Flash

River in spate as all the snows melt in the rains... Write up to come tomorrow when I'm less sleeeeeepy.

Today was a good Sunday. After forcing myself to have a lie in - I'm now waking up at 7:25, just before my alarm goes off by default, and I managed to squeeze an extra 2 hours in before I peeled myself out of bed and into the sweet aroma of my coffee mug.

The weather outside was horrid - sideways rain, coming down in sheets down the valley and beating on my skylights. That said, once I'd made my house more presentable I headed into town to set myself up in a cafe to read, write and watch the rain go by. However, I'd forgotten that Betws-y-coed is a touristy trap more so than Bath, and the nice independent coffee shop that I'd been recommended was teaming with wet and slightly miserable holidaymakers.

The staff were clearly not quite up to scratch to deal with the hoards, but in a very pleasant and rural way, and I was happy to queue, and managed to find a table overlooking the station platform - the only trains that run on Sundays here is the hip-height narrow gauge steam train that runs round in circles on a little track next to the actual railway. It's whistle carries for miles down the valley.

It was a great spot to people watch, and I had a great time judging people and deciding who I could stand to go on holiday with. The lady sat opposite didn't pass the test, having kicked a child out of a sofa so she could sit down, and continuing to sit with the world's most frumpy face while being annoyed with her husband, presumably for taking her somewhere with more hills than shops.

The rain let up at lunch, and I trotted home to get some food, crossing over the river which had risen considerably since 2 hours previous. These are the first major rains since the snow, and there is a large amount of melt water to contribute.

After lunch, and a quick look at the flat nextdoor where I may be forced to move at some point to free up my rather large flat, I headed off on a jog before dinner. This took me over the Pont-y-pair, a bridge in town, and the river was huge, rushing over the waterfall in most spectacular fasion. I continued on up, on a hill that maxes out at a calf-stretching 30%, up 317m to Llan Parc, a long lake which was dammed to supply water to the lead mines that you pass on the way up. Still a fair bit of contamination - not advisable to swim! Back home in time for shower and food, then off to town again to take some photos of the swollen river. Saw some kayakers go over - very impressive. The waterfall was more spectacular, but I spotted this couple and like the composition more.

Had a nice chat to Sean on the phone, lovely to catch up. Back home, and chilled with the other tutors with Guinness and wine.