trail magazine november 2012
DESCRIPTION
A sneak peak of the new September 2012 issue of Trail magazineTRANSCRIPT
waterproof SpeCIaL!
Britain’s Best-selling hillwalking mag
november 2012 £3.99 www.livefortheoutdoors.com
Scramble two classics
Striding + Swirral edgeS
W I L D S L E E P
L a k E D I S t r I c t
S k I L L S
The one that cleared space on the fridge for a lovely picture on the Cantilever...
A
SNOWDONIA
wake up on THe SummiT
deScend Safelyrainproof kitSave Soggy electronicS
Cadair idris HiGH sTrEET
CaT bEllsQuinaG
gearwalking + winter JaCketS • trOUSerS
to keep you dry
22 pages of
kit
...of buachaille etive mor!
CapturIng50 yearS of
mountaIn adventure
exclusive photos
13 hill routes
LIve Fo
r THe o
UTD
oo
rS n
ov
emb
er 2
01
2
5 phenomenal icons in one day!WaLES tryfan
& tHE gLyDErS
out thereBeen there, climbed that? Send us a picture!out there
4 Trail november 2012 november 2012 Trail 5
out there
november 2012 Trail 5
Send us your shots, share your adventures email your photos to us, along with a description of what was special
about your day, and we’ll publish the most inspiring examples! Put ‘out there’ in the subject box, and send them to [email protected]
Cuillin Ridge Isle of SkyeArlene, during a 2-day overnight traverse of the
Cuillin Ridge. She says: “Couldn’t have asked for better weather, my guide was fantastic and I was so pleased
to have completed all 11 Munros no problem. I had heard about the queues at the Inaccessible
Pinnacle but we didn’t see a single soul up there, which made it all the more special.”
No longer a Munro 10Which Scottish mountain has been demoted?
Trail’s Wasdale weekend 12We’re going for a walk/beer. Come and join us! Dream peak 14Sutherland’s Quinag, dramatic sentry of Scotland’s far north. You know you want it...
Behind the picture 16A brutal vignette from the Cuillin – and the lengths artist Jamie Hageman went to in order to create it.
contents Where this month’s issue will take you...
Descending safely 44 How to get down off the hill in one piece
Ask Trail 46 STAY DRY SPECIAL! Saving soggy electronics, making packs rainproof, avoiding damp arms, cleaning gear, drying boots, stashing a jacket
Trail talk 18 The world of hillwalking – according to you lot
Subscribe and get a gift! 32 Fancy a 2 or 3 litre Platypus hydration system? Sign up for Trail today and we’ll send you one
Why we love... 146 ...summits. “Are we nearly there yet?” Erm...
100% pure Snowdonia 20 Walk the very best of north Wales, in a day Buachaille bivvy 34 Join Trail for a wild night on the summit of Britain’s most recognisable peak Images of the edge 52 Climber, photographer and movie cameraman John Cleare shares the stories behind some of his most iconic mountain shots
a dv e n t u r ess k i l l so u t t h e r e
p34
NOVEMBEr 2012 Trail 9
And so to bed – on Buachaille Etive Mor!tom bailey
Quench your hill thirst with a Platypus hydration system, when you subscribe to Trail – page 32.
p20
dav
e n
ewbo
uld
y o u r t r a i l
g e a rGear news 64The must-have hill kit that’s coming soon
Petzl Nao 66 A headtorch that’s brighter than any of us
Hillwalking jackets 68 One piece of gear that you can’t do without!
Winter jackets 80 For all-year-round foul weather repellence
Overtrousers 92 6 of the best ways to waterproof lower limbs
Walking jackets that won’t break the bank? We’ll drink to that!
Mat maestro Therm-a-Rest branches out into sleeping bags – page 64.
Where this month’s issue will take you...
Lake District 107Route 1 HaweswaterWalk a lovely but less visited long, narrow ridge
Lake District 109Route 2 Kentmere fellsFind space to stretch out in the Far Eastern Fells
Mid Wales 111Route 3 Drygarn FawrHead to one of the area’s most remote mountains
Lake District 113Route 4 Castle Crag/High SpyHidden treasures and great views, revealed
NW Highlands 115Route 5 QuinagOne day, one dramatic massif, three Corbetts
Southern Uplands 117Route 6 Rhinns of KellsSavour a feast of fellwalking in the Galloway Hills
Killin 121Route 7 Tarmachan RidgeRoute 8 Ben Lawers RidgeRoute 9 Sron a ChlachainThis pretty Scottish hillwalking base brings you six Munros – and six pubs to match!
