Saturday, 19 August 1944
Log of a Cycle Tour to North Wales, by Roy Spurgeon, with Leslie Lee. 18 August 20 August
My birthday and a very much better day, with little wind and a fairly clear sky. We left the Hostel at 1050 hours (4186.5) after breakfast in the village and retraced our steps down the hill into Maentwrog, but there we turned right, across the river Afon Dwyryd to the north side of the Vale of Ffestiniog. Shortly after we ran into the village of Penrhyndeudraeth at 1130 hours (4190.9), quite a large place, built entirely of grey store and slate and looking rather dreary as a result, though quite clean (see photo).
A steep climb out of the village and a short run down brought us on to the road north to Beddgelert. This was a wonderful ride, the road being very flat, but winding its way past enormous hills and rocks towering up on either side, one called Craig yr hyll ddrem (the Crag of the Frightful Look), some of them bare and barren, others covered with heather, gorse or ferns, with an occasional waterfall or small stream cascading down their sides. This was real unspoilt country and from it we got our first view of the peaks of Snowdon. We stopped for some time, just after crossing into Caernarvonshire from Merionethshire, to climb up from the road and look at some particularly fine rapids, then, carrying on, we soon came to the Pont Aber Glaslyn (Bridge at the Mouth of the Grey Lake). This bridge over the Afon Glaslyn river, where the road from Penrhyndeudraeth meets the road from Tremadoc, is situates at one end of the Pass of Aber Glaslyn. The river here rushes precipitously down a series of wonderful rapids and falls in a deep gorge, with sheer sides rising to 700 feet and lined with trees, the whole scene providing magnificent scenery (see photo). Sitting on the bridge we found our Lancashire lassie of the day before, a small world! We rode on through the beautiful, narrow pass and reached Beddgelert at 1255 hours (4198.5); this is a small town standing on both sides of the river in a wider part of the valley (see photo). It is surrounded by huge hills and mountains, the tall Moel Hebog on the west, the almost perpendicular Craig y Llan on the south east and the Snowdon range on the north.
There are two views as to the derivation of the name Beddgelert, which signifies the Grave of Celert. Some maintain that it is named after a 6th Century British saint, but the more popular belief centres around the legend of Llywelyn and his dog, Celert. Llywelyn ab Jorneth was a Welsh patriot who took part in many expeditions against the English. While away on one such mission, the legend runs, he left his infant son in a tent guarded by his faithful dog, Celert. A mountain wolf appeared and tried to devour the child, but the dog attacked and finally killed it after a desperate struggle in which the tent was knocked down. On his return, Llywelyn found the dog and the fallen tent covered in blood and, thinking that the dog had killed his son, slew it with his spear in his anger. Subsequently, he discovered his error and, heartbroken, he buried Celert with funeral honours in the valley. We did not see the actual grave, which is said to exist in the field below Craig y Llan.
Just outside the town, we had some tea and sandwiches for our lunch in a garden of a little cottage whose occupants told us that they had gone there on a visit for a few days 19 years ago from Birmingham and had been there ever since. The proprietor informed us, in the course of conversation, that he had never heard an air raid siren in his life! There had once been an incident in the village when his daughter had been there; all the shutters were up, the shops closed and the place deserted when a man was seen coming round a corner blowing a whistle. On being asked what was going on and why he was blowing the whistle, the man replied, "I'm blowing the all clear!".
Leaving Bedelert at 1435 hours, we went up the Nant Gwynant valley, which runs north eastwards with the Snowdon range on the left, right in the heart of the mountains. The valley was flat at first as we ran along the side of the Llyn Ddinas lake, but the road soon began to climb, following the south side of the valley and we were soon looking down on the large Llyn Gwynant lake (see photo) with the Afon Glaslyn river running through it on the floor of the valley. Climbing slowly but steadily for about 4 miles, quite easy going, we reached the Pen y Gwryd Hotel at the end of valley, about 800 feet high, at 1555 hours. Although the sun was shining brightly where we were, there was quite a heavy drizzle coming down from the low clouds hugging the peaks of the Glyder range in front of us, but it did not last. Looking back down the valley over the two big lakes, with mountains and hills on all sides, we obtained a really magnificent view. Silver streaks on the mountain sides marked the positions of many small streams cascading into the river below and the pipeline to a hydro-electric power station on the floor of the valley, from Llyn Llydaw, high above us in the Snowdon range, was very prominent.
We stopped for tea in the Pen y Gwyrd Hotel and then left again at 1660 hours for Llanberis, doubling back on our previous course on the other side of the valley. Still climbing, we turned out of the valley into the southern end of the Pass of Llanberis, with the Snowdon range again on our left. Reaching the top, we found that the clouds had completely cleared from the top of the great mountain and all the surrounding peaks so that we were able to run down the other side of the pass (see photo) in glorious sunshine. And what a wonderful run! On our left were the three gaunt peaks of Snowdon, Crib Goch and Crib-y-ddysgl, rising almost sheer above us and, on the right, the three peaks of Glyder Fach, Glyder Fawr and Y Garn, all of them nearly as high as Snowdon and also rising sheer from the road, seeming, indeed, at times, even to overhang it. Then, by the side of the road, a rushing mountain river, tumbling over huge rocks, most of which had, at some time or another, become detached by erosion from the sides of the mountains and fallen into the valley below. The scenery was so beautiful that we took a long time to go through the pass, stopping about half way down to have a closer look at the river. When we finally reached the bottom of the valley, we ran along beside the two large lakes of Llyn Peris and Llyn Padarn into our destination, Llanberis (see photo).
Just past the lower terminus of the Snowdon Mountain Railway, we turned off to the left and began the steep climb which characterises the approach to all Youth Hostels. We reached the Hostel at Llanberis at 1810 hours. It is a very large house, well fitted up and standing in its own grounds; not so large as that at Ffestiniog, but far better since it provided meals, a great advantage. It stands on the side of one of the lower foothills of the Snowdon Range, overlooking the town of Llanberis, Llyn. Padarn and the slate quarries opposite and commanding a truly magnificent view of the whole valley. Upon arrival, I found that my cyclometer had not been registering correctly since leaving Beddgelert.
After supper, we explored Llanberis on our bicycles, but the town itself was not inspiring and had little of interest to offer; it takes its name from the 6th Century British Saint Peris. We found Dolbadarn Castle, a simple round tower built overlooking the lake by a Welsh prince in the 13th Century, but upon investigation, it was found to be occupied by the army, who had erected a spotting tower inside the ruined shell and were using it for ranging though where the guns were firing from or to we never discovered, despite the noise they made when fired which echoed and re-echoed among the mountains.
We were particularly interested in the rather unsightly slate quarries which had been cut like giant stairs out of the side of the Glyder Fawr peak on the opposite side of the valley from the hostel and which sloped straight down into the lake but, as it was a Saturday evening, they were not being worked. We then returned to the Hostel and, after a fairly late sing-song, went to bed.
Total cycling distance for the day - about 28 miles
Next day: 20 August