Day 3 Wednesday 10th 2023
The weather this morning was equally unpromising so we decided to try and find the back roads to Lake Vyrnwy. On an earlier visit we had left the lake and finished up in Bala rather than Dinas Mawaddy!
We met a couple of Dutch registered Triumph TR sports cars coming the opposite way – luckily at passing places. After the turn for the lake the ‘road’ became even narrower, potholed and had hardly any passing places. I was too busy avoiding sheep, staying on the road and worrying about any oncoming vehicles to take any pictures!
At the bottom of steep incline we met three more Triumph TRs and luckily for me they were in what could be called a passing place. The drivers were out of their cars taking pictures of the streams below the road. Once at the lake we met even more TRs coming the other way.
Lake Vyrnwy
At our first stop I took this picture of the tower in the lake. Then it was time to park near the Artisans café and have a cup of tea. For me this was more to take a rest after the rather more stressful drive that I had planned!
At the side of the small car park for the Artisans café there is a hide provided by the RSPB. In there the feeders were full of birds.
In a break in the rain we walked up to the dam. We watched as the a few more Triumph TRs set of around the dam to then go over the hill passes. Then a convoy of Ferraris and Porsches passed us and stopped just after the dam. It was clearly a day for group adventures.
This is looking down past the dam to the valley below.
Another view of the tower in the lake from the middle of the dam.
One of the few moments with no traffic on the dam.
The weather forecast was not great for the rest of day. Rather than go back the way we came, we took the much longer route and re-joined the main roads back to the hotel. We went back to our rooms to read and mainly sleep until the bar opened at 5 pm and we could later order dinner.
Day 4 Thursday 11th May 2023
Before joining my Snowdonia in Spring photography tour I had to send proof of a clear Covid test. As I was awake early for the day on the Loop and I did the required test.
Finally the weather forecast had looked promising yesterday evening and we had an early breakfast and left early for the Mach Loop. A fellow guest at the pub had already left skipping breakfast to get to the Bwlch car park early.
Mach Loop : The Bwlch
In the car park we chatted to our fellow guest and his friend about the prospects for the day. All our weather forecasts showed that we should be clear of rain until the late afternoon. One of the guys was coming with us to Bwlch and the other was going to Exit. Ours were the only three cars in the car park at 7:30 am.
This was my first real test of my knee after a month of physio. We did stop more often and probably for longer as we climbed up. The paths were very muddy and the streams were full. We up at Top Shelf about about 35 minutes – not bad given the rests and and unfit we both are!
Then the clouds rolled in around us and below us.
Mid morning we were joined by 3 lads from Preston. They set up on the top of the rock behind us. From Preston they were 2 hours away from the Mach Loop or the Lake District.
Nothing much was happening and we joined in the chats about earlier visits to the Loop. The weather started to look threatening and after a few drops of rain we were back with a bright sky.
The weather forecast for the hills is notoriously unreliable and soon we had rain again. This time it wasn’t a few spots it was torrential rain falling vertically. This meant we had no protection sheltering near the rocks.
My camera and lens were sort of protected by the plastic rain cover I carry. I was in my plastic over clothes which offered some protection at least from the torrents of water. The camera bag eventually began to leak through the top zip.
The rain water had seeped inside and then wicked down the lining and even into the side pockets. This was a first with this bag BUT I’ve never been out in such rain before without any shelter.