Unseasonably warm?

The weather has been odd….very odd. The forecast was horrendous for South Wales and turned out to be quite good in fact. Thursday was very windy but remained dry and warm. Today was actually sunny and warm. As I drove to my mini walk today I looked at the temperature gauge and saw that it registered 15deg C. Yes, 15deg C! Sometimes we dont even get that on an August day. Its really bizarre but I am not complaining for once as it has made the last two days actually very pleasant and great for walking.

 

Cant last though, the icy fingers of winter are surely just around the corner arent they? Or should I refrain from putting away the sun cream for just another week or two……

A Sugar Loaf and a sea of bracken

Well,

its been day 1 of 4 rest days after my recent marathon work stint. The forecast said it was going to be horrendous. Not to be perturbed I decided last night that I was going out for a walk whatever the weather. I had earned my walk goddamit!!!

I peeked out out the window as the dark grey of the night lifted this morning to view a heavily clouded but non-raining sky. Not wishing to hex myself, I whistled innocuously as I slipped into the car and drove in an apparently random direction that just happened to take me to the edge of the Brecon Beacons. Getting out of the car, I discovered that I had brought, inadvertently, my walking gear including a rucksack and food. Quelle surprise! I looked up into the sky and said to no-one in particular that even though it was going to throw it down any minute (obviously), I would just try a little walk seeing as I had my gear with me……. But obviously it was going to rain and I was going to get wet…obviously……

Having completely hoodwinked the cosmos, I decided that a short 8 miler was in order as I had things to do and I didnt want to push my luck with the weather. I parked the car by Pyscodlyn campsite and started on my walk up towards Sugar Loaf mountain, making my way through the early slopes filled with sparse woodland. After a about half an hour, I broke from the thin skeletal tree cover and started to gain height and attain the lower grassland of the Sugar Loaf approach

 

The lower slopes of Sugar Loaf

 

Having walked this many many times before, there were no surprises in store for me only anticipation of seeing Sugar Loaf in all her isolated glory. As I crested one rise, Sugar loaf hove into view and made me smile. I must do this walk about a dozen times a year and still dont tire of it. It is not lofty being a few feet shy of 2000feet, its not in the middle of nowhere and yet it retains a mystique and attractiveness that brings me back time an time again.

 

Sugar Loaf in a sea of bracken

 

One thing that was obvious as I made my way up Sugar Loaf was the bracken ground cover had completely died off and left a carpet of brown stretching everywhere. There seemed to be more than I normally remember and the contrast against the green of the path was stark.

 

The road goes ever on and on

 

I finally pulled myself up the last short sharp slope of Sugar Loaf and found myself on the summit of this brilliant little mountain. Its the kind of place that I find very relaxing and able to achieve a contemplative reverie. I have whiled away many an hour just sitting, looking and doing nothing in particular here.

 

The view past the trig point towards Pen Cerrig Calch

 

I tarried a while to take it all in. The weather was behaving although the wind was gusting to 50mph, the visibility pretty good and so the view was a patchwork of sunlight, cloud and thin haze. Looking here and there, I could see several Black Mountain ridges and mountains stretching off into the distance. I recounted their names as a litany in my head and under my breath, Hatteral Hill and Hatteral Ridge, Bal Mawr, Crug Mawr, Pen y Gadair Fawr, Pen Cerrig Calch and Pen Allt Mawr. Oft visited friends everyone of them.

 

Sugar Loaf trig point

 

I wandered around the summit for a short time longer looking this way and that taking in every nuance of this truly inspiring spot before I reluctantly decided to make my way back down

 

The rump of Sugar Loaf summit with Skirrid Fawr in the distance

 

I still had a few miles to go but they soon passed lost in thoughts of Sugar loaf, her magnificent views and a sea of bracken……

A Perfect 10

Well, here it is. Day 10 of 10. I have finished my marathon stint in work. I am exhausted and the time is a quarter to divorce. Still, 4 days off now but I don’t think the weather is going to be kind to me. Perhaps I should just do some gratuitous gear shopping whilst watching the rain lash against the windows…….

More pictures from a dad’s and lad’s Dartmoor Trip

Just as a follow up from yesterday’s post, here are a selection of pictures from the trip I made to Dartmoor with a bunch of like-minded friends and our kids

The view from Nun's Cross Farm towards the ruined foundations of the stables

 

Two cooks in the kitchen!

 

Rock climbing for initiates!

 

Two munchkins, one menhir and yours truly

 

Nun's Cross nestling against the backdrop of a majestic Dartmoor landscape

 

It was a really good trip and the fact that it was February didnt put the kids off in the slightest, in fact they loved it.

PS day 9 ……….

Planning for a bunkhouse outing and a Dartmoor report….

I have a group of friends with whom I regularly go camping and normally in tents. What’s more, we all have kids of a similar age (6-9) and so most of the time we also take these along too. It is great fun and we normally go to Exmoor or the Brecon Beacons although recently we have been a bit further afield.

Back in February, just after the last lot of snow, we decided to take a punt and go to Dartmoor but instead of tents we hired a bunkhouse. In this case, the bunkhouse was the Nun’s Cross Farmhouse which is 3 miles from Princetown. Its owned and run by the Duchy of Cornwall through Key’s College. It can accomodate about 30 people although on this occasion we trooped in with 6 dads, 6 lads and a mate of mine and cost £60 a night.

 

Nun's Cross Farm Bunkhouse

 

It has no running water (there is a leet outside), no electricity and only candles for light, 2 wood stoves for warmth and a few gas rings for cooking with.  Needless to say we had a whale of a time and managed to do a reasonable amount of walking combined with a few evening drinks and card games when the kids had gone to bed.

 

The Kids have gone to bed - woo hoo!

 

We also managed to walk to Drizzlecombe prehistoric stone avenue which the kids thought was mightily impressive! Its a very atmospheric place as is Dartmoor as a whole and its definitely somewhere I would go with the kids again

 

The Stone Avenue at Drizzlecombe

 

Since then I have had a hankering to do a similar outing but in the Brecon Beacons so that its a bit closer to home. Also the other dads have expressed a preference for something a little more salubrious this time. I have found a link (part of the BBNP website) detailing about 2 dozen different bunkhouses spread throughout the Brecon Beacons. They all look great and I find myself getting quite excited about doing this especially if its in January as there is a fair chance of snow. Its something to look forward to and definitely one to plan for which I admit is half the fun for me.

Has anyone else done the bunkhouse thing and if so what did you think and did you find it a completely different kind of trip to just camping?

PS Day 8…………

I dont believe it!

Alright, who turned on the water tap in the sky? I have a day off to make merry in the hills on Thursday and the forecast is looking pretty dire indeed…. Its not really fair. On the upside, I could always test out my wet weather gear. Still what do you expect, its November.

Oh and just in case you had forgotten, its day 7 of my 10-day stretch at work. I may have mentioned that fact this week but I cant be sure…..