About a month ago I had a friend invite me to join him in a hiking challenge in Wales: www.welsh3000s.co.uk Our goal was to summit and survive 15 3000ft mountain peaks
in Northern Wales within 24hrs. I had never been to Wales so I had no idea what to expect. I had missed the outdoors immensely since coming to the UK last fall and a drive in the countryside just does not cut it. Thankfully he had been to the area before, so I didn’t have to be too prepared. I borrowed gear from some friends. We knew we needed to do it sometime this summer while the days were long and chose last weekend to go. We planned on getting up there, camping and then going for the 15 the next day and camping the next night if we needed to and then maybe do a day hike our last day-far easier said than done.
Due to weather predictions, we drove up last Thursday afternoon and camped near the base of Snowden around 10pm. It was due to rain Saturday morning, so we figured we were safe with food, water, our bivy bags and some basic supplies until then. We slept alright that night and started off pretty early to Snowden. It was disappointing to learn on our way up that there is a railway that goes all the way to the top and has a café…not very rewarding in my view. We walked up in the fog and mist and started our long hike. From Snowden (1) we went to Garnedd Ugain (2), which was pretty easy. We had to tediously maneuver over boulders on a steep ridge to get to Crib Goch (3), which was incredibly dangerous with the winds and our backpacks. During our descent back near sea level on the road, I sprained my ankle, which was pretty embarrassing. Soon after, my friend Mark slipped and fell landing his knee on a big rock. It was rough way to complete our first set of peaks. I rested a bit and then pressed on, up a thistle-covered field toward Elidir Fawr and Y Garn. These had rocky summits but grassy areas around them. The crucial moment of the day came after completing these peaks: Mark’s hurt knee prevented him from continuing and he offered to return to the car and meet me at the end of the 15 peaks, about 6 miles from the last peak either that night or the following morning. It was the first time Mark had to turn back on an expedition, I would miss his company during the rest of the trip.
I stopped to eat some lunch and tape up my ankle and bandage up a developing blister before heading up a long rocky hill to Glyder Faur(6). Unlike the previous 5 peaks, which gave wonderful views and had clear trails, there was nothing scenic about #6 at the top, just a pile of stones. This was something that would become more and more common through my hike, making me really feel like Frodo or Sam going through Mordor, thankfully without the fire or hot steam (or smeagol of course). Step after step was on solid rock pounding my feet seemingly through my old pair of boots. Hobbit feet are more durable I guess. YET the day itself was beautiful, the sun came out, the mountainous landscape with sea in the distance was lovely. I pressed on to Glyder Fach (7) and Tryfan (8). Tryfan was not a bad ascent, the descent however was treacherous, I basically rock climbed down a steep bowl to get to the next range
I have to be honest; at that point my feet were hurting. It was a gorgeous day but I knew that completing the 15 peaks would be harder than I thought, and take more out of me. I would have loved to have a friend to complete it with. I was tempted as I passed a pub on the road to stop but with 7 more peaks to go and being on my own, I played it safe and pressed on. The hardest ascent was next to Pen yr Ole Wen (9) I was literally rock climbing most the way up with my backpack on, a little scary at points. I was told that after conquering #9, it is much easier from there just time consuming with progressive ascents and descents. They were right. I reached Carnedd Dafydd (10) and Yr Elen (11) within an hour or so. Carnedd Llewlyn (12) took a bit longer but there were amazing views with the sunshine out on the way. I ate dinner at the top of Foel Gras (13) at 8:30pm but it was already cold and foggy. The trail had been almost impossible to follow and I had used landmarks from the map to guide me. With the heavy fog and dimming light, I asked a group up ahead where the next peak was, they pointed me to the left.
Over an hour later after reaching the summit the fog lifted enough for me to see they had led me to the wrong peak, I had to turn around and return to where I had dinner-2 hrs wasted! Black skies and fog made me decide to get behind a stone wall, roll out my sleeping bag, get into my bivy bag and catch some sleep for a few hours, praying that God would help me find the right way in the morning! It was 10:30pm. It rained for a while, but I actually got some rest and my feet needed the break. I left around 5:30 and hiked far, far right (as my best guess) into the dense fog. Within 30 minutes I reached Garnedd Uchaf (14) and in another hour I reached Foel Fras (15). All in all I had an extra 30 minutes in the 24hr challenge. As I slowly walked down the steep grass slope after Foel Fras, the sun broke out, the fog lifted and I had a majestic view of the whole area- a nice little gift from God. Six miles later after passing sheep and wild ponies, I 
followed a river to the park where my friend sat in his car waiting for me.
We were a bit more worn than expected and with imminent rain two hours later, we decided to head home instead of staying another day. I was hungry, tired but glad I completed all the peaks (plus 1) safely and could look forward to a shower, meal and mattress at the end of the day.
