Hebog-Nantlle

Peaks: Bryn Bron Banog, Moel Hebog, Moel yr Ogof, Moel Lefn, Mynydd Bwlch y Ddwy Elor, Trum y Ddisgyl, Mynydd Drws y Coed, Y Garn
Area: Nantlle/Hebog, Eryri
Torn between two options this morning. I originally planned to do the Duddon fell race, but didn't fancy the long drive on my own. Instead, I opted for a longish Paddy reccie, recreating it by starting at 4am from home! I left Beddgelert at 6am in constant drizzle, totally unforecast, with hopes (soon to be dashed) that it would clear. There's not much point doing a reccie in thick clag, particularly as my plan was to concentrate on finding the best lines across the section of Eryri that I know least well. Indeed, I've never even been up Bryn Bron Banog - an obscure outlier of Moel Hebog. I jogged down the empty road through Aberglaslyn, looking across to Canyon Rib, an obscure climb which I did in 2011. Then a wet and humid trudge through the woods to emerge onto the open hill - somewhere above lay Bryn Bron Banog, but this was terra incognita for me. I followed my nose as well as the map, as the detail was insufficient, tracking walls upwards through bog and awkward terrain until I reached the windy summit - all very bleak, drizzle and thick mist - utterly pointless from a reconnaissance perspective. I ended up descending well to the north, right the way down to emerge from the clag above the hill farms, then contouring awkward terrain to pick up the Hebog race route at the bottom of the track. It is a long and draining climb from here, good training in a sense, and it looked like the clag was dissipating. A forlorn hope: at the summit, the mist was thick again. Nothing for it but to plod on, jogging down the steep slope to the col below the cleft that leads to Moel yr Ogof. I remember flying down this section, feeling very good, on one of the years I did the Cwm Pennant horseshoe race. Then over to Moel Lefn, an easy summit to miss, but not as easy as Gyrn to miss. I actually got the route bang on across the ridge, not easy in these conditions, and remembered the tortuous maze through the quarry workings around Bwlch y Ddwy Elor. Heavy rain started again, and the wind picked up. I found the climb up Trum y Ddisgyl utterly dispiriting. This was very discouraging given what I have been training for. No idea what the issue was, particularly as I have never found this route all that demanding before (indeed one year I had something of a flier up this climb on the Pennant race). At the ridge, I headed right along the narrowest and best section of the Nantlle ridge, which was wet, slippery and claggy throughout. At Y Garn, I just descended straight down to Rhyd Ddu, fed up, which meant a long run back to Beddgelert, over 10k to add to a fairly lengthy morning out. The road is too dangerous, so I took the weaving (and tiring) forest track and was back in time for lunch.