A Windy Wales: Blown Around in a Circular Route from Trawsfynydd. . .

I don't have the greatest photos to show you from last Sunday's walk. It was grey and raining in the morning and then all afternoon the wind, while not particularly cold, was battering us from all directions, high and low.  It got so bad at times, I was afraid of getting my phone out in case the wind snatched it from my hand.

Still, it was a new-to-me area for walking, in the north Rhinogs part of Snowdonia.  We started in the village of Trawsfynydd and crossed the lake of the same name on one of the longest footbridges over water I've ever been on.

That hill range in the distance was what we were heading towards.

And this is the view halfway up the hill, looking back at the lake.

It was quite steep but the journey up was made harder by the boggy paths. You really had to be careful where you placed your boots.

There was a bit of scrambling on the rocky tops.

I have to admit that every summit we gained looked a bit like this.  I know we got to the top of Moel Ysgyfarnogod where apparently you can see the Welsh coast around Porthmadog. But clearly not today.

However, all was not lost. It was the perfect weather to test out my new Bousta Beanie, designed by Gudrun Johnson for this year's Shetland Wool Week.  It's a free pattern for a year and I knit mine using Jamieson & Smith 2ply jumperweight. Not only did it keep my ears warm, but it stayed on my head the entire time! You really can't ask for more from a hat.  Lots of fun to knit too, and you can add a pom pom if you so wish. 

Coming down, there were glimpses of magical light.

This is really wild country - very few paths and kudos to our leader for his navigational skills.

The wild ponies seemed right at home.

And so we ended back where we started from.

And then the sun decided to come out.   Sigh.

I think we all fell asleep on the coach back. While not the hardest of walks, the constant wind created quite a workout and I was yawning well into Monday morning.