Day 1: London to Bangor to Llanberis to Snowdon

One day done, one peak climbed. All is going nicely to plan so far!

The short 17km cycle to Llanberis (^)
and the 15km walk to Snowdon (v)

It started at the eye-watering time of 6am, an hour few students ever see. After a few nervy moments in euston at 7.30 where my bikes presence on the platform could be questioned at any minute, I boarded a train bound for Bangor (via Crewe), meeting Catherine at Watford.

Arriving in dreary Bangor we found the nearest supermarket and bought some ingredients for the classic touring cyclist meals: Lunch - baguette, ham and cheese. Dinner - pasta, tomato sauce and tuna. Oh and plenty of sugar for emergencies.

The 20km cycle from Bangor to Llanberis was a hilly affair, but the growing mountains on the horizon seemed to lure us in. Catherine's bike, only fully reassembled the previous evening, was changing gears like a morris minor. This slowed us up, but we were still able to get to our campsite at the foot of Wales highest mountain by 2.30.

The 144 megapixel panorama I created of the summit of Snowdon

3 o'clock was very late to contemplate climbing the 9km up to snowdons peak though, and with the summit covered in a thin layer of cloud, we debated putting the ascent off until tomorrow. But we decided to try for the climb today, and boy were we glad of our decision. Not long up the path the clouds lifted and bathed the valley (and only this one valley it seemed) in glorious sunshine. This good weather persisted for almost the entire route up- and I didnt even think of bringing my suncream! After a 2 and a half hour walk, we were rewarded with astounding views from the top, with 5 deep craggy valleys spread about the summit on all sides, bounded by rocky aretes partly hidden by cloud. Stopping by the trig point on top, we met a fellow hiker.  "Its great to be the highest point in England, isnt it?". We nodded and quietly laughed at his ignorance.

The descent along the funicular track was fast and boring and after a quick shower and meal we cycled down the hill to a pub to watch the football. Pub is a bit strong - the only place showing it was an unwelcoming sports bar filled with tight-eyed, welsh-speaking locals. It made me realise, you dont have to go far out of London to make the UK seem like an entirely different country. And thats exactly why we're here.

One down, two to go!