Walk Summary - Phase I (22 February - 29 February)
Going to start with the 8 Marilyns around Welshpool to get my hill legs, core strength and aerobic fitness back. Usually do 2 or 3 per day over 2 or 3 separate walks depending on day light. Still end up doing 8-10 miles a day but find it a good way to prepare fitness for the bigger mountain walks.
Then move on to Dolgellau to work on Nuttalls and Marilyns in the area, including Cadair Idris over 2 walks. Routes also planned for all 14 Aran Nuttalls over 3 routes as well as 3 remaining Cadair Idris Nuttalls south of A470. Finally if I have time and meet someone who wants to join me have it in mind to walk the Rhinog ridge from Foel Penolau to Diffwys West Top. That should be enough to go at!!!!
Overall 16 individual Marilyns covered by 16 short walks, hopefully managing 3 or 4 per day and on a good day maybe as many as 5.
The last 5 Marilyns are included in 5 of the remaining 8 Nuttall walks. 24 Nuttalls in total but with the exception of Moel y Cerrig Duon & Pen y Brynfforchog will only be managed as part of a single walk on each walking day.
With over 100 miles to walk and nearly 10,000m of ascent a seemingly challenging and perhaps over ambitious plan, but with nearly 3 weeks away and a staged introduction to the higher longer routes will hopefully not be too difficult.
Post Phase I trip summary
With our youngest son in Canada and our oldest celebrating his first with his wife following the birth of our lovely granddaughter last year I was always going to return home Mothering Sunday weekend. As it turned out I returned home a few days earlier than that.
The first part of the trip was going exactly to plan with all Welshpool Marilyns completed along with progression on to Dolgellau Nuttalls. Better than planned really as it had only taken four consecutive walking days, so really I should not have been surprised that I needed a rest day on the fifth day of the trip and first day at Byncws HyB Bunkhouse, Dolgellau. Well I did need a rest day, annoying really, especially as the fifth day was a crisp sunny Saturday morning - ideal conditions to go up Cadair Idris and the other four nearby Nuttalls described in route 007 with a strong possibility of not quite winter conditions but snow on the upper summits.
Things deteriorated the next day, Sunday when I overslept and did not get my act together until about 11am. Too late to set off on an 11 mile walk if I wanted to be off the final summit before dusk. Feeling tired, dejected and homesick I nearly packed up and came home. but decided to have another day working at the years objective, knocking off three of the Dolgellau Marilyns. In fact with the forecast for the week turning wet and windy I decided to forget Nuttalls on this first phase of the trip and head for Rhayader staying for one night at Mid-Wales Bunkhouse then the next day to Elan Oaks caravan & camping site to pick off the cluster of six Marilyns in that area and also whilst in the Elan Valley, weather permitting, pick off the final 3 Nuttalls in Area 31.
Heater in van not working on the Monday night resulting in me wimping out and booking in to The Elan Valley Hotel, then waking up to pouring rain I finally decided to head home, but not before I had finished off the two remaining of the six Marilyns of Carn Gafallt and Gwastedyn Hill.
Walk Summary - Phase II (08 March- 15 March)
So what was an ambitious plan with a total of 44 planned summits is now still an ambitious plan with 50 planned summits. Combined with the early return from phase I the plan remains ambitious.
By ambitious I really mean unachievable but let's see how I get on.
Hill conditioning completed on the first trip apart from the first Wednesday being a Marilyn day working on the remaining Dolgellau Marilyns the other walking days are going to be focused on the Dollgellau Marilyns. Booked in to YHA Kings on Thursday and Friday I am planning to manage the 2 walks over 2 days to visit all 7 Nuttalls on the Cadair Idris Massive. After that I will see how I feel about R&R days, with 6 Nuttall routes to do in 6 days R&R days has not been included. Like I said earlier "...unachievable but let's see how I get on."
Post Phase II trip summary
All summits and walks completed (Written on 06 March before setting off - wishful thinking, planning for success!)
Dolgellau Nuttalls
007 - Cadair Idris ridge, Cyfrwy - Gau Graig
007 - Two Nuttalls of Cadair Idris West
008 - Pen y Brynfforchog +3 Nuttalls south of A470
009 - Blaencywarch ring from Glasgwm to Pen yr Allt Uchaf
010 - North East Arans
011 - North West Arans
Welshpool Marilyns
001 - Allt y Main
002 - Y Golfa & Upper Park
003 - Rhialgwm
004 - Long Mountain - Beacon Ring
005 - Moel y Golfa
006 - Corndon Hill
Going to start with the 8 Marilyns around Welshpool to get my hill legs, core strength and aerobic fitness back. Usually do 2 or 3 per day over 2 or 3 separate walks depending on day light. Still end up doing 8-10 miles a day but find it a good way to prepare fitness for the bigger mountain walks.
