With our lust for exploring mountains always strong, my wife Janet and I decided to explore somewhere closer to home, so headed for north Wales, staying on a variety of sites and using free overnight spots.
Our visit coincided with the hottest sustained period in north Wales for many years, making it a particularly good choice.
THE JOURNEY
We drove from home in Hampshire via Gloucester to Welshpool and into our holiday area, returning via the A5, M54 and M6 motorway links around Birmingham, then A34 to Winchester. We were away for 13 nights in July 2021, spending eight nights on sites and the rest off-grid (free)
THE COSTS
710 miles
Our loose plan was to work our way northwards from Cader Idris (aka Cadair Idris; both are correct depending on where you are from), doing as much walking as we could on the way. Arriving late in the evening, our first stop was a roadside layby high in the valley above Talyllyn.
In the morning we spotted a path straight from the layby, so it was boots on and off we went! We were slightly puzzled to see a steady procession following us up, many carrying large cameras, chairs and day tents. The reason soon became clear when a RAF Gnat jet flew through the valley below us. This is part of a low-level training route
