Llanberis Mountain Rescue

We got up early today to catch the sunrise coming up over the mountains and lake. Unfortunately it was flippin' freezing and we didn't fancy staying ot too long so we chickened out and headed back to the hotel.

After a couple of hours we went back out to buy our tickets for the Snowdon Mountain Railway, but we had a couple of hours to spare until departure so had a gander around their gift shop, then the Electric Mountain centre (that doesn't open for tours until Easter!) then went back to the hotel again to waste a bit more time until we could head back out again to the station. We saw the SeaKing fly over, which I had been informed Prince William occasionally flies....

By the time we had gone out it was bitterly cold and we were only meant to go up as far as Rocky Valley but unfortunately the weather had started to change. The railway line was starting to ice over, the blizzard and drifts were getting kind of dangerous so we were told we couldn't go up any further. While we were double checking that we could head back to the station early, the Llanberis Mountain Rescue guys headed to our train and asked if a couple of them and their equipment would fit on board. They got a freebie ride to the bottom only to be greeted by one of their colleagues in the van saying how warm it was inside there! Cheeky.

It does go to show that the weather is so changeable up there though. I'm surprised that the mother and son who were rescued didn't have warm enough clothing. But maybe they thought that far up was alright and were planning to head back when the drifts caught them, who knows. Lucky they're safe though, eh? Thumbs up to the guys who rescue up there though, now I've seen how harsh it is (70mph gusts is not nice when mixed with snow!) I have so much respect for them.

If you can spare a quid or two to help them, it'd be well worth it - LMR website.