I grabbed the winter bull by the proverbial horns this year, and managed more routes in one day than in the past two years combined.

Reports of bomber neve in North Wales are always to be treated with suspicion, but that’s what people were saying on Tuesday. With work commitments later in the week, I rushed over and was dragging myself up into Cwm Lloer by 08:30 on Wednesday morning. A lot of snow had melted to leave bare rock, but the stuff that was left in the easy gullies did indeed turn out to be pretty nice. I wandered up Hourglass Gully, thus ticking off another route I’ve wanted to do for a long time (I managed Broad Gully a few weeks ago too, albeit in slightly less consolidated conditions).

Popping out with a view over the Glyders (still shrouded in cloud), I descended the east ridge of Pen yr Ole Wen and went back into the depths of the cwm. I knew Col Gully was somewhere around the back, near The Headwall, but on arrival there was nothing particularly gully-like. I picked a line somewhere up the back wall, and traversed the summit of Pen yr Ole Wen to descend the ridge once again.

Back to the car for a spot of lunch, then off to Cwm Clyd on Y Garn. Banana Gully looked nice, but I had done it a couple of years ago with Phil and so opted for ‘A’ Gully instead. Although reasonably short and simple, it’s a nice way to exit the cwm, and the simple descent to Ogwen via Devil’s Kitchen was blissfully peaceful in the afternoon sunshine. A great way to finish a lovely day on great snow – the kind of day you really have to seize when the opportunity arises in Snowdonia!

To top it all off, I had the great experience of seeing both Cwm Lloer and Cwm Clyd from the air the following day, as my flight to Belfast took us close enough to the snow-capped peaks to work it all out (even if my phone wouldn’t focus on anything except the glass of the ‘plane’s window!).