3 Peaks in 3 Weeks - Volume 2 - The journey really begins
We used the campsite WiFi to find our next location. Where we wanted to be next was Snowdonia but where? It's a huge location and did we want to be near a town or in the middle of no-where? I had found a campsite a few days before with availability right on a lake and close to a small town. Perfect!
Now I am ready to "Just Pick One", I go to do it and the availability is gone! AARRGGHH! Now the indecisive one has to start all over again......did I mention AARRGGHH?
Here comes my Gollum / Smeagol moment where I have an all out argument / therapy session within myself to get through the next 5 minutes.
"Right calm down, it isn't that important...just breathe. It's just a campsite."
"But it is the next step and I need a plan of where we are going!"
"Yes but that is hours away and we can get something else. It's a national park and there are other sites."
"Yeah I know that .. but which one??? I looked at loads and I liked this one but now it's gone. I have to start all over again"
"You will find something if you just chill out and breathe. This isn't a crisis, it's a bump in the road. You will find a solution. Just breathe."
"You're right (deep breath). Ok, just look again......there is another site which looks ok. It is on the other end of the lake, supplies will be a bit more tricky as the village is tiny but we have Jeff and it's not that remote. Ok, let's do it. Booked.”
“Well done, you did it. Where are we heading?”
“We are off to Bwch Yn Uchaf. I'll work out how to pronounce that later on, but for now we have a heading!"
So off we went. Through some beautiful scenery, following the River Wye for a surprisingly long way up the twisting and turning roads to Snowdonia National Park and to the new campsite. It didn't have all of the features of my preferred one but it did have a playground for my son and direct access to a river which fed the lake I mentioned earlier. The village was minute and didn't have many amenities but it did have spectacular views over the mountains and breathtaking sunsets. So it did work out, like my Smeagol half said it would. We were in a good campsite with the facilities we needed. Some bits were not brilliant but perfectly manageable.
We wanted to explore the area and see Mount Snowdon - Yr Wyddfa. We decided to visit Llanberis. This is the tourist spot for visiting the mountain and the place to get the mountain train to get to the summit.
Llanberis is lovely on its own even without the majesty of a mountain nearby. It has a beautiful lake, a nice highstreet, cafes, and has many shops dedicated to helping climbers with gear and advice about routes to go and easier local walks if you want to hike but don’t like heights. There is a small steam train where you can go on a trip around the central lake (well around half way and then back again). From this train you can visit the local mining museum as slate is the main commodity from this town and was the principle industry of the area. We didn’t visit this on this occasion as we had recently been in a mine and I wanted to remain above ground for this part of the trip. The train ride was lovely and they actually stop the train for a short time so that you can get photos of Snowdon. Here it is in all its glory….
And before you ask, no, we didn’t climb it. Again being unfit and a smidge lazy didn’t make us feel the need to do so. Plus the train was unavailable. Yes, the train. There is a train that can take you to (almost) the summit of the mountain. In 2024 it costs £42 per adult or £32 per child return with a 30 minute stop at the top, or £32 per adult and £22 per child going one way. So there is a top tip for anyone considering going to visit and using the train as a means to ‘climb’ it, the train books up days in advance. Not just the day before, but days in advance. The next available tickets to us would have been 11 days in the future. We’ll be on the other side of the country by then. Never mind. The goal for us wasn’t to climb it but to at least see it and we managed that easily. I would go back to Llanberis again in a heartbeat just to chill out by or in the water of the lake.
The next day we wanted to try something a little different. It did mean going underground again but boy was it worth it. King Arthur’s Labyrinth in a place called Corris is well worth a visit. Not only because it is a lovely attraction but the drive to it takes you through breath taking valleys to rival Glencoe itself one of which you might be lucky enough to be buzzed at incredibly high speed by an RAF Typhoon, a USAF F-15 or a Hawk jet. Yep that’s right! Fighter jets at low altitude going as fast as they dare! The valley is in a part of what is known as “The Mach Loop”. To quote from machloop.co.uk “The Mach Loop is a set of valleys, situated between Dolgellau in the north, and Machynlleth in the south (and from which the Mach Loop gets its name), which are regularly used for low level flight training, with flying as low as 250 feet (76 metres) from the nearest terrain.”
