The alarm clock went off, my eyes were wide open and my feet couldn't touch the floor fast enough. I was all hyped up for an adventure of exploring. My cravings had brought me to a longing for open space and a path to follow that I didn't know where would take me. As for time, well I literately had until last light at approx 9 or 10 P.M. My rucksack of supplies was already packed the night before.
I had arrived at my destination at silly o'clock which was something like 7 A.M. I parked the car by the Ponderosa Cafe all I had to then decide was where I was going. I had remembered a time being up there before and someone had mentioned walking up and past the stack. This was where I had decided to head.The sky was blue with fluffy clouds and as I inhaled and exhaled deeply I felt that at this moment in time I didn't want to be anywhere else? I was surrounded by openness, space and a sense of feeling free. Free from being dictated to by what I call "being in the world below". Where so many of us can become a slave to the clock so much so that it can dictate many aspects of our waking day, I was in the here and now and enjoying every minute.
The path I was firstly following.
If this path would have been yellow then I was heading to Oz! I eventually came to the stacks that are visible from the road and I headed past them until I finally came to a sign post. If I carried on then I'd eventually be not far from LLandegla woods. I felt deflated my adventure had seemed to come to an abrupt end. There was an arrow pointing to the left which sounded good so this is the path I took. Rejuvenated by a new mission I followed to see where this would take me. After approx 5 mins I had again come to a halt. It was a pillar named after somebody but only ruins were left.
These are the views from there.
From this picture I had made my mind up to find out where the path on this mountain led to. I had previously been to The Blue Lagoon and around that area a few times and saw an opportunity to go somewhere else. The time was still only early yet not even 2 hrs had passed. My taste buds were drawing me to the Ponderosa for a caffeine fix, and my, did it hit the spot!
I began walking up this new track to see where it would take me this time. The inclines were at so many different levels of steepness. My preparation of hill walking on the treadmill had helped me to get a head start on what to expect.The more I came to the top of a point and thought we must be there soon I saw another point to get to. Strange how your mind just wonders off when not really thinking of anything in parcticular. It was reminding me of the Great Wall of China and images that I have seen of it and stupidly I was thinking "could this path also be visible from space"? I then came back to my senses and chuckled to myself for even comparing them both. The magnitude of the Great Wall had nothing on this path.
As time began to pass I eventually came to the biggest incline that I had seen. This was something that I could now visually see compared to those virtual hills that we, on so many times, have to climb in life to get over to the good times. It also seemed like a ramp that Evil Knievel would have rode up on his motor bike for one of his stunts. With the aid of my two hiking sticks and a few lung stops for air, half an hour later I reached the top.
Guess what I saw at the top! Yes. Just like the song we used to sing in primary school " I saw another mountain". There were also other people coming down the one towards me. I carefully took my time down as the stones made the surface slippy and I had already skidded a few times.
I bit the bullet and kindly asked where this path lead to? The answer I received was like a boxing right hook! CORWEN by BALA. I thanked them and told them to be careful when going up the incline that I had just come down.
This was the steep incline that took me half an hour to come down also the other side.
At this point all I could think of was Bala, Bala. My mind began to race. I had to make a decision and rationalise it.
1) I could either carry on and eventually end up in Corwen by Bala! Mmmm - sounds a long way! Then I'd have to walk all the way back again from Bala for the car on top of the Horseshoe Pass then drive home. Timewise I had no idea how long that would take. This may also mean that I may have to sleep on the mountain somewhere if I ran out of time.
2) I could go a little more further then turn around and walk back. Having checked out my supplies and seen I'd have just about enough water to get me back if I rationed it.
I decided the best solution was the second. When I reached the top of the last peak I was going to climb, I knew that I had made the right decision as yep you guessed it! - there was another one visible that I would have had to climb. I rested here to refresh and take a picture still chuckling to myself at the prospect of having to walk up then down that mother of all hills.
This is the path that I had been walking on for a few hours.
On the horizon in the middle you can see a small white path I had to return beyond this point to get back to the car.
The views were spectacular, with parts visible of Dinas Bran LLangollen and the Panarama, Moel Famau and beyond. I saw many wind turbines also in the distance and I had a small disappointment that I hadn't been able to see one close up. That's still on the agenda.
Having my car in sight, my water had run out which made me think "is the Ponderosa before me a mirage"? ( Joking with myself ). Coffee was the only thing again I could focus on. When I arrived and had my refreshments in front of me I bumped into Keith and Jen from the Miners Trust so I sat for a while and caught up with their news. It was a nice end to my walk as I hadn't seen them for a few months.
Love those views and the way the paths draw your eyes right along them - stunning place!
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