We prepared for the final day of the Mad Mountain Challenge at the Betws-y-Coed youth Hostel, hoping for fine weather so we could climb the seven proposed hills of the final day. The weather did not look promising, but in order to determine whether it was safe to ascend the peaks we walked up to the saddle by Tryfan. Here the topography presents similar wind conditions to the summits of the surrounding hills, and we could feel the blast of strong winds. Combined with the slippery rocks, the winds were too dangerous to ascend the surrounding hills. We took the difficult decision to abandon all but one of the hills scheduled for the day. Snowdon boasts the largest, most distinct paths in the area, and has a sheltered approach on the Pyg track which winds up the inside of the Snowdon Horseshoe before a short walk along the exposed ridge to the summit. We reached the summit amidst horizontal rain and supporting strong winds, but we did successfully climb the highest mountain in Wales.