We had no idea that this was the case and so when we were driving through the valley to get to King Arthur’s Labyrinth we were incredibly shocked when two RAF Typhoons charged their way through above us making the most incredible noise. We have a local airport close to our house and see an airshow each year at Bournemouth and so we know what these aircraft sound like. But this was nearly ear splitting especially when you have no clue that this is coming. Such a treat and once we had prepared for it we were on jet watch for the rest of the afternoon.
King Arthur’s Labyrinth is a visitor attraction to some local caves. But not just any look inside some caves. In order to keep people moving through they have created a story around the legend of King Arthur, how he became the legend and what happened to him. There is an underground boat journey, water manipulation effects, lights and of course the caves themselves. You initially sit through a story which is presented by an actor in historical garb where you also hear some safety advice and you pop on your hard hat. This is definitely needed in certain places and I was very glad of it towards the end. Then you are escorted to the boatman who remains with your group throughout. He or she will guide you through the tunnels to hear the pre-recorded stories of the legend of King Arthur. While you listen you can take a look round at the caves and tunnels. They are wonderful, but the ceiling is very low and the ground wet and slippery. It is also COLD in there. I was very glad of my hoodie and coat. Outside the air temperature was about 23 degrees (73 Fahrenheit) but inside it was only 10 degrees (50 Fahrenheit).
We thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to any visitor. There is a cafe and also a gift shop (of course) and local arts and crafts shops which are a permanent fixture. We loved speaking with the wood cutter. He was very nice and had loads of things we would love to have but price and lack of space in the car prevented us from buying them.
The cafe also had one amazing feature. PLUGS! One thing about camping is that unless you have an electric hook up (we don’t but will in the future), there is no-where to recharge your phone, power pack, tablet, switch, camera etc. When we saw this we immediately turned the area we were sitting in into our mini version of a base camp for a TV crew. We saw many more planes fly over and we had some lovely food. All in all a great experience and one we will remember for a long time.
We really feel like we are doing it now. Camping long haul I mean. Each of our previous journeys have been for up to 3 nights. This was the end of night 6 and we've seen so much already. Traveled many miles and seen signs in different languages. Where next then? Will we continue the journey north? Of course. So where is next on the list? Its the Lake District. Camping again or a B&B? Will we be chased by animals, do some rudimentary laundry or see some beautiful sights? Will one of them be Scafell Pike, the highest peak in England? Follow on to volume 3 for the answers.
Until next time
Xx
P.S. If you would like to know more about the equipment I use for camping, the places I find out my information or just have a question in general, please do drop me a comment and I’d be happy to answer.
Now I am ready to "Just Pick One", I go to do it and the availability is gone! AARRGGHH! Now the indecisive one has to start all over again......did I mention AARRGGHH?
Here comes my Gollum / Smeagol moment where I have an all out argument / therapy session within myself to get through the next 5 minutes.
"Right calm down, it isn't that important...just breathe. It's just a campsite."
"But it is the next step and I need a plan of where we are going!"
"Yes but that is hours away and we can get something else. It's a national park and there are other sites."
"Yeah I know that .. but which one??? I looked at loads and I liked this one but now it's gone. I have to start all over again"
"You will find something if you just chill out and breathe. This isn't a crisis, it's a bump in the road. You will find a solution. Just breathe."
"You're right (deep breath). Ok, just look again......there is another site which looks ok. It is on the other end of the lake, supplies will be a bit more tricky as the village is tiny but we have Jeff and it's not that remote. Ok, let's do it. Booked.”
“Well done, you did it. Where are we heading?”
“We are off to Bwch Yn Uchaf. I'll work out how to pronounce that later on, but for now we have a heading!"
So off we went. Through some beautiful scenery, following the River Wye for a surprisingly long way up the twisting and turning roads to Snowdonia National Park and to the new campsite. It didn't have all of the features of my preferred one but it did have a playground for my son and direct access to a river which fed the lake I mentioned earlier. The village was minute and didn't have many amenities but it did have spectacular views over the mountains and breathtaking sunsets. So it did work out, like my Smeagol half said it would. We were in a good campsite with the facilities we needed. Some bits were not brilliant but perfectly manageable.
We wanted to explore the area and see Mount Snowdon - Yr Wyddfa. We decided to visit Llanberis. This is the tourist spot for visiting the mountain and the place to get the mountain train to get to the summit.
