Cwm Idwal

We plan to drive back from Bangor through the mountains. We’ve hardly been in Snowdonia proper since November, and the generous dusting of a May snow makes it a glorious prospect. 

We stop by Llyn Ogwen, intending only on a short walk, primarily for me to get some blips. Inevitably, the mountains work their spell, and soon we find ourselves well on the way along the track to the higher lake of Idwal - and yes, we are wearing walking boots! 

Here we’re not at the highest limits of Snowdonia, and snow is far from where we walk, but we’re largely in the shadow of the rocky giant Tryfan - a class 1 scramble climb I’m never likely to attempt. Here though, the rough stone path makes the beauty of the mountains easily accessible, and soon we’re staring into the inky depths of the water-filled Cwm containing Llyn Idwal.  Disappointingly, the wind has whipped the waters so we’re denied the mirror glass of our last visit, but it’s still beautiful, the sun’s rays playing on the landscape, constantly adjusting nature’s palette. 

Here is a living lesson in Ice Age power, rock faces torn apart by glaciers that scoured the valleys into U-shapes still visible today, leaving stone giants precariously deposited in their dying moments. It’s a place to feel your insignificance.

As usual, I take far too many photos, so there are extras, including one of the local feral goats who have perfected climbing stiles - no problem for a mountain goat no doubt! When we return from Idwal, they have disappeared,  but I’m hoping to return tomorrow with my longer lens to get some better shots!