Machynlleth 127Route 10 Pistyll y LlynRoute 11 Cadair Idris Route 12 Waun-oer Fancy a long weekend walking in mid Wales? Then why not head to this ‘attractive and quirky’ market town for three very different routes...
Lake District 133Route 13 Helvellyn via the Edges Our Classic Route brings you a hands-on challenge that includes the famous ridges of Striding Edge (‘the best-looking scramble in Britain’) and Swirral Edge
a dv e n t u r es
r o u t es
NOVEMBEr 2012 Trail 9
Classic Route
with 3D maps
p68
20 Trail november 2012 november 2012 Trail 21
Where? North WalesWhat? Seeking the postcard spots
100% pure SnowdoniaYou might have seen it before, but when it’s all that’s best about north Wales, maybe you should see it again…
Words Ben Weeks PhotograPhs MattheW RoBeRts
november 2012 Trail 21
Where? North WalesWhat? Seeking the postcard spots
Up and over Bristly Ridge, leaving the perfect mountain form of Tryfan behind.
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Ask us A question!So you’ve got a problem that needs solving, but don’t want to lose face with your mountain mates? Don’t worry, Trail’s expert team is here to help…
GrAhAm thompsonGT has been Trail’s technical editor for over 20 years, and he’s a fountain of knowledge on all aspects of walking kit.
simon inGrAm
jeremy Ashcroft
LyLe Brotherton
Trail’s editor is a Mountain Leader trainee, and he’s been on more mountains than most of us could dream about.
Mountaineering editor Jeremy has a wealth of experience in the UK and overseas, and he’s here to solve your problems.
Lyle is one of the world’s leading navigation experts and the author of The Ultimate Navigation Manual, pb Collins.
If you’ve got a question about hill-walking. Get in touch and ask our team.
Post your queries to: Ask Trail, Trail, Bauer, Media House, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA.
Even better, email us: [email protected] and put ‘Ask Trail’ in the subject box.
(Sorry, but we can only answer the questions that appear in the magazine.)
peter mAcfArLAnePeter’s our lightweight expert, and he can give you all the advice you need about saving weight on the hill.
november 2012 Trail 47
Stay dry specialtrail skills
46 Trail november 2012
I recently ruined an iPod when I left it in the top pocket of my rucksack during a rainstorm. Try as I will, my stuff always
seems to end up wet. What’s the best tactic for trying to save wet electronics? Jackie Markham, Worcestershire
Obviously a waterproof case or pouch – or even a freezer bag – is the preferred avoidance tactic. But Team Trail has lost enough
phones (and cameras, and iPods) to the rain to know that accidents do happen. Whatever your device, this is a good way of limiting damage…
DON’T turn it on. It’s tempting to panic and check that your gadget is okay – but water and electric currents don’t really mix,
and you can end up doing far more damage by way of a catastrophic short circuit. For this reason, you must remove the battery if possible (this will help the drying process too). Also remove the SIM card if applicable; the contents of this card are often irreplaceable, and if wiped dry quickly enough it will probably be fine.
Once most of the water has been removed, the trick is to use something hydrophilic (water-attracting) to draw the moisture
out of the phone. There are some specialist products for this, like the Bheestie Bag (www.bheestie.com). Desiccant like silica is ideal, but it’s hard to get hold of; so stop at a supermarket and buy a bag of uncooked rice to use instead. The more components you can separate before doing this, the better.
The longer you can leave it to dry, the better. Keep turning the components – as if cooking a sausage on a barbie – every hour,
then leave it overnight. Then, when you think it’s dry, leave it for another few hours.
1
3 4
What can I do if my phone gets wet?
q
A
keeps you dryA condom is great protection – for your phone! It keeps it dry and safe.
