By Dean Russell
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July 27, 2020
Many of us found ourselves with more time on our hands as lockdown and travel restrictions took grip and the country battled to contain the Coronavirus pandemic that spread across the world. Much of the National Park in Snowdonia closed to ensure there were no undue pressures on local emergency and rescue services and the beloved mountains were off limits for the time being. Running through lockdown was a good opportunity to gain an intimate knowledge of all the footpaths in the local area, often running through thickets of brambles and gorse on paths that had been long since forgotten. Living on the edge of Snowdonia National Park at the outlet of the glacially formed Llyn Padarn, many of my lockdown routes passed a brass plinth that speaks of the evolution of the scenery in front of your eyes. Many of my hours passed enjoying the mountains, reflecting so perfectly on the lake when the air was still, watching how the light morphed high up as the sun started setting on another day of lockdown. It was on one of these many nights that I started to trace the line of the skyline and imagined running a route from the end of the lake across all the mountain tops around Llyn Padarn. As many people delved into cookbooks, looking for the next bake, or updating general knowledge preparing for the next zoom quiz, I hunched over my kitchen table with the map of Snowdonia laid out tracing the same line I had envisioned earlier. What I had been tracing was the hydrological water catchment for Llyn Padarn, twelve peaks where rain drops run from its summits onto their rocky slopes, down steep runnels into streams and rivers feeding the lake, flowing right to the outlet where I had been admiring one of the best views in the National Park. With the levels of Coronavirus infections reducing, on another unusually fine Friday afternoon the news from the Welsh Government I had been waiting for was delivered in their regular briefing. The mountains were going to open in their entirety and it felt fitting to commemorate the opening by running the skyline that I had so often admired. To follow the water catchment the route first ascends gently on roads through the villages of Fachwen and Dinorwic and into the local quarries. Described by some as a blight on the landscape, the sometimes otherworldly looking vistas are a reminder of the industrial era when North Wales was home to one of the most important slate producing areas. Ascending through endless slate piles, up inclines, past buildings and metal work that once would of been integral to the workings you get a great sense of how hard and dangerous the work for the miners must have been. After leaving the quarries behind, already high in mountain terrain, the summit of Elidir Fach was soon under my feet. A further short pull brought the rocky summit of Elidir Fawr, with its jagged grey gritstone that is in contrast to the red sedimentary siltstone on the flanks leading to the summit. The hard work initially getting up high was rewarded heading along the spectacular ridge to Mynydd Perfedd and sublime views to Marchlyn Mawr reservoir, Ogwen valley and one of North Wales most iconic mountains, Tryfan. The position of the Glyderau with mountain ranges on either side gave a big mountain feel to the summits of Foel-goch and Y Garn before descending towards Twll Ddu, more commonly known as Devils Kitchen named due to the sinister plume of smoke rising from a huge crack in its cliffs. Instead of descending into the depths of the cauldron a steep ascent up scree slopes of Glyder Fawr was necessary which felt like traveling without moving as my feet slid from underneath me. Descent from the summit was via the red route that winds its way south through complex terrain passing boulders with a faint spray painted red dot leading the way. The views across the valley to the classically shaped Crib Goch were spectacular and left me in no doubt that the next section contains some of the best scrambling terrain in North Wales. Pen Y Pass was a welcome respite and a chance to grab a snack and recharge my batteries before the crux of the run. The going got tough as I made my way up from Pen y Pass with the technical, engaging scramble up the initially broad East ridge that converges to an airy ridge walk up to Crib Goch’s summit. The fun didn’t stop there though continuing along the summit ridge which has some spectacular positions where it is not uncommon to see people traversing it “Au Cheval” (like a horse) before yet more first class scrambling to reach the grassy summit of Crib y Ddysgl. The way forward was made up of skirting impressive Cwms that are the product of scouring in the late Ice Age that ended some 10,000 years ago. The geology of the Cwms are synonymous with glacial activity in Snowdonia with the mountains having two distinct faces, grassy slopes facing South-West and steep craggy ones facing North-East. After completing the technical section where my thoughts were solely on the next foothold and handhold as you traverse a couple of Snowdon’s giants its a welcome respite, even with tired legs, to run up and down the grassy summits of Moel Cynghorion, Foel Goch, Foel Gron and Moel Eilio. Appreciating the great views of the Nantlle valley and the Menai Straits, I found myself in a state with no thoughts running through my mind, no stresses, no to do lists, nothing. Running has long been associated with controlling stress and boosting the bodies ability to deal with mental tension. Combining that with the benefits of being in the mountains has long been vital to my own mental wellbeing and as I continued my run I could feel the mountains cleansing my mind with every step, oh how I had missed the mountains. Running down from Moel Eilio skirting another set of slate quarries the final summit of Cefn Du was soon arrived at with the sudden realisation that there are no well worn paths from its summit and so a degree of heather bashing was required. Following a faint path by a dry stone wall led to a better trodden path that drops down eventually to the main road and a short run back to the plinth where the journey had started. An opportunity to admire the views, a chance to reflect, taking in all the mountains that have been traversed and ponder there long evolution just as the words by Gillian Clarke describes: But for how long? Cherish these mountains, born in fire and ash out of the sea to make this wilderness, Asleep for aeons beneath ice and snow, carved by the shifting glaciers long ago, Till ten millennia back, the last ice age made right for fern and purple saxifrage, This place, whose evolutions given birth to the rare Snowdon lilly’s home on earth, But all could go with the melting snow. The Llyn Padarn Skyline is a 36 km run with 3,108m of height gain that was completed on the 6th July 2020 in 6 hrs 31mins and 25 secs. If you would like to have a go at the Skyline there are more details on how you can get your time recorded here . Dean Russell is an active trail runner, climber, mountaineer and trekker with over 16 years experience in the mountains. Usually found running and climbing in his local mountains in North Wales he offers private and group guiding highlighting the best routes in Snowdonia’s national park. If you would like further details then you can contact Dean here .