Llanberis is lovely on its own even without the majesty of a mountain nearby. It has a beautiful lake, a nice highstreet, cafes, and has many shops dedicated to helping climbers with gear and advice about routes to go and easier local walks if you want to hike but don’t like heights. There is a small steam train where you can go on a trip around the central lake (well around half way and then back again). From this train you can visit the local mining museum as slate is the main commodity from this town and was the principle industry of the area. We didn’t visit this on this occasion as we had recently been in a mine and I wanted to remain above ground for this part of the trip. The train ride was lovely and they actually stop the train for a short time so that you can get photos of Snowdon. Here it is in all its glory….
And before you ask, no, we didn’t climb it. Again being unfit and a smidge lazy didn’t make us feel the need to do so. Plus the train was unavailable. Yes, the train. There is a train that can take you to (almost) the summit of the mountain. In 2024 it costs £42 per adult or £32 per child return with a 30 minute stop at the top, or £32 per adult and £22 per child going one way. So there is a top tip for anyone considering going to visit and using the train as a means to ‘climb’ it, the train books up days in advance. Not just the day before, but days in advance. The next available tickets to us would have been 11 days in the future. We’ll be on the other side of the country by then. Never mind. The goal for us wasn’t to climb it but to at least see it and we managed that easily. I would go back to Llanberis again in a heartbeat just to chill out by or in the water of the lake.
The next day we wanted to try something a little different. It did mean going underground again but boy was it worth it. King Arthur’s Labyrinth in a place called Corris is well worth a visit. Not only because it is a lovely attraction but the drive to it takes you through breath taking valleys to rival Glencoe itself one of which you might be lucky enough to be buzzed at incredibly high speed by an RAF Typhoon, a USAF F-15 or a Hawk jet. Yep that’s right! Fighter jets at low altitude going as fast as they dare! The valley is in a part of what is known as “The Mach Loop”. To quote from machloop.co.uk “The Mach Loop is a set of valleys, situated between Dolgellau in the north, and Machynlleth in the south (and from which the Mach Loop gets its name), which are regularly used for low level flight training, with flying as low as 250 feet (76 metres) from the nearest terrain.”
We had no idea that this was the case and so when we were driving through the valley to get to King Arthur’s Labyrinth we were incredibly shocked when two RAF Typhoons charged their way through above us making the most incredible noise. We have a local airport close to our house and see an airshow each year at Bournemouth and so we know what these aircraft sound like. But this was nearly ear splitting especially when you have no clue that this is coming. Such a treat and once we had prepared for it we were on jet watch for the rest of the afternoon.
King Arthur’s Labyrinth is a visitor attraction to some local caves. But not just any look inside some caves. In order to keep people moving through they have created a story around the legend of King Arthur, how he became the legend and what happened to him. There is an underground boat journey, water manipulation effects, lights and of course the caves themselves. You initially sit through a story which is presented by an actor in historical garb where you also hear some safety advice and you pop on your hard hat. This is definitely needed in certain places and I was very glad of it towards the end. Then you are escorted to the boatman who remains with your group throughout. He or she will guide you through the tunnels to hear the pre-recorded stories of the legend of King Arthur. While you listen you can take a look round at the caves and tunnels. They are wonderful, but the ceiling is very low and the ground wet and slippery. It is also COLD in there. I was very glad of my hoodie and coat. Outside the air temperature was about 23 degrees (73 Fahrenheit) but inside it was only 10 degrees (50 Fahrenheit).
We thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to any visitor. There is a cafe and also a gift shop (of course) and local arts and crafts shops which are a permanent fixture. We loved speaking with the wood cutter. He was very nice and had loads of things we would love to have but price and lack of space in the car prevented us from buying them.
The cafe also had one amazing feature. PLUGS! One thing about camping is that unless you have an electric hook up (we don’t but will in the future), there is no-where to recharge your phone, power pack, tablet, switch, camera etc. When we saw this we immediately turned the area we were sitting in into our mini version of a base camp for a TV crew. We saw many more planes fly over and we had some lovely food. All in all a great experience and one we will remember for a long time.
We really feel like we are doing it now. Camping long haul I mean. Each of our previous journeys have been for up to 3 nights. This was the end of night 6 and we've seen so much already. Traveled many miles and seen signs in different languages. Where next then? Will we continue the journey north? Of course. So where is next on the list? Its the Lake District. Camping again or a B&B? Will we be chased by animals, do some rudimentary laundry or see some beautiful sights? Will one of them be Scafell Pike, the highest peak in England? Follow on to volume 3 for the answers.
Until next time
Xx
P.S. If you would like to know more about the equipment I use for camping, the places I find out my information or just have a question in general, please do drop me a comment and I’d be happy to answer.
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