ASK
november 2012 Trail 47
Stay dry specialFor years I’ve struggled with waterproof liners and bin bags to
try to keep the contents of my rucksack dry – and while it works fine, what I really want is a bag that’s waterproof. Given the amount of spray-in waterproofing treatments available, is there any reason why I can’t just use them on my rucksack? Chris Short, Leeds
This depends. Broadly speaking, you can waterproof the fabric of most rucksacks using a spray-on waterproofing treatment such as
Granger’s Superpruf (www.grangers.co.uk). This is a silicone-based waterproofing spray which air-dries, making tumble-drying unnecessary, and with most outdoor rucksacks being made of robust, tightly woven fabric, that’s that. But while this will greatly reduce the ingress of water into your rucksack, it will probably still leak. Why? The seams.
High-quality stitching found in good rucksacks will limit the amount of water that can penetrate the seams, but – as a seam is basically a break in the fabric full of many little holes – you can’t expect any seam to be infallible. Seam sealer such as McNett SilNet (www.mcnetteurope.com) can help solve this, but you’ll be doing well if you can access and proof all the seams on your sack as there are loads of them, and they’re in awkward places – which is the reason rucksacks generally aren’t made to be waterproof in the first place. This fact, combined with the presence of pockets, lids, and other entry points, means you’ll probably end up with a rucksack that is more waterproof than it was, but still isn’t completely stormproof.
Trail recommends investing in a waterproof pack liner or, if that’s too cumbersome, individual fold dry-bags for various aspects of your kit – which has the benefit of making your rucksack an organised, modular affair. Pack liners and dry-bags are made by Exped, and can be found at www.exped.de
The phone now needs to be dried off. Blowing is bad; sucking is good – hence a lot of people (carefully!) use a vacuum
cleaner and avoid hairdryers when dealing with seriously waterlogged devices. But neither may be available, so you may have to do this by lightly patting with an absorbent cloth.
Once it’s out of the rice, leave it for a few hours at room temperature on some absorbent material like loo roll. Then, after
examining it, try reassembling the phone and turning it on.
2
5
What can I do if my phone gets wet? Can I use waterproofing treatment on my rucksack?
q
A
keeps you dryKeep those little packets of
silica gel that come in the box with new purchases.
Put them in your dry- bags to help absorb
moisture.
68 Trail NOVEMBER 2012 NOVEMBER 2012 Trail 69
group test
tEst graham thompson PhOtOgRaPhs tom Bailey
what we testedSprayway Odyssey/AZARIA £160Vaude ORtleR £165Berghaus HuRRIcAne £180Kathmandu BReccIA £200Mountain Equipment FIReFOx £200Patagonia stOR £220Páramo VIstA £220Rab BeRgen/VIddA £220
When crossing the UK’s moors and mountains a general-purpose hillwalking jacket is essential. In this test we look at examples costing £150-220.
hillwalking jackets
NOVEMBER 2012 Trail 69
hillwalkiNg jackEts
hillwalking jackets
Whether or not you’re befuddled by features and fabrics, our test will help you choose a walking jacket.
october 2012 Trail 63
words and interview simon ingramaLL photographs john cleare
mountain leGenDS part 3
52 Trail november 2012 november 2012 Trail 53
IMAGES OF THE EDGE
G r a n d c a t h e d r a lk a r a k o r a mAn incredible view of the avenue of pinnacles lining Pakistan’s Baltoro Glacier, including the Lobsang Spires, which are the most arresting part of this image. Many of these remain unclimbed.John Cleare: “The Karakoram is a very exciting range to photograph. Distances are huge, but the mountains are so spectacular... peaks like the Grand Cathedral and the Muztagh Tower. They often get mixed in with the Himalaya, but they are not. They are Trans-Himalayan – desert country.”
Photographer John Cleare captured British mountaineering in bloom – and the pictures he has amassed rank among history’s most enduring images of adventure. Here he exclusively shares the stories behind his most iconic shots.
�
october 2012 Trail 63
W i l d o p e n
words dan aspel photographs matthew roberts
mountain leGenDS part 3
Rock-climbing legend, adventurer, Kangchenjunga-summiteer: Joe Brown at 81, June 2012.
november 2012 Trail 53
There’s a mixture of the alternative and the classic in this selection of routes. While traditionalists can head up the ever popular Helvellyn, those in search of something different can enjoy long-lost Quinag in Sutherland, the Galloway Hills or one of our spectacular routes in mid Wales or the Lakes. As ever, happy walking!
