - washing up and laundry aren't fun.
3. Take the top-box - keep it largely empty.
4. Putting the tent inside a pannier just isn't worth the hassle - use the space for food and clothes.
5. Take some thick bin bags - for emergency waterproofing. Thankfully I didn't have an issue but they're cheap and take up little space.
6. The only really important things are:
• Being warm and dry.
• Getting food and water.
• Sleeping well.

Probably in that order.

Ride to Snowdon

I've arrived at camp! I'm sitting in my tent at Llyn Gwynant campsite making notes because I won't remember it all. There's absolutely no mobile coverage here. I'm in a valley on the south side on Snowdon surrounded by signal blocking hills. So much for posting from the field.

The ground is so soft that the bike's sidestand still sank in even with the large foot pad. Site warden said they've had a lot of rain in the last few days.

Trip here

For most of the trip here the Zumo 590 was telling me to turn off on random branches and loops but to be fair I think this was my fault for maybe not being precise enough with Basecamp. It was also telling me to take the first exit of every single roundabout regardless of where the route was actually going. Both voice and text instructions were affected, but the map was fine. Lucky I was paying attention.

It has been neck-snappingly windy today but only a few heavy showers. I'd taken (planned) some roads, early on, that I'd enjoyed before (It's really windy out there!) but  because I knew I had such a long way to go, and perhaps because the weather was a bit crap, they didn't seem quite the same.

I just put my Keis jacket back on (not powered!) and got in to my sleeping bag; it's about 8degC, not particularly cold, but it's wet and windy and I've just ridden 340 miles.

Tent was put up in a hurry.

Peak District

I'd ridden past Chatsworth House again, that's a nice little road. Then I took my life in my hands and rode my bike, fully loaded down Houndkirk Road (byway) off the A6187 near Foxhouse.

It got interesting over that hill.

It started out sandy/stony, nothing I haven't done before, then I got to some inclines with large wet cobblestone-like rocks across the width of the trail. I had committed and it wouldn't have been easy to stop or turn around anyway so I just kept going, trying to keep smooth, use my momentum and stay off the front brake. By looking ahead and choosing my line I managed to skirt around anything resembling a rock step. There were what appeared to be drainage pipes spanning the "road" covered with earth forming tall and narrow "speed bumps". They were fun. Any amount of speed would get you airborne. On a loaded big bike the road was scary and exhilarating, probably not so much if you were on a dirt bike.

Houndkirk Road coming to an end.

Windy!

The sun came out!

Winnats Pass was next, then through the Edale - Hope loop which I think was better in the first half (going clockwise).

Approach to Winnats Pass.

I stopped in the garage at the junction for the Ladybower road for fuel and a sandwich. I was intending to continue to Snake Pass but I was aware that it was getting late. At one point the satnav said the ETA was 20:30! I wasn't making good time. I'd overestimated how much is realistically possible. I didn't want to feel rushed the whole time or have to pitch the tent in the dark so I made the decision to abandon my planned route. I changed to an auto-calculated "curvy roads" route that seemed to do a good job; fast enough to flow but still interesting (the geography helps, I think). I really enjoyed the A54, turning off before the Cat 'n' Fiddle. The roundabout bug in the Zumo didn't show itself either.

Bad planning

I ache now and getting tired. I hadn't sorted any supplies on the way in and my usual backup plan of going back out after pitching didn't happen either. Without my top-box I didn't have anywhere convenient to put anything. Luckily for me the site had a stall selling freshly made pizzas. Sold! They made me a cuppa too, gratis. I got some milk for tea in the morning from the site warden. More bad planning; I don't have anything for breakfast and the nearest supermarkets are 12-15 miles away according to the young couple running the pizza stall. I can't be bothered. Peanut M&Ms it is then.

No pressure

SatNav installation completed last night, then route tweaking. I was trying to bring it down from 11hrs by using more motorway and main trunk roads, didn't quite manage it.

I'm finding I'm putting a lot of pressure on myself; lots to do in little time. Not what I wanted. I wanted a more relaxed trip. 

Last few bits to pack tonight, mostly my walking gear (in a dry bag on the rack), then final checks...

Adventure 2-for-1

I've been playing with the Zumo 590 for a fair few hours now but I've still not ridden with it. I'm getting to grips with Garmin's Basecamp to the point that I've tweaked the planned route to change directions in a few places and take me down some trails.

Two things are making me nervous; trusting the weekend to a SatNav that is unproven (to me) but more than that is the concern of tackling the potentially steep rocky trails on a big bike, on my own, fully loaded. I've done a fair bit in mud and sand but in the flats of East Anglia. Rocks hurt and break things. And I can't carry my bike up or down big rock steps...

But that's adventure, right?

The hike up Snowdon doesn't seem to be much of a concern. We'll see. 

Sat Nav update

Well, I didn't expect that! I had an email from customer service; they've got new stock in ahead of schedule and are delivering tomorrow! It gives me time to get it installed and to RTFM before the trip.