Archive for May, 2009

Cader Idris Race, 2009

Posted on the May 31st, 2009 under Outside, Photos, Run, Social/Event by Sam

A favourite for me this one. 10.5 miles and 2927ft of ascent/descent. It was an extremely hot saturday, so warm that even walking from the car to the start required strenuous effort and brought on the hunt for shade from the midday sun.
The race had a slightly higher turnout this year. Was very hard going due to the blazing heat, and suffered near exhaustion by the finish. Wasn’t as quick as last year, some 12 mins slower, finishing near the 2 hour mark.

Descent from the summit

Thanks to Alastair for the excellent pic.

Counting Crows

Posted on the May 12th, 2009 under Music, Social/Event by Sam

Last night I’ve went to see Counting Crows in Manchester with my sister. Haven’t been to a standing gig in ages and it was fab. Great atmosphere, and excellent perfomance. Very much enjoyed the night.
Counting Crows

Arenig Fawr and Camping

Posted on the May 5th, 2009 under Camping, Outside, Photos, Walk by Sam

I spent the bank holiday weekend camping in Snowdonia with my good friend Andrew. We arrived on Saturday evening and checked into a campsite near the Bryn Tyrch hotel in Capel Curig. I recently acquired a new one-man hyper light tent – MSR Carbon Reflex 1, so this was an excellent opportunity to put it through its paces. After several thirst quenching beverages in the Bryn Tyrch we retired to our tents, and received rain and strong winds during the night. My tent held up very well with no issues. On Sunday we were joined by some companions and did an excellent walk to the summit of Arenig Fawr – my first venture into the Arenig mountains. The weather was very annoying and interchangeable, hot/cold, windy/sunny/wet.. We celebrated the walk with a tasty curry in Bangor. During Sunday night I realised I’d been rather optimistic taking a 1-season sleeping bag and got very cold. Monday was essentially a wash out, the rain was perpetual until we returned to Chester. A day mostly spent in Penrhyn Castle near Bangor was the solution. Nice weekend.

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