Trail Routes 1-12 use OS mapping and gradient profiles, and are available to download at lfto.com/routes
1 Haweswater 10.9km p107 2 Kentmere 15.4km p109 3 DrygarnFawr 15km p111 4 CastleCrag/HigHspy 17.7km p113 5 Quinag 13km p115 6 rHinnsoFKells 34km p117
ultimate weekend – killin 7 tarmachanridge 12km p122 8 benlawersridge 15.5km p123 9 sronachlachain 6.8km p124
ultimate weekend – machynlleth 10 pistyllyllyn 6.6km p128 11 cadairidris 8.1km p129 12 waun-oer 14.5km p130
classic route 13 helvellynviatheedges 13.5km p133
p107 p110 p118
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p115
GRADIENT PROFILE
00
METRESABOVE
SEALEVEL
140012001000800600400200
MILESKILOMETRES
Start Pistyll y Llyn Hafodwnog Finish
1 2 3 4
11
22
33
44
5 6
SN756962 Continue up the lane around to the
right to enter the farmyard. Pass a barn on the right and then swing left, signed to the Falls. Follow this track until it forks and take the top (left) branch to continue in the same direction. Stay on this until a stile, beneath a gate, leads onto rough ground. Keep straight ahead, with a fence to your left, and you’ll eventually reach a gate on the left that leads into a small plantation. Continue to a gate that leads onto open ground and keep ahead again to
the mill ruins of Llechwedd Melyn, where you’ll see the rusty remains of a turbine.
SN755949 Pass the fenced-off shaft and
cross the stream then bear half left to follow the path of least resistance uphill, roughly parallel to the tributary stream, until you reach a coppice at the top. Here join a good path and bear right to start the final climb above the falls. The path becomes incredibly airy as it ascends, eventually tracking above some huge crags
before topping out on a tussocky plateau.
SN753941 Bear south-south-west to a kind of
stile in the fence ahead and cross this to enter the wood. Now follow the vague path through the wood, gradually climbing to join a forest track. Turn left onto this and follow it until it eventually leaves the forest at a gate. Turn left and follow the broad track left and right and then, as it tracks across the head of the valley, pass a huge water pipe. Next bear left, off the track, to follow a narrow path along the ridge top.
SN762945 Continue along the ridge top
until you are running parallel with the track again and cross a stile before bearing half left to start losing height. Drop until you pass above a fence corner and follow the contour lines to cross a patch of marshy, reedy ground. Now bear half right to follow the edge of this up to a gap in the fence. Go through and follow the ridge top until you verge with a fence on the left by a gate. Keep the fence to your left and continue to the end, where you turn left. Cross the field, parallel to the fence above, and then bear right to drop steeply to a gate. Go through and follow a good track down into the farmyard. Turn right to return to the car park.
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128 Trail november 2012 november 2012 Trail 129
Distance 6.6km (4 miles)
Total ascent 400m
Time 3 hours
Start/finish small car park, road end, south-west of Glaspwll (SN756962)
Terrain rough and boggy pastures and good forest tracks; one very exposed path
Maps OS Explorer: (1:25,000) 215; OS Landranger (1:50,000) 135
Public transport buses south from Machynlleth only as far as the A487 0871 200 2233; www.traveline-cymru.info
Guidebook Walking Around the Plynlimon Hills by Roger Handley, pb Kittiwake
Manchester
Middlesbrough
Kendal
Skipton
Sheffield
PeterboroughBirmingham
Derby
Betws-y-Coed
Pembroke
Brecon
Bristol
Plymouth
Poole
Bodmin
Minehead
BrightonSouthampton
Oxford
Berwick-upon-Tweed
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
EdinburghGlasgow
Aberdeen
Inverness
Fort William
Oban
MallaigInverie
Shiel Bridge
Ullapool
Braemar
Killarney
TraleeDingle
KenmareCork
Waterford
Dublin
Belfast
Londonderry
Donegal
Hay-on-Wye
Llangollen
IngletonBentham
Lancaster
Stranraer
Ballantrae
Ayr
Dumfries
Portree
MULL
ISLE OF SKYE
ISLE OF LEWIS
Lairg
Thurso
Invergarry
Aviemore
Newton Stewart
Jedburgh
Leeds
York
Northallerton
Barmouth
RhylConway
Cardigan
Aberystwyth
SwanseaCardiff
Gloucester
Exeter
ISLE OF ARRAN
JURA
ISLAY
HARRIS
Bodelwyddan
Liverpool
Carlisle
Penrith
Windermere
Keswick
in association with
To get this route and maps on your phone now, go to
www.viewranger.com/trailRoute code TRL0308
Pistyll y Llyn
6.6km/4 milesmid walEs10 route
always take a map out with you on the hill
Short waterfall
walk
factsstRenuousness
naViGationteChniCality
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Pistyll y Llyn seen from above, on the descent.
