Friday, September 15, 2006
Friday 15 September 2006
Well today it is fine! It's 10 days since my last confession (I left London and easy access to public internet). I'm in Caernarfon. A beautiful town by the sea. I woke this morning in Llanberis at the base of Mt Snowdon to a magnificant early Autumn day (I imagine as we don't have such things at home). As I walked down the hill from the hostel to catch the bus I noticed the rain drops from the day before (we'll get to that!) sparkling on the bushes and trees. Late flowers and blackberries had been washed clean and the morning was fresh and clear. There was a little fog down in the low valleys but the mountain was clear as was the village.
A little different from yesterday Thurs 14 September 2006. Ok, so I've worked out with only one filthy, wet, foggy, cold day in over 2 weeks that I HATE THE COLD AND RAIN. I'm a North Qlder to the core of my frozen wet tootsies! Now that you've stopped laughing at me...I braved Thursday and travelled from a little village called Tremadog (outside Porthadog) across the mountain passes to Llanberis. Which even in the rain and fog I could see was the most spectacular and scenic countryside - definately worth comin back to for some extended hiking. You could walk across in 1-2 days with an overnight stay in an isolted B&B. Definately on a good day you would feel you were in heaven...crystal mountain streams, huge forests, sheer cliffs, valleys, passes, etc...Anyway...Llanberis is where you catch the rack and pinion railway up to the top of Mt Snowdon.
Hunter and MacLean, if you look up your old Thomas the Tank Engine book you will remember the Welsh Highland railways - well I went on it. It is a little green engine that runs on a small guage rail line with a central line that looks like a bike chain and under the train is a wheel with spokes that go into these gaps and pull the engine up. It's clunky but works on this very steep gradient.
Unfortunately it was so wet and foggy I saw no views but I do have a photo of "Wales in a Fog" to compare with this mornings "Wales on a beautiful day" - in fact this morning I should have sung "Morning has Broken" - but it would have broken the morning with my terrible singing voice!
Ok, so cut my losses and kept onthe road. I had a great time exploring Caernarfon Castle this morning. Had great fun cause you're allowed all over it - someone from work/health and safety is yet to do an assessment here cause no where else have I been allowed up spiral staircases with crumbling stairs and no safety rails at the top. The tallest tower I climbed had 54 spiral steps up the actual turrent and a further 86 down through the tower to ground level. Views are terrific. The tour guide did a great job bringing the 1200's alive and explained a lot of the building processes which no-one else bothers with - so now I understand much better how they actually built these massive fortresses.
Did the old town walk this afternoon and wandered the alleys. Also took a short boat ride out into the harbour and along the Menai Straits to the mouth of the estuary. Good views back to the town and castle.
Off to Bangor this afternoon. Using it as a base to explore Mo'n - or Anglesey, as we say in English. Overthe next coupleof days. Hope to see a puffin and some long gone druid ghosts...
Well today it is fine! It's 10 days since my last confession (I left London and easy access to public internet). I'm in Caernarfon. A beautiful town by the sea. I woke this morning in Llanberis at the base of Mt Snowdon to a magnificant early Autumn day (I imagine as we don't have such things at home). As I walked down the hill from the hostel to catch the bus I noticed the rain drops from the day before (we'll get to that!) sparkling on the bushes and trees. Late flowers and blackberries had been washed clean and the morning was fresh and clear. There was a little fog down in the low valleys but the mountain was clear as was the village.
A little different from yesterday Thurs 14 September 2006. Ok, so I've worked out with only one filthy, wet, foggy, cold day in over 2 weeks that I HATE THE COLD AND RAIN. I'm a North Qlder to the core of my frozen wet tootsies! Now that you've stopped laughing at me...I braved Thursday and travelled from a little village called Tremadog (outside Porthadog) across the mountain passes to Llanberis. Which even in the rain and fog I could see was the most spectacular and scenic countryside - definately worth comin back to for some extended hiking. You could walk across in 1-2 days with an overnight stay in an isolted B&B. Definately on a good day you would feel you were in heaven...crystal mountain streams, huge forests, sheer cliffs, valleys, passes, etc...Anyway...Llanberis is where you catch the rack and pinion railway up to the top of Mt Snowdon.
Hunter and MacLean, if you look up your old Thomas the Tank Engine book you will remember the Welsh Highland railways - well I went on it. It is a little green engine that runs on a small guage rail line with a central line that looks like a bike chain and under the train is a wheel with spokes that go into these gaps and pull the engine up. It's clunky but works on this very steep gradient.
Unfortunately it was so wet and foggy I saw no views but I do have a photo of "Wales in a Fog" to compare with this mornings "Wales on a beautiful day" - in fact this morning I should have sung "Morning has Broken" - but it would have broken the morning with my terrible singing voice!
Ok, so cut my losses and kept onthe road. I had a great time exploring Caernarfon Castle this morning. Had great fun cause you're allowed all over it - someone from work/health and safety is yet to do an assessment here cause no where else have I been allowed up spiral staircases with crumbling stairs and no safety rails at the top. The tallest tower I climbed had 54 spiral steps up the actual turrent and a further 86 down through the tower to ground level. Views are terrific. The tour guide did a great job bringing the 1200's alive and explained a lot of the building processes which no-one else bothers with - so now I understand much better how they actually built these massive fortresses.
Did the old town walk this afternoon and wandered the alleys. Also took a short boat ride out into the harbour and along the Menai Straits to the mouth of the estuary. Good views back to the town and castle.
Off to Bangor this afternoon. Using it as a base to explore Mo'n - or Anglesey, as we say in English. Overthe next coupleof days. Hope to see a puffin and some long gone druid ghosts...
# posted by The Essence of Good Taste @ 8:01 AM 
