We’d set out from Llandudno at 04:30am in the hopes of witnessing the natural glory of a mountain sunrise, but sometimes things don’t quite go to plan….

I’d had a very comfy night in the back of the van, bedding down early in order to get some rest before setting out. The wind rocked the van from side to side as I slept and just before the alarm signalled the start of the adventure, the sound of heavy raindrops began echoing off the metallic roof.

We set out from Pen y Pass in pitch blackness, each illuminated in our own pool of light from our head torches. Rain blew in on the breeze, but nothing too much to cause discomfort. Eventually, in the east, a faint glow of orange light signalled the dawn.

And that was that in terms spectacular sun rise colours! Soo after, we entered into the base of the clouds and soon became damp from the sweat and rain. The group I was with were fit and keen, so un-deterred, we continued up to the summit, where the wind chill was below freezing.

After a few summit snaps, we descended to the shelter of the station doorway, to get out of the wind and rain, for hot drinks, more layers, hats, gloves and some hot porridge to fuel our descent.

We marched downwards as our clothes became heavy and saturated. For speed, we re-traced our steps along the PyG track and eventually, broke free from the clouds and gained some views.

Before reaching the bus, we came across a party who had slipped and potentially broken a leg. We offered help, but expertise was already on the way.

We stood back as the helicopter delivered a medic to the scene.

Once the medic was on the ground, the helicopter banked away and we made our move to get past the scene and over to the Llanberis pass, where the weather felt positively balmy in comparison!

My ‘test jacket’ had held up pretty well – I was defiantly ‘damp around’ the edges, but certainly much warmer and drier than everyone else!

It was late in the afternoon by the time we’d got the group back, dried out, cleared up and set off for hot showers and a nap. I made it back to The Cottage to sort my own gear out before collapsing on the sofa for a few minutes of ‘shut eye’.