Then move on to Dolgellau to work on Nuttalls and Marilyns in the area, including Cadair Idris over 2 walks. Routes also planned for all 14 Aran Nuttalls over 3 routes as well as 3 remaining Cadair Idris Nuttalls south of A470. Finally if I have time and meet someone who wants to join me have it in mind to walk the Rhinog ridge from Foel Penolau to Diffwys West Top. That should be enough to go at!!!!
Overall 16 individual Marilyns covered by 16 short walks, hopefully managing 3 or 4 per day and on a good day maybe as many as 5.
The last 5 Marilyns are included in 5 of the remaining 8 Nuttall walks. 24 Nuttalls in total but with the exception of Moel y Cerrig Duon & Pen y Brynfforchog will only be managed as part of a single walk on each walking day.
With over 100 miles to walk and nearly 10,000m of ascent a seemingly challenging and perhaps over ambitious plan, but with nearly 3 weeks away and a staged introduction to the higher longer routes will hopefully not be too difficult.
With our youngest son in Canada and our oldest celebrating his first with his wife following the birth of our lovely granddaughter last year I was always going to return home Mothering Sunday weekend. As it turned out I returned home a few days earlier than that.
The first part of the trip was going exactly to plan with all Welshpool Marilyns completed along with progression on to Dolgellau Nuttalls. Better than planned really as it had only taken four consecutive walking days, so really I should not have been surprised that I needed a rest day on the fifth day of the trip and first day at Byncws HyB Bunkhouse, Dolgellau. Well I did need a rest day, annoying really, especially as the fifth day was a crisp sunny Saturday morning - ideal conditions to go up Cadair Idris and the other four nearby Nuttalls described in route 007 with a strong possibility of not quite winter conditions but snow on the upper summits.
Things deteriorated the next day, Sunday when I overslept and did not get my act together until about 11am. Too late to set off on an 11 mile walk if I wanted to be off the final summit before dusk. Feeling tired, dejected and homesick I nearly packed up and came home. but decided to have another day working at the years objective, knocking off three of the Dolgellau Marilyns. In fact with the forecast for the week turning wet and windy I decided to forget Nuttalls on this first phase of the trip and head for Rhayader staying for one night at Mid-Wales Bunkhouse then the next day to Elan Oaks caravan & camping site to pick off the cluster of six Marilyns in that area and also whilst in the Elan Valley, weather permitting, pick off the final 3 Nuttalls in Area 31.
Heater in van not working on the Monday night resulting in me wimping out and booking in to The Elan Valley Hotel, then waking up to pouring rain I finally decided to head home, but not before I had finished off the two remaining of the six Marilyns of Carn Gafallt and Gwastedyn Hill.
Walk Summary - Phase II (08 March- 15 March)
So what was an ambitious plan with a total of 44 planned summits is now still an ambitious plan with 50 planned summits. Combined with the early return from phase I the plan remains ambitious.
By ambitious I really mean unachievable but let's see how I get on.
Hill conditioning completed on the first trip apart from the first Wednesday being a Marilyn day working on the remaining Dolgellau Marilyns the other walking days are going to be focused on the Dollgellau Marilyns. Booked in to YHA Kings on Thursday and Friday I am planning to manage the 2 walks over 2 days to visit all 7 Nuttalls on the Cadair Idris Massive. After that I will see how I feel about R&R days, with 6 Nuttall routes to do in 6 days R&R days has not been included. Like I said earlier "...unachievable but let's see how I get on."
All summits and walks completed (Written on 06 March before setting off - wishful thinking, planning for success!)
007 - Cadair Idris ridge, Cyfrwy - Gau Graig
 |
| 11.00 miles, 1419.79m, 8 hours 30mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
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| 8.19 miles, 767.92m, 5 hours 54mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
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| Pen y Brynfforchog - 1.34 miles, 334.60m, 1 hour 18mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent Cadair Idris east of A487 - 7.24 miles, 908.05m, 5 hours 34mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
 |
| 9.44 miles, 1064.68m, 7 hours 04mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
 |
| 5.12 miles, 655.40m, 3 hours 57mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
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| 7.72 miles, 994.78m, 5 hours 59mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
001 - Allt y Main
 |
| 2.00 miles, 237.99m, 1 hour 42mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
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| Y Golfa - 1.85 miles, 160.22m, 1 hour 18mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent Upper Park - 5.83 miles, 298.98m, 3 hours 49mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
 |
| 2.85 miles, 240.73m, 2 hour 00mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
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| 1.18 miles, 53.31m, 0 hour 45mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
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| 2.44 miles, 310.96m, 1 hour 53mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
 |
| 1.71 miles, 180.62m, 1 hour 15mins @ Av pace of 1.75mph & + 1 hour/per 600m of ascent |
