Area: Snowdon, Eryri
Although only short, the Gribin gives a nice scramble in the mould of Crib Goch and is an excellent way of avoiding the Snowdon summer crowds, which in recent years have risen to extraordinary levels. I don't really see why I should be pushed off the mountain by those crowds, so deploy numerous strategies to make it possible to enjoy it in relative solitude even in summer (the 'Cwm Glas horseshoe', for example). This combination of routes via the Gribin is another method, first parking in Dyffryn Mymbyr and cycling the 3k to Pen y Pass - thereby saving £20 and no end of hassle, superbly satisfying. The parking changes do seem to have been successful in reducing some of the traffic and lowering the numbers, which is good. I set off at a steady jogging pace along the Miners track, reaching the green hut at Llyn Llydaw in 11 minutes. A drought and heatwave has been building for days, and after the causeway around Llydaw I experienced some of the hottest weather I have known in 35 years in the Snowdonian mountains. Baking hot up the steep track to Glaslyn, where the views of Clogwyn y Garnedd were superb - no haze, perfect clarity, deep blue sky. A mild ridge then leads to a shoulder and then the meat of the scramble up the crest of the Gribin with great views to Lliwedd and the Trinities. Just over 10 minutes to Bwlch y Saethau, after which I took the Pedol Peris direct route up the East Ridge. I had been feeling good until this point, despite a long and tiring week, but my quads exploded as I took the steep scrambly direct ascent to Snowdon summit, really slowing dramatically and therefore just failing to break the hour from PyP to summit. After a short break battling the crowds (not too bad by the standards of recent years) and enjoying the very familiar view, I took the Pyg track all the way back to PyP, not the quickest way down due to the rather awkward terrain and my tiredness compounded this - 46 minutes from summit to PyP. A five minute downhill ride back to the car.
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