Gwilym's Adventure Blog

Me on the Summit Runs   Ewan getting some air   A slighlty frozen Ski Patrol Hut    Me and view down towards my chalet   Today Ewan and I headed up onto Nevis Range for some Skiing. Conditions were amazing with Blue Skies, Clear Views, Sun, Good snow and Very Nice Cakes in the cafe. We skied some of the Red and Blue runs on the Summit and Front Side of the mountain making the most of the sun on the top runs. My skiing improved during the day and after a few more days skiing I should be skiing with somewhat better style.

View from my Chalet     Skiing along the Tow Path   Crossing the Canal Today I intended on shooting down Glen Nevis to climb Steal Falls but overnight snowfall ment the road would be most probably unpassable so I decided to stay local and put my skis on in my chalet and skiied out of my door, down the steps and onto the Caledonian Canal. The ice on the canal was solid and the layer of snow on the top was untouched and inviting, however after about 100m or so I moved up onto the Tow Path and into some existing tracks which made thing a lot easier. One of my ambitions last year was to ski from my chalet into Fort William and I never had the chance to do it as the canal didn't freeze properly. If the canal stays frozen for a while longer then I may be ablel acheive this Although I wasn't out for long as I needed to sort things out for the rest of my stay, the short blast on skis was a welcome first day. The rest of the day was spent drinking coffee with friend...

Rannoch Moor Buchaille Etive Mor, Glencoe My Winter Quarters Today I left Somerset at Early O'Clock and headed North with only a quick lunch break in Carlisle Morrisons. The drive was stunning with The Lake District, The Southern Highlands, Rannoch Moor and Glencoe all on route. Everywhere was white from Cumbria upwards and luckily for me there were no road closures. Although you would be forgiven for thinking I have a chalet in Swtizerland (picture above), I can assure you it is just outside Fort William.

    The "Washing Machine" in low water   Today I took Hannah, Tracey and Mark on The Loop section of the River Dart. Water levels were very very low but the weather was great and we had a good day. Unfortunately I had my camera on the wrong setting all day hence the poor pictures. This is my last day in the South West for a while as I head up to Scotland tomorrow evening for the next 10 - 11 weeks

Looking up at our route    Me starting one of the tricky rock steps   Looking down on Will     This is some seriously strong grass Following 10 days of enforced rest (sickness and Christmas) I was out today for my first route of the winter season which unbelievably was on Pen Y Fan. Pen Y Fan in the Brecon Beacons does not come into condition that often and I had an amazing day taking Will up Central Gully III on the North East Face of South Wales' highest summit. This was a true Alpine Day with blue skys and suitably cold temperatures keeping evything nicely frozen. Central Gully is a true mixed route and we climbed on snow, ice, frozen turf, frozen scree and the odd bit of rock. This has put me on the mood for my Scottish Winter Season which starts next week. Hint for anyone palnning on doing it. It won't be there long and Warthogs and Bulldogs are very useful. What a way to start the New Year. Happy New Year to you all.

Getting to the river was hard   Me       The exit bridge On Day 2 of the 4 Star Assessment we were unable to go to our planned river due to snow and difficult driving conditions so we got on where we got off yesterday and paddle upstream. Yes, that's right, against the current!! That warmed us up nicely and we then walked round a rapid or two so we could paddle back down them. Unfortunately the assessment required us to demonstrate a Eskimo Roll and a Rescue. When about to die, the Inuits paddle out in their kayaks and capsize so they freeze to death! This is exactly how I felt today.However I survived both dunkings and passed the assessment, as did the other 3 people on the course.

-5 in Kendal     The Big Drop Today I was paddling in Cumbria on The River Kent starting in tempertaures of -5 in Kendal but it did warm up to around zero by the end of the day. The river consists of a number of rapids and weirs starting as a wide meander shortly after the town and changing to a deeper gorge section towards the end. This was the first day of my 4 Star Whitewater Kayak Assessment run by Steve Banks Outdoors .