Tal y Fan

Peaks: Tal y Fan

Area: Carneddau, Eryri

Yet another variation loop up Tal y Fan, pleasing that I can still find different routes up a mountain familiar from dozens if not hundreds of ascents over decades. In this case I parked near the water gardens, heading past Tyddyn Mawr to the scout hut and then up through the woods via the Pilgrims Route to Llangelynin Old Church, which looked superb in the morning winter light, the weather far better than forecast. Then came a ferocious headwind, which made the climb to Tal y Fan really hard, particularly with sore legs after yesterday's plunge. At the top, superb views over the Conwy Valley with the sun peeping out of cloud layers and glinting off the river in wonderful soft light. The descent was still into the wind, but I took the direct route down from the stile reaching the road from the summit in 12 minutes. Then I took a circuitous route back via Maen y Bardd, the superb neolithic burial chamber I think I have only found once before. Steeply back down via the edge of Rowen to Gwern Borter and the car.

Jubilee Plunge

Race: Jubilee Plunge

Time/Position: 13.46 

An eight year gap since I last did this event, for the very good reason that it cripples me for around a week. This despite the fact that it is 3.5k in total. Having said that, it is completely unique and hugely enjoyable. In the past I have done it from Cilcain, jogging over then hills and then back. Today I drove to Llangynhafal and plodded up to the start on top of Moel Famau, which takes around 40 minutes! Some mist on top, and a bit chilly, but generally conditions were good. I started too slow, which is not advisable on this race. This meant it was difficult to really open up on the initial very steep drop from Famau, particularly with a fairly big field. Just below Moel Dywyll, the route kinks left and plummets down perfect grassy slopes to reach the lane in 10 minutes. I remember taking a short cut across fields here, but now the route goes down the road before two or three muddy fields lead down to the finish at the Golden Lion. I was annoyed to finish over a minute slower than my previous times for the route.

Round the Walls

Race: Round the Walls (4m)

Time/Position: 24.58 (25th from 553 [1st V50])

Almost a minute and 11 places down on last year, but I was still quite pleased with this outing, perhaps the 15th time I've done the race. The same course as we have enjoyed for the last few years, a really satisfying loop which takes in the full walls anticlockwise. The Roodee was very boggy this year, which will have had some effect on times, and the weather was foggy, cold and damp. Pleased to win my age category, something I've managed a few times at this, one of my favourite races and one of the oldest in the region. Kate and Morgan enjoyed it too.

Bronwen via Wayfarers

Peaks: Cadair Bronwen

Area: Berwyn

A shorter than usual pre-Christmas outing this year, but at least we continued to observe the tradition. It was a very enjoyable repeat of a route I first did last winter, a route which minimises the bog. Minimises, not eliminates, of course. I set off from Llandrillo with Jez and Hayley, up the familiar steep track which leads to the crossroads and is very boggy at this time of yeat. Instead of turning right for Bronwen, we continued up the Wayfarers Pass, which is a continuous 6.5k climb from the village. It was cold at the pass, so we put on extra layers and then embarked on the long boggy section over the hills to Bronwen. This became increasingly snowy until there was a good layer on the tops. A biting windchill on the summit of Bronwen, so we ploughed down to the col and then took the contouring, boggy tracks all the down to a detour up to the stone circle, Moel Ty Uchaf. We warmed up in front of the fire at The Bridge.

Prestatyn parkrun

'Race': Prestatyn parkrun

Time/Position: 19.18 (3rd from 90)

Into the inevitable headwind, supposedly 40mph, on the outward leg this morning. It didn't quite have the impact I had expected, however, and soon turned to a tailwind as we headed back east. The finish was tougher, of course, back into the wind, and I got beaten into third place right at the end. Only half a minute down on my best time for the course, so not bad in the circumstances.

Castleton skyline

A delightful Peak District walk with M after arrival in the hostel. We headed direct up small paths to the stone pavement that leads steeply to Lose Hill - sunny but a biting northerly, very cold. We walked along the Great Ridge all the way to Mam Tor, one of England's finest, easiest and most popular hill walks, far more familiar to me from classic fell races like Edale Skyline and Tour of Bradwell. Down to Mam Nick, across the fields to Winnats Pass, and then along to Cave Dale, which I remembered from the Tour of Bradwell and wanted to show M. A nice sheltered contrast to the ridge. Then back via the village. Next day I woke before dawn and ran the same route to Mam Tor, taking variation descent paths.

Glyder Fawr max

Peaks: Glyder Fawr

Area: Glyderau, Eryri

One way of maximising a mountain! After a light breakfast I set off running from Pant y Fron, with the vague intention of breaking 30 minutes to Pen y Pass. The last time I ran this way was probably the Snowdonia Marathon almost 20 years ago. I would be surprised if I did it more quickly then, as I felt quite good this morning. It is pretty steep in places, but conditions were good, dank and misty and empty of traffic at this hour in December. My companions got the bus from Nant Peris and we met at PyP (precisely 28 minutes from the hut) where I changed into my mountain clothes and put my road shoes in the sac they had brought up for me! A novel start, and then it was into the slog from PyP. This is boggy and quite unpleasant, most familiar to me from the descent on Pedol Peris (and the 1000s). It led to a rather icy summit with some old snow - very cold feet as I only had my fell running shoes on. A spectacular clearance over Nant Francon as we descended to Llyn y Cwn, then Emma, Peter and I dropped down direct to the Pass. This path is easy at first, then surprisingly awkward and steep - I had only taken it once before.

Pedol Marchlyn

Peaks: Carnedd y Filiast, Mynydd Perfedd, Elidir Fawr

Area: Glyderau, Eryri

The little horseshoe works perfectly as a pre-hut night outing, so I deployed it again today as I only had a few hours of daylight left on arrival in Deiniolen. I usually start from the village but this time drove up the Marchlyn road and started higher. From here, it is quick progress up the unsightly tarmac road towards the lakes. At the end, a steep curving climb gains the pass overlooking Ogwen. Then it was into the clag for the awkward rocky haul to Carnedd y Filiast, just over 40 minutes from the car. Then the flat jog across to Perfedd before taking the direct shortcut to Elidir. I lost enough height here to emerge from the cloudbase temporarily. From the summit I dropped down in a fairly direct line through the scree to gain the grassy lower slopes, which are very runnable and enjoyable. Around 1.20 for the circuit, and then another convivial evening at the hut.

Dash in the Dark

Race: Dash in the Dark, race 2

Time/Position: 28.25 (7th from 68)

As my fallow year comes to an end, I have eased off the races and sessions even more, but this little race always represents a decent lung-buster to jolt me out of my torpor. I have done many variations of these nighttime races over many years, since they started in fact, and today was different again. I would never be able to recreate any of them, such is the complexity of the Llandegla forest with all its twists, turns and micropaths. I started conservatively but did pick up quite a few places during the race, which is always a positive sign. And I enjoyed it, which is another. Excellent beer and chip butties at the Rose and Crown, as Storm Darragh began to gather force outside.