Not a good idea to have
that as your only meal of the day at lunchtime and head into the
hills for a night run. But there you go, when a bit of phsyce comes
its better to go with it than let it pass. I soon regretted it as my
legs and lungs burned. Pushing through the bog up the side of Moel
Eilio was becoming less enjoyable by the minute and the thick wool
socks I was wearing were now soaked through. I've not been up in the
hills much in the last month or two so I was trying to make the most
of it pushing hard were I felt I could. The weather was slowly
getting worse. One last glimpse over my shoulder and the haze of
lights from Llanberis disappeared in the swirling mist and damp. My
world became a two foot blueish blob. Fine mist droplets shimmering
in the blue glow narrowed my field of vision to what was directly
underfoot. I could just about pick out the well travelled ground.
Frightened sheep
scattered as I crawled past, their eyes glowing yellow and then
vanishing into the dark. Finally the last stile before the top
appeared. One last push and then across the ridge, the worst of it
over I glanced left and noticed the jet black sky pierced by a bright
dot. Suddenly the glare from the headtorch disappeared and light
flooded the ground in front of me. I stopped, held in the power
button and the light died. I looked back down the mountain, the
village and its lights had re-appeared. The Plough was high in the
sky, sparkling and clear. I took it all in. The cloud shrouded the
lower hills, just leaving their tops exposed which were outlined
against the orange glow of the sky. Seconds passed slowly and the
cloud drifted back in. I realised I was cold from standing around.
I'll take any excuse for a rest but the amazing view was a good one!
I continued on back in my little two foot blob of blue, awe suddenly
lost in burning legs, cold feet and hunger but I was smiling.
This rapidly changed as
I slid my way down greasy bits of rock and wet grass. Concentrating
on the next foot placement became paramount. I was concentrating so
hard on my feet that I realised I wasn't sure where I was! Maybe a
result of not having been up there in a while or maybe hunger but I
was in a slight spot of bother. I was on the ridge all right, I'd
just crossed the second stile but I knew I wasn't on track. I stopped
and weighed up my options. I pretty quickly dismissed continuing and
getting more lost. I turned tail and headed back uphill. I knew if I
headed slightly right I'd find the edge of the ridge, I just had to
make sure I didn't disappear off the side of it! After a nervous few
minutes the ground gave way to darkness, the wind whistled by and the
mist flowed over the edge. I traced the ridge back to where I wanted
to be and picked my way back to the summit. The well travelled trail
appeared back beneath my feet and I ran, stumbled and fell my way
back to the village through ankle deep bog and rocky ground.
 |
| X-Talons, trusty fell shoes this time of year. Pity about the idiot wearing them! |
1. Tomatoes, hummus and
rivita is a nice lunch.
2. Eat more food.
No comments:
Post a Comment