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SH732115 Leave the car park through the gate
next to the toilets and turn right to head up the broad tree-lined lane that leads up to Dôl-y-Cae. Go through the kissing gate in front of this and turn left to walk beneath the house and over a bridge. Now turn right through a clearly signed gate and follow the steep, purpose-built Minffordd Path up into the trees. The flagstone steps make reasonably easy work of the gradient and soon you’ll emerge through a gap in a wall onto the open hillside
SH727120 Keep ahead for a few steps and then
bear left when the path splits by a bridge. Now continue around the hillside and climb easily into the mouth of Cwm Cau, where the
Cadair Idris
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PROFILEGRADIENT
4
GRADIENT PROFILE
00
METRESABOVE
SEALEVEL
140012001000800600400200
MILESKILOMETRES
Start Cadair Idris Finish
1 2 3 4 5
11
22
33
44
55
6 7 8
november 2012 Trail 129
1
path splits again. Keep right to walk past a large rocky rib to the shores of Llyn Cau. Once there, bear right to walk
along the retaining moraine bank to the outlet in the north-east corner.
SH717125 Cross the outlet – it can normally
2
Good paths, easy scramble
be jumped at its narrowest point – and follow a good path along the northern shores of the lake. You’ll hurdle a couple of awkward rock ribs and then climb a little to arrive at the broad foot of a gulley, directly above the north-west corner of the lake. This is the Stone Shoot; but don’t worry – its bark is much worse than its bite.
SH711124 The way ahead is obvious:
follow the path into the ever narrowing gulley. It steepens near the top and is definitely hands-on, although never difficult. There are a few different lines but all end up in the same place. A steep final pull gains a deeply cut niche in the ridge that leads between Craig Cau and the main summit of Penygadair. Turn right to follow the main cairned path steeply up to the summit, where there’s a trig point and a bothy that can be very welcome on a bad day.
Leaving point 5, Cadair Idris summit.
always take a map out with you on the hill 8.1km/5 miles
route 11mid walEs
Distance 8.1km (5 miles)
Total ascent 930m
Time 5-6 hours
Start/finish Dôl Idris car park (SH732115)
Terrain good paths and a steep but easy scramble
Maps OS Landranger (1:50,000) 124; OS Explorer (1:25,000) OL23
Public transport buses between Machynlleth and Dolgellau. Traveline Cymru 0870 608 2608 www.traveline- cymru.org
Guidebooks Day Walks in Snowdonia by Tom Hutton, pb Vertebrate Graphics; Mountain & Hillwalking in Snowdonia Vol 2 by Carl Rogers, pb Mara Books
stRenuousnessnaViGation
teChniCalitytrail 100 Count
■■■■■
■■■■■
■■■■■
1
facts
To get this route and maps on your phone now, go to
www.viewranger.com/trailRoute code TRL0309
in association with
4
SH711130 To descend, retrace your steps back
to the top of the Stone Shoot, and keep straight ahead to clamber up onto the summit of Craig Cau. Keep straight ahead, over a stile, and keep following the obvious, rocky path as it traces the edge of Cwm Cau, eventually veering south-east. Now follow it all the way to a gap in the shoulder, where a cairn marks the main path dropping left to descend into Cwm Cau. Stay with the path as it tracks right to rejoin the path you walked in on. Now simply retrace your steps back down to the car park.
